The Shining‘ is a stand out fan favorite in the horror world so it should be no surprise that the cast and crew had recently gathered to celebrate the film’s 35th anniversary. While Stephen King may hate how Stanley Kubrick adapted his novel to the big screen in 1979 we all associate “Here’s Johnny” as one of the most memorable lines in a horror film to date. Love it or hate it, you can’t deny that ‘The Shining’ has a special place in cinema history.

So for those that were attendance there was some special commentary for those involved with the movie’s creation. According to Diane Johnson, the novelist who co-wrote the film’s screenplay:

“I found out that he’d been thinking of making a movie out of a novel of mine called The Shadow Knows, and that he’d been weighing it and Stephen King’s novel. He decided on the Stephen King [novel] but thought I’d be easier to get along with as a screenwriter.”

Considering how much King hates the way the film ended up that was probably for the best. If King had been on set he may have been chasing Kubrick around with an ax.

Also on hand for the event were the twins Louise and Lisa Burns. Interestingly enough the two didn’t even get a chance to see the film that has gone done in history until nearly 12 years after it was released as they were 10 during the film’s production. They did enjoy being on set though as:

“It’s so lovely to be with the whole gang again. Mummy wouldn’t let us have a cup of coffee and a donut each, just half a cup and half a donut. But he used to go around and get us an extra cup and a donut. It was like being part of a big family.”

There have been a lot of strange conspiracy theories about the film over the years. Jan Harlan, who helped with many of Kubrick’s films says:

“People tried to think that the film should have made sense. But it didn’t. It’s a ghost film, end of story. It’s completely mysterious. When at the end you see Jack Nicholson in the photograph in 1923, you can’t ask ‘How come?’, because nobody can possibly have an answer. Kubrick always said, ‘Never try to explain something that you don’t understand yourself’.”

So no mysteries there, just a straight up ghost story to enjoy. Unless of course you’re the master of suspense who created the concept in the first place than you can feel free to hate it as much as you like.

What are your thoughts about ‘The Shining’? Do you think the film is a timeless classic or do you agree with King that it was a horrible adaptation? Share your thoughts below!

Source: The Hollywood Reporter