10 More Horror Movies That Gave Fans EXACTLY What They Wanted (And They Hated It)

8. Those Shining Problems

The Ward
Warner Bros.

Sticking with Stephen King...

Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is viewed as an utter masterpiece by many, but there were and are a portion of people who have disdain for Kubrick's 1980 offering due to how much it veered from King's source material.

With King himself even angered by Kubrick's adaptation, 1997 finally saw the author's vision brought to live-action life with Mick Garris' Stephen King's The Shining; a movie split into three parts for television. Amongst other things, this more faithful take on the tale fully highlighted Jack Torrance's alcoholism struggles, had Jack physically abuse his son Danny, gave a stronger, calmer, more independent Wendy Torrance, involves the key plot point of a boiler destined to blow the Overlook Hotel to smithereens, and Danny manages to bring some clarity to his father as part of the climax.

Overseen by King, this version of The Shining was about as faithful as it could possibly be. The problem is, despite initial praise, many who'd blasted Kubrick's Shining soon soured on the '97 adaptation, realising that Kubrick's movie was a more streamlined, consistently engaging story.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.