Her gullible belief of Dannys room 237 story is plain silly. The truth is, Stanley Kubricks The Shining could in no way be called a faithful adaptation of the source material. Were in a golden age of TV writing and development. Add to that the fact that he reads Playgirl magazine. There is also an odd Mickey Mouse parallel. The final outcome was, as we all are aware of, one of the finest horror movies of all time. Connecting the dots, The Shining bear man and his partner could be stand-ins for Danny and Jack. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Notice how we are shown a freaked out Jack through the mirror (reality) calling Danny to come to him. One of the most persuasive is the reoccurrence of The Shining bear symbolism. 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. Learn More{{/message}}, {{#message}}{{{message}}}{{/message}}{{^message}}It appears your submission was successful. Kubrick replaced the hedge animals in the book with a hedge maze, which like the movie offers endless possibilities but barely any solution. More and more people are flocking to the small screen to find daily entertainment. contain their own pieces of unique information. 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. The fact that his films like 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Shining require detailed explanations says a lot about his craft. Played with quiet confidence and wounded reservation by "Charm City Kings" star Winston, Kevin starts "We Have a Ghost . She was also a contributor for FanSided's BamSmackPow and 1428 Elm. Jack is left in the snow and freezes to death, and its implied that the Overlook Hotel continued with its cycle of murder by bringing in more reincarnations of past workers. In Doctor Sleep, Adult Danny Torrance is forced to head to the Overlook in order to unleash a greater evil on villain Rose the Hat, but while there encounters the ghost of his father. For a detailed description of this subplot follow this link. Mr Ullmann converses with Jack regarding formal details and warns him about the history of the Overlook. Breaking the cycle. It. . Kubricks mind is the limit to its extensiveness. We learn that Horace Derwent asked Roger to come to the ball in the outfit. The Shining. Wendy defends herself with a knife and slashes Jacks arm, causing him to retreat. Its also possible that the framing of the bear picture is a parallel of the felatio bear being seen within a door frame. The novel decided to show all the images at the beginning, while Kubrick decided to use the conventional step by step process to create suspense. Jack gets annoyed by Wendy coming in while he was working and tries hard not to completely lose it. And both of them have sexual relations with a minor within their own family unit. The Shining novel, however, has a very different ending, and one that even made way for a sequel: Doctor Sleep. He was creating a parallel between Jack Torrance and the main character of Kubricks earlier film Lolita. Jack comes back and lies to Wendy about finding anyone there and leaves enraged when she asks him to get Danny out of here, blaming her for f*cking up his life. The Shining bear suit scene is one of the most confusing and mysterious in the movie. 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. Find out which other movies made it onto our list of the best horror soundtracks, up next. Further evidence includes the cases of Tang in the Overlooks pantry and the otherwise innocuous change from Room 217 in the novel to Room 237 in the film. But some take the theory farther and interpret the film as a representation of sexual abuse. In an interview (via Huffington Post), Doctor Sleep director Mike Flanagan discussed why he didn't include this particular character, and his reasoning makes sense. Others believe its the blood of all the lives claimed by the forces of the hotel, which might be the most convincing explanation. When Ullman and Bill Watson approach Jack in the lobby on Closing Day, Jack is reading a January 1978 issue of Playgirl Magazine. In this post, well break down the six biggest theories on. The open patch on the bear mans behind in the film simply adds to the sexual emphasis. A rotating shot followed by a hawk-eye shot of pine forests that point out of the screen like needles with the nerve-wracking high pitched background score. The last of our The Shiningmovie theories is the most cogent of the bunch:The Shining abuse theory. What makes The Shining so special? But that hasnt stopped people all over the world from trying. But that isnt exactly true. We are no more shown the mirror, questioning the accuracy of the depiction, while he makes Danny sit on his lap and this is when Jack abuses him (the bathroom door is open and theres no toilet paper). The Shining - (Clip) Man in Bear Suit SwordfromtheStone 101 subscribers Subscribe 2.7K Share Save 557K views 14 years ago This is a not often seen clip from Stanley Kubricks'The Shining. The aforementioned Room 237 doc covers this theory and the following video digs even deeper into this Native American genocide interpretation. But, to be perfectly honest, every other piece of evidence in support of this theory is beyond far-fetched and not to be taken seriously. When she's not writing, you can find her trying to learn a new language, watching hockey (go Avs! 