Is FROZEN the Disney version of THE SHINING ?

cinemablend.com's Kristy Puchko posted a fun article, asking if maybe Frozen is actually a "remake" of the Shining.  Go to the link because after building her case Puchko gives  you the opportunity to vote.  How should you vote?  Well, it's obvious -- right?

Add this to the Room 237 theories.

Citing blogger Mary Katharine Ham, (the original blog post by Ham is at mkhammer.squarespace.co) the article lists out several amazing -- or not so amazing -- similarities to The Shining.

Here's the argument  broken into simple bullet points:

Similar characters.

• Elsa = Jack.  "Both have something inside them that is a danger to their loved ones. And when given a position of power--be it queen of Arendelle or caretaker of a remote mountain resort--they lose control. Also, both tend to favor a place of solitude high in the mountains."  Ah, now it's clear as day!  But wait. . . there's more!
• Anna = Danny, because they are both left to "their own devices" in high ceilinged posh buildings.  One a castle, the other a hotel.  NOW YOU SEE IT, right?  Ham notes, 'while Jack dislocated Danny's shoulder in a moment of out of control (drunken) rage, Elsa nearly killed Anna twice."
• Wendy = Olaf. Because, like Olaf, Wendy will do whatever necessary to protect the innocent Danny Anna.
• And that means Kristoff = Dick Hallorann, who acts as both Danny and Wendy's protector.  

This is directly from Ham's blog post:

When Anna and Olaf realize they are stuck in the Arendelle castle as Elsa's power begins to throw icicle daggers in their way, Olaf throws open an upstairs window, and sends Anna sliding down the snow to the ground. Olaf follows. 

In "The Shining," as Jack corners Danny and Wendy in an upstairs bathroom with his ax, Wendy throws open a window and sends Danny sliding down the snow to the ground. In this version, of course, Wendy cannot escape as easily as Olaf does.

Yep, that pretty much did it for me.  I'm never watching either movie again.

Holly Derr Uses Carrie To Show Us What Tunnel Vision Looks Like

Holly Durr at Huffington Post has an article titled, "The Blood of Carrie: A Feminist Review of the Re-Make."

She spends her time focusing on the 1970's, not 2013 where the "re-make" was done. She sees Carrie as a challenge to the male dominated establishment and Christian fundamentalism.  For Durr, Carrie's mother represents fundamentalist Christianity.

  the infamous shower scene -- is a product of the meeting of these two forces. Because of a fundamentalist Christian worldview in which menstruation is not simply a biological process but rather evidence of Eve's original sin being visited upon her daughters, Carrie's mother does nothing to prepare her for getting her period.

Only problem with Ms. Derr's assessment is that is not what fundamentalist Christianity teaches.  So  in her  rush to attack Christianity, Ms. Derr builds a straw man position so that she can have fun blowing it up. In the movie, Carrie actually tells her mother that  she is not quoting from the Bible.  Moretz discussed the fact that Carrie's mother had actually made up her own religion, and was not reflecting the views of a Christian movement.

By the way -- in Genesis, Eve’s curse was pain in childbirth, not menstruation. Women giving birth don't menstruate.

Durr continues: "When Carrie's mother locks her in the closet, Peirce has the crucifix bleed -- something that doesn't happen in the first movie. The blood of the crucifix connects Carrie's first period to the suffering of Christ, deepening the relationship between debased femininity and religion."  Someone should get Durr a spot on the documentary Room 237.

The message of Carrie for Durr?  "that fundamentalism is dangerous to women."  Huh?  Fundamentalist Christians believe a man should love his wife, be ready to give his life for her and honor her.  That's dangerous to women?  Of course not!  Because that's not what Durr has decided in her own head Fundamentalist Christians believe.  She has decided Margaret White must represent the whole of Fundamentalist Christianity.  That's great, maybe we should assume Bill Ayres represents liberals.

Of course, Carrie's school tormentors were not fundamentalist.  Nor is Carrie's mother -- she's her own whack-job.  The only fundamentalism is coming from Durr's own imagination.  She made the movie what she wanted, saw what she wanted to see, and came out swinging against enemies that lie only between her own two ears.

www.huffingtonpost.com

Stepping Into Room 237

Okay, my turn!  I've posted some reviews of the documentary Room 237.  Michele asked me in a discussion about her review if I had seen the movie.  I had not.  Well, lucky me, I found it on Netflix.  Hard to pass up for free.

The movie leaves me dizzy.  Too many opinions all jumbled together.  It doesn't help  that  the movie relies solely on voice recognition for you to try and keep up with which crazy person is talking at the time.  I found myself thinking, "Now is this the moon guy, or the Indian guy?"

