TV Obsessive
Doctor Sleep Director’s Cut
Hawk: Doctor Sleep turned out well—better, I’d venture, than the majority were expecting. While I still believe that the movie’s attempt to be a sequel to both the book The Shining and Kubrick’s divergent film adaptation caused it to stumble a bit, Stephen King’s voice was still alive and well in Mike Flanagan’s epic two and a half-hour horror sequel. However, that wasn’t even Flanagan’s full vision, which is finally realized with his Director’s Cut. While most “Director’s Cuts” are simply slightly longer and more mature versions of the theatrical version, Doctor Sleep has some significant and interesting additions that not only add 30 minutes of footage but transform the mood, pacing, emotion, and context of vital scenes. It is unquestionably the superior version.
Flanagan is one of, if not my favorite, directors working today, and one whose track record make me fully invested and confident in whatever he announces as his next project. He is spectacularly gifted at weaving trauma and terror, manifesting the specters and scares intangible horror moments whilst rooting them in grief, trauma, and mental illness. It’s not remotely a novel concept, but the key is in the execution.
If you’re not specifically looking for them, some of the changes might not even consciously register at the moment, though they will end up enriching the viewing: some small scenes are added, and other key scenes are elongated, both adding additional dialogue that grants texture to its characters and world; some reaction shots hold for longer, letting the emotional element resonate. Even the addition of a single new line can help tie together larger thematic arcs later on. The theatrical cut is already great but had the sense of this much larger world and mythology involving those who Shine. I still maintain that this story may have been better served by a miniseries (still under Flanagan, mind), but at the very least the extra half hour gives that world a bit more room to breathe. Both versions are very slow-paced, but I don’t think I can even revisit the theatrical version anymore without it feeling incomplete and, dare I say it, fragmented. Additional context is also given to The True Knot, and the horrifying slaughter of Baseball Boy is even more violent and shocking than before, making the cult of vampires even more foreboding.
More importantly, is how this new cut benefits Jack Torrance and his relationship with Wendy and Danny. While The Shining and Doctor Sleep generally see Jack mainly as a man who succumbed to his own demons and the evil of the hotel, some of the additional 30 minutes frame Jack in a different way, seeing the lighter side of the man who, despite his plummet to rock bottom, made attempts to push back and be better. It adds a significant new layer to Danny as well, further highlighting the struggles with addiction he shares with Jack and his desire to not become like his father. Specifically, I personally think this improves the final act, which in the theatrical cut felt a little too beholden to the conflicting voices of Kubrick and King, while here feels more cohesive with Danny’s arc and King’s vision. The heartbreaking theme of generational trauma is the driving force of the story, and the Director’s Cut is a slam dunk at fully exploring that theme.
Those are our recommendations this week! What are yours? Let us know in the comments!
