Welcome to StephenKing.com. The lawnmower man. The Shining (film) In the film, Jack Torrance, a writer and recovering alcoholic, takes a job as an off-season caretaker at an isolated hotel called the Overlook Hotel.
His young son possesses psychic abilities and is able to see things from the past and future, such as the ghosts who inhabit the hotel. Soon after settling in, the family is trapped in the hotel by a snowstorm, and Jack gradually becomes influenced by a supernatural presence; he descends into madness and attempts to murder his wife and son. Unlike previous Kubrick films, which developed an audience gradually by building on word-of-mouth, The Shining was released as a mass-market film, opening at first in just two cities on Memorial Day, then nationwide a month later.[5] Although initial response to the film was mixed, later critical assessment was more favorable and it is now listed among the greatest horror movies, while some have even viewed it as one of the greatest films of all time. Original typewriter and page from the film. Tim Burton. Movies he has made.