Here are my notes:

• Watching this documentary is more fun after reading The Girl Who Loves Horror review!  Yep, I laughed harder.  And indeed, cans of baking soda with American Indians on the label  do seem to be increasing.
• Watching this, I can see why Mr. King would want to separate himself from the movie!  Indeed, the movie does not reflect his book.  
• Conspiracies are fun.  It’s exciting to feel like you’re in-the-know; that you have deeper knowledge of something everyone else just took at a surface level. One guy says, “You have to be a fanatic to find all this.”  Yes.  Or just creative.  Because you’re not finding anything – you’re inventing it.
• The guy who thinks The Shining is about the genocide of American Indians says, “I thought afterwords, how come I saw this and no one else did.”  I DUNNO!  If you're the only one who sees the pattern in the carpet, maybe it’s not intentionally there.
• When paranoid people tell us they think the government will audit them because they think Stanley Kubrick created fake moon landing films – it makes them sound paranoid.  

So what do I think?  1. I think these people need to get a job and stop watching The Shining all day.  2. These people think Kubrick way over thought this film.

Here's a few lines from a guy who  thinks The Shining is really about the Holocaust -- Because the typewriter is a German brand.  “That struck me, why a German typewriter.”  And the number 42 is seen throughout the film, because in 1942 the Nazi’s decided to exterminate the Jews.  It is also significant that the typewriter changes color in the film."

I get the feeling each crazy was interviewed individually.  Imagine a convention of these people. what of the typewriter guy met the patterns in the carpet guy and they met the moon faker guy.

Do I like the film?  The short answer is no.  I think it’s funny, and in that sense it’s enjoyable.  But just listening to crazy people read nutso ideas into a film gets tiresome.  My brain is mush having watched this.

Room 237 moves from being funny to boring.  One crazy person is worth a good laugh.  A crazy guy in a story keeps the humor rolling.  Si on Duck Dynasty is fun.  But if everyone in a film is crazy, it leaves the viewer feeling overwhelmed.  I hope Obama Care covers psychiatric care, I know some people who need it.

My preparation: Seminary.
I’m well acquainted with crazy interpretations of seemingly straight forward accounts from taking religion classes at the University and simply hanging around enough seminary students.  Some people do to the Bible what these folk do to The Shining.  In fact, sometimes the History Channel studies the Bible exactly the same way Room 237 studies the Kubrick film!

Crazy stuff I hear. . . (that’s WRONG, do not think I’m endorsing this!) -- It was really aliens who lead the Hebrews through the wilderness; Lazarus was really the apostle Jesus loved, not John ; There is a secret number code embedded in the Bible; 666 is. . . you name it.  It's stuff seminary students or religion majors discuss in the basement of dorms or in the cafe over 30,000 cups of coffee.  Double predestination.  Pretribulation rapture.

Symbolism:
My experience with college and seminary students (not teachers) lead me to a simple decision: I would accept symbolism being read into Scripture so long as I believed the author intended to use symbolism.  But I refuse to read symbolism into everything.  When doing exposition, context matters.

This is why I get frustrated with readers who see symbolism in everything King; or in this case, Kubrick.  Of course, these people actually think Kubrick  intended to put all this crazy stuff in  his movie.

Symbolism is a powerful thing for us humans.  We use symbols in the marriage ceremony; in the elements at the Lord's Supper; as a nation in our flags.  But when everything is a symbol, then symbolism is emptied of its strength.  It loses it's bite.  Save symbolism and secret messages for the times when the artiest is actually sending us secret messages.  King does it all the time, but readers look goofy if that's all they see.  The story is lost in the search for deeper meaning.

The suggestion that the carpet had some kind of sexual energy in its swirl patterns is really just a slap at the viewers intelligence.  It's a cool pattern, but I wasn't thinking sex until someone started finding it in the carpet.  But hey, my eleven year old spots monsters in the carpet -- I guess she's right on track to play ball with these people.

Cartoon characters on the door -- the big one being dopey.  But when we see the door again, dopey is gone.  Could it be a symbol that Danny is no longer a dope?  NO!  It's a continuity error.  But I do think dopey is near by.

Too much symbolism can cause you to lose sight of the intended beauty. Does it matter that according to the floor plans there shouldn't be a window in the office?  No!  Because they're not doing a movie where you are supposed to keep up with the floor plan.  Kubrcik was making a movie about a haunted hotel -- and a window opens the scene up!  Frankly, it keeps the viewer from feeling like it's all happening on a set.  Have these people not seen Star Wars?  I'm pretty sure there were few windows in the original Cloud City floor plan, but Lucas added them later because they opened the scene up.  Kubrick has a window in the office for the same reason, because it opens the movie up.  It's good movie making, not symbolism.

So. . .
What is the secret message hidden in The Shining?  Is it about Indian burial grounds?  Is it about the Apollo moon landing?  Should we try and play the movie forward and backward at the same time?

The secret message is: Stanley Kubrick likes messing with crazy people.

The Girl Who Loves Horror Enters Room 237

I loved Michele's review of room 237.  She has no problem laughing her head off at this documentary, and enjoying every moment of it.  And I enjoyed laughing with her.

This is reposted from thegirlwholoveshorror.blogspot.com with permission and big thanks.  Check out her blog, it's cool.

