The Shining: A Twisted Horror

Psychological horror is definitely a theme that can be seen throughout Stanley Kubrick’s film The Shining that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats. Psychological horror builds tension within the viewer because of the emotional instability of the characters within the movie, and we definitely see this through Jack’s character in the shining. In the beginning of the movie Jack is just a normal man, applying for a job as a caretaker at the Overlook Hotel where him and his family will stay to watch over the hotel. He gets the job and soon learns about the previous caretaker and how he killed all of his family and then shot himself. People say that the old caretaker, Delbert Grady, had been cooped up with his family for so long that he developed cabin fever.

 

            After hearing this story Jack thinks nothing about it at first but as time goes on it is something that becomes more and more engraved in his mind. Jack gets snappy with his wife and stressed out and seems almost as if he could break in an instant. The pressure and stress put on jack from others around him as well as the story of the previous caretaker begins to become too much for him, and this is what makes the film begin to turn into a psychological horror. We begin focusing on what is going on inside the unstable mind of Jack and how he too, is getting the grip of the cabin fever. The emotions, personality, and mental attitude of Jack begins to change as he becomes obsessed with fulfilling what his mind is telling him to do which is to kill his family.

 

            What makes The Shining a different movie from regular horror movies is that it does not focus on a material fear such as monsters or dangerous creatures, but instead it focuses on the mental and emotional fears that a character causes to others. It exposes the inside of a characters mind which in our case is Jack and his mental breakdown, which is why this movie is considered a psychological horror. One aspect of this film that I noticed was different to me than other horror films I’ve watched was the sound affects and non-diegetic music that was played as emphasis to certain parts of the movie. At certain points during the movie as the action began to intensify so would the music. The music would seem as if there was going to be a breaking point within the action were something would jump out at you and the music would reach that point too, and then nothing would happen. The suspense in this film was scary enough and the psychological problems that arise also are what make this such a great horror film.

The Shining - Psychological Horror

 Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining absolutely fits the definition of psychological horror from beginning to end. In the first few minutes of the film viewers are introduced to a seemingly normal family that has just moved to Colorado. Jack is a former teacher turned writer. He is married to a loving wife, and the couple has one young son. As Mr. Ullman explains the responsibilities that Jack will have as the overseer at the Overlook Hotel he seems excited and quickly brushes off the “haunted” history of the hotel and the feelings of isolation that Ullman warns can be hard to deal with. Once the Torrance family moves into the hotel we quickly begin to see the isolation has a much greater effect on Jack than he believed it would. The “normal” appearance of the characters and their feelings of isolation are relatable to viewers, the situation is one that any family could find themselves in. Rather than relying on gore and violence like many of today’s horror films The Shining reels in the audience by focusing on the common internal fears that many viewers have felt before. The fact that we watch the situation escalate throughout the movie creates a buildup of emotions and truly creates a sense of connectedness between the viewer and the onscreen characters. For example, during the scene in which Jack chases Danny through the maze I felt anxious and fearful. The feeling I had when watching this chase was different than when I watch a scene in a jumpy horror film, I was more emotionally involved and the suspense of the scene felt almost unbearable at times. I think the fear of being chased and ultimately cornered is common and relatable for most viewers. In addition, the background music throughout the film added to the psychological aspects of the film and creates an even greater sense of fear in viewers (ex: scene when Wendy finds all of the writing Jack has done). Although this film may not be near as gruesome as today’s horror films it most definitely sticks in the mind of its viewers, and will considered a classic for years to come.

The Shining

The Shining isn't the typical horror film that puts you on the edge of your seat and has multiple things pop out at you. This horror film is more psychological in nature and focuses more on using fear inside the individual to create their own specific fear on screen. Each character has something different that they are afraid of. The viewer can at least find one of the fear's to coincide with their own personal experience. Viewers find a fear in Jack that, they too, could go crazy and do something so strange and odd as him. Or they could relate better with his wife, who fears that her family would be torn apart and reverted back to the night where her husband dislocated her son's arm. And then there is a very real fear for a child, that moving to a new place can be very scary. However, because Danny has the Shining, his fears seem to be unfolding in front of him the entire time. The viewer doesn't know for sure if he is imagining things or if he really is seeing the scary things until the other characters start to see them as well. And even when they do start seeing them, we know that it is because of the power of the Shining which is allowing them to see things that aren't really there. They have either already happened or will happen in the future.

