The Shining (1980)

Name: The Shining
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Released: 1980
Rating: 8.2
Cast: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers

8.2 IMDb 84% RT 68/100 MC

IMDb Trailer

Jack Torrance accepts a caretaker job at the Overlook Hotel, where he, along with his wife Wendy and their son Danny, must live isolated from the rest of the world for the winter. But they aren't prepared for the madness that lurks within.

Best Release

Warner Bros. · 4K + Blu-ray

S-Tier

Buy

Amazon

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no cost to you.

Director

Stanley Kubrick

Genre

Horror, Thriller

Box Office

$47,194,352

Cast

Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers

Runtime

2h 24m

Editor's Pick

The Warner Bros. 4K UHD release is one of my all time favorites. This is the one I put on when someone asks what all the hype of 4K is. The Overlook hotel feels like a real place now where the old Blu-ray always felt a little flat. This 4K scan from the original 35mm negative brings back that fine, organic film grain and suddenly the carpets have texture, the wallpaper has depth, and you can read the classic "Apollo 11" knit on Danny's sweater from across the room. The dark corners of the gold ballroom and the shadows in the Torrance apartment hold some serious detail instead of crushing to black, which is where the old Blu-ray fell apart. Then the colors, oh the colors.. Room 237 has this sickly green cast that really made me feel uncomfortable, and the elevator blood is so saturated it looks like the wet wave it was meant to be. The finale in the snow really shows the HDR off, with solid specular highlights. On my display the Dolby Vision layer adds a bit of extra stability to those highlights over the HDR10. I went back to the 1080p version after and couldn't believe how muddy it looked in comparison. The sound is superb, those low-frequency drones sit right at the edge of uncomfortable, and when Danny's tricycle hits the hardwood after rolling across carpet, that "clack" bounces around the room in a way that makes your arm hair stand up. Kubrick knew exactly what breaking silence with a sudden sound could do, and it's implemented with Kubrick perfectionism. This is certainly the demo disc to show your friends, and of course, it's fun to watch.

noted week of Mar 29 - Apr 4, 2026

Rate this review on Letterboxd