Movie Review: Room 237 (2012)

You know, I love The Shining as much as every other horror movie fan or Stephen King fan or just plain old awesome movie fan. Stanley Kubrick was an oddball genius who created films that many people describe as "perfect." So taking into consideration Kubrick's careful filmmaking and attention to detail, is it possible that he had some much deeper meanings in mind when he created one of the most popular movies of all time?

Juli Kearns's Overlook map

The 2012 documentary Room 237 explores this issue, with interviews with several Shining fans giving their different interpretations and theories into what the movie represents. The interviewees are not seen on camera themselves nor are they given any kind of credentials other than the fact that they've obviously watched The Shining way, way, way, way too many times. Their theories are presented to the audience by way of clips from the film and other footage that sort of pertains to what they are talking about. 

This documentary was... hilarious. What, did you think I was going to say "fascinating" or something? No. If anything, I'll give the movie credit for being one of the best comedies I have seen in a while. Had me laughing the whole time. I've always known that there were some Shining fans out there who took the movie a tad bit too seriously and all, but this was my first time actually listening to them talk about this shit. Wait, I lied - I'd heard the stuff about the Native American genocide metaphor. It was funny to actually see them try to prove it to me. Anyway, though I admire the interviewees obvious dedication and perseverance, not a single one of their theories even slightly convinced me that The Shining is any more than it appears to be.

The conspiracy theorists actually do a good job of showing the "proof" of their ideas, even though they are all things that nobody else would have thought of... ever. They all say things like, "if you go frame by frame," or "you really have to look hard to find this one" when talking about their little Kubrick subliminal messages. I've seen the movie a pretty good number of times, okay? I never paid attention to what was in the background, granted. So here's a question for you - why would such a celebrated directed who obviously loved film put all the so-called "important" stuff in the background of his movie? Where did all this conspiracy shit even come from in the first place? Why can't the brilliance of The Shining just be that it is fucking awesome?

Seriously, the things they bring up about the movie are simply laughable. A baking soda can that is - gasp! - seen twice in the movie? A poster of a skier is really a depiction of a minotaur? The window in Ullman's office is improbable? Okay, yeah, I can kinda see where that one is coming from if I was anal retentive about architecture and spacial relations, but I'M NOT. Every time they mention some hidden message or whatever that looks to an outsider like a simple continuity error, the comment is always implied that Kubrick would never make such a mistake and that it has to mean something deeper. They saw what they wanted to see, and that's it. I'll give them that Kubrick was meticulous but not infallible. Continuity errors can happen to anyone. The world is an imperfect place.

My favorite theory was the one about how Kubrick used The Shining to subliminally tell the world that he staged the Apollo moon landing footage. Now that is just downright silly. It would be cool if it were true but you're really going off the deep end with that one, aren't you, sport? Okay, yes, I've always been a little curious about Danny's Apollo 11 sweater. Thought maybe it was just a 70s/80s thing that I wasn't around for and don't understand. There were lots of weird fashion trends going on then. Anyway, this is certainly the wildest theory to be represented in Room 237 and one that they thankfully did not spend that much time indulging.

In a weird way I liked the thing the one guy presented about watching the filming forwards and backwards at the same time, superimposed over one another. Yes, it does seem like you get some cool images from doing this, but seriously - stop and think about that for a second. Think about how much time and effort would have to be put into the filming and editing of that movie to make that happen like you think it's supposed to. It's damn near impossible. So that theory is definitely out for me.

Bah, if I go on thinking about this stuff anymore, I'll probably start to believe some of it myself. Room 237 is definitely something you all need to check out - whether you think you might agree with these fanatics or just laugh at them like I did. I really hate to be harsh, but it was sooooo difficult for me to even try to take any of this foolishness seriously. Maybe I'm just not as much of a deep thinker as these dudes are.

thegirlwholoveshorror.blogspot.com

Room 237 Heads To DVD

From the Press Release
In 1980 Stanley Kubrick, who had earlier created landmarks in the genres of black comedy (Dr. Strangelove) and science fiction (2001: A Space Odyssey), released his masterpiece of modern horror, The Shining. Over 30 years later we're still struggling to unearth its hidden meanings. Rodney Ascher's wry and provocative documentary ROOM 237 fuses fact, fiction and speculation through interviews with both fervent fans of the film and scholars, creating a kaleidoscopic deconstruction of Kubrick's controversial classic. It comes to Blu-ray and double-disc DVD from IFC Midnight on September 24, 2013. The bonus-filled discs have SRPs, respectively, of $29.98 and $27.98.

Special Features

"The mstrmnd Speaks: Commentary with Kevin McLeod" (McLeod is a key figure in the online examination of Kubrick's film.)

"Secrets of The Shining," an hour-long panel discussion from the first Stanley Film Festival, an event at Colorado's historic Stanley Hotel, which inspired one-time guest Stephen King to write his novel

11 Deleted Scenes

"The Making of the Music" featurette

Mondo Poster Design Discussion with Artist Aled Lewis

Trailers

SOURCE: www.dreadcentral.com

Will You Be Spooked At The Stanley Film Festival

The Stanley Hotel is debuting the Stanley Film Festival May 2-5.

