1. TheoryAssessment – TheShining
SceneAnalysis – RedBathroom Scene
In termsof camera work within thisscene I find it interesting that althoughthere are all these mirrors
within the scene, due to the themesof duality that we never actually see Jack or Grady within a
mirror. This couldbe a creative choice from the director Kubrick so thatthe film keeps in line with the
rule of thirds however I believe it is to show the audience thatmaybethis isn’treal well more
importantly maybeGrady as a character isn’treal. This is point is further emphasised when Grady is
talkingto Jack andit cutsto a medium shotof them bothJack turnsto look into the mirror instead of
Grady, almostas if he is havingthe conversationwiththe mirror instead of real visual character
Grady. Again this is concept of Grady notbeing real is further broughttolight when Jack asksGrady
abouthis family, Jack looksinto the mirror andessentially asksthe mirror if he has seen him before.
After the revelation thatGrady was not in fact the caretaker thatJack believes he is, in reference to
informationgiven to himin his interview aboutthe caretaker murdering histwo daughter andwife,
which Grady tells Jack he get a reaction shot to the information, thisis to add tothe confusionthat
notonly Jack is feeling butalso to the audience as well. This then leads to further confusionwhen
Grady tells Jack thathe corrected his twin daughterand thatJack shoulddothe same with Danny.
Correcting could be anothermeaning for the word killed or murdered.
The 180 degree rule within this scene is broke andit happenswhenGrady is takingand denyingthe
fact thathe killed his wife and daughterswhich adds further confusionto the audience butfuels Jacks
derailing of sanity as well. The way in which the 180 degree rule is brokenwhich is a deliberate choice
by Kubrick makes the audience feel uncomfortableespecially with the underlyingtoneof the
conversationbetween the two characters.
The fact thatthere is hardly any camera movementorediting within thisscene creates for a very
tensionfilled viewing accompany thatwith the awkward silent pausesin dialogue give a very
disturbingviewing for the audience.
The last part of the scene is the only change in camera shotsthroughoutthewholescene which is
where we get a mediumclose upof justJack. This is significant to the audience because just before
this Grady tells Jack that he has alwaysbeen the Caretaker and he shouldnobecause he has always
been there, it then cuts thisnew medium shotof Jack. This reaction shotis very disturbingthe
audience as Jack seems to be laughing andagreeing to the fact thathe is the caretaker which
consideringthe last caretaker killed his family doesn’tbodevery well for him as a character
The bathroomscene is overall very brightly lit using full high key lighting which is very different to
some of the previousscenes as they seemed to be getting darker as the narrative progressed
alongsidethe increasing feeling of isolation. The change in lighting may be because dueto the layout
of the building the Gold Roomandtherefore the bathroomwithinthis scene that is in conjunction
with said Gold Room, that shouldn’t even, exist. Therefore the brightness of the roomcould be due to
Jack andhis hallucination and the shift in his nature, the light coming onaboutwhat he has to do
abouthis family which fits in terms of the mise-en-sceneandhow that ties into the narrativeof this
scene being a detrimentalturningpoint for Jack as a character. Alongside thisis the classical music
which has been playingin the backgroundthroughoutthewholescene in particular to thislast part of
the scene when it cutsto just Jack the musicincreases in volumeever so slightly, thoughthiscould
just be because nobody istalking in the scene however I don’tbelieve this to be the case.
Furthermorethere is nolyrics where as throughouttherest of the scene there work the signifies of
this is thatit is just the instruments andif youaddtogether the only change in shottype as well as

2. Jack’sfacial expresses the music addsclarification to this terrifying momentof clarification with Jack
where he actually becomesthe caretaker.
When lookingat this scene youcan see a clear contrastbetween Jack andGrady. You can see thisnot
only by Jacksmannerismssuchas his badtemper but alsohis body language, which compared to
Grady’scharacter isn’t upto par andyoucan argue is very poor. In termsof dresscodes in reference
to the mise-en-sceneof this scene again there is a very clear contrast between the two characters
Jack is unshavenandhisclothing is very casual where as Grady is clean faced, his clothes are clean
andironed and he has this air of class andan assertive nature thatis portrayedby howhe looks. In
additionthe language andtone in how each characters speak justreinforce the impress thatthe dress
codes andbody language are given of, in a way this is an example of order andchaos, with Grady
being the visualrepresentation of order andJack therefore beingthe representation of chaos. This
makessense actually due tothe fact that at thispoint in the film Jackslife is starting to spiral outof
control andGrady warnsJack notto let Danny get the better of him but Jack doesn’tlisten and
therefore the last partof the film with Jack descends intochaos.
