Don't Make a Scene: The Shining

The Set-Up: For another Halloween horror "Don't Make a Scene," we have a typical Kubrick negotiation, this time in a men's room with one Hell of a paint-job.

The film is Stanley Kubrick's controversial adaptation of Stephen King's "The Shining." After the lukewarm reception given by both audiences and critics to Barry Lyndon, Kubrick felt required to make a potential box-office hit.  Finding King's book pre-publishing, he decided to make his first genre horror film from King's thick book about domestic strife, isolating cabin fever, psychic phenomena and malicious ghosts.  Kubrick took King's ghost melodrama and pared it down to essentials. Then, he adapted it freely (with the help of novelist Diane Johnson), making changes that, frankly, angered King's devoted fans, as well as the author.*

Kubrick cast Jack Nicholson as the tragic care-taker of the Overlook, both for his star power and because he'd wanted to work with the actor before (on his much-researched but studio-rejected post-2001 project, Napoleon), as Nicholson conveyed an innate intelligence that would prove unnerving in his descent to madness (the susceptibility of intelligent people to fatal flaws of character, or nature, is a common Kubrick theme). Nicholson took it even further—also something that has proven controversial—making his Jack Torrance highly reminiscent of the spit-flying subjects of horror comics (such as those published by EC Comics), with just a touch of the comic manicness of a Looney Tunes character (of the type watched by Jack's son, Danny).

That manic quality is in full display in this scene, despite the stillness and measured pacing of the editing. Conflicting emotions play across Torrance's face as the roles shift from fawning waiter and "important" guest to chastising superior and submissive craven—check out Nicholson's body language in the medium close-ups in the "Gentlemen's," as his spine seems to twist out of shape from scene to scene, while the mask of his face squirms from bravado to paranoia to wretched supplication to wolfish viciousness in the face of Grady's psychological warfare using class-ism, racism and sexism. Kubrick was never so much inclined to direct for realism from his actors, as he was for "something interesting," and, no doubt as he did with George C. Scott in Dr. Strangelove, he shot differing versions with varying degrees of intensity and used the "extreme" examples.

Finally, one cannot look at this scene and not think it had some influence on the work of David Lynch—who at the time was working on The Elephant Man—certainly in his work on "Twin Peaks," but also in his filmwork starting with Blue Velvet.  The odd creepiness in the stillness of this scene with its deep malevolent undertones—which screen-caps cannot capture but is readily apparent in the provided video—share the same unnerving quality as Lynch's post-Dune work.

As with most of Kubrick's work, The Shining did not prove to be the huge box-office success that Kubrick anticipated, but has gone on to be acknowledged for what its tag-line crows: "A Masterpiece of Modern Horror."

The Story: Former teacher (and reformed alcoholic) Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson), his wife Wendy (Shelley Duvall) and son Danny (Danny Lloyd) are spending the Winter taking care of the shut-down Overlook Hotel.  Alone, isolated, they inhabit a tiny living space upstairs.  And Nature abhors a vacuum, and the Supernatural even more so.  Both Danny, who has a psychic ability—"shining"—and Jack are seeing visions of past murders and residents at the Overlook, including—for Jack—an encounter with the perpetrator of a grisly axe murder at the Overlook, Delbert Grady (Philip Stone).

Action!

CUT TO: M.L.S. JACK moves away from bar.

He dances forward to center of room - CAMERA TRACKS after him.

WOMAN enters cam.R.f.g. and walks away. WAITER (GRADY), carrying tray of drinks, walks forward from b.g.

He bumps into WOMAN.

GRADY Oh!

GRADY staggers forward, colliding with JACK and spilling
drinks down front of JACK's jacket.

GRADY Oh dear, oh dear. I'm so sorry, sir. Oh!
He puts down tray and takes advocaat glass from JACK.

GRADY Oh dear oh dear... I've made an awful mess of your jacket, sir.
GRADY puts glass on tray.

JACK Oh eh that's all right. I've got plenty of jackets.
GRADY mops JACK's jacket with his serviette.
GRADY I'm afraid it's advocaat sir. It tends to stain.
JACK Advocaat is it?
GRADY Yes sir. Look um... I think the best thing is to come along to the gentlemen's room, sir, and eh...
GRADY bends down and picks up his tray.
GRADY we'll get some water to it, sir.
JACK & GRADY start to walk away to the Gentlemen's. CAMERA TRACKS after them.

JACK Looks as though you might have got a spot of it on yourself there, Jeevesy old boy.
JACK pats GRADY on his back.
GRADY That doesn't matter, sir. You're the important one.

JACK Awfully nice of you to say. Of course I intend to change my jacket this evening before the fish and goose soiree.
JACK & GRADY enter Gentlemen's Toilet.

GRADY Very wise, sir. Very wise.
JACK exits cam.R behind door.
JACK (OFF) Here, I'll just, eh...

