In the past few weeks, it’s been all the rage to rag on Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. The man behind the tale of extreme writer’s block and telekinesis, Stephen King, recently called the 1980 adaptation of his classic horror novel “misogynistic,” among other choice words, for it’s portrayal of Wendy Torrance. Add this criticism to the documentary Room 237, which laid out a plethora of conspiracy theories and strange possibilities behind Kubrick’s real intentions for the film, and you’ve got yourself a pile-on.
Now, David Cronenberg has made his displeasure with The Shining, and with Stanley Kubrick in general, widely known in an interview with the Toronto Star. Speaking to the newspaper about the new TIFF Bell Lightbox exhibit David Cronenberg: Evolution, the director compared his work to Kubrick’s, who gets his own TIFF exhibit next year. After the newspaper posited that Kubrick had less thematic continuity in his body of work than Cronenberg, he had this to say:
“I think I’m a more intimate and personal filmmaker than Kubrick ever was,” Cronenberg said. “That’s why I find The Shining not to be a great film. I don’t think he understood the (horror) genre. I don’t think he understood what he was doing. There were some striking images in the book and he got that, but I don’t think he really felt it.”
Coming from someone who has made prolific and engrossing horror films including 1986’s The Fly (that birth scene… shudders), he could probably be one of the only people who could get away with saying that. But The Shining is iconic, considered a horror classic and a masterpiece by many. It’s a statement bound to ruffle feathers. Especially as he continues:
“In a weird way, although he’s revered as a high-level cinematic artist, I think he was much more commercial-minded and was looking for stuff that would click and that he could get financed. I think he was very obsessed with that, to an extent that I’m not. Or that Bergman or Fellini were.”
It’s an odd day when Kubrick films are being described as commercial, but to each their own. Cronenberg may have some points in his judgment of Kubrick’s mastery of the horror genre, but it’s hard to fathom Kubrick scheming over box office reports. Back to consult Room 237…
3 thoughts on “David Cronenberg Slams Stanley Kubrick’s ‘The Shining’”
I love Cronenberg and I love Kubrick but Cronenberg is wrong. Plus, “Cosmopolis” sucked.
Thank you for mentioning that movie Steve. Yeah I just think Cronenberg is upset that he will never be at the same level as Kubrick. Sofia had it right when she said that it was arrogant. Room 237 is fascinating if you don’t take what is said too seriously
Wow, that was incredibly arrogant of Cronenberg. But I guess I’ll watch Room 237, out of curiosity. I never gave that much thought to The Shining — I always just regarded it as a great film, and one that I really like!