There is a lot that youcan talk aboutwith the in terms of set design as well thatlinks into otherparts
of the film and recurring themes aswell, for example the use of the colour red. This is colour that
people associate with hate, power, blood, danger anddeath andI believe thatit is usedwithin the
bathroomasa type of foreshadowing, as it has been donebefore in earlier scenes. For example every
place thatJack hasattackedhis family, such asoutside the hotel, Jack andWendy are bothwearing
red when playing outsideor the red triangles within the maze are foreshadowingthe dangerof Jack
andDanny within the maze later on. I believe thatthe red within the bathroombecause there is so
muchand it does appearto be overpowering his foreshadowingandempathisinga change in Jacks
character. In additionyoucouldalso argue that the use of all the red within the bathroomis
symbolismfor all the past andfuture bloodshedthathas/will happenin the hotel, which ironically fits
into the conversationthatGrady and Jack are havingas Jack is aboutto attemptto kill his family
where as Grady already has. There are overall two colours within this scene andthat is white andred
which are very contrastingcolours, due to the fact thatwhite is associated with purity andred is
associated with the devil therefore impurity which again fits into the conceptof order andchaos.
ThemeAnalysis
A themethat is heavily presentthroughoutthedurationof the film, is thatof isolation. This is
portrayedin many different wayswithin the film. For example Kubrick uses the space within the
camera shotto create this the feeling of isolation butalso addto the dramatic tensionas the film
progresses. Whenyou watch the film you will notice thatas the film runsthe shotsand onscreen
camera space becomes a lot more enclosed andyouat pointswithin the film have this senseof
claustrophobia. Forexample the openingof the film, we startof with an establishingshotandthem
cuts toan aerial shotof vastopenspace with nothingbutmountainsanda lake the scene is very
muchopen andfree. In sayingthis howeveryoucould also argue thatthere is a sense of
foreshadowingfor all three characters andthis theme as they are the only people within the shots,
especially with the aerial shot, there is nosign of anybody else. Sothe openingscene gives usa lot of
space butas youmove alongin the film, the shotsbecome moreisolated until we reach to the climax
of the film, with Danny andJack within the maze were the scene is very isolated. This is reinforced
when an establishingshotof the hotel is shownto the audience; it reinforces the passingof time
throughthe changein scenes tothe fact that they are still alone. Inadditionyouwill alsonotice that
Jack is hardly ever see with Wendy or Danny together in a scene andif they are together they aren't
represented equally, either showat different heights, Jack satdown Wendy stood, orJack at the

3. bottomof the stairs Wendy at the top. Or even somethingas subtle as havingJack in the foreground
of the shotand Wendy in the background. Thetheme is also literarily explained to the audience
throughthe useof the narrativethan the camera work as a way to create the tension, whenWendy is
tryingto speak to the police, the radio keeps breakingup, and thentowards the end of the film the
radio is outof use completely, throughJackscharacters evil intentionsalongside the snowmobile. It
highlightsthe lack of a human figure epically in overwhelming situations. Youcouldalsoargue that
Danny'ssupernaturalability already makeshim isolated butthis is amplified more with hisfamily
duringtheir stay within the hotel.
Duality is also a maintheme present throughoutthe film and this is evidentthroughthe use of visual
symmetry, forexample the tosisters, the corridors, the patternsnotonly onthe carpet buton the
walls andeven the arrangementof the mirrorson the wall in the bar andwithin the bathroom. Itisn't
however just the mise-en-scenethatplaysa hugepart of the duality andtherefore increase the sense
of hysteria andmadnessfor the characters it is also the scene repetition, for example Danny riding is
bike throughthe corridors, or Jack at his typewriter. Youcould also say that the film hasa lot to do
with doublesas well, there are partsof the film where scenes are characters happenin twos. Take the
two sisters who are twins for example, or the fact that Jack is actually two people, or even the original
caretaker who murder is family and the personJack mistakeshim for (Two Gradys). The use of duality
is all there to disorientate the audience andtheir perception on the films reality, which fits in the tone
andoverall genre of the film.
Auteur Analysis
A recurring aspect or theme throughoutmany ofKubrick’sfilmsis thathe heavily focuses ona specific
male character andfollows themthroughthe story as they start to deteriorate andgo mad, while said
character tries to find his place within society. He also used the mainmale characters as a way to
show dehumanisation totheaudience. This can be seen throughJack in The ShiningandAlex in
Clockwork Orange. Like many Auteur directors Kubrick keptto a extent the same crew with himwhen
he made different films, for example in A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, 2001, FullMetal Jacket and
Barry Lyndonthecasting director was the same person, JamesLiggat. FurthermoreMargaret Adams
also work with Kubrick ontwo of his films, The Shiningand Clockwork Orangealthoughher role did
change as she first started asa productionassistantonThe Shiningbefore becoming a Production
Manageron A Clockwork Orange.
