The Shining
2018

MSP Film Society Minneapolis, MN

with

Sam Cooper

Graduate TA in Psychology, University of Minnesota

The Shining— Fear analysis: It’s all in your head

Your muscles tense, you cover your eyes, and a shiver runs down your spine… but why? What is the feeling of fear, and why do so many of us seek it out in horror movies? Psychology researcher Sam Cooper answers these questions and more during this educational evening of terror. Part of the 2018 National Evening of Science on Screen.

MSP Film Society Minneapolis, MN

Film Synopsis

A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where an evil presence slowly drives the father insane.

Based on the novel by Stephen King, Stanley Kubrick's horror classic tells the story of Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson), an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic who accepts a position as the off-season caretaker at the isolated Overlook Hotel. His family accompanies him on the job, including his his wife Wendy (Shelley Duvall) and his young son Danny Torrance (Danny Lloyd), who possesses "the shining," an array of psychic abilities that allow him to see the hotel's horrific past. After a winter storm leaves them snowbound, the supernatural forces inhabiting the hotel influence Jack's sanity, leaving his wife and son in incredible danger.