Doctor Sleep

Macrobetix – ”Like all of Mike Flanagan’s films Doctor Sleep is highly mediocre. It follows Danny, a character from the original film The Shining as an adult dealing with his ordeals at The Overlook hotel, who helps destroy a cult of demons feeding on souls and fear from those that shine.

Mike Flanagan uses predictable horror tropes throughout the film. Which I feel was a way to appease Stephen King as he actively spoke out about his dislike of Kubrick’s interpretation and handling of his original book The Shining.

There are some okay parts of the story I enjoyed, like the gang of soul sucking demons that hunt down people, especially children with the shining. Ewan McGregor was a good choice of casting as the role of Danny and without him and Rebecca Ferguson playing the leader of the demonic cult the film may very well have been unwatchable.

The reenactments of elements from the original film The Shining were appallingly handled, especially the role of Jack Torrance and the Overlook hotel itself. Portraying them in the most predicable way conceivable, completely ignoring the work of Kubrick who went against the norms of horror tropes to create his sense of horror and tension, the likes of which had never been seen before. The complete lack of any metaphorical readings in Mike Flanagan’s film, which were so rich in the original, left it sorely lacking in depth or particular re-watch value.

Having now seen the film I can see why it was so quickly forgotten. Especially when compared to how celebrated Kubrick’s vision of The Shining has been received for decades now. It’s okay as a stand alone and has some good story elements, but overall, if you haven’t seen it, you’re really not missing much.”