Jack had been researching the incidents that took place in the hotel quite possibly for his story and uses this information to conjure up a plot. It could well be a metaphor for the immortality of evil, with Jack being the most relatable character to the audience to depict that and also to be noted is Gradys absence and the fact that the picture appears only after Jack froze to death. But The Shining bear man does have a disturbing and specific implication. As mentioned above, the film ends with Wendy and Danny escaping during a snowstorm thanks to the snowcat Hallorann arrived in. Tonally, I didnt know if the film would survive that kind of speed bump," Flanagan admitted. In addition to beating him, Jack sexually abuses Danny. Dick tells Danny that many people shine but arent aware of it and demands him to not explore Room 237. Its eyes are similar in design to the floor dials of the gaping mouth elevator, which weve already identified as symbolic eyes, and the teddys mouth is bright red, which again is similar to the gaping mouth doors of the elevator. There are so many doors in the movie that lead nowhere, like our ideas of the movie that according to Kubrick offer no explanation and hence raises the question : What is the maze? Introducing aspiring bodypainterCharrar.basPennywise the Dancing Clownfrom Stephen Kings It, the hit book, television adaptation, and film adaptation. Ullman shows the Torrances their apartment and Jack, not Wendy, steps forward and peaks into the childs room. Wendy runs around the hotel searching for Danny, and encounters ghosts, the flooding red liquid, skeletons in a completely changed section of the hotel covered with cobwebs and torn hangings and probably the most disturbing instance in the movie, the bear man performing fellatio on a man with blazing tribal music in the background. This is thought to reference the estimated 237,000 miles between the Earth and the moon, even though this number is inaccurate. The Shining Is About Sexual Abuse. In the scene, Wendy Torrance (Shelley Duvall) is roaming through the halls of The Overlook Hotel with a knife when she approaches a door at the end of. The layout of the hotel seeming to fluctuate throughout the film is also used as evidence toward this interpretation. We learn that Horace Derwent asked Roger to come to the ball in the outfit. In his theory, he states that, inside the room, Jack is face-to-face with the truth of what he's been doing to Danny after having been in a dissociative state, previously unaware of his own horrific actions. The bank that won't pass on rate rises unless you ring and ask: Just one of the ruses greedy lenders use to squeeze savers and pump up profits Check out our list of the best adapted screenplays of all time and our guide to writing adaptations to learn more about the process. Learn More{{/message}}. Kevin is a sweet, frustrated kid. Those who believe this theory point to a handful of other small details. Parallely, Halloran borrows a snowcat to get to the Overlook in time. Also notice his two hands placed on his crotch, almost like protecting it from something. Jack, Ullman, Bill Watson, Lloyd the bartender not one wedding ring, and Gradys hands are gloved so we cant see whether he is wearing a ring or not. Of course the caption relating to incest is the one thats relevant to this chapter, while the Starsky & Hutch caption may be a reference to Jack giving his soul for a drink and the affair caption could be related to Jacks encounter with the woman in room 237. A drunk Jack, in a fit of rage had dislocated Dannys shoulder and this is presented as a possible explanation for Danny to develop a separate personality (Tony). Now comes the most shocking question. In Stephen Kings original novel, which the film was adapted from, the scene was given more context. He doesnt want to spend any time with her, he refuses to take her for a walk after breakfast, he bars her from entering the Colorado Lounge where he hangs out and he stays up all night while she's in bed and sleeps alone in the day. Your email address will not be published. Traces of his films can even be seen decades after their release; Interstellar and The Tree of Life (2001 : A Space Odyssey), Trainspotting (A Clockwork Orange), almost every heist movie pays tribute to The Killing, Alice in Wonderland (The Shining) or House of Cards (Eyes Wide Shut). Spiked with sexual innuendo, this conversation holds several clues to the truth behind the relationship between Danny, his father and the imagery of the bear, with many suggesting that the animal is symbolic of Jacks predatory control over his family and sexual abuse of his son. He was a figure associated with a variety of grand adventures throughout his life, the grandest of which being his ordeal with King Minos minotaur in the labyrinth. Supporting this theory are the way Danny/Theseus overcomes Jack/the minotaur which parallel each other to a certain degree but not explicitly. But that isnt exactly true. A hostile Jack threatens her and claims he has responsibilities to look after and will get rid of her if she bothered him. The book and movie are extremely divergent. Jack also mentions his wife being a horror movie addict and her character is typical of a scream queen/damsel in distress (something out of a conventional 40s horror flick). Note how the scene opens with a close-up shot of the beige typewriter and slowly zooms out. Both the usage of pre-existing music and the original score composed for The Shining are standouts of the genre. Jacks manifestation as a rotten, naked old woman in the room 237 dream sequence parallels the horrific physical disgust