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“The Shining” is perfect quarantine viewing
- dade_ 7y agoAgreed, then watch Room 237, probably my favourite conspiracy theory doc: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2085910/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2085910/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_237 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_237
- bacon_waffle 7y agoWatching The Shining at midwinter is a tradition among South Pole Winterovers - for roughly 9 months there are no flights in or out.
- farseer 7y agoI thought watching the "The Thing" was mandatory initiation for polar expeditions.
- trimbo 7y agoWhy not both? They've got all winter...
- bacon_waffle 7y ago"South pole winterover" is a much more specific thing than "polar expeditions", but yes as the sibling suggests, the tradition at S Pole is to watch The Thing after the last flight of summer leaves. My year also tried to institute a "Con Air" viewing before the first flight, mainly as a poke at the previous crew, but I'm not sure that stuck.
- intopieces 7y agoIf you do (re-)visit this film, I highly recommend the "International Cut" that was shows and released on video everywhere except the US. It's the director's preferred version. It's more than 20 minutes shorter(!) making for a much tighter movie, and removes some bits that didn't move the plot or looked weirdly dated (spooky Skeletons towards the end, for example)
- CharlesW 7y agoFWIW: "When released theatrically in the United States, the film ran approx. 146 minutes. However, as explained above, three weeks into its release, Kubrick cut the 2 minute coda from the end of the film, reducing its length to 144 minutes. After meeting with poor reviews and erratic box office, Kubrick decided to further edit the film for its theatrical release outside the US. He cut approximately 31 minutes of footage, reducing the length to 113 minutes. The 144 minute 'US version' is often erroneously called the director's cut when in fact director Kubrick regards both the 119 minute version and the 144 minute version as director's cuts." https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081505/alternateversions https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081505/alternateversions
- intopieces 7y agoI don't know if it's some weird quirk of copyright, but I really wish they'd just release both versions on video everywhere. AFAICT, there isn't a 4K HDR re-release of the International Cut, which is a shame.
- Lammy 7y agoAt least it's within the realm of possible fan recreation if the international cut is strictly shorter than the 4K release we have.
- SideburnsOfDoom 7y agoThe (only) version available on Amazon UK runs for 119 minutes.
- troughway 7y agoLately I have been seeing a number of films that have been altered against the wishes of the director, such as Lynch's "Dune", Michael Mann's "The Keep", and various other WW2 movies. I understand the want for studios to make movies palatable to an audience, but there is only so many people who are interested in watching these movies to begin with, so really cutting is just going to piss off the fans and won't earn you any accolades. And it's a damn shame because in a number of cases the original footage has been lost, so there is no hope for some miraculous "Uncut" or "Director's Cut" version in the future.
- downerending 7y agoIf you want to feel more optimistic, The Martian seems apt.
- taejavu 7y agoIf not, try Moon, from 2009
- caymanjim 7y agoI somehow missed Moon all these years. I literally just discovered and watched it last night. I don't know how it stayed so off my radar, since it's right up my alley. I'm glad that I was 100% unspoiled. tldr: +1.
- downerending 7y agoAlso a great movie, if rather dark.
- telesilla 7y agoOr Solaris (1972)
- lm2s 7y agoTalking about "The Shining": Doctor Sleep is one of the best "scary" movies I've seen in the last years. The submersion was amazing.
- magicalhippo 7y agoBoth me and my significant other found absolutely nothing about it scary, and were very underwhelmed by it all (it had a lot of cool shots and such though). Different strokes for different folks. It's been a while but I do remember enjoying Oculus[1] and The Blackcoat's Daughter[2]. My gf got so scared watching Session 9[3] that we had to sit there with the lights on for a while afterwards, though I haven't seen it in over a decade so maybe my memories of it are a bit rose-tinted. [1]: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2388715/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2388715/ [2]: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3286052/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3286052/ [3]: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0261983/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0261983/
- trimbo 7y agoThe Blackcoat's Daughter deserves wider recognition. Very good.
- cloakandswagger 7y agoI turned it off after 40 minutes. I appreciate movies that use slower-pacing to build tension (No Country for Old Men comes to mind) but every scene in The Blackcoat's Daughter is glacial to the point of being parody while still not accomplishing much in the way of characterization or plot development. Maybe one day I'll revisit it, because I see it recommended all the time.
- magicalhippo 7y agoI fully acknowledge that it's not a film for everyone. I loved the movie but my gf couldn't watch it for similar reasons you specify. But if you do find yourself alone one dark night, and in the mood for something slow and brooding, I would suggest you give it another try.
- SideburnsOfDoom 7y agoWe watched "The Shining" last week, oddly enough. And yes it has something to say about "Cabin fever" It seems likely to be an influence on a lot of David Lynch's work - in terms of a sense of oddness that's hard to define the cause of, and malign supernatural elements presented without much explanation, but which "make sense" in "logic of dreams" kind of way. I did see The Shining years ago, but have seen a lot of David Lynch's work since then, so it's only now that I make the connection.
- causeandeffect 7y agoYou got it backwards. Kubrick actually screened Lynch's Eraserhead to the cast and crew of the Shining to help them prepare for what he wanted to accomplish
- thomasec 7y agoYes! In fact, one at least one occasion, Kubrick proclaimed that Eraserhead was his favorite movie of all time. It blows my mind that Lynch made Eraserhead while he was still in school - imagine having your student film receive that sort of acclaim from the arguably the most respected director in the world.