What is the Stanley Film Festival?  examiner.com contributor Claudia Carbone explains that it is a "A full slate of films, panels, student competitions, audience awards and parties are on tap, with all events at the hotel."

Hold on!  The Stanley Hotel is hosting a film festival?!  HOW COOL IS THAT?  Yes, I knew about this -- but somehow the sheer coolness of it hadn't sunk in.

One of the films to be featured is Room 237

Carbone writes:

A fitting venue for the horror film genre, the Stanley Hotel enjoys its reputation for being the inspiration for Stephen King's book The Shining and the location for the TV mini series based on the book. And, the historic hotel is rumored to be haunted since its opening in 1909. Visitors flock to the iconic hotel six miles from Rocky Mountain National Park to take the haunted tours, learn of its fascinating history, dine at its gourmet restaurant, and enjoy its old world charm in overnight stays.

Carbone quotes Festival Director Jenny Bloom, “It’s an honor to join the Stanley Film Festival team in its inaugural year and build a prestigious cinematic event specifically for the horror genre. The Stanley Hotel's history with Hollywood and real paranormal activity makes it such a natural fit for an annual celebration of film."


FILMS:

• 100 BLOODY ACRES: A trio of fun-loving tourists on their way to a music festival fall into the hands of two crazed brothers with sinister plans in this madcap comedy about trying to survive.
• AFTERSHOCK: Modern horror maestro Eli Roth co-wrote, produces and stars as a mopey tourist whose wild vacation in Chile turns gruesome. Ravaged by a vicious earthquake, he and his friends desperately struggle to survive a living nightmare. Closing Night film with Eli Roth in-person. 
• ALL THE BOYS LOVE MANDY LANE: Resurrected after a several year hiatus, this legendary splatter-fest is finally making its way back to the big screen. When the most sought after girl in school is invited to a weekend outing with friends on a secluded farm, a mysterious suitor begins to pick off the other boys one by one.
• BERBERIAN SOUND STUDIO: Winner of five British Academy Awards including Best Director and Best Actor, this creepy love letter to the classic “Giallo” period details the complications befalling a motion picture sound designer as he quietly descends into madness.
• BIG BAD WOLVES: An obsessed cop, and the father of a victim take justice into their own hands when they capture a suspected killer of children. In their genre-bending follow-up to Israel’s first horror film Rabies, Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado explore an unimaginable terror.
• BLACK ROCK: Three childhood friends have their weekend getaway on a secluded island transformed into a brutal game of cat-and-mouse with a trio of trained predators. Katie Aselton (The Freebie, star of “The League”) directs from a script by husband Mark Duplass.
• Bobby Yeah: Bobby Yeah is a petty thug who lightens his miserable existence by brawling and thieving stuff. When he steals the favorite pet of some very dangerous individuals, he finds himself in deep trouble. 
• Broken: Sarah is haunted by a tragic accident that leaves her fighting between reality and the terror in her mind. Part of the Stanley Dean’s Cup Student Competition Submitted by University of Colorado Denver
• Broken Things: This dark fairy tale, blending live action and stop motion, explores what happens when misfits fights back. Part of the Stanley Dean’s Cup Student Competition Submitted by University of Colorado Denver
• Bydlo: An allegory of mankind heading for disaster, Bydlo is a tragic vision inspired by Mussorgsky’s music. 
• CABIN FEVER: The inaugural Stanley Film Festival Visionary award recipient Eli Roth will present his directorial debut. This modern horror classic centers on a group of college graduates who rent a cabin in the woods, only to fall victim to a flesh-eating virus. Eli Roth in Person
• Dance Till You Drop: The Girl is a newly single dancer that is tasked to watch her best friend’s house. After deciding the place needs a clean, she cranks up the tunes and decides to show off her nifty moves. And that’s when things get really weird. 
• FRANKENSTEIN’S ARMY: Near the end of World War II, a platoon of Russian soldiers are given a secret mission that leads them into the lair of a Nazi mad scientist and his frightening creations in this cinematically inventive take on the monster movie. 
• Haunted Castle: For our very first festival, we proudly present the very first horror film in recorded history. Master of silent cinema Georges Melies directs for your enjoyment. 
• Haunted Love: Jane and John explore the subtle – almost tortured – feelings they hold for each other. 
• Hell No: Hell No is a short movie trailer that explores what would happen in horror movies if smart characters made quality logical decisions. Spoiler alert: everyone lives. 
• HENGE: Following treatment for violent spells, a young man returns home to his loving wife. But as his seizures intensify, it becomes clear something inside him is trying to get out. Part domestic drama, part sci-fi thriller, this ambitious micro-budget tragedy heralds the arrival of a bright new talent
• HENLEY: Meet nine-year-old Ted Henley, budding motel manager and roadkill entrepreneur. 
• Here After: A young girl investigates an ghostly apparition in a fimilar locale, The Stanley Hotel. Part of the Stanley Dean’s Cup Student Competition Submitted by Art Institute of Colorado
• HERE COMES THE DEVIL: Argentine director Adrían García Bogliano (Cold Sweat, Penumbra) returns with a shockingly gory erotic horror film about a couple whose children mysteriously disappear while on vacation in Mexico.
• Hundred Waters “Boreal”: Hundreds of years before the first Europeans land in Florida, a young Tequesta boy goes hunting in the Everglades. Meanwhile, his prey longs for deeper fulfillment. 
• IN: A man is asked by a friend to retrieve something lost inside a train tunnel where an unknown terror lies in wait. 
• In Hanford: This heartbreaking true story of a town poisoned by Cold War–era nuclear-arms manufacture is told through firsthand accounts and fantasy scenes, which empathize with the victim’s plight. 