Danny would have felt during his nightmarish ordeal. He is unable to put his undivided attention towards detailing while writing the story or thinking about it, since his consciousness pertains to a limit of recollection. I love Joe Turkels mesmerizing performance as Lloyd, his calmness giving a helping hand to Jacks boiling conscious. However, skeptics would say these could easily be a result of simple continuity errors. Wendy and Danny reunite and leave the hotel in a snowcat, and Jack freezes to death. Wendy parallels this in her last line of dialogue to Danny as he runs to get his fire engine: Make sure you come right back 'cause Im gonna make lunch soon. Bullingdon bares a striking resemblance to Danny Torrance. The Shining novel and film work best as separate pieces, and each ending has a different meaning. Theres also a poster of bears right above Dannys bed with the smaller bear on its knees. In this interview, Stephen King supports the notion that the Overlook Hotel could represent hell. Wendy distraught over Dannys deteriorating state goes looking for Jack and finds hundreds of pages by his typewriter, all of them clustered with the sentence All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. This is one of the film's unique scenes (along with the Grady twins) and it has received a number of interpretations. These observations could easily be interpreted as evidence that Wendy has also had an incestuous relationship with Danny, but my guess is the older woman relationship refers to the woman in room 237, who we know is simply a dream manifestation of Jack. Jack later speaks to a disappointed Grady through the door, who believes Jack doesnt have the stomach to carry out the task. The puzzled look on Jacks face can be interpreted as an effort to get his mind straight, and notice him using slurs every time he talks to Wendy. Tony disapproves of the Torrances decision to move to The Overlook and in a very intriguing scene, Danny is shown visions of the consequences ranging from a flood of red liquid gushing out from elevators, two identical young girls and a totaled image of himself. The Overlooks construction in the early 1900s and the photograph of Jack in the 1920s both pose interesting clues. The open patch on the bear man's behind in the film simply adds to the sexual emphasis. Simply put, this The Shining analysis posits that the film is just as much about the genocide of Native Americans as it is about ghosts haunting the hotel. 'The Shining:' Who is the Man in the Bear Costume? The sound design is top-notch but is literally so powerful at this time, every blow feels like one to your heart. From the sinister musical scoring to the casts class acts, the film has all the components for a great horror movie. Back in Boulder, we meet Jacks wife Wendy (Shelley Duvall) and his son Danny. ", Doctor: "Does Tony ever ask you to do things? Rumor has it Kubrick himself typed those words. Surprisingly, Jack expresses nothing but anticipation towards the role of the caretaker. The truth is, Stanley Kubricks The Shining could in no way be called a faithful adaptation of the source material. What happens to Wendy and Danny after that is unknown (in the film, at least), although a deleted scene featured them in a hospital, recovering both physically and mentally from everything they went through. Here's The Shining bear scene explained. Of all the places in the film that a picture of bears could appear this one is right above Dannys bed and there are no other framed bear pictures in the film. Observe the thick scrapbook with newspaper cutouts beside the typewriter which is only shown for a scene unlike the novel where Jack continuously uses the scrapbook describing the tragedies that took place at The Overlook, a catalyst for his descent into madness. Stanley Kubrick's iconic Stephen King adaptation is intentionally dense and even nonsensical at times. Coming to Grady, who I think like Lloyd was a fragment of representation of the hotel that would explain his statement I have always been here and look how throughout the scene Jack looks right in the direction of the mirror, almost like envisioning himself. Adrienne Tyler is a features writer for Screen Rant. Kubrick used a yellow car instead of a red one and used a red snowcar contrary to yellow in the novel. He also extended the closing date of the hotel to October 30, to welcome the series of Halloween events. Some readers will probably disapprove or take offence at what Im about to say regardless of how I explain it, so Ill just say it outright. The following video is based upon chapters 16 & 17 of this analysis, though both the video and article equivalents Returning to the comparisons between the bear costumed man scene and Danny talking to the psychiatrist, sexuality is subtly referenced in both scenes. The number 42 was shown on Dannys shirt as a parallel with the sexual relationship content of the film Summer of 42, and Danny is wearing it in the early summer scenes of the film. One strong and memorable element of The Shining that didnt directly factor into any of these theories was the soundtrack. Few films inspire as many diverse fan theories and interpretations as Stanley Kubricks The Shining. Why does Tony stay in Dannys mouth? As mentioned above, Kubrick left many details open to interpretation, whether for viewers to come up with their own explanations or just to mess with them. One of the most chilling details about both the novel and film versions of The Shining is that the Overlook Hotel is based on a real (possibly haunted) location that Stephen King once visited. The elevator blood scene first appears as a