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2. The Shining (1980 / 64 points)
Directed by: Stanley Kubrick / Screenplay by: Stanley Kubrick, Diane Johnson
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Why Its Significant - Stanley Kubrick's 1980 adaptation of Stephen King's The Shining transcends the realm of horror cinema, standing as a landmark film that continues to inspire and terrify audiences. While its initial reception was mixed, future critical revisits have solidified its place as a masterpiece, influencing countless horror films in its wake. Its iconic imagery and themes have been referenced and reinterpreted in countless works of horror and pop culture. I mean, do I even need to list them? Nuff said I think. It received a sequel, Doctor Sleep, and a documentary film, Room 237, about the many theories and mysterious symbolism surrounding the film.

The Rankers
Jcgamer107 - 1
Johnbobb - 1
Evilordexdeath - 1
Fortybelowsummer - 1
Mythiot - 1
Rockus - 1
Seginustemple - 1
Karo - 4
Snake - 4
Plasmabeam - 5
Lightning - 9
Bitto - 16
Inviso - 19

Jcgamer107 - 10/10

Johnbobb - I try to be as unbiased as possible and go into all these rankings fresh without any assumptions of what will or won't be first. That being said, when 80s horror started, I threw The Shining at the top of the list and it never budged a spot. This movie is considered one of the all-time greats of horror for a reason. Top 5 King adaptations of all time easy (and that's not an easy list to get on). There aren't many horror movies that could be called "epics" but The Shining gets close despite only taking place at one location with about 5 characters. The scale here feels enormous; it's the exact opposite of claustrophobic horror, and it just works so goddamn well. It feels wildly ahead of its time, especially after watching a full list of 80s horror back to back.

Evilordexdeath - Breaking news: art snob loves Kubrick. I promise I'm not always this predictable, I actually thought Barry Lyndon was really boring and The Killing was mid. The Shining, though, was one of the first movies that showed me how incredible cinema can be, and one of the ones I've rewatched time and time again. Everything from the dialog to the shot direction to the stylistic choices like the jump-cuts to title cards which communicate the film's timeline is so immaculate and captivating. Even some of the better movies on this list have the problem that their spooky aspects and their deeper storytelling don't really lend to one another, but The Shining is such a great example of how to combine those two sides harmoniously with how the hotel's ghosts feed upon - or are maybe even figments of - Jack Torrence's cabin fever and alienation from his family. It might also be the greatest example of an adaptation that takes so-so source material and elevates it into a classic by... mostly just ignoring what the original did. Gone is the lame-ass sequence where the family is threatened by animated topiary animals, which is about as scary as the topiary creatures song from Putt Putt Saves the Zoo, and the on-the-nose novel Torrence writes about being jealous of a more talented younger man, and in their place is every iconic line or scene from either version. The scene with the twins, "Danny's not here, Mrs. Torrence," "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy", and almost everything else you remember from this movie has no basis in Stephen King's original novel. Neither does its ambiguous ending that so many slightly-pretentious film critics have mulled over: in the book the ghosts are 100% real and the hotel explodes. This is probably why King has been on record for decades trashing this film, but as we'll see elsewhere on this list, his own attempts at movie adaptations of his work don't quite measure up to Kubrick's.

Fortybelowsummer - All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. All work and no play makes forty a dull boy. (This is my favorite horror movie. That is all.)

Rockus - The perfect marriage of a director and a location. The huge open empty spaces of the hotel are perfect for Kubricks tracking camera, slow zooms, and wide shots while Nicholson gives the perfect performance to go along with it. His screen presence is so commanding and he goes big enough that he can fill these large spaces all on his own. Kubrick takes a novel concept and turns it into a chilling horror film of slowly bubbling dread that looks into the heart of man and his toxic history on both a personal and national scale. Its a masterpiece.

Seginustemple - Genuine masterpiece with a clarity of form that transcends genre. The audiovisual experience is so meticuluously crafted, and never has setting-as-a-character been realized quite like with the Overlook Hotel. Having read the book I can guess why King wasn't so impressed with adaptation, as the film flattens his characters - I think he wrote Jack Torrance as a guy that has his shit together at the beginning of the story and slowly unravels, whereas Nicholson starts the movie at a 9 and ramps up to a 10. But it works so well stylistically, the whole family is played in a state of perpetually exaggerated mannerisms and it drives home the film's uncanny tone. It's all been analyzed and admired to death by now, but one thing I have to heap more praise on is the sound design. I watched it with good headphones this time and really took note of the way it leans into the reverb of the space; underlining the roll of the bigwheel, harshening the strike of the typewriter, emphasizing the hotel's presence in the character's voices, it's so immersive.

Karo - A family becomes the caretakers of a secluded resort hotel over the winter, which has every amenity a murderous killer could ever want - a walk in freezer, a hedge maze, no contact with the outside world, you name it.

The father slowly becomes more and more unstable and belligerent as the days go by, a terrifying depiction of psychological decline that culminates in him going after his family mercilessly with a hatchet. There are some great camera angles and cinematography, and though the direction the plot takes is far from surprising, the build up to the end point is masterfully done.

It is maybe a mite too long, and I would have liked the titular shining to actually have some relevance in the story beyond a handful of visions, but it is still an excellent outing from Kubrick and though it might not be a popular opinion I have to say it is one of his best.