• Lazarov: Refusing to accept the decline of the U.S.S.R., a handful of Russian scientists work secretly to resurrect Soviet power through the mysterious program Lazarov. 
• Legend: Claudia, a ten-year-old girl, leaves with her family to spend the weekend out of town. At an abandoned gas station, the appearance of a strange woman will reveal her true fate.
• Macabre: A group of friends traveling together are lured to a house of evil run by an ageless matron and her bloodthirsty offspring. The rarely seen directorial debut of Indonesian horror-hounds The Mo Brothers delivers carnage in spades.
• MANIAC: Elijah Wood shines in this remake of the horror classic about a psychotic stalker with a habit of scalping his objects of desire. Reimagined in mostly point-of-view shots, this revolutionary horror hit from Cannes is part camp, part art and all fear.
• Meadowcroft: After a failed suicide attempt, a depressed teen seeks the help of a former classmate, Charlie Meadowcroft. Part of the Stanley Dean’s Cup Student Competition Submitted by University of Colorado Denver
• No One Lives: Gore master Ryûhei Kitamura (VERSUS, THE MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN) tells the story of a brutal gang of thieves who get more than they bargained when they attempt a typical highway robbery of what appears to be an average vacationing couple. 
• Once It Started It Could Not End Otherwise: Terrifying and strange happenings descend on a 1970’s high school. 
• Peak of Terror: When a Monster terrorizes a small town a woman must confront her past to protect the people she loves. Part of the Stanley Dean’s Cup Student Competition Submitted by Colorado Film School
• Pet Peeves: Is a film about Victor, a cereal killer thats motivation for murder is based on her P.e.t P.e.e.v.e.s. Part of the Stanley Dean’s Cup Student Competition Submitted by University of Colorado Denver
• ROOM 237: In 1980 Stanley Kubrick released his classic horror film, The Shining. Over 30 years later, viewers are still struggling to understand its hidden meanings. A wild exploration into the heart of obsession, this cinematic essay is one that you will want to see at The Stanley Hotel. Filmmaker in Person
• Shorts Program I: This program contains the following films: THE APOCALYPSE DIRECTOR Andrew Zuchero Four uninspired friends try to come up with a terrific idea for how to spend their Saturday afternoon. HUNDRED WATERS “BOREAL” Director Lucas Leyva & Jillian Mayer Hundreds of years before the first Europeans land in Florida, a young Tequesta boy goes hunting in the...
• Shorts Program II: This program contains the following films: IN DIRECTOR Adam Berg A man is asked by a friend to retrieve something lost inside a train tunnel where an unknown terror lies in wait. Hell No DIRECTOR Joe Nicolosi HELL NO is a short movie trailer that explores what would happen in horror movies if smart characters made...
• SIGHTSEERS: Ben Wheatley, director of the cult hit KILL LIST, returns with this hilarious horror comedy about a couple vacationing in rural England who can’t seem to shake the series of graphic deaths that follow them wherever they go. 
• The Apocalypse: Four uninspired friends try to come up with a terrific idea for how to spend their Saturday afternoon. 
• The Bungled Child: There’s nothing easy about mending a bungled child. 
• The Cub: Wolves make the best parents. 
• The Event: Love and a severed foot at the end of the world. 
• The Purge: In the near future, a daring new edict keeps the nation safe. Called simply The Purge, it is a 24 hour release from all laws. When vicious outsiders break into an innocent family’s home on the one night that crime is legal each year, everyone will find out how far they would go to protect...
• THE RAMBLER: Director Calvin Lee Reeder (The Oregonian) utilizes his unique style of psychological horror and surrealism to adapt his acclaimed short about the man known only as “The Rambler” and his bizarre journey through the back roads of America. 
• The Root of the Problem: In the candy-colored world of 1950s suburbia, a reluctant young housewife suspects that the friendly neighborhood dentist is hiding a horrible secret. Is it just the anesthesia at work, or is there something more sinister hiding below the surface? 
• The Unliving: Thirty years after a zombie outbreak, people are taming the undead and using them as cheap labour. Katrine catches ‘em and Mark lobotomizes’em. They’re an awesome team, but work is starting to bleed into their relationship. 
• Thumb Snatchers from the Moon Cocoon: A Texas Sheriff uses his cowboy logic to recklessly defeat a race of thumb-snatching, cocoon dwelling robo critters. 
• TOWER BLOCK: When bullets start flying into an isolated tenement building, no one is safe from the faceless shooter who has trapped the residents there for reasons unknown. The traditional slasher film is taken to its extreme in this taut psychological thriller.
• Two Fingers "Vengeance Rhythm": This is the story of a very very angry teddy bear. 
• V/H/S/2 : The latest installment to last year’s successful found-footage short anthology series aims higher, bigger and scarier with new visions from the deranged minds behind some of independent genre’s finest offerings (The Blair Witch Project, The Raid, Hobo with a Shotgun, You’re Next).
• VANISHING WAVES: A hypnotic, erotic, and wildly thought-provoking cinematic odyssey into the unknown realms of the mind, this operatic sci-fi vision highlights the development of a strong psychic link between two patients in an experiment gone awry.
• When The Zombies Come: At a remote hardware store, fans of the walking dead have turned their love of zombies into an obsession, warping the way they see the store and its customers. 
• WITHER: In the grand tradition of EVIL DEAD and it’s progeny, this tale of a group of vacationing friends who encounter an infectious creature from the unknown delivers on the gore in this impressively made low budget screamfest.
• Yellow: A reclusive older man is on the hunt for a vicious serial killer in neon-lit Berlin in this neo Giallo short by Jon Britt and Ryan Haysom.