vision to Danny, and materializes near the end of the film when Wendy is looking for him. Being one of the best 80s horror movies, the flick is so much more than just cheap jump scares. What she sees when she gets there is a disturbing image of a man in a bear costume performing fellatio on a man in a tuxedo. Over the past four decades, The Shining has been picked apart, shot by shot, by hundreds of viewers looking for hidden meanings, ranging from film scholars who adore the work of Kubrick to conspiracy theorists who think that Kubrick was involved in faking the Moon landing. When the psychiatrist asks Danny Who's Tony Wendy, stood defensively with her arms folded, quickly interjects, Tonys his imaginary friend, as if trying to gloss over the issue. Another shot through the mirrors perspective with Jack waking up and explaining Wendy about a feelingof deja vu in the hotel. While he may be one of the weirdest Overlook Hotel ghosts in the movie, Mike Flanagan decided to keep all the ghosts that would've stuck with Danny the most, and that wasn't the bear man. Whats the fun in a horror movie if the characters could just run through corridors swiftly and escape through the main door without any hindrance. Dannys shine reaches its peak at the Overlook Hotel, which mixed with the hotels spirits and own evil, unleashes some real horrors. Now starts a series of intentional continuity errors and weird set designs, that are prevalent throughout the movie. Our partial view of the felatio bear, before he leans back from the bed, matches our partial view of Danny brushing his teeth before his first Shining vision. Before we get into The Shining fan theories, its important to acknowledge the source material. This scene is during the most climatic part of the movie. He tells her that he had disabled both the radio and the snowcat and there was no means of escape left, while the camera points at him in an inverted position giving the impression of him hanging upside down, innovative angles to insert craziness. Last update on 2023-02-28 / Source: Amazon Affiliates. We are shown a photograph in the hallway at the end, which is dated July 4,1921 and has Jack smiling with a crowd of people at a party. But some take the theory farther and interpret the film as a representation of sexual abuse. Others believe its the blood of all the lives claimed by the forces of the hotel, which might be the most convincing explanation. Breaking the cycle. This scene has been interpreted many ways, and one of the most popular explanations is that it represents the hotel absorbing Jacks soul. Quite sensibly quoting Martin Scorsese Watching a Kubrick film is like gazing up at a mountaintop. It's considered one of his best novels to date and one that has gone through all types of analysis thanks to the various themes it addresses, such as family, addiction, isolation, and mental health. It. You dont know Jack and neither do I. Jack goes to check out the room and finds a naked lady who seduces and begins to kiss him and Jack gives in, only to be taken aback by seeing a decaying old lady with him in the mirror. One of the most frequent questions Ive received about The Shining is What does the guy in the bear costume mean? The popular interpretation is that the scene is a throwback to a subplot of Stephen Kings book, in which a party guest in a dog costume has a homosexual relationship with one of the hotels former owners. Move forward, we see Wendy talking to the radio operator about the failed telephone connectivity because of the snow storm. This theory goes all the way back to classic Greek myths. A visual medium requires visual methods. Based on the book of the same name by Stephen King, The Shining follows Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson), an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic who takes a job as the off-season caretaker of the Overlook Hotel. The maze chase grew out of the topiary animal hedges that move around in the book. He tells Kubricks daughter Vivian, You look cute in your red shirt, a soft porn calendar is seen on his bathroom door, he is seen unzipping his pants to pull out a tape recorder and he provocatively unbuttons his shirt to pull out the connecting wires. Additionally, lines of dialogue such as white mans burden further support this association. I've watched the movie somewhere between 5-10 times over the years and still haven't been able to figure out the meaning of this scene. The novel ends with Danny and Wendy spending the summer at a resort in Maine where Hallorann works as head chef. Elsewhere in the documentary there is an emphasis on sexual behaviour from Jack. Notice how we are shown a freaked out Jack through the mirror (reality) calling Danny to come to him. All the aforementioned signs, and many more, point to the likelihood that Jack sexually abused Danny, making sense of the childs fragile mental state where he frequently has terrifying visions about the vast hotel. The aforementioned sequel, Doctor Sleep, got a cinematic adaptation that serves as both a sequel to The Shining novel and Kubricks film, in a way. Later in the film, the adult Bullingdon is played by Leon Vitali. Played with quiet confidence and wounded reservation by "Charm City Kings" star Winston, Kevin starts "We Have a Ghost . Physical child abuse is clear from Dannys broken arm, his trauma response, and the words of his child psychologist. ", Related: What Jack Nicholson Was Really Like Filming The Shining. Flanagan purposefully decided to leave the ghost out, despite Doctor Sleep containing many ghosts from The Shining. 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