- SideburnsOfDoom 7y agoApt user name. TIL, thank you: > Making The Shining, Stanley Kubrick announced Eraserhead was his favourite film and showed it to his cast and crew, “to put them in the mood”. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/22/david-lynch-eraserhead https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/22/david-lynch-era... So I was actually thinking of Lynch's later works (Lost Highway, Mulholland Drive, Twin Peaks) that definitely came after "The Shining" But yeah, they share things big and small, from tone to camera angles. There's a scene in The Shining, about 3 /4 of the way through, where Jack is walking down a corridor in a rage, and it's _just weird_ (1), so reminiscent of The Man from Another Place in Twin peaks, and it's hard to say what's wrong, to unpick what's going on technically. I only noticed this on the rewatch last week. I'd guess it's a combination of the acting and sound, camera angle and framing, lens choice, and the camera moving with him over the patterned carpet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzZP-OXA-zY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzZP-OXA-zY
- zwieback 7y agoI tried watching this classic because I ski Timberline sometimes but it's just a godawful movie all the way through.
- imchillyb 7y agoNo it's not, Mrs. Torrence.
- MilnerRoute 7y agoI don't want to say too much, but after you've watched "The Shining" you might also appreciate one part of "Ready, Player One"
- mark-r 7y agoI've seen "Ready Player One" but never "The Shining", so I'm sure there's a lot that went over my head.
- serf 7y agoconversely, the weakness of the hommage just made me dislike 'Ready, Player One' even more.
- sk5t 7y agoReady Player One misinterprets The Shining as a horror flick and not as psychological horror. Delbert Grady disapproves.
- pc2g4d 7y ago"The Masque of the Red Death" for a weird 1960's horror take on quarantine. Vincent Price. Adapted (substantially) from the Edgar Alan Poe story which is itself perfect reading for the occasion.
- AzzieElbab 7y agoIs the Economist trying to get us to kill our wives and children?
- dntbnmpls 7y agoNo, just trying to get us to click and give them ad money.
- downshun 7y agoWe are feeding parasites, and they've been evolving. Is there real value to the article? I mean, really, more than the "oh well value is relative" thing... Wonder how it would be if Newton would have preferred to watch a movie (or an equivalent at the time) instead of taking a stroll thinking of his theories and finding inspiration in a falling apple (the equivalent at the time).
- lihaciudaniel 7y agoExactly the opposite warning us against the danger of quarantine.
- DanCarvajal 7y agoAlso The Lighthouse.
- js2 7y agoI recently learned it's Stephen King's least favorite adaptation of any of his stories: http://screenprism.com/insights/article/why-does-stephen-king-dislike-stanley-kubricks-the-shining http://screenprism.com/insights/article/why-does-stephen-kin...
- blisterpeanuts 7y agoThat's interesting. Years ago, I recall King stating that The Shining was the best movie adaptation of any of his stories. I wonder what changed, or maybe I'm misremembering? Regardless, it's my favorite King movie (though I haven't yet seen "It").
- js2 7y agoMisery is clearly the best.
- inefficient 7y agoI don't think I've ever seen anything stating that. He much preferred the later tv adaptation. A big part of this is that he felt Jack Nicholson was just playing a crazy character. But the character in the book was a father first. And you could feel that. Not to mention this book had a lot to do with King himself and how he was lost in drugs and alcohol. There was a lot of internal and external struggle for him in the book that King felt was mostly ignored. This meant that by the end, the viewer had very little sympathy for him. Personally, I love the movie and I love the book. But I completely understand King's criticism.
- seibelj 7y agoSome more movies in no particular order if you want to explore more of psychological horror: Pandorum The Lighthouse eXistenZ Videodrome Hellraiser (I’m a fan of the series, some are better than others) Blue Velvet Mulholland Drive The Thing American Psycho The Fly Invasion of the Bodysnatchers (1978 version with Leonard Nimoy)
- sk5t 7y agoEx Machina and Solaris would probably be at home on this list too. The Lighthouse is fantastic.
- Threeve303 7y agoNot strictly a quarantine movie but Take Shelter (2011) is a good watch. Deals with certain themes going on now.
- herostratus101 7y agoI happened to start reading it a few weeks ago. The book is even better than the movie, and the movie is one of my favorite horror films of all time.
- blisterpeanuts 7y agoOr some of the short indy films that are freely available these days. The Omeleto channel on Youtube has dozens of shorts that are quite well done, a few in the horror/sci-fi category but many more in the psycho-drama topic. There's also Dust and CGIBros. for mainly sci-fi/fantasy/horror. Alter specializes in horror, and there are several others that I haven't checked out yet (Mr. Nightmare is a large one). For people working from home, as I've done for years, it's nice to take a short break at lunchtime or after work and catch a 15 minute movie. My eyes are bleary after eight hours, so a short film is ideal. Later in the evening, we'll jump on Amazon Prime or Netflix and watch something family friendly (though I recently discovered that my 15-year-old kid was watching an anime that had about the most graphic violence I've ever seen).
- fnord77 7y agoIngmar Bergman's Seventh Seal. Parallels to the time of the black plague.
- lihaciudaniel 7y agoWhat mental illness he had? Schizophrenia, did voices told him to kill people? Wouldn't he died of other diseases? What else Bipolar mania and depression sounds reasonable combined with psychopathy I could see this happening.
- yellowapple 7y agoSpeaking of perfect quarantine movies, might I recommend John Carpenter's "The Thing"?