The Shining [Extended Cut] [4K Ultra-HD] [1980] [Blu-ray] [2019]

There are few people who would have been able to act the role of Jack Torrance as well as Jack Nicholson, who, in my humble opinion is an outstanding actor. It is rare that a film from the 1980s can be as good today as it was when it first came out, but I believe this is one of them. I bought the 4K version of this because I wanted to see this in jaw dropping colour on my 4K TV, and my old DVD wasn't really quite up to scratch. The quality of the conversion to 4K of this iconic movie was amazing, the colours were awesome and the picture clear. I was transported back to my teens when classic lines from the movie such as "Here's Johnny" and "Redrum, Redrum" were spoken. The credits were very old fashioned, plain in style, but the movie itself has, in my opinion, lost none of its suspense; it still kept me on the edge of my seat for nearly two and a half hours. If you like horror movies, Steven King stories or Jack Nicholson, then you are bound to enjoy this blast from the past, especially in its stunning 4K reproduction.

I bought this after being recommended it by a friend who’s big into 4k prints and restorations. The quality of this print is second to none! Beautiful sharp image with the grain we all love, bright colours and fantastic sound, this 4k print does the original justice, this is how the movie should be watched

A true classic of cinema, in a breathtaking presentation.

A brilliant 4k transfer of Kubrick's horror masterpiece. The Overlook Hotel looks better than ever, with the Gold Room a particular standout. The score, as ever, is weird and creepy. This is the US cut of the film, for some reason Kubrick trimmed some 25 minutes off the runtime for Europe. The additional scenes don't break any ground but do add some interesting character beats. As frightening as it ever was. Highly recommended.

I think the first thing to say is that cinematic quality is not, as stated by some, ‘stunning.’ It’s very good, but pales in comparison to more recent 4K releases. Obviously the film still contains those classic scenes that have the power to shock but a lot of water has passed under the bridge since first released and they fail to have the desired impact. In comparison a film such as The Exorcist gets you every time even though you’re fully aware of what’s coming next. But it’s Jack Nicholson’s film. Mad as a hatter and overacting within an inch of his life. Anyone who has read the book will wonder why so many significant parts of the story failed to make it to the screen. Such a lost opportunity. King was perfectly right to complain. For me, it was a disappointment.

This could possibly be one of the best 4k transfers ever, stunning picture, i havent got a system good enough to review the sound but it sounds good enough for me, i would put this up there with Zulu, and the original Terminator which i rank as no 1 highly recommended, 4k disc

Its was great

Stanley Kubrick's 'The Shining' is a horror movie that has gradually grown on me. When I first saw this film at the cinema in the 1980's I had mixed feelings about it. The portentous opening of the film as overhead camera shots followed a yellow bug car as it twists and turns through the awe inspiring scenery of forest and mountain, delivering the 'wife and child hating' Jack Torrance to the troubled Overlook hotel, has always impressed me, what troubled me was Jack Nicholson's performance as Torrance seemed to go over the top towards the end of the film, I have never been a great fan of the "here's Johnny" moment and to be honest I still think there are much scarier moments in the film. However having bought (the extended version) and viewed the film again I am becoming more intrigued by Nicholson's performance, in one scene where Jack collapses to the floor after having had a 'terrible nightmare of killing and mutilating Wendy and Danny' his expression is fascinating, a combination of genuine shock and evil, I've found it increasingly rewarding to study Nicholson's facial expressions throughout the movie. Kubrick provides other frightening moments of course, the general grandiose eeriness of the 'Overlook' the terrifying apparition of the two murdered sisters (for ever and ever) even the ball rolling out of nowhere scares, but to top it all for me the extraordinary typewriter scene (all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy) is both chilling and (for a horror film) unusual. My increased interest in the movie caused me to buy Stephen King's much vaunted novel; I understand King hates the film, reading through every page of the book my respect for Kubrick's movie grew, King's novel is hopelessly longwinded, stretching at most 250 pages of material to nearly twice that length, plus it's not particularly frightening, Topiary animals bring the book down again and again, yet King seems to love them, hedge lions, hedge dogs, even a hedge bunny-rabbit, for heavens sake, utterly risible. Torrance arrives at the 'Overlook Hotel' in King's work as a loving husband of both wife and child, though possessing a temper and occasionally violent which the 'Overlook' exploits, in Kubrick's version Jack is venomously sick of his family from the start, a venom the 'Overlook' exacerbates but is never entirely responsible for, Jack Torrance is well on the way to being the monster he becomes when he arrives. Danny's special powers 'the shining' foresee the horror to come. I think Stanley Kubrick's vision is far superior.