The Shining 4K UHD (1980)

[Drooch]

Originally Posted by dallywhitty

Cause it was in the book.

What’s the reasoning in the book?

[DR Herbert West]

Why can't the ghost just be a racist?

[dallywhitty]

Originally Posted by Drooch

What’s the reasoning in the book?

It's just a trait of King's work, characters casually dropping slurs like that in an aggressive way. I think it just contributes to the baddies feeling like, well, baddies.

[Drooch]

Originally Posted by DR Herbert West

Why can't the ghost just be a racist?

It can (if we’re assuming it’s a straight up ghost which another poster doesn’t seem to think). If it is then Grady is very adept at pandering to Jack’s worst impulses to persuade him to do bad things.

If that’s the case then it’s likely dropping N-bombs to appeal to Jack’s racism, and sure enough Jack replies ‘a nig**r?’ straight up adopting the lingo.

[KubrickKurasawa]

Originally Posted by Drooch

Is Jack racist?

He seems pretty chill with Hallorann, but when Grady shows up he warns him of a ‘ni**er cook’ and Jack seems pretty horrified at the concept.

Is Grady’s racism a projection of Jack’s, or is Grady just a racist ghost?

I look at it like the hotel is full of hate right. It projects hate onto the weak. Jack is weak because he can't control his drinking. It was built on an Indian Graveyard therefore disrespected like their race. The colors in the restroom where this conversation is held are the Nazi party colors which is a hate group. And then that derogatory racist name. And it also consumes fathers/caretakers and consumes them with the devils mindset as well in Jack and the Gradys case with familicide. Jack/Devil hates everything and everyone so ya you best believe it.

[DR Herbert West]

Originally Posted by Drooch

If that’s the case then it’s likely dropping N-bombs to appeal to Jack’s racism, and sure enough Jack replies ‘a nig**r?’ straight up adopting the lingo.

This Jack guy is a real jerk!

© Norm Macdonald

[toxia]

It's an old ghost, times were different jack looked shocked when he called the cook the n word cause it was so out of place and people didn't talk like that when this movie was released or even today even..... but the ghost/hotel only know what they know. Simple actually

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Drooch

It can (if we’re assuming it’s a straight up ghost which another poster doesn’t seem to think). If it is then Grady is very adept at pandering to Jack’s worst impulses to persuade him to do bad things.

If that’s the case then it’s likely dropping N-bombs to appeal to Jack’s racism, and sure enough Jack replies ‘a nig**r?’ straight up adopting the lingo.

Can’t believe this is an Actual Discussion (must be a slow day on the forums) but look at the almost incredulous way Jack delivers the “a ******?” line when Grady says it, to me it always felt like he’s taken aback by what he says and isn’t some unconscious affirmation of “Jack’s Racism”. Evil spirits are Evil. Who knew?

[Drooch]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Can’t believe this is an Actual Discussion (must be a slow day on the forums) but look at the almost incredulous way Jack delivers the “a ******?” line when Grady says it, to me it always felt like he’s taken aback by what he says and isn’t some unconscious affirmation of “Jack’s Racism”. Evil spirits are Evil. Who knew?

You’d think Jack would be more taken aback by the concept of ‘an outside party’ coming to interfere with his work than said party’s skin colour. Seems the colour is an issue for him, and that N-bomb rolls off the tongue awful easy for him, as did his quips about ‘white man’s burden’.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Drooch

You’d think Jack would be more taken aback by the concept of ‘an outside party’ coming to interfere with his work than said party’s skin colour. Seems the colour is an issue for him, and that N-bomb rolls off the tongue awful easy for him, as did his quips about ‘white man’s burden’.

But just repeating the word doesn’t make him racist, and again I can’t get over how he says it back to Grady. He doesn’t relish the word, doesn’t spit it out with venom, even phrases it with an upward lilt and an almost mocking look on his face, like he’s repeating something a five-year-old told him. As with Jack himself, I think we’re just seeing what we want to see in this scene.

[DR Herbert West]

I'm starting to think Jack isn't father material.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by DR Herbert West

I'm starting to think Jack isn't father material.

A few extra pounds of pressure per second per second

[DR Herbert West]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

A few extra pounds of pressure per second per second

It was an accident, completely unintentional.

[Cherokee Jack]

Originally Posted by dallywhitty

It's just a trait of King's work, characters casually dropping slurs like that in an aggressive way. I think it just contributes to the baddies feeling like, well, baddies.

Yep, it's King. Unsubtle racists and childhood bullies are kind of his thing.

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Can’t believe this is an Actual Discussion (must be a slow day on the forums) but look at the almost incredulous way Jack delivers the “a ******?” line when Grady says it, to me it always felt like he’s taken aback by what he says and isn’t some unconscious affirmation of “Jack’s Racism”. Evil spirits are Evil. Who knew?

I've always loved how confused Jack looks and sounds in that moment. Almost like a child learning for the first time that he should care about a person's race.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Cherokee Jack

Yep, it's King. Unsubtle racists and childhood bullies are kind of his thing.


I've always loved how confused Jack looks and sounds in that moment. Almost like a child learning for the first time that he should care about a person's race.

I can see it from that perspective, his reaction is like he’s shocked to hear that word even though it might well be emanating from his own latent prejudices. It’s almost too much gurning from Nicholson, like how Jack (the character) would react if he heard that word in polite company, but I guess that’s why Kubrick chose that take: so much can be read into it.

[The Fallen Deity]

Jack isn't racist. As Geoff has already said, Jack looked a bit taken aback when Grady said it.

He seemed shocked. Grady is the one who's racist. He probably was when he was still alive as well.

[Agent Kay]

Originally Posted by Drooch

What’s the reasoning in the book?

King liked coke, all the coke

[gates70]

Originally Posted by KevinStriker

He's said something similar in the Jaws 4K thread, might just be stirring sh!t.

I'm not sure it's entirely fair to expect a world more detail than we already have from a movie shot open-matte with 18mm lenses in 1979.
However, it does a helluvalot to... correct the previous Blu-ray.

Yeah, now I'm just waiting for him to go in the T2 thread to tell us how beautiful it is. Clearly just a troll going from thread to thread just with his one comment.

[Drooch]

Originally Posted by The Fallen Deity

Jack isn't racist. As Geoff has already said, Jack looked a bit taken aback when Grady said it.

He seemed shocked. Grady is the one who's racist. He probably was when he was still alive as well.

I guess it also depends on whether Grady is a random racist ghost, or if he’s a projection of Jack’s psyche. Given ‘white man’s burden’, Jack’s anger/drinking problem and the fact that he drops the N-bomb I don’t think it’s a stretch to assume that he’s carrying some latent racism.

[Alister_M]

TBH I think the mystery and inconclusiveness is a big part of what makes this one so great. Nothing's ever spelled out too clearly. As for the racism, it's a pretty well known fact that King really hates it with a passion, so it's a common tool he uses to direct any sympathy away from the bad characters.