Shalit is correct that Kubrick's directing style tends to take you out of the experience. The assumption he makes, though, is that the story is the primary experience - for Kubrick it wasn't. Story and characters were just the set-up. That is why Kubrick is the one of the darlings of film buffs. More than any other popular director I can think of, his films are as much about compostion, cinematography, and use of music as story. Scorscese and Tarantino are similar, in this regard.
@cudacade I see you've seen Rob Ager's bizarre, sometimes illogical doc, but just because Kubrick might have slipped in a few references to a subject he was obsessed with doesn't mean that that was what the movie was ABOUT. Directors and their dozens of crew members work little bizarre references and easter eggs into their films constantly. It's a way to amuse themselves on set.
The Shining is one of my favorite films of all time, but I stilI agree with almost everything Shalit says. It is FAR from a perfect film, yet many of the things Shalit hated about it are intentional. Many of Kubrick's movies, from a modern standpoint, are horribly paced, and The Shining, like 2001, has many absolutely superfluous, or just excruciatingly overlong, scenes. Yet I still absolutely LOVE it.
Shalit is correct that Kubrick's directing style tends to take you out of the experience. The assumption he makes, though, is that the story is the primary experience - for Kubrick it wasn't. Story and characters were just the set-up. That is why Kubrick is the one of the darlings of film buffs. More than any other popular director I can think of, his films are as much about compostion, cinematography, and use of music as story. Scorscese and Tarantino are similar, in this regard.
acidjack73 3 days ago
@acidjack73 true,true. I was just rambling.
cudacade 4 days ago
@cudacade I see you've seen Rob Ager's bizarre, sometimes illogical doc, but just because Kubrick might have slipped in a few references to a subject he was obsessed with doesn't mean that that was what the movie was ABOUT. Directors and their dozens of crew members work little bizarre references and easter eggs into their films constantly. It's a way to amuse themselves on set.
acidjack73 4 days ago
The Shining is one of my favorite films of all time, but I stilI agree with almost everything Shalit says. It is FAR from a perfect film, yet many of the things Shalit hated about it are intentional. Many of Kubrick's movies, from a modern standpoint, are horribly paced, and The Shining, like 2001, has many absolutely superfluous, or just excruciatingly overlong, scenes. Yet I still absolutely LOVE it.
acidjack73 4 days ago
What a moron.
thewidgetssalemor 3 weeks ago in playlist Uploaded videos
Worst review ever? Christgau gave Bowie's Ziggy Stardust a B-.
papakilatube 3 weeks ago