A quick post to get the morning moving faster, a scene from near the end of The Shining when Jack Torrance's mind is starting to fall apart / the ghosts of the Overlook Hotel start to get under his skin. Here the previous butler / caretaker Delbert Grady starts off trying to clean Jack's shirt, but when the conversation turns he quickly starts screwing with his head, trying to get him to murder his son.
This is screen acting and directing at its finest. Look at the subtle differences in body language between actors Jack Nicholson and Philip Stone at the start and the end of the scene. Kubrick uses extremely simple techniques to frame the scene, but it maintains our focus on the characters and emphasises the power that Grady is exerting over Jack Torrance.
The Shining proves you don't have to be all about shocks and jumps and blood-curdling violence to be terrifying. You just need to be Delbert Grady.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment