Horst in Translation ([email protected]) "The Shining" is one of the most famous horror movies of all time and in this 35-minute documentary, we gain a good insight on what life on set was like. Both this and the movie were shot 35 years ago. This is actually a prime example of what a making-of should look like. Behind-the-scenes documentaries sometimes are fairly uninteresting if they keep interviewing the assistant sound editor about very specific matters. But this one here is not like that. It's really about the core players. Basically, for the entire thing, there is hardly no scene which does not include at least one of director Stanley Kubrick, lead actor Jack Nicholson oder lead actress Shelley Duvall. And the director here is Vivian Kubrick, Stanley's daughter who also played very small roles in Kubrick's movies. Maybe she being the director is the reason why we got right into the heart of the set and see the actors so close that we feel we are almost watching them on-stage. I enjoyed this documentary and it is a very nice watch if you also like the film, especially as you see Nicholson and Duvall, who are both retired today, the way they really were.

Michael_Elliott Making 'The Shining' (1980) **** (out of 4) Most of the time when you see "making" in the title you immediately skip over it because you expect it to be some sort of weak promo piece but if you skipped over this film then you'd be missing one of the greatest documentaries ever made. I'm certainly not going to sit here and say this contains the greatest filmmaking ever but considering what we get to see here this thing is a real masterpiece. The greatest thing it has going for it is that it gives us a behind the scenes look at Kubrick, how he made movies and what it could be like when he wasn't happy with you. If you know anything about Kubrick then you know how demanding he could be with multiple takes that would put the actors through Hell. Here Shelley Duvall is the victim in a couple terrific sequences where she doesn't do what she's suppose to and it sets the director off. Another great sequence is some of the scenes where we see Kubrick on the set not only directing but in one terrific sequence Nicholson and Duvall are practicing their lines with the legendary director just sitting at his typewriter coming up with new dialogue. The film gets off to a terrific start as Vivian Kubrick crashes in on Nicholson and then he begins playing with her and the camera. Fans of Nicholson are going to love this look at him off the camera and it's a lot of fun seeing him here. The film itself is extremely raw but I think this is what makes the thing so special. It's as if you're a fly on the wall just picking up all of this stuff and I think it adds to the entertainment value. Nicholson, Duvall, Danny Lloyd and Scatman Crothers are all interviewed as well. Fans of THE SHINING are really going to love this film because you get to see how it's made. Fans of Kubrick are going to love it because you get to see the master work. Even those unfamiliar with the film or the director will find themselves having a great time simply because of the footage we get to see and how it gives you a great idea of what goes into making a movie.

QuentinTarantino1121 What is it that makes this an excellent behind-the-scenes doc? Well for starters it gives us a glimpse of how Jack Nicholson, one of the greatest actors of the last few decades, works on his films. We see his apartment in which he has temporarily set up shop while the filming takes place and see that it is just as messy as anyone else's. We also get to see Scatman Crothers, a highly underrated character actor who never got the recognition he deserved weeping tears of joy for, in his words, "Being able to work with such beautiful people" (although it could very well have been a cry for help given his age and Kubrick's demand for perfectionism). We witness Danny Lloyd being perfectly candid and honest about his experiences now that he has starred in a major motion picture. We see Shelly Duvall having a near breakdown on set due to stress and illness, yet at the end turning on her heal and admitting that she has no regrets and learned more than she ever had up to this point.But the main event of this documentary and the one that truly sets it apart from all others are the glimpses we catch of the master himself. Stanley Kubrick was a consummate filmmaker, an artist of legendary proportions and above all, an enigma. No one ever really knew Stanley, not even those close to him and we as a viewing audience can only guess just what went on in that labyrinthine mind of his as he poured his heart and soul into each movie he made. Well thanks to his very own daughter, we received the opportunity to watch the legend at work. We see him telling Danny to look scared, telling Jack to look down while he speaks, and telling Shelly off for ruining his shot when he had it just the way he wanted it. We even see him come up with one of the most famous shots in the film mere seconds before he decides to use it. He only yells if the situation truly necessitates it and otherwise speaks with a slow and almost subservient voice. It's one thing to see a picture of Kubrick but another thing entirely to see him up and about giving orders to his cast and crew. True to style, he is the only principle on the set to not give a sit-down interview and actually explain himself but that doesn't even matter, because what we see of him is more than enough to whet our appetites. We see him at work, in his element, doing what he was always meant to do. What more could you ask for?

D. Packard I can't seem to stop watching or thinking about this little documentary and it really makes me want to view the rest of the footage. How can one be so obsessed with a Making of film? I often find them more interesting than the films themselves. Jack Nicholson's camera charm antics, "beautiful! finish the assignment!" Vivien's ultra-cute sounding voice "Thats not true it's 8 o'clock." I was a bit disappointed in the new "A Life in Pictures" documentary from Jan Harlan, mostly banal interviews and film clips, where's all the behind the scenes footage from his various films? That's what I want to see, more footage of Stanley having a fit and getting frustrated. Thank god for Vivian's Making the Shining, she is a prodigy. To think she photographed that at age 17, with a large heavy Aaton 16mm (I'm assuming) and did a magnificent job of filming. A truly amazing job, absolutely astounding, incredible, precocious. I often wonder what line of work she went into later in life, she probably could have been an amazing cinematographer, which is a field somewhat lacking the female gender. Vivien, if your out there, contact me, I'd like to hire you to shoot my next film!