That's why this film is so successful. It isn't because the scary music leads the viewer up to a startling shot that makes you scream, it's because of the uneasiness factor. The viewer is always unsure of what is going to happen next, which makes them build the suspense up in their own mind. It's all one big mind game with complex factors.

The Shining

Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” explores several psychological fears as related to themes in mass society including isolation, family dysfunction, and the unknown.  Though the horror aspects in “The Shining” are themselves terrorizing and somewhat typically expected of the larger genre, certain aspects of this film identify it as part of the psychological horror subgenre, specifically within the transformation of Jack as he is seemingly compelled to kill his family. 

In the beginning we are introduced to Jack as a former teacher turned full-time writer, who is looking for a job that will coincide with his work and perhaps a new beginning.  Immediately after his interview, we are then introduced to Jack’s family and his son where we are made aware of Danny’s “special” ability and their family’s troubled past.  Right away we are presented with social imbalances simply from this introduction.  First, Jack is not a wealthy man and there is an unsettled disposition about his family.  He is taking a job that essentially isolates himself from the rest of the world and is sort of left to deal with his personal and familial issues without outside assistance.  This isolation can be said to be a major fear in the context of a larger society, sort of like in the way films and sitcoms like “Lost” and “The Simpsons Movie” explore the idea of containment and separation.  Ultimately, when characters are contained from the outside, their imbalances as human beings begin to emerge and that is what we see in Jack.

Aside from his lowly status as former teacher and stagnant writer, the viewers see aspects of Jack that suggest his deficiencies.  He enjoys drinking, in fact depends on it, and he has succumbed to family abuse in his past.  His character, by the time he is consumed by his craziness, is almost expected to succumb to his weakness by reverting back to his previous behaviors with a vengeance.  While Jack himself sees his actions as taking charge of his life and his family, whom he believes purposefully brings him down, in the larger context of what we define as being manly, Jack is actually on the opposite end of the spectrum and his actions can be seen as a poor way to compensate for his deficiencies. 

Although the larger genre of horror typically explores ideas of death, I believe “The Shining” represents this idea differently, especially as the motive for the already dead characters isn’t necessarily to kill all of the characters, but rather to trick Jack into murdering his family through his delusions.  While there are otherworldly aspects of the film, such as when both Jack and Danny see the dead, it is more alarming for a “typical” person such as Jack to change into a monster and become a murderer.  It is in this transformation that we are aware of the psychological aspects that classify it as part of the subgenre.  Though not necessarily terrorizing in a traditional sense, “The Shining” can perhaps be more horrifying if only for its suggested possibilities.

Kubrick's The Shining

Kubrick’s The Shining explores all of the typical patterns in a psychological horror. The film explores fears that are very easy for the audience to relate to, and that is what allowed the film to twist our minds so.

As a woman, its particularly easy to relate to Wendy’s fears, however I can also apply some of the fears Jack has to a man’s perspective as well. Wendy had her fears for Danny, normal mother fears, and fears about his mental and physical health and well being. She also had fears of her own spouse-every woman’s worst nightmare really. She was the main outlet through which fears were expressed on a surface level. She was the most vocal character about her fears, for instance when she brought up the Donner Party on the drive up to the motel. 

Jack has a common male fear of not being able to provide for his family, hence his agreement to maintain the hotel, and work on a new book in the process. He later seems to show a slight fear of hurting his family, based on the fact he had previously injured his own son in a drunken rage.

Danny explores the world of fear through a child’s eyes, which is probably the most frightening viewpoint, because children are young, unknowing, and vulnerable. He fears a new home (the hotel), and he fears his father, for obvious reasons. At the same time, he explores the hotel with what seems to a fearless curious attitude. At first, it seemed like Danny’s premonitions if you will could be chocked up to nightmares, which is another fear that is especially tangible when the audience puts themselves in a child’s shoes.

Altogether, the film takes the worst fears of an American family and combines them into what could feel like the eighth level of domestic hell, one abusive parent, one powerless parent, a child with what appears to be mental illness, living in a gargantuan hotel on an isolated mountain, alone, over winter. Throw in that the hotel was scene to a murder, theoretically haunted, and the viewer is served with a hell-ish thoughts sundae with the cherry on top. I do not have much experience with horror movies, most definitely my least favorite genre, so I really don’t have anything I can compare it to.

