Topic > The Shining: analysis of the book and the film

The Shining: King VS. KubrickThe famous director Stanley Kubrick was a master of his time, an auteur so to speak, who drew inspiration from various literary works. He has tackled controversial and timely topics with his unique interpretation, which has become a hallmark of his films. These films are considered timeless and are still appreciated and studied carefully today. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Because of Kubrick's distinctive style, many writers would not appreciate his interpretation of their novel. A great example of this is The Shining, which Stephen King despised. In an interview with Rolling Stone, King stated that “The book is hot and the movie is cold; the book ends with fire and the film with ice. While adapting a novel can leave out many details and thus be generally considered a “flop,” you can also benefit from the changes. Kubrick did this by changing some character developments and major plot lines from the original story. Although the story was very different, Kubrick constructed his own version of the book, turning it into a very popular cult classic. Kubrick solidified his status as an auteur through changing character portrayals, demonstrating his desire to make the film his own. This can be seen in his approach to the three main characters; Danny, Wendy and Jack. In the book, Danny is portrayed as a very intelligent and socially engaged child, with a particular attachment to his father. This relationship, however, is much more prevalent in the novel, which changed the final scene of the confrontation with his father. On page 428, chapter 55 he said: “It is you, not my father. You are the hotel. And when you get what you want you won't give anything to my father because you're selfish." After saying this Danny managed to bring his father to a moment of clarity, in which Jack could say goodbye to him. Film Danny would never have resisted Jack like this .The book made Danny the catalyst for Jack's madness, as the Overlook hotel was after Danny and his "shining" power was the reason for Jack's attempt to kill his son, as the hotel did not he was able to do that. While in the film Danny was very isolated and distant, he almost never spoke and was scared the entire film made him seem helpless, a victim instead of the essential character he was in the elaborate chess game developed by Kubrick. Where King made her queen, Kubrick downgraded her to a common pawn. The change in her physical appearance is directly related to her change in character , Shelly Duval's pale skin and dark features exemplified the horror genre of the film. The public had the feeling that he might be the target of something tragic. However, the differences were more than superficial. In the film, Wendy played the role of the common housewife. As King said in a BBC interview, "...she's there basically to scream and be stupid and that's not the woman I wrote about." The woman King created was the one who had to find what was best for her family. He was multidimensional, dealing with his own internal struggles while balancing family needs. His intentions were good, attempting to leave when he finds out what's happening to Jack. Towards the end of the book she was bloodied and broken from fighting her husband, causing her immense mental distress and physical pain. In the book it is much more than a scream, while the film leaves Wendy without even a scratch. Kubrick makes her struggle less serious, effectively belittling hispurpose in history. Jack Torrance's character differences, however, influenced the story's ending the most. From the beginning Jack was shown to be unstable in the film. During his presentation at the Hotel, as Ullman (the hotel manager from the film) told Jack about the most recent Overlook tragedy, Jack remained impassive. He showed no sadness over the terrible end of Grady and his family, instead suggesting that Wendy would like to know with her affinity for horror. It's obvious that no sane man could ignore the brutal and violent murder of an entire family, a key clue to Jack's character. Throughout the film there was no sympathy for Jack. He quickly fell into the role of a deranged killer, whereas in the book he struggled to figure out what was best for his family. For the entire novel Jack believed he was doing what was best for them, but the turning point came when he threw away the magneto, the crucial part of the snowmobile. After a long internal debate that King summarizes as "...trying to play solitaire with an ace missing" (ch. 33, p. 282), it was the hotel eating away at Jack's mind that made him decide their fate, which was to stay in the hotel. for the winter. The book slowly slipped Jack into madness, while the hotel lured him with promises of alcohol, promotions and power. The Overlook used Jack to get to Danny, while the spirits took control of Jack's body and transformed him into an uncontrollable monster. Jack truly cared for his family, as seen in chapter 55 on page 428 where he said, “Doc, run. Soon. And remember how much I love you." In this brief moment Jack managed to overcome the demons that were taking over him, conveying a final message to his son, whereas in the film this self-sacrifice is thrown away. The book goes into detail about Jack working in the basement with the boiler, being the initial moment the hotel takes over him, is what led to Jack's death, sending the Overlook into flames with him inside. Jack doesn't even care about the rickety car; This led to the film ending with another victim being claimed, while the Hotel continues to tell the story incredibly different stories, cut from the same cloth. The treatment of Danny's shining power and the hotel as its own entity are what set the two interpretations on divergent paths it perfectly described the tone of each piece. The first alteration of Danny's abilities to fit the film was found in his imaginary friend Tony. In the book Tony was a completely internalized fixture for Danny, as they only interacted with each other. Because of this, he has become a confidant to Danny, rather than the security blanket the film offers him. Kubrick had Tony communicate with Wendy and Jack to save time and still convey a similar message. The fact that Tony was able to speak, ignored Danny's integrity. This made him seem like an unstable and unreliable character who hid behind Tony to avoid reliving the visions he was shown. Kubrick began to touch on the theme of splendor, but rejected it completely after Dick Hallorann mentioned it. Yet the novel used the concept to drive the story, with Dick stating, “You keep shining, boy. Harder than anyone I've ever met in my entire life" (ch. 11 pg. 80). This allowed Danny to use his visions and ability to read people's thoughts to understand what had happened in all these years He was able to talk to his parents about what.