Doctor Sleep

Whenever the question of the most famous Stephen King adaptations come up, the common answer many refer is The Shining, which was directed by Stanley Kubrick. The craftsmanship involved in creating a hard to watch experience with a troubled family ended up created a pop culture phenomenon that would be parodied in media. However, the author actually dislikes that version due to the differences from his novel (notably how Jack Torrance is handled) and worked on a miniseries to "get it right", which backfired on him. 2019 has had its share of Stephen King adaptations released to disappointment from audiences and critics, which brings us to this third entry among those with Doctor Sleep. This feature is based on the novel of the same name, which was a sequel to The Shining. In this adaptation, writer and director Mike Flanagan took on the task of not only following up the events of the Kubrick version but also taking on the source material of this story, hoping to mix both to satisfy those groups. It should be noted this this filmmaker typically handles horror projects that focus on characters and themes, including an adaptation of Gerald's Game on Netflix, which I checked out on the morning of the screening I went to (highly recommend it). I went into the auditorium hoping for good things and left it very impressed by the results given.

My experience with The Shining: Despite how celebrated and loved The Shining is, I had never seen fully watched it until last year. Throughout my life, I've only ever seen it get parodied in pop culture but never having much of an interest about checking it out until I started getting deeper with my movie hobby. When I finally watched it in full, it wasn't something I completely fell head over heels for considering how deep and layered it is but it's worthy of the praise for its well-made craftsmanship put into it (despite the pain a few of the actors underwent due to Kubrick pushing them with his dozens of takes with each scene). I can certainly say the movie isn't for everyone due to its slow pace where it stays in each moment and it might put off its viewers for that (if it would have been made today, it would fit in with the A24 arthouse films).

What's it about? Taking place after the horrific events at the Overlook Hotel, the traumatized psychic son of the family finds himself dealing with a new life filled with gifted individuals while dealing with his own powers. In regards to aspects from the book (based on what's presented here at least), it feels refreshing in dealing with a world building aspect that explores how these psychics interact with each other. Whether it's using their abilities to communicate from a distance or using them to harm one another, it's fascinating to see it utilized within a limited scale. It's great to view our traumatized protagonist deal with his emerging flaws as he copes with mental scars left on him from his childhood.

The third act is divisive where it touches upon aspects of the Kubrick film and it's understandable as it slightly stumbles in that climax in those references. The main antagonist could have also used a bit more fleshing out to appear more interesting than she actually was. Rather than aim for scares and horror from its predecessor, this feature goes for a thriller angle with a surprising entertainment value that I didn't expect (this might disappoint others due to the legacy in The Shining but it feels unique in this case).

How are the characters? In regards to the actors the story focuses, on Ewan McGregor, Kyliegh Curran, and Rebecca Ferguson are all great to watch interact with one another in their respective roles along with being solid in their own right. Ewan shines well in balancing aspects of his damaged character from displaying him at this flawed lowest moments and finding a new way of living to move on. Kyliegh is a breathe of fresh air as this young actress is impressive in her film debut as she is entertaining with some of her confidence while struggling to come to terms with her powers. Rebecca is clearly having a lot of fun in this head villain role that requires her to be convincingly disarming to her prey (along with looking pretty to aid her in that effort). Honorable mentions go to Cliff Curtis and Zahn McClarnon for their solid supportive performances. A special mention goes to the actors chosen to portray the Torrance family of the Shining in the past instead of opting to use CGI for those parts (fun fact: the kid who played young Dan here is actually the son of the original actor).

Overall Consensus: Doctor Sleep is an entertaining thriller with solid world building, great performances, and engaging character-focused progression, even though it doesn't reach the heights of its predecessor. ⭑⭑⭑⭑1/4🎟🍿 Runtime: 2 hours 32 minutes R

Reasons to watch it: You are a fan of the aforementioned actors. You have seen The Shining and are curious about this sequel adaptation. You are bored with the jump scares and want to see a thriller that doesn't use them. You prefer protagonist development arcs in films instead of bland phoned in features. You have read the novel and want to see how it's adapted on the big screen.

Reasons to avoid it: You aren't a fan of the aforementioned actors. You have seen The Shining but aren't curious about this sequel adaptation (or if you just didn't find that feature engaging). You adore the use of predictable jump scares. You have read the novel and don't want to see how it's adapted on the big screen.