Red Rum. Room 237. "Here's Johnny!" Despite cries from novelist Stephen King - who penned the original novel on which this landmark film was based - that the movie was a pale imitation of his work, Stanley Kubrick's infamous classic, starring Jack Nicholson, now stands as one of the best and most beloved horror movies of all-time. Indeed, despite King's claims that Kubrick butchered his novel (many of which are justified), the film clings to such a strange and chilling power that the two works should be viewed as separate entities derived from the same germ. The plot is the stuff of legend: wannabe novelist Jack Torrance (Nicholson) takes on a job as a caretaker at the Overlook Hotel, located high in the Colorado mountains. He brings his family along, but the pressure of isolation - and the fact that the hotel is haunted - begins to send Jack insane. Nicholson chews the scenery, sure, but his performance is also brilliant in its depictions of a man on the edge. Kubrick layers the film with his trademark attention to detail, and its influence on pop culture is pretty much incalculable. What's more, it's nail-bitingly scary from start to finish.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