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. 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). In an interview (via EW), executive producer Jan Harlan and screenwriter Diane Johnson both expand on the final scenes of The Shining, including The Shining picture at the end. This makes the scene even more baffling and the unknown even more frightening. Tonally, I didnt know if the film would survive that kind of speed bump," Flanagan admitted. However, there are two different levels to this theory, and one is far more apparent than the other. How did these pictures get there if Wendy does all the menial chores. Netflix. Now comes the most shocking question. Jack calls Danny and makes him sit on his lap while asking him about the Overlook and if he liked it, saying I want you to like it with a weak smile while rubbing Dannys shoulder, emphasizing the control he is inflicting. Three minutes into the movie and we come face to face with the words, The Interview in block letters resembling the beginning of a chapter. Here's The Shining bear scene explained. This video is my attempt to put the record straight. The second obvious factor is that Kubrick has omitted the entire back story associated to the dog costumed man in the book, leaving his audience at a complete loss as to the scenes meaning. Danny escapes the maze and reunites with Wendy, and they escape in Hallorans snowcat. With a narrative that's as puzzling and confusing as the hedge maze found in the terrifying climax, The Shining has led fans to rack their head for it's various meanings for the past 40 years. Theres also a poster of bears right above Dannys bed with the smaller bear on its knees. And the parallels continue. Later in the film, the adult Bullingdon is played by Leon Vitali. Well explain each theory, why people believe it, and look at the corroborating evidence. The scene dissolves and we can feel the frustration dripping out of Jack, which is brilliantly conveyed through the thumping rebounds of the tennis ball. The complete lack of wires running to the TV, pointed out by of my correspondents, may also be related to the concept of a fractal film. 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. 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). Now I wont beat around the bush by building up to my interpretation of this theme. Did Jack put them there? He decided to adapt Stephen Kings best selling novel, The Shining. This truly sums up the enigmatic genius of the great Stanley Kubrick. In the novels story, one of the hotels former owners has a homosexual relationship with a party guest in a dog costume. A hostile Jack threatens her and claims he has responsibilities to look after and will get rid of her if she bothered him. For all of the supernatural twists and turns in The Shining's story, knowing that it's based on a real location makes the film (and its ending) all the creepier, even though King reportedly hated many of the changes. The interaction between Tony and Danny takes place with the camera focused on a mirror in the bathroom and the shot composition is similar to the bear man shot later on in the movie. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. 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. Decoding this puzzling moment, superfans of The Shining have long pointed to the relevance of bears throughout the film, with several references being made throughout the movie that each build to one likely explanation. In attempting to answer "what is The Shining about?" That being said, The Shining bear didn't appear in the sequel. Another bear reference is found in Dannys bedroom at the Overlook. She knocks him unconscious in an act of self defense and locks him in the pantry. Here's The Shining bear scene explained. Master the art of visual storytelling with our FREE video series on directing and filmmaking techniques. In addition to the sexual innuendos of the doctors conversation, theres one further scene in the film that adds to the mystery in question, occurring when Hotel managers Stuart Ullman and Bill Watson approach Jack on the closing day of the Overlook. The sexual abuse theme is even communicated in the making of documentary. Mickey and Minnie Mouse stickers are shown on Dannys bedroom door as he brushes his teeth and in the fatherly love scene he wears a Mickey Mouse sweater. Even though the server responded OK, it is possible the submission was not processed. We see an overly terrified Wendy screaming in agony at the sight, but slashes Jacks hand when he tries to turn the knob open. There are also various historical parallels that support the theory that Kubrick wanted to express subtle themes surrounding the genocide of Native Americans. 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