Cinematography In The Shining

The shining (1980) was based on a Steven King novel that was released in 1977. The film was directed by Stanley Kubrick who was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. The film was visually amazing when released (and still is) because it had lots of new techniques and technology such as the Steadicam.

Stanley Kubrick is a perfectionist when it comes to mise-en-scene,  The shining was a huge breakthrough in the film industry due to the first real use of Steadicam in cinema, the Steadicam was a device which meant you could film smoothly whilst moving. Having the camera free hand meant it wasn’t on another device like a track .

The use of the Steadicam creates a sense of unease for the viewer as it seems like we are following the characters around or someone else is. A perfect example for this is throughout the film (The shining) there are shots where the camera is following Danny on his cart through the corridors although this seems like a harmless idea, through the use of the Steadicam it makes it more sinister. This feature is important for the viewer as there are lots of corners in the corridors and we don’t know what is going to be around the next corner which creates suspense and adds to the horror.

Stanley Kubrick is also well known for his subtle use of symmetry, this subtle feature is aesthetically pleasing for the viewer and in the shining it symbolizes the connection between jack and the hotel, making them a pair. An example of this is where Jack first enters the hotel and one of the waiters Is stepping in sync to him and crosses a square shape on the floor at the exact same time as him, although this is a very subtle feature it explains a lot when you take it into consideration to the rest of the film and especially the photo at the end where we are shown that jack has been absorbed by the hotel. There is also a more obvious symmetry during the shots of the daughters which is very unsettling for the viewer because of the unreal perfection in the shot (2 identical twins standing next to each other perfectly in the middle of a corridor).

Camera movements

In the opening scene to the Hobbit an unexpected journey, where bilbo is old and begins to write the letter to Frodo explaining his own journey. As he begins to write the camera moves backwards out of the room slowly probably on a Dolly. This symbolises him going back in time. It also shows that we are leaving his character behind for the rest of the story. 

The zoom: In the Shining, when Wendy is walking up the stairs with her bat, she reaches the floor where there is a man in a bear costume in one of the bedrooms. Then suddenly there is a fast zoom into the bears face. This scares the viewer because of the speed of the zoom and the fact the bear is looking right at the camera which seems like it is looking right at us!

The pan: a pan is where the camera moves from the action and averts away from the main focus. In reservoir dogs this is used when Vega chops the cop’s ear off, after showing a little bit of brutality when Vega slashes at the cop’s face. He then holds his ear and the camera pans out to the top left of the screen. This is a great method because it tells the viewer there is no hope for the victim and what is about to happen is inevitable, as a viewer we are left with no hope or suspicion that the victim may have averted the attack (This method also saves a lot of time and money on CGI or screen play).

There are two types of depth of field – Deep focus and shallow focus

shallow focus focuses on just the foreground and usually blurs out the background.

deep focus focuses on both the foreground and the background therefore giving a very deep filed of view – showing many layers.

Here is an example of shallow focus from The Social Network (David Fincher, 2010)

Fincher has chosen to focus on the character in the foreground and blur out the characters in the background, this focuses the audiences attention on the character in focus.

This is an example of Deep focus from 12 Angry Men (Sidney Lumet, 1957) and it helps the audience to focus on all the characters in the scene, this is because there isn’t a increase in power or status from any of them – they are equal and therefore are viewed from the same angle.

An example of a canted shot or a dutch angle is from Thor (2011, Branaguh). I think that this makes the viewer feel uneasy with how the camera isn’t even.

An example of a low angle shot is from Pulp Fiction (1994, Quentin Tarantino)

Symmetry was used continuously throughout The Shining (Stanley Kubrik, 1980). One particular part of this is using symmetry to connect Jack Nicholson to the hotel staff. By using similar movements to the staff, Nicholson is seen as one of the staff workers them self, as if the hotel is slowly absorbing him – this is further reinforced right at the end when we see Nicholson in the photo in the hotel as if he is ad always has been part of the hotel.

In this particular example, both the hotel staff and Nicholson are seen to be in red clothes and are situated in the middle of the frame, this creates the symmetry that links Nicholson to the hotel and makes him a part of it.

Additionally the use of symmetry creates a sense of duality. This is especially seen through the use of mirrors. There are mirrors everywhere in the movie. This reveals to the audience the ameliorative and the pejorative sides of Nicholson. It is giving Nicholson two different personas: the loving father and husband who is taking care of the hotel, and the malicious,crazy murderer.

Furthermore the use of symmetry is evidenced along with mirrors to show Danny’s ghost/imaginary friend “Tony” who speaks through Danny and takes the form of his wiggling finger. Here we have a shot where Danny is being reflected into the mirror showing Danny and “Tony”. Once again this is showing Danny’s alternate persona – Tony. We do not know of Tony’s intents however Danny relies on him for help in certain situations so therefore they seem to have different personalities and do seem to be separate people in one body.

Finally the famous scene of the two girls at the end of the blue hallway standing in near perfect symmetry is significant because it creates a sense of disquietude and uneasiness. Nature is not naturally very symmetrical and this paired with the uncomfortable, unexplained appearance of the girls furthermore creates a sense of nervousness.

Use of “Steadicam” in “The Shining”

The Shining (Stanley Kubrik, 1980) uses the steadicam in many scenes, however one scene that really stood out to me was the scene in which Danny is riding his tricycle through the corridors. This gives the scene a very smooth flow and the camera imitates the movement of Danny on his tricycle as if Kubrik wants the audience to feel similar to Danny when he is scared by the girls. The camera is quite low and makes the audience feel vulnerable since everything is towering over them.

This is not the only use of Steadicam in the film, in-fact, it is also used in the final chase scene in the snowy maze. Once again, since the Steadicam is filmed from a child’s height, when following Nicholson it makes the audience feel smaller and more vulnerable. It also creates a sense of verisimilitude when first person perspective is used as it makes the audience experience the distress and impatience that Nicholson is feeling as he is desperately looking for Danny.

shot distances and examples

True grit 2010 (Ethan Coen, Joel Coen) close up of Josh Brolin, Showing the audience his dry skin and injuries which gives the film a sense of context and shows off the minor details in the film. It also allows the audience to emphasise with the character because of the emotion in his face.

This close up runs through all the iron man and avenger films, these shots help the audience to appreciate Tony Stark as being a person not a machine, and to remind us there is an actual human inside the suit.

Long distance shot in Dunkirk (2017, Christopher Nolan) of a man walking into the sea. the long shot emphasis him leaving the beach behind.

This is a medium distance shot of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) This shot involves getting not all the body in the frame but most of it to get a sense of what the character is doing. if this was a close up we would have no idea that she is holding a bow but a long shot wouldn’t capture her emotion.