Kubrick also usescolours as a methodof storytellingwithin hisfilms for example he uses cold and
strikingcolours in The Shiningbut also Clockwork Orangeto give a feeling of isolation anduses the
dark colours to further empathisethe emotionsof the characters.
One of the reason in which I believe Kubrick hisan Auteur his the phrase Kubrick Stare, which is
where a close up is used ona character where they tilt their head downand look upbeneath their
eyebrows. It adds further depthand emotionto the character and it informs the audience thatthe
character is either really mador they are slightly insaneand either way who ever they are lookingat
off camera shouldbe very worried. Kubrick usedthis within his films, The Shining, A Clockwork Orange
andFull Metal Jacket.
A notablemotif in Kubrick’sfilms is that of a bathroom. Inmostof Kubrick’s films an importantpartof
the film thatchanges the shift of the narrative happenswithin a bathroom. Forexample Jack decides
thatDanny needs to be taughta lesson within the bathroom, Alex is in the bath singing, singing in the
rain (Clockwork Orange) where he blowshis cover and in Eyes Wide Shut Amandaoverdoses in the
bathroom.

4. In termsof hisfilms style in the films that I havewatched he alwaysseems to haveat least one long
single tracking shot.
GenreAnalysis
The Shiningimplements many different aspectsof the horror genre some of which include bloodand
gore. Kubrick even usesthe music to addthe suspension, paranoiaandtenseof the film. For example
at the start of the film the music/soundeffects contrast the imagery. With the establishingshotsthe
use of soundseffects for the wind, addto the feeling and concept of isolation. Even the lack of sound,
lingering silence and thenthe oppositethe loud burstof non-diegeticand ambientsoundsthatare
usedwithin thisfilm are commonly usedwithin horrorfilms andthe overall genre. They shotis used
to signify when the character starts to descend intomadnessat a more alarming rate then before.
The genre of The Shiningis horrorand thisis shownthroughthe recurring iconography ofisolation,
bloodand the useof an axe which are all thingsthatpeople recognise as partof the horror
convention. Theaxe is a main aspect of the horror within the film the Shining, alongsidethe blood
andeven thoughtypically in the horrorgenre a knife is more conventionalweaponof choice, Michael
Myersin Halloween or Wendy in The Shining for example it is still part of the horrorgenre. Typically
with all horrorfilms andThe Shiningis no exception, the weapon thatthe male villain character picks
up whether it be an axe or a knife is moreoften thannot the means in which a character dies (Jack
kills Halloran with the axe). The aspect that makesthe seem more disturbingandtherefore addingto
the fear factor to the audience is the use of bloodto further empathisethe impact of the wound
which is commonwhenvictims are being stabbed but alsothe intimacy, whether thatbe in termsof
how it is shot, close upon the weaponand the wound (more visually disturbing)or the relationship
between the victim and the attacker (which is moreemotionally disturbingto the audience).
The use of children andin the case of The Shining the useof a children’s fairy tale is a disturbingpart
of the horror genre present within the film. The scene in which I am referencing his that with Wendy
andJack where Jack is trying to get into their room and taunts Wendy by saying“Come out, come out
wherever youare” which is from the story the three little pigs the childish languagealone is quite
terrifying to the audience given the circumstances butthe fact thatJack has given him self the role of
the wolf is more sinister.
Context
The Shiningis an adaptiontothe StephenKing novelof the samename however there are elements
in the film thathave been changed completely to that in the book. Forexample the book focus onthe
more supernaturalelements of the hotel andalso within the book Jack is already a writer as in he has
stuff publishedwhere as in the adaptionthe film focuses more on the family andJack. Jack also isn’ta
write in the film he is apprising tobe becomeone.
In termsof historical andsocial context there are several references tothe India within the film, for
example the hotel is supposedly builton a Indian burial groundandnot tomentionwhen the family;
Jack, Wendy and Danny are driving tothe hotel they mentionthataboutthe cold and the drastic drop
in temperature which leads them tothe topicof discussionaboutthedonor party as well as
cannibalism.
Furthermorethe line aboutthe hotel being builton a Indian groundisn’tactually in the book, thatis
somethingthatKubrick addedhimself. This could be to add the supernaturalelement of the film
more as they go on to further mentionthatthey hadto repel a view spirits away.