Stephen King's Doctor Sleep Review & Comments

I saw it last week and it turns out I'm seeing it again tonight with a family member. I'll let you all know how the second viewing changes things and whether it changes my impression from "that movie was perfectly fine" to "that movie was good"
 
I think, if anything, I've come away a little cooler than my first impression.

The problem I have with it is that it's trying to be everything to all people.
You want a good scare? Surprisingly, there really are a couple of those...but probably only a couple.
You want an introspective emotional drama? There are some great elements of that, sure.
You want a sequel to the Shining? Yeah, you sort of got that.
You want a completely different experience? Yeah, you sort of got that too.
You want a superhero movie about scream-vampires (why would you want a superhero movie about scream-vampires)? There's quite a lot of that.
King? Some of that. Kubrick? Some of that. Flanagan? Not enough of that.

It feels like it's a totally functional movie on any of those levels but hardly ever rises above that. It is super competent, you can't deny it. Everyone does a perfectly good job and nothing flat-out doesn't work*. But in navigating that space between revisiting the old, trading on some iconic imagery and trying to be it's own thing, it also becomes a bit bloated, a little bit flat and very messy.

*The hat is stupid. I will never back down from this. That hat is goofy nonsense and reads like a second year uni student trying to be quirky. There is absolutely no adequate reason for the hat. Why? Why the hat? Why? It is a stupid hat. Why must I look at the hat? Is it magic? No? I don't care. I hate the stupid hat. It's stupid and I hate it.
 
I also had an issue with Ferguson, she was just too clean and beautiful to be a pikey cult leader.
That was one of my favourite performances of the year Barnaby! Thought she totally knocked it out of the park, and found her utterly mesmerising in every scene she appeared in. Creepy as hell, downright nasty, and strangely sweet and charismatic at the same time.
 
I will wait for 4KBD on this one. In the meantime, can I just say 'Doctor Sleep' is a frickin' terrible title for anything: Album, book, DJ, sedative, film, gadget – ANYTHING.
I wasn't a fan of the title, but it certainly works given Ewan's earlier visits to
the hospice patients.
 
Really enjoyed that. Felt different from its predecessor and added plenty to the mythology, and I thought Rebecca Fergusson was terrific as the main antagonist (although her Irish accent seemed to vanish into thin air halfway through the film) . The young girl was really good too, for a while at least.

The bit I was most looking forward to (
showdown at the Overlook
) was the most disappointing sequence. Felt ever so generic and in a way was just as fan servicey as the sequence in Ready Player One. Fergusson loses her menace and becomes annoyingly verbose, and I almost began to lose patience with the girl as well, who never seems particularly bothered by what's happening. In The Shining, Danny Torance was petrified at all times, which really sells the terror of that film. I didn't get that sense of threat here and so I was never unsettled.

Having said that, I was pretty impressed with the bulk of the movie especially some of the telepathic abilities on display. Good story and characters, just derails itself in the last act. 7/10
Really loved this generally but given the set up for the final showdown
I was a little disappointed to see Danny Torrence morph into a crazy axe swinging version of his Pa. Thought it was step too far, and would have been happy to see poor old Ewan overcome by all the Overlook nasties and have the girl simply escape after Rose's death.
 
I did think this felt like a worthy sequel to the original. I wouldn't mind seeing it again but whether I'd still be watching it in 40 years from now like the original remains to be seen.
It genuinely surprised me. I went in with pretty low expectations given the calibre of the original, but came out of the screening absolutely buzzing, having just seen one of my favourite 2019 films! There were just enough callbacks to the original without going into overkill, and why wouldn't you use elements of the original score when it's STILL so damn creepy!
 
7!

This was the easiest 10 for me since Blade Runner 2049.

One of the best sequels ever.
It worked in the same way for me. Both Blade Runner and BR2049 are terrific films in the their own right, and both the original and the sequel do their own thing to work independently of one another, but are best seen as a package. Same for The Shining and Dr Sleep.
 
I surprised more people aren't commenting on young Jacob Tremblay's key scene. Following his immense performance in Room, I was looking forward to seeing him in this. It's a pretty small role for him, but he has one of the film's most dramatic moments. It really did
disturb me in a way cinema hasn't in years. Totally got under my skin. Maybe it went a little too far?
 
I was super impressed with Mike Flanagan's direction in particular. I genuinely think this is the best follow-up Kubrick's original could have spawned. I expected some pretty pedestrian stuff after the very wishy washy Gerald's Game adaptation, but this was like a completely different director unleashed! I'd be more than happy to see him take on another. :smashin:
 
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I was very surprised (and happy) to see both
Shelly Duvall's and Jack Nicolson's role's get revisited with some very uncanny casting. The bar scene with 'Jack' gave me goosebumps, and that late scene with young Danny and Mum in the boiler room was perfect.
 
Watched last night and must say I really enjoyed - more than I thought I would. One of the better sequels out there at the moment.
 
Yep. Caught this on iTunes yesterday and thought it was simply excellent. As well as a gripping new story that continues neatly from the events at The Overlook in 1980, its creators have managed to do fan service in a way that’s subtle and aimed at those fans who are both very familiar with The Shining and eagle-eyed. The polar opposite of something like Terminator: Dark Fate, which although an enjoyable action sci-fi, does fan service in a way that’s as subtle as a neon zeppelin full of noisy parrots. Really, really pleasantly surprised.

It also looks fantastic. If it’s not a native 4K presentation it certainly looks like one, and the Atmos track is one of the best I have ever heard for use of that third, overhead dimension. 9/10 from me.
 
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I caught it on iTunes today too.

I read several Stephen King books but none in the last 30 yrs.

I forget if I ever read the Shining. But as a movie , I thought the original was a great movie

I didn’t think this surpassed the original or even equalled it but was a worthwhile indulgence.
 
just watched the director's cut on Prime. three hours of cac. Rose, totally wasted. Abra [lol, really] totally stupid characters apparently ninja grand master level of shine control as a mere teenager, and the grand ending was basically just ripped off from the novel.
 
Are you criticising the ending for being like the book?

That said, I've been wondering if the extended cut is worth watching.
 
Will be watching this over the holidays, what's the general consensus. Stick with theatrical or go for the Directors cut?
 
Are you criticising the ending for being like the book?

That said, I've been wondering if the extended cut is worth watching.
for being like the original book. which didn't happen in the film, so they used it for the 2nd film :-/ can't imagine how that works for the novel, but have no interest in actually finding out.
 
Just saw the Director's Cut, what a film. Nail biting, I've never seen the original except for bits and bobs here and there but this was a very interesting film that explorers the wider world of 'Shining'.

Also have to say the sound mix is incredible, one of the best Dolby Atmos tracks.
 
just seen this, much better than i was expecting. sent a few shivers around my body😳
no doubt the book was an excellent read, no point reading it now i guess :p
how much more to the directors cut is there?
on the sound, loved the heart beat, just went on and on, felt like it was my own
 
no doubt the book was an excellent read, no point reading it now i guess :p
how much more to the directors cut is there?
It's been a while since I read the book, but Flanagan improved it massively with his adaptation.

While the Director's Cut does add much to it narratively, dividing the film into chapters just lets it breathe a little more easily and the new scenes and additions make some of the character beats hit harder.

While I massively enjoyed the film at the cinema and at home, over the past few years it's been creeping up not only my favourite King adaptations, but only my favourite horror films of the 21st century. Incredible piece of filmmaking and the fact Flanagan went straight into Midnight Mass afterwards shows the scale of the man's talent.
 

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