The In Depth Meaning of the In Depth Meaning Of THE SHINING

photo credit: www.npr.org
Rodney Ascher, director of the experimental documentary Room 237,
leads an exploration of differing interpretations of
Stanley Kubrick's classic horror film The Shining.

I've been reading a lot of reviews of Room 237.  There's a good one at Salon and here's one from www.csmonitor.com (though I don't get the feeling CS Monitor has seen the movie.)  nj.com has an article titled, "Unlocking The Key To The Shining."  Stephen Whitty quips,

Didn't you realize that Kubrick's movie is really about the slaughter of Native Americans? That's why there's all that Western artwork in the hotel. And the elevator that fills with blood? That's because it goes right down to the ancient burial grounds below and... 

No, no, no. That's not it. The movie's about genocide, yes. But it's really about the Holocaust. That's why Nicholson's character uses a German typewriter. Or why, if you multiply the numbers of the haunted room — 2 x 3 x 7 — you get 42. Like 1942, OK? 

Sound a little far-fetched? Of course it does. After all, everybody knows why Kubrick really made this movie — to acknowledge his role in helping NASA fake the Moon landing. Why else do you think one character is wearing an Apollo 11 T-shirt?  (The full review is at: nj.com Unlocking the key to THE SHINING)

NPR's John Powers compares Kubrick to Alfred Hitchcock in that his films are still watched and studied by younger generations.

 My favorite article is posted at Wired by Angela Watercutter (is that really her name?), who offers, "The 10 Most Outrageous Theories About What The Shining Really Means."

"I have this nightmare of a spreadsheet that I'm afraid to look at that I put together at one point where I was trying to categorize every single theory that we found and cross-referenced them," Room 237 producer Tim Kirk told Wired. "At some point we just had to give up on that.”

Keep in mind, none of this has anything to do with the Stephen King novel!  He was  absolutely right to point out, "That's not my story!"  He may have been the first to recognize just how far off track Kubrick had gone.  What King has said The Shining is about: 1. Child abuse. 2. Drinking. 3. Family. 4. A haunted hotel.

 Here are a few highlights from Watercutter's article of what the Shining is really about:

• Kubrick Changed the Mysterious Room from 217 to 237 -- to Indicate Kubrick's Moon Landing Confession
• The Shining is really about the Holocaust. 
• The window in Ullman's office can't exist.  (Because, of course, someone made a map and discovered the window shouldn't be there!)
• The Shining is meant to be seen forward and backward.  (Not that I know HOW to watch the film backward.  Does my DVD do that?)
• The  disappearing chair is a parody of horror films, reminding the audience that this is not just your regular scream fest.
• Jack is a Minotaur, the Overlook is a Labyrinth
• The pattern in the carpet of room 237 is full of symbols "telling us something about the continuation of humanity."  Of course!

And all of this proves what?  That we humans are not nearly as busy as we pretend to be.  Have we really stopped seeking the purpose of life and have instead begun to seek the in-depth meaning of the in-depth meaning of The Shining?

I agree wholeheartedly with John Powers:

In one clip, the fake-moon-landing guy discusses an "aha" Moment. Listening to this man talk, it's hard not to think that here are obviously intelligent people with too much time on their hands. The obsessions with sweaters and moving chairs bespeak some sort of interpretive disease in which one ignores most of a movie — the plot, the characters, the setting, etc. — in order to claim that what matters is actually found in a poster hanging in the background. If Stanley Kubrick — a hugely powerful director — wanted to make a movie about the slaughter of Native Americans, why didn't he just make it rather than hide his secret meaning in baking-powder labels that almost nobody would notice? (www.npr.org hunting for secrets in the shinings room 237)

This is so much like Seminary students debating symbolism in the Gospel of John.  Or gracious, the Revelation!  I remember a NT teacher explaining the many meanings of the apostles catching 153 fish.  (Because there were 153 known types of fish back then -- thus the Gospel is saying to reach out to all men. -- I like that view a lot).  Finally the professor says, "Maybe it says 153 because John had to clean all those fish and he knew how many stinkin' fish there were!"

