The Shining poster

The Shining

1980146 minutesR
6.9
Arcplot Score
📊 Solid
Unverified
⭐ 8.4IMDb
🍅 84%Rotten Tomatoes
Ⓜ️ 68/100Metacritic
🎬 8.2TMDb
📊 11.3Popularity
🏆6 wins & 9 nominations total
Genre: Drama, Horror
Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
Haunted by a persistent writer's block, the aspiring author and recovering alcoholic, Jack Torrance, drags his wife, Wendy, and his gifted son, Danny, up snow-capped Colorado's secluded Overlook Hotel after taking up a job as an off-season caretaker. As the cavernous hotel shuts down for the season, the manager gives Jack a grand tour, and the facility's chef, the ageing Mr Hallorann, has a fascinating chat with Danny about a rare psychic gift called "The Shining", making sure to warn him about the hotel's abandoned rooms, and, in particular, the off-limits Room 237. However, instead of overcoming the dismal creative rut, little by little, Jack starts losing his mind, trapped in an unforgiving environment of seemingly endless snowstorms, and a gargantuan silent prison riddled with strange occurrences and eerie visions. Now, the incessant voices inside Jack's head demand sacrifice. Is Jack capable of murder?

Box Office

Budget:$19.0M
Revenue:$44.8M
Profit:$25.8M

Arcplot Score Breakdown

Beat Timing Precision5.2/10
Emotional Arc Impact5.5/10
Thematic Consistency10/10
Overall Score6.9/10

Beat Sheet

15 plot points

The Shining Arcplot
1
Opening Image
1 min
2
Theme Stated
5 min
3
Set-Up
12 min
4
Catalyst
28 min
5
Debate
40 min
6
Break Into Two
55 min
7
B Story
65 min
8
Fun and Games
80 min
9
Midpoint
100 min
10
Bad Guys Close In
115 min
11
All Is Lost
130 min
12
Dark Night of the Soul
135 min
13
Break Into Three
140 min
14
Finale
144 min
15
Final Image
146 min

Emotional Arc

+100-10

Plot Points

#1

Opening Image

1 min

Snowy Colorado mountains. Overlook Hotel isolated. Jack Torrance driving with family. Foreboding and isolation established.

#2

Theme Stated

5 min

Theme of madness, family tension, and supernatural danger hinted through dialogue and ominous visuals.

#3

Set-Up

12 min

Jack interviewed for caretaker job. Family introduced: Wendy and Danny. Danny's psychic ability "shining" hinted. Isolation and tension set.

#4

Catalyst

28 min

Hotel empty for winter. Family moves in. Strange events begin: visions, cryptic messages, unsettling presence.

#5

Debate

40 min

Jack struggles with sobriety and writing. Danny sees visions of past horrors. Wendy anxious. Questioning sanity, hotel influence.

#6

Break Into Two

55 min

Hotel winterization complete. Jack begins descent. Supernatural forces influence mind. Isolation amplifies tension.

#7

B Story

65 min

Danny's psychic ability. Hallorann senses danger. Connection to hotel's dark past. Guidance and warnings emerge.

#8

Fun and Games

80 min

Jack explores hotel, sees visions. Ghostly interactions. Psychological tension. Danny encounters frightening visions. Horror elements expand.

#9

Midpoint

100 min

Jack fully succumbs to madness. Attempts to murder family. False hope eliminated. Stakes at maximum terror.

#10

Bad Guys Close In

115 min

Jack aggressively hunts Wendy and Danny. Hotel supernatural elements assist him. Fear, danger, and chaos escalate.

#11

All Is Lost

130 min

Jack attacks family in hedge maze. Wendy and Danny cornered. Emotional and physical peril at peak.

#12

Dark Night of the Soul

135 min

Survival seems impossible. Jack's humanity lost. Danny's psychic insight guides escape.

#13

Break Into Three

140 min

Danny uses cunning to outmaneuver Jack in hedge maze. Escape plan executed. Hope returns.

#14

Finale

144 min

Jack freezes to death in hedge maze. Wendy and Danny survive. Hotel remains ominous. Family traumatized but alive.

#15

Final Image

146 min

Wendy and Danny safe, leaving hotel. Jack gone. Overlook Hotel remains haunting, cold, and beautiful. Psychological terror lingers. Kubrick's meticulous framing reinforces isolation and horror.