The Shining Has Realistic Fears

The film "The Shining" the audience can relate to the main character's fear of seclusion and having no one to help them. The audience experiences the suspense felt by the characters. The Shining gives you the moments where they can feel being chased by Jack Nicholson. They can feel the pressure of getting away. The tension comes from the film. Other horror films are a different kind of tension. The audience member see’s someone being snuck up on but its less scary because they can see it happening. In this film they feel as if they are being chased as well. There is no idea of what is to come. The shining gives no hint to it’s ending or reasoning behind much of the film. Most horror films I have seen give a reason in the beginning or explain as it goes. The shinning throws the audience into the middle of the drama, tension and horror. We don’t want Danny to go into room 237 but that’s only because we know something bad will happen. In real life there would be nothing holding us back. 

The Shining: Psychological Thrill Ride

I believe that The Shining is one of the greatest films ever made, not just one of the best psychological horror films. The reason I believe this is because of the story it tells. It's not a horror film that is simply dependent on blood and gore or jump scares. The Shining is the type of film that chills the audience to its core because The Shining is at its base a story about a family. Everyone has a family and everyone has emotions, but what happens when those emotions are pushed to the brink because of ghosts or psychological ills. Another great aspect of The Shining that sets it apart from horror movies of its kind is that it has a multitude of meanings. At the end when the audience sees that Jack Torrance in an old picture of the hotel staff, are we lead to believe that this entire time he was a ghost? Most horror movies do not leave the audience with such open-ended questions. Most audiences are scared of the unknown of what Jack Torrance was going to do. Was he really going to kill his family? Also, Danny's shining lead the audience to believe that maybe all hope was not lost. The Shining is a great horror movie because it strikes fear into the core of its audiences. The Shining is a great movie in general because visually, its magnificently made and acted. The Shining, from the very beginning's opening credits sets up the ominous tone that follows throughout the film.

Grade A Horror

The Shining is a unique horror film. The fear in this film is inherently real, playing on the feelings of isolation, claustrophobia, a touch of possession and a decent amount of insanity for good measure. Based off of Stephen King’s novel, Stanley Kubrick takes the horror film to the next level in this disturbing portrayal of a Colorado hotel and the family that is driven to shear madness inside its walls, during a horrific winter season. Jack Torrance the antagonist of the film is driven to madness by the ghosts of The Overlook Hotel but particularly by a father just like himself, Delbert Grady, who chopped his family up into pieces, stacked them neatly in Room 237 and then took his own life. The tale of Grady is relayed early in the film and therefore gives the audience the privilege of foreshadowing; we can recognize early on that the stint with the Torrance family is going to look a lot like the life of the Grady clan. This early sneak peek of the film heightens our sense of fear. We begin to wonder, when will Jack go crazy; slowly but surely the process unfolds and with the constant howling of the wind outside, the extravagant and lavish hotel inside, morphs for Jack and the audience into a cage of madness.

In The Shining, the never ending carpets, the creaky wood floors, the drastically colored rooms and the high-key lighting, very unusual for a horror film, call out the inner mad man in each of its specters. Though its likely most of the audience would not be driven to murder their family while living inside of a hotel, the film cast a shadow of claustrophobia begging the question; would we be alright if we had to stay in The Overlook Hotel? We just like Wendy and Danny, have no place to escape from the snow, the ghosts or from Jack.  Kubrick amps up the idea of isolation and claustrophobia to almost suffocating proportions. In the brilliant tracking scenes of Danny at the end of the film when running within the hedge maze on the hotel’s property we can see nothing but hedges and snow giving the feeling of cabin fever, making us wonder will we along with Danny and Wendy make it out alive? Enhanced by Jack Nicholson’s superb acting, The Shining is a glowing example of what really makes people shrivel in fright. 

Psychological Horror

Scholars often refer to Stanley Kubrick's The Shining (1980) as a germinal example of psychological horror.  Though this is an oversimplification, Psychological horror is a subgenre of horror that manipulates characters' fears and emotional instability in order to create tension and dread in viewers.  In short, most films of this type focus on what is going on inside the mind of an often unstable character.  And many of the characters in psychological horror films are decidedly archetypal, meaning they reflect the kinds of archaic patterns and images that derive from humanity's collective unconscious.  You will see these characters explore or indulge in the kinds of behavior that most individuals work hard to suppress.  They very often explore fears that can be easily understood by a wide range of individuals; in other words, it may be very easy for viewers to relate to the fears and anxieties embodied in psychological horror films.  Discuss how you see The Shining fitting this definition of psychological horror? How does it compare to other horror films you've watched? 