So when Doctor Sleep becomes a movie, I hope it will really tell us what happened to Osama Bin Laden.

Film School Rejects: ROOM 237

Here's another review of Room 237, this one by one of my favorites -- Film School Rejects.  (Maybe I just like the name, Film School Rejects.  That's  great!)

Actually, I'm getting tired of reading reviews for a film that doesn't seem readily available.  They might as well be reviewing government documents from area  51 -- I don't have access to any of it.

Landon Palmer writes, "But Room 237 isn’t about them, nor is it about “expertise” in any institutional or formal sense. It’s not about the history of the film’s production, nor even the historical Kubrick’s intentions."

So what is it about? You can read the article -- the bottom line is that the movie is about obsession.  But, we knew that, right?   I mean, some of these people think Kubrick directed a fake moon landing and exposed it via The Shining.  Now, I think I would struggle to believe people could actually think that's true.  They might say it, but it seems unlikely that they would actually believe it in their heart of hearts.  However, I've known enough people to know that people can actually believe interesting stuff.  Moon landings hidden in The Shining. . . that's  the kind of stuff that makes you want to say to the person, "Come on!  You know that's not true!"  Pause.  "I mean, you do know that, right?  You do know you're just making this stuff up."  Pause.  "I mean, in your core, you know that's not true -- right?"

Palmer offers that the downside of the film is, "As a movie 'about' The Shining, it leaves a great deal wanting, so it’s better to see it as a quilt of fans’ diverse, colorful, and harried engagements with the film.

The film is given a B (same grade Roger Moore gave it).

Moore's Review Of ROOM 237

image credit: dreadcentral.com

Here is a wonderful review of the documentary "Room 237" that doesn't lower itself to drooling.  The review is refreshingly honest when it says,

The documentary "Room 237" is an ostensibly thoughtful deep reading, a deconstruction of Stanley Kubrick's film of Stephen King's 1980 novel "The Shining." What it really is, is a bunch of obsessives obsessing about an obsessive movie maker's obsessive movie.

Now who can disagree with that?

The review comes from Roger Moore at McClatchy-Tribune News Service and is titled, "Yes, you can watch a favorite film too many times for your own good."

About the documentaries commentators  Moore writes, "They have examined the film, frame by frame, parsing its images like a cinematic "Da Vinci Code." And the reason they can do this is that Kubrick was just as obsessed as they are."

So what are some of the crazy interpretations of The Shining?  Moore lists some of them being that the film is about the destruction of American Indians, the Holocaust, the Apollo Moon landings, or "Kubrick's favorite bugaboo, sexuality?"  Not having seen the film, I'll vote for the Apollo Moon landing, just because I think it's the most nuts!

And here's the thing -- he liked it!  Moore gives the film 3 out of four stars, rating it a grade of "B." Not bad.

Check out the full review, "Yes, you can watch a favorite film too many times for your own good.

Room 237 Poster Stirs Memories

Rodney Ascher's poster for room 237 is designed to remind you of Saul Bass' design for Kubrick's The Shining.  Russ Fischer at slashfilm.com notes that this is right in step with the teaser, that also mimicked the Kubrick teaser.

Fischer gives this info on the film:

Room 237 will be released on March 29 at IFC Center and Elinor Bunim Monroe Film Center in New York City, followed by a national rollout. The film will simultaneously be available on Cable VOD, iTunes and other digital outlets (Sundance Now, Amazon Streaming, XBOX and more).

BEGGS: Room 237 Trailer "Amazing"

Film School Rejects has an interesting article about Room 237.  Scott Beggs calls the trailer "nothing short of amazing."  However, he points out that the teaser really contains no scenes from the movie itself.  It seems this is because the movie is "comprised solely of shots from The Shining..."

Room 237 will arrives in theaters March 29th, with Beggs hoping that

"by then they’ll have turned it into an actual movie. The cut that played at several festivals last year was the film version of a research paper where a kid slapped all his source material loosely into a three-ring binder and turned it in without trying to organize anything. It’s an engaging idea, but it hasn’t really been turned into a movie yet — just a string of headache-inducing images and cluttered voice over. So even though this is monumentally geek-tastic, it’s not really surprising that copying the original is all they had up their sleeves."

The full article is at filmschoolrejects.com

COMPARE:

Room 237 Coming In March

The trailer for the documentary Room 237 is now online and we can expect it will hit theaters in a limited release on March 29.

