Doctor Sleep

The idea of Stephen King (Carrie) writing a sequel to The Shining, arguably his most famous novel, was controversial to say the least. What, exactly, was the point of a follow up? That was the question on many minds when it was announced, but it was quickly answered when Doctor Sleep was quite well received upon relief. The same questions started to emerge when Mike Flanagan’s (The Haunting of Hill House) film adaptation was announced. Like the novel, critics were largely silenced when the film was released despite the film’s low box office returns.

Doctor Sleep was written and directed by Flanagan and was released on November 8th, 2019. Doctor Sleep was made on a budget of $45 million, made $14,114,124 upon opening, and went on to make $72,381,712 worldwide. Despite it’s disappointing box office, the film received positive reviews. An extended Director’s Cut (increasing the runtime from 152 minutes to 180 minutes) was released in early 2020. 

Doctor Sleep follows an adult Danny Torrance (Ewan McGregor, Trainspotting) who has turned to drugs and alcohol to deal with the trauma of his experiences at the Overlook Hotel. After getting clean, he meets a young woman named Abra Stone (Kyliegh Curran, Secrets of Sulphur Springs) whose Shine is far stronger than his own. He takes it upon himself to protect her from Rose the Hat (Rebecca Ferguson, Dune) and her followers who wish to kill Abra and feast upon her Shine.

I unfortunately missed out on seeing Doctor Sleep when it was in theaters. I wanted to finish reading the book first and by the time I had, the film had ended its disappointingly short theatrical run. Sure, my $7.50 wouldn’t have meant much in the long run, but I would have loved to have seen it on the big screen. This film is good.

McGregor is good, but the film really belongs to Curran and Ferguson which Flanagan seems to understand. Abra is the foundation of the film and Rose the Hat is such a terrifying and compelling antagonist. McGregor is the fiber that brings the two together, but this is ultimately Abra’s story and she’s a great protagonist.

As is usual for Flanagan, he anchors the horror of the story in deep human connection. It’s funny that a man whose horror output often involves family (Oculus, Hill House, Ouija: Origin of Evil) opts to remove the familial connection between Danny and Abra from the novel. Despite this change (among others), the emotional beats of the film all land.

Flanagan’s direction is up to his usual standards. The film is frightening and touching at the appropriate moments, and it’s elevated even further by the performances of the three leads. This film is highly recommended.

Rating: 4.5 top hats out of 5

Other Observations:

• Does the Dog Die? No, but the cat accurately predicts the death of others

• Harrison’s Favorite Scare: The death of the Baseball Boy (Jacob Tremblay, Room). It’s truly horrific.

• It really can’t be overstated how good of a villain Rose the Hat is. Probably one of my favorites in King’s canon.

• I really hope that Flanagan does a sequel about Abra. I’d watch the hell out of that.

Next Week: The final stop in our countdown to Scream (2022), we’re watching Scream 4!