CUT TO: INT. MEN'S TOILET - M.L.S.
Men's toilet. JACK moves in from cam.L.b.g. He holds door open.

JACK hold this for you there, Jeevesy.
GRADY enters cam.L.
GRADY Thank you, sir. Thank you.
GRADY walks forward and puts his tray down on basins cam.R. JACK walks forward.

GRADY Now let's see if we can improve this with a little water, sir.
GRADY soaks his serviette under tap. JACK puts glass down
cam.L and turns to GRADY cam.R.
JACK Right, I'll just set my bourbon and advocaat down right there.
JACK laughs. GRADY starts to sponge JACK with serviette.

GRADY Won't keep you a moment, sir.
JACK Fine.
GRADY sponges JACK.

JACK What do they call you around here, Jeevesy?
GRADY Grady, sir. Delbert Grady.
CUT TO: M.S. JACK over GRADY. GRADY sponging JACK's jacket.

JACK Grady?
GRADY Yes, sir.

JACK Delbert Grady.
GRADY That's right, sir.

GRADY sponges JACK's trousers.

JACK Eh, Mr. Grady...
JACK clears his throat.

JACK (CONT'D) haven't I seen you somewhere before?

GRADY Why no, sir. I don't believe so.

GRADY turns cam.L to basins to rinse serviette under tap.
He turns back to JACK and sponges his jacket.

GRADY Ah ha, it's coming off now, sir.

JACK Eh... Mr. Grady... weren't you once the caretaker here?
GRADY Why no, sir. I don't believe so.
GRADY sponges JACK's trousers.

JACK You, er, a married man, are you, Mr. Grady?
GRADY sponges JACK's jacket sleeve.
GRADY Yes, sir. I have a wife and eh two daughters, sir.

JACK And, er... where are they now?

GRADY Oh, they're somewhere around. I'm not quite sure at the moment, sir.

JACK takes serviette away from GRADY and wipes his hand with
it.

JACK Mr. Grady, you were the caretaker here.

JACK I recognize you. I saw your picture in the newspapers. You eh... chopped your wife and daughters up into little bits, and eh... and you blew your brains out.

JACK throws serviette into basin cam.L.
CUT TO: M.L.S. GRADY over JACK.

GRADY That's strange, sir. I don't have any recollection of that at all.
JACK Mr. Grady, you were the caretaker here.
CUT TO: M.S. JACK over GRADY.

GRADY I'm sorry to differ with you, sir, but you are the caretaker. You have always been the caretaker.

GRADY I should know, sir. I've always been here.

CUT TO:

M.C.S. JACK laughs.
CUT TO: M.C.S. GRADY

GRADY Did you know, Mr. Torrance, that your son... is attempting to bring an outside party into this situation? Did you know that?
CUT TO:

M.C.S. JACK. He shakes his head.

JACK No.
CUT TO: M.C.S. GRADY

GRADY He is, Mr. Torrance.
CUT TO:

M.C.S. JACK

JACK Who?
CUT TO: M.C.S. GRADY

GRADY A nigger.
CUT TO:

M.C.S. JACK

JACK A nigger!
CUT TO: M.C.S. GRADY

GRADY A nigger cook.

CUT TO: INT. MEN'S LAVATORY - M.C.S.

JACK How?
CUT TO: M.C.S. GRADY

GRADY Your son has a very great talent. I don't think you are aware how great it is, but he is attempting to use that very talent against your will.
CUT TO: M.C.S. JACK

JACK Well, he is a very willful boy.
JACK smiles.
CUT TO: M.C.S. GRADY.

GRADY Indeed, he is, Mr. Torrance. A very willful boy. A rather naughty boy, if I may be so bold, sir.
CUT TO: M.C.S. JACK.

He looks about.

JACK It's his mother.

JACK looks about.

JACK She, eh... interferes.
CUT TO: M.C.S. GRADY.

GRADY Perhaps they need a good talking to, if you don't mind my saying so. Perhaps a bit more.
CUT TO: M.C.S. JACK.

GRADY (OFF) My girls, sir, they didn't care for the Overlook at first. One of them actually stole a packet of matches
CUT TO: M.C.S. GRADY

GRADY (CONT'D) and tried to burn it down. But I corrected them, sir. And when my wife tried to prevent me from doing my duty I corrected her.
CUT TO:

M.C.S. JACK smiles.
CUT TO:

M.C.S. GRADY.

The Shining

Words by Stanley Kubrick and Diane Johnson

Pictures by John Alcott and Stanley Kubrick

The Shining is available on DVD from Warner Home Video.

* The list of changes is lengthy and spoilerific—even if one has read the book—so we won't go into those here.  King subsequently wrote and produced a TV mini-series of the book with director (and Spielberg protege) Mick Garris starring Steven Weber as Jack and Rebecca De Mornay as Wendy.  The result was certainly closer to the book, but was sentimental and cloying and wildly melodramatic.