It is not impossible to adapt a movie for Stephen King. But if you want to continue a "Part 2" for the "God of Film" Stanley Kubrick's movie, you must be prepared to be "unthankful".
One of the important reasons lies in the magnanimity of authors and author-type films in the era of Kubrick and Kubrick (Martin Scorsese's views on MCU movies may also originate from this). Both "2001 A Space Odyssey" and "The Shining" are strongly poetic-not only because of the slow rhythm, but also because of the expression of higher levels of meaning beyond the appearance.
A poet and his soul are hard to find; but a good craftsman is not hard to find. The 1984 "2010 A Space Odyssey" narrative is concise and clear. From the perspective of a commercial genre, it cannot be regarded as a failed adaptation-but the problem is that it is not Kubrick.
"Doctor Sleeper" also fell into the same predicament. Director Mike Flanagan has created the best Stephen King film adaptation of this generation ("Gerard Game") and the most non-Jin's American drama ("Ghost Invasion"), and the title of "Stephen King's" also said that "Doctor Sleeper" should put more emphasis on the attributes of its Stephen King. What Flanagan wants to achieve is to find a balance between King’s narrative and Kubrick’s image style, so as to meet the expectations of fans on both sides.
But unfortunately, Flanagan and his interpretation of Stephen King are obviously more suitable for small screens. The delicate emotions and loose plots are not to be said to be very different from the minimalism of Ku Shi's "The Shining", but also face the problem of impact and lack of expressiveness on the big screen. "Doctor Sleeper" does not have Kubrick's confidence and courage to completely recreate the original material. Although it has a certain potential, it cannot be compared at all.
This difference also comes from the change in the focus of the story: Ku’s "The Shining" is a story about madness, paranoia, and claustrophobic fear. Instead, the main character looks at the hotel and its symbolic meaning from a distance, while the "Shining" is even right. The whole story is dispensable; but in "Doctor Sleeper", the supernatural power represented by "The Shining" is an important content of the story. There are multiple scenes and multiple characters, and the conflicts are between people and people. Happen and unfold between itself.
Under such circumstances, how to place Kubrick's grand intentions has become a very challenging problem. Flanagan did not lose too many points on this point, but the mashup of the loose new story of "Doctor Sleeper" and the action thriller elements does not catch people-of course, this pot may be returned to Stephen King. -"The Shining" is too personal and sharp, "Doctor Sleeper" is too typified and lacks interest.
Obviously, the King’s narrative and its adaptation of the film may be able to find the optimal solution, but it has not been found to match Kubrick.
There is no doubt that the "Dream Sleeper" brought by Mike Flanagan and his multi-year team is an acceptable film adaptation of King’s: it has reliable performances and roles, and is comfortable with supernatural thrillers. Full of Stephen King's iconic self-confrontation and self-reconciliation. Photographer Michael Femugenari designed a unique color palette, trying his best to maintain the same visual language as The Shining. In the soundtrack, art direction and setting design, he also realized full respect for the original work.
Ivan McGregor, who plays the title character, has a low-energy performance in "Doctor Sleeper", but it has a calming effect. Although Hollywood’s job opportunities seem to be more favored by the same person from Scotland, the younger James McAvoy, McGregor, who has been on the edge of the mainstream blockbuster since the "high ground", has not lost his accuracy, and has played a leading role in rival dramas. It is also obvious. The performance of Rebecca Ferguson, who is on the rise, is also quite mature, and undoubtedly, it is the biggest highlight in "Doctor Sleeper".
However, the rhythm of the two-and-a-half-hour "Doctor Sleeper" is still overdone—an hour of sleeplessness did not get better yet—the story also lacks the necessary sense of urgency and rhythm, which makes many places The bridge segment and climax did not achieve the expected results-this is also the overall perception of "Dream Doctor" with a large number of action dramas, but is more similar to the literary drama, one of the important reasons for the extravaganza of Netflix "Ghost Invasion".
Another fate of "Doctor Sleeper" is to return to "The Shining"-this is also the main motivation for the admission of most audiences. The cost of the movie is only 45 million US dollars, which is a figure that is not high: this fall Warner’s other two great works, the US$55 million "Joker" rely heavily on real shots, and the special effects of the US$75 million "Ecstasy 2" still show up. But it has doubled that of "The Clown's Recall" two years ago. Limited by this, "Doctor Sleeper" naturally can't be as willful as Steven Spielberg's "Ready Player One", using a lot of CG to recreate Kubrick's Overlook Hotel, and even the particle effects of the soul out of the body. They all seem to be a bit fake-not to mention the basic Jack Nicholson, and the plot and role connection problems caused by the Cock's Magic Reform.
Flanagan's corresponding strategy is really no way out of the poor: re-elect the cast and play it again.
This has also led to the biggest dislocation of the film in the last half hour: knowing that it is not shoddy, but can not sincerely praise these "imitation shows" for their courage. Henry Thomas ("Ghost Invasion") and Alex Esso, both in appearance and acting are far away from Jack Nicholson and Shelly Duvall, but they insist on reappearing The two classic performances full of explosive power can only be said to draw cats and talk tigers.
This kind of alienated operation can be regarded as a different interpretation of the same image text, but under the same scene and lens, it is always like a throat. The "complete resurrection" of Governor Tarkin achieved by Disney on the US$200 million (!) investment in "Rogue One" is naturally impossible to reproduce "Doctor Sleeper", which is completely understandable.
But is there a better way to perform? For example, use the high-definition restored "The Shining" lens to avoid the front face/close-up of the same character? It is worth thinking about that these two methods also exist in "Doctor Sleeper", but they are not regarded as solutions to this problem.
This also shows that although Flanagan is safe, he is not bold enough. And for "Doctor Sleeper", which is the continuation of Cushman's "The Shining", it is really not nitpicking. After all, last week's "Terminator: Dark Fate" has just recreated the 92-year-old Connor mother and son. For ordinary viewers who do not understand the details, the gap is naturally imaginable.
After all, there is no harm without comparison.
Continuing classic works is naturally a headache. Even if it is the "The Matrix"-style personal operation, it is difficult to avoid the misalignment of standards and expectations. Similar to HBO's "Watchmen" series, "Doctor Sleeper" has worked hard enough as the follow-up story of "The Shining", but the better question is, do we need such a follow-up story?
Kubrick used his cold and elegant temperament to completely turn Stephen King's work into Kubrick's work-this is also the former's biggest dissatisfaction-Stephen King's self-protection is naturally "Sleeping Dreams". An indispensable part of The Doctor. But sometimes, should we also realize that "The Shining" is already a complete endorsement of the Kubrick system?
Sometimes, starting a new remake may be easier than forcibly continuing, and it is also more likely to be on its own and become another mountain.
Flanagan, who astounded the audience with "Ghost Invasion", should have a deeper understanding since then: it is not a continuation of any existing ones, but a complete reinterpretation, but instead shaped one of the best episodes of the second half of last year; and The result of a strong act "The Shining" continuation can only be like a sable and not a sable.
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