Modern Times

While I do not know much about silent films, it would seem that because sound was not always available, that the physical representations of words through acting would've been a central aspect of films without sound.  This is representative especially by Chaplin as his movements, facial and body expressions are often exaggerated, seemingly meant two-fold as an attention grabber as well as to convey meaning.  A good example of this at work in his film, Modern Times, is during his work on the factory line.  Once Chaplin stops working, his body continues to "work" and while the audience understands this represents the consuming of the worker by his work, we are dually entertained by Chaplin's humorously sporadic movements.

Sound in Chaplin's film is isolated to those characters who represent power and when the conveyance of mood is necessary  Typically in a "talkie", the focus of body movement shifts to emphasize what is being said rather than using physical characterisitcs to convey meaning.  At this point, audience members are encouraged to analyze implicit meanings of speech rather than actions.  Aside from providint context, those who have the privelege to speak in Modern Times really do not say anyghing that carries importance to the storyline and therefore their roles remain to inform rather than to give insight into the story.  For example, an important scene in this film is when Chaplin must sing at the cafe and what he recites instead makes no sense to the audience, yet they idiotically laugh and enjoy the performance regardless.  As he recites, his movement become repetitive and his expressions monotonous. As we do not understand what he is saying as well as his lack of physical cues leave us in the dark and so it is possible Chaplin is making his own commentary on the value of acting regardless of speech as speech is not always central to the story.

Chaplin does an excellent job of combining the elements of sound and action in a way that means something--both to him and his viewers.

Modern Times - Function of Sound

As a viewer I saw sound functioning in a variety of ways in Chaplin’s Modern Times. A lack of dialogue caused me to automatically focus in on the music that accompanied each scene. For example, scenes of Chaplin working on the assembly line were accompanied with music that changed tempo depending on how fast Chaplin was moving. When he would get distracted and suddenly get behind on tightening bolts and would have to rush to catch up the music indicated this frantic with an increase in tempo. Another way I saw sound functioning in the film was when the factory boss appeared on the big screens to order the factory workers around. Dialogue in any form was extremely limited in the film, therefore when the factory boss does talk it is very significant to the film and illustrates the power that the boss possesses. The viewer’s understanding of the bosses significance and power is largely due to the fact that he has a speaking part in the film. This is something that can only be achieved with silent films because dialogue is more present in “talkies” and therefore does not hold the same significance that we see it having in Modern Times. I also noticed the use of sound when Chaplin was strapped into the feeding machine. As Chaplin was machine fed corn on the cob there was sound effect that was added into the scene for dramatic effect. Perhaps the most interesting function of sound is realized in one of the final scenes of the film in which Chaplin sings at the club. In the scene Chaplin opens his mouth and sings nothing but gibberish. This use of sound is significant because it is Chaplin’s way of mocking sound films, which were becoming increasingly popular around the time this film was released. Overall I think Modern Times is incredibly successful as a silent film. The comedy is simply enough that it does not have to rely on the use of dialogue to tell the story; instead Chaplin uses exaggerated gestures and facial expressions to successfully translate his story to an audience.   

Modern Times

Sound plays a different role in Chaplin’s Modern Times than we have come to expect from the “talkies” we are used to today.  In Chaplin’s film, sound is used in rare instances for comedic effect (sounds effects, such as when he’s tightening all the wrong bolts), and also in a way to demonstrate power. This can be noted in the beginning when we only hear the factory boss, or in instances of hearing the radio, in which case one could argue the idea that the newsman was creating the news, and that was inferring an expression of power. It is also played with when the Tramp sings in complete gibberish. His content-with-himself state of being can be interpreted as power, but at the same time, he takes this power, and by speaking gibberish, some may say fumbles it. However, this is not the case, he in fact was a success with his gibberish singing. (Much like Chaplin himself in the making of Modern Times if you think about it).

         Chaplin’s comedy relies heavily on subtleties, which makes it so well suited to silent film. His facial expressions, his actions and his setting are what make his comedy shine. We don’t need sound to chuckle at him tightening the buttons on a woman’s skirt; his expressions are enough to make us laugh. He uses such exaggerated actions; they do the talking for him. Chaplin is still able to hold on to this talent even in a partial sound film. He uses sound tastefully, only adding it where it will add to the action, rather than distract from his own special brand of comedy.