Stephen King’s The Shining Blu Ray Review (Scream Factory)

Stephen King’s The Shining is a 1997 horror television miniseries directed by Mick Garris (Critters 2, Freddy’s Nightmares, Psycho IV, Sleepwalkers, The Stand, Tales from the Crypt, Quicksilver Highway, Riding the Bullet, Desperation, Bag of Bones, and Nightmare Cinema). It was produced, written and adapted by original author Stephen King (Castle Rock, Maximum Overdrive, Silver Bullet, Doctor Sleep, IT, Pet Sematary, The Outsider, The Dead Zone, The Stand, The Mist, Misery, Cujo, Children of the Corn, Salem’s Lot, Christine, Stand By Me, The Green Mile, The Shawshank Redemption, Firestarter, Carrie, and Creepshow). This was a miniseries that was more faithful to the original source material unlike the original feature film. It originally premiered on ABC. Jack Torrance (played by: Steven Weber from Dracula: Dead and Loving It, Wings, Single White Female, Hamburger Hill, The Temp, Jeffery, Leaving Las Vegas, Chicago Med, and Desperation) with wife Wendy (played by: Rebecca De Mornay from The Hand that Rocks the Cradle, Risky Business, Runaway Train, Wedding Crashers, Jessica Jones, Identity, Backdraft, and Mother’s Day) and son Danny (played by: Courtland Mead from The Little Rascals, Recess, Go, and Hellraiser: Bloodline) move into the vacant Overlook Hotel to get away from it all. Trying to escape the alcoholism that derails Jack’s writing career. Trying to run away from the violent outbursts from Jack’s past. Jack’s young son Danny knows better than thinking a change will cure everything for his struggling family. Jack starts slipping away more and more as they settle in the Overlook. He’s becoming a problem but he’s not the only issue in their new location. Danny possesses a psychic gift and ability called the shining. It’s so special that the hotel’s vile spirits desperately want his powers!!!! The original full length 1980 feature film was very controversial when it comes to all the die hard Stephen King fans. Kubrick changed so much for his cinematic version and I know the iconic horror author Stephen King wasn’t a fan of it but you do have to appreciate that he put his own unique spin on the iconic novel. That’s exactly why this longer miniseries was made. Stephen King had full control this time when it came to the screenplay and he made sure to stay faithful to his classic book for this television version. Filmmaker Mick Garris has directed more King adaptations than anyone in the movie business so he was the perfect choice for this take on The Shining. This 1997 version does drag a little bit at times so it’s pace could have been better to be honest but I do understand that they wanted to basically do everything for this complete adaptation. Steven Weber gives one of his better performances as the legendary Jack Torrance. He has a totally different approach to the role compared to Jack. Rebecca De Mornay is fantastic as Wendy. She provides a nice balance with Weber’s lunacy here. She keeps it grounded and they have good chemistry as a couple. Courtland Mead was solid but I personally think someone else would have been a better fit as Danny who’s beyond important to this whole story. The supporting cast has some familiar faces which includes Melvin Van Peebles (Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song), Pat Hingle (Batman franchise), and Elliott Gould (Ocean’s Trilogy). The Shining has some really cool cameos from Shawnee Smith (SAW franchise), Miguel Ferrer (RoboCop), Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption), Sam Raimi (Evil Dead franchise), the director Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) and writer Stephen King (Golden Years) here. I enjoyed the script from King but like I said before it wasn’t as steady as I hoped. There’s moments in The Shining that feels more like filter than something driving the actual plot. I’ve never been a huge reader so for the most part, I’ve mainly preferred the film versions when compared to it’s more extended written counterpart. I think that’s the case with this 1997 horror miniseries when stacked up against Kubrick’s 1980 cinematic feature. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy The Shining and I think it’s awesome to have a completely different take to choose from when it comes to the Stephen King tale. A good amount of the crew here has worked on so many major and high quality projects over the years but makeup team really stood out when it comes to The Shining. The all star special fx crew was very impressive here which included Christopher Allen Nelson (Kill Bill, The Dentist, The Warlock: Armageddon, Halloween franchise, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Suicide Squad, Hostel, Sin City, Bad Moon, and Return of the Living Dead III), Bill Corso (Freaked, The Stand, Man on the Moon, Planet of the Apes, Dreamcatcher, Kong: Skull Island, Deadpool franchise, Zombieland: Double Tap, and Terminator: Dark Fate), Joel Harlow (Killing Spree, Basket Case franchise, The Toxic Avenger franchise, Happy Hell Night, The Langoliers, The Stand, Anaconda, Pet Sematary II, Lord of Illusions, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, The Matrix franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Star Trek franchise, Logan, and Hellboy), and and Steve Johnson (Big Trouble in Little China, Howling franchise, The Stand, Blade II, Night of the Demons franchise, Return of the Living Dead III, Brainscan, Star Time, A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Dead Heat, Videodrome, and An American Werewolf in London). So it’s no surprise that the fx were one of the best things about this entire production. That alone makes 1997’s The Shining worth checking out no matter what. I thought it held up solid since the last time that I watched it so that’s refreshing because it’s been a long time since I experienced this one. Scream Factory is killing it, they are giving new life into so many projects that have been forgotten or slept on over the years. RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from Scream Factory! This 1080p (1.33:1) transfer won’t ever be used for reference quality but it’s a nice upgrade compared to the previous DVD home video release. It’s a brand new 2K scan and restoration of the interpositive. I will say that the special fx, cinematography, production design, and locations really shine on this brand new blu ray. It has an English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track on this 2 disc set. Now this technical aspect is a massive upgrade compared to the past versions. All of the dialogue is crystal clear, the madness is elevated, and the music has a killer boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. It has an “Audio Commentary” with Stephen King, Mick Garris, Steven Weber, Cynthia Garris, and crew members. This is a great track with lots of detailed information, entertaining stories, and it gives you a nice behind the scenes look into this remake. It covers everything from adapting a book to something like this, the difference between television to film, the story, the characters, the cast, dealing with network restrictions, changes that were made, inspirations, overall experience on the epic production, and so much more. It has almost 17 minutes of 11 different “Deleted Scenes” in standard definition (upscaled). It also has optional “Audio Commentary” with them. It has a “Trailer” for The Shining. It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!