Film Doctor Sleep (2019) | The Shining sequel
- Thread starter Ian Reus
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I havent read the book, or watched the movie for that matter. But as I understand it, kubrick changed some things in his movie and king hated it. So is this a sequel to the movie that king hated, or is it just a movie version of the books sequel?
A sequel? Feck me.
The trailer positions it very much as a sequel to the film. Though apparently King is pretty cool with it too.
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Cool, thanks. I had always heard that king absolutely hates the movie that everyone loves. Going so far as to make a more true to the book tv mini series in the 90s(which I also didnt see). I love king stuff but for whatever reason I just couldnt get into the shinning.
It's an adaptation of a book, that is a sequel to another book, that was adapted to film and in turn changed a lot of things (which the author hated). Whilst not being a sequel to the film, it will still reference that film and thus reconcile the differences between the film and the books.
the best i can explain it...
the best i can explain it...
The thing is the movie was in a way better than the book was, that might have pissed King off. Read the book for the sequel and will give this a go, but it wont be as good as the original as the book isnt as strong.
I saw a tweet earlier that positioned it as a sequel to both the film and the book. Looking forward to it, love Ewan McGregor.
Apparently most of the inserts from the original are not actually Kubrick shots, but carefully restaged reshoots.... so perhaps that was King’s requisite? You can reference the film, providing it’s not actually the film, but a visually similar version of the film, closer to his liking?
I don't think it was the visuals from the film that was his main problem. In fact i think he said the imagery was memorable.
The characters were essentially different characters in the film. King especially hated the film versions Jack and Wendy. In turn the film misses a lot of the themes, motivations and general character of the book. The plot changes made also took away from the overall story King was trying to tell.
I think Jack & Wendy are supposed to be cartoonish in their behaviour. It's fine, and understandable, if King didn't like that but Kubrick's version is prismatic.
I would have liked to have seen 1980 special effects departments tackling the vicious topiary animals from the book.
Im almost finished the book. Its pretty good but not scary though, more of a supernatural thriller than a horror.
I love both the Film and the book of the original Shining but I think the book was a bit better.
I love both the Film and the book of the original Shining but I think the book was a bit better.
haha I remember when I read that part I thought "this is great, why didn't Kubrick put that bit in the f... oh yes, It would have been terrible"
That was my point. That King has potentially signed off on an overtly “Kubrick” looking sequel, on the proviso that they insinuate that the version of Kubrick’s film they’re following, is a visually identical, but narratively slightly different version (say, a parallel universe version?)...Hence why the clips from the Overlook in the trailer that look like Kubricks, are actually spot-the-difference reshoots, rather than the real deal...
Because they could’ve obviously used the real ones... since they’ve used the blood elevator, and have the rights to the score (chills, btw)...
I dunno, I’m spitballing here. King is probably the most adapted living author by a country mile, so I doubt he cares that much at this point, since the money is just sluecing into his bank at this point. But the director of this got both his sign off, and the Kubrick estate’s, and did a brilliant job of adapting Gerald’s Game... so I’m assuming he did something to appease all parties.
* also a new actress has been cast as Wendy Torrence, so that could lend some credence to it?
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As much as I love King, a lot of the very best adaptations of his work have actually improved on them. Particularly the shorts (or both adaptations of IT that exorcised the child sewer orgy!) I think if Kubrick’s Shining had come out now, he’d be fine with it, but in 1980 he was still very much possessive of his work (not to mention coked off his gord!) so it became a bigger deal, that’s Rolling stoned into a big cultural beef....
There’s been a notable difference between the early purist author King, and the post 1986 Maximum Overdrive - “I’m gonna write and direct my own shit about a sentient killer truck, also LOTS OF COKE!” - King... Who subsequently realised the two mediums were harder to reconcile than he thought.
Also I think he really trusts this director. After he nailed Gerald’s Game.
Also...we’re talking about this guy...
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Good director behind this so am hopeful. I obviously seen and love Kubrick's The Shining, one of my favourite films of all time but I've also seen the one Stephen King made for TV and feck me it's dog shit. Hopefully he doesn't get too involved in this one.
Doctor Sleep is a terrible name, tbf. The only bad bit of that trailer is that amazingly evocative Shining theme underscoring such a ridiculously whimsical title.
Check out the documentary Room 237. Kubrick was a fecking genius.
Anyone seen this yet? Kermode gave it a decent review.
Always liked Kermode, even when I've disagreed with him. One of the more eloquent critics out there yet doesn't come across as a pompous git.
The book was one of King's best but the film missed much of what made the book so good.
Left my review in the Movie thread. I really liked it. Very good.
Yeah but what made the film good were the changes Kubrick made. In a way he made it into a superb movie by moving it away from the book. I loved the book and the movie is one of my favourites.
One of Kubrick's better films despite Nicholson hamming it up and as I can't stand Kubrick's films so that is high praise indeed.
I thoroughly enjoyed this too, did a great job of following up on both King's book and Kubrick's film. If anyone's read the book it's very well cast too.
Bit tempted by this, when someone does see it can they let me know if you need to have watched the Shining to get what's going on or will I be ok? I tried the Shining but fell asleep
You need The Shining in your head imo.
Ok thanks thought that may be the case
I thoroughly enjoyed this.
Wait, Jack Nicholson was bad in The Shining? You learn something new hear every day..
I was surprised to read that opinion too.
He didn't stay true to the character in the book that's for sure..
https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2474408/the-shining-10-big-differences-between-the-book-and-movie
I, uhm, wot?
Aaah, I suppose you could call it that yeah. I enjoyed his performance quite a bit though. Though I suppose Im a sucker for overacting. I thought Adrien Brody was brilliant in peaky blinders too.
I watched this yesterday, and this is actually a lot better than you'd expect.
You're wrong. I mean, he goes insane and is possessed by the malevolent spirits of a creepy hotel. He's hardly going to play it understated, is he? Besides, I think this performance gets tarred by later films where he just does 'Jack'. In 1980 this was a different performance from his previous body of films.
I think Kubrick also encouraged him to torment Shelley Duvall because he hated her.
It was horribly unsubtle. Kubrick missed that the hotel was actually haunted and the ghosts drove the main character mad. In the film he was mad and his increasingly cartoonish madness invented the ghosts. Kubrick also made his wife a screaming pathetic dishrag unlike the strong character she is in the book. I'd better stop. The more I think about it the less I like the film.
How can he have invented the ghosts if Wendy saw them too at the end?