Room 237 is officially described as follows:

After the box office failure of Barry Lyndon, Stanley Kubrick decided to embark on a project that might have more commercial appeal. The Shining, Stephen King's biggest critical and commercial success yet, seemed like a perfect vehicle. After an arduous production, Kubrick's film received a wide release in the summer of 1980; the reviews were mixed, but the box office, after a slow start, eventually picked up. End of story? Hardly. In the 30 years since the film's release, a considerable cult of Shining devotees has emerged, fans who claim to have decoded the film's secret messages addressing everything from the genocide of Native Americans to a range of government conspiracies. Rodney Ascher's wry and provocative Room 237 fuses fact and fiction through interviews with cultists and scholars, creating a kaleidoscopic deconstruction of Kubrick's still-controversial classic.

SOURCE: comingsoon.net 



check out:

Riding The NEWS Bullet

This pictures has nothing to do with this article
except it is what I NEED
my wife should take out a loan and buy this for me

Hey, there is a lot of really cool news out there right now. Let me offer some bullet points to several interesting stories out right now:

*  I really enjoyed the article at Lilja's Library titled "Did You Catch Stephen King?" (HERE).  He recounts Kings various on screen appearances, from small roles to large -- country bumpkin to loveable trucker.  He even notes one non Stephen King project in which you can spot King's voice!  It's a very nice summery.

*  Hollywood Reporter has a Sundance Film Review of Room 237.  (HERE)  The bottom line, " A wacky, sometimes hilariously esoteric deconstruction of the subliminal messages and hidden meanings in Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining."

*  Matt at Stephen King Fancast has posted an interview with Christopher Birk, director of Willa. (HERE)  Also catch my interview with Matt (HERE).  And the nice things Matt said about me, even though I picked on him and Bryant, are (HERE).

*  Playbill.com has a article titled: PHOTO ARCHIVE: Carrie Musical, Original Photos and Playbill.  (HERE) "As the infamous musical Carrie — based on the Stephen King novel — prepares for its first-ever New York revival at MCC Theater, we look back at the original UK and NYC productions and offer a glance through the pages of the Broadway Playbill."

*  The original final chapter of 11/22/63 has been posted on stephenking.com (HERE).  Though posted at stephenking.com, I first saw it at Lilja's.

*  DVD File has posted the final specs for the Bag Of Bones DVD's.  (HERE)  I might be the only constant reader who enjoyed this mini-series a lot! 

*  Summer Dawn Hortillosa at The Jersey Journal has a story titled, "Lincoln, Holland tunnels subject of exhibit at Hoboken Historical Museum."  (HERE)  She discusses Angus Gillespie, who served as a consultant for the exhibit's design.  Gillespie has written a book, “Crossing Under the Hudson: The Story of The Holland and Lincoln Tunnels" in which she notes various media references to the tunnels, including Stephen King's novel The Stand.  Worth noting, since I think the trip through the Lincoln Tunnel is one of the most memorable -- if not one of the scariest -- scenes in any Stephen King book.  Rank it right up there with those two women hacking each other to death in the middle of the street in Needful Things, eh!

*  Finally, Matt at Stephen King Fancast introduced me to the Discordia 19 website.  Very well done!  You can find it (HERE)  Check out the post, "Mark Geyer Remarqued King Illustrations" (HERE).

Documentary: Room 237

Room 237 is the room number that Danny Torrance is told not to enter in Kubrick's movie version of "The Shining."  It is also the title Rodney Ascher's not documentary about obsessive fans of The Shining. 

Wait!  Are there obsessive fans of The Shining?  Well, I didn't know it until last week.  I was doing some research for another article, and ran into a series of websites that blew my mind.  People had counted frames and done all sorts of cray stuff.  I mean, it's a level of crazy I'm familiar with -- but in my line of work it's usually people who have gone a little nuts with the last book of the Bible.

Entertainment Weekly cites one fan who believes Kubrick directed the Apollo moon landings while shooting 2001 and hid clues in The Shining.  Jason Bailey notes that this makes The Shining "a giant coded message to tell the world about the ruse."  So The Shining is not about Jack losing his mind in a haunted Hotel. . . it's an allegory of the moon landing.  Of course!

Bailey cites Sundance programmer Trevor Groth saying, "“These obsessive people dissect The Shining, and they’ve watched it thousands of times, all finding their own coded meaning and language in it.” Like how the architecture of the Overlook Hotel doesn’t make any sense, with hallways leading to places that should technically be outside, and windows that show sunlight streaming in even though they are enclosed in the middle of the building… ?"

One blogger has found the hedge animals from the novel in the movie.  Yep -- they're there!  Check it out HERE.  This blogger also discusses color changes in the movie, time codes and durations, and VW's.  I kid you not.  So if you want to count frames and find meaning in that, go for it.

And I thought Trekkies (Trekkers?) were obsessed.

• Bailey's article (the Atlantic) is HERE. 
• The EW article is HERE.
• An obsessive fan blog (Stanley Kubrick's Masterpiece) is HERE.
• The Secret Sun blog which has an interesting article, HERE.