Doctor Sleep (2019)

Doctor Sleep is the sequel to The Shining. I’ve not read The Shining or Doctor Sleep but I went into the film slightly hesitant because I really like The Shining and felt that this film could only disappoint.

There are problems with this film. Firstly it takes too long to get to the Overlook Hotel. It’s clear that this is where the film will end up and yet it takes its time to arrive. The first 10-15 minutes do plod along and it doesn’t seem to know how it wants to start but once it does then its fine. However my biggest issue with this film is that they go to the trouble of referencing The Shining even though Stephen King doesn’t like it yet they recast Jack, Dan & Shelley instead of animating them from The Shining and dropping them into the film. Technology allows actors to be de-aged and yet they somehow recast which did slightly ruin it for me. Also there were characters that were bought in yet didn’t really service the plot. I though Snakebite Andi’s role could easily have been wiped out of the story. Also Abra’s mother is sort of forgotten about, she leaves for some reason (which explained) and then doesn’t turn up until towards the end and the father is really also there just to get killed.

The performances are really good. Ewan McGregor is very good as grown up Dan and its probably one of his best performance I have seen him give. Dan is trying to get as far away from his past as he can and he’s a recovering alcoholic and there is a nice vulnerability to him. Rebecca Ferguson is a very good villain as Rose The Hat, every scene she’s in is great. Child actors are normally irritating but not in this film. Kyliegh Curran plays Abra who becomes friends with Dan and she more than holds her own. She might be a bit too cocky at times but overall she more than holds her own against Rebecca Ferguson and Ewan McGregor. Also I thought that Alex Essoe does a superb impression of Wendy Torrance and you easily forget that it wasn’t Shelley Duvall.

The directing of this film is rather good. Mike Flanagan does a good job of keeping the story going and also resorting to clichés and jump scares. There was one jump scare that got me and it was just a light coming on but that was ok and I think that Flanagan is a good director because I quite like another film of his called Hush which also manages to maintain the story. He keeps the nostalgia to the final act and the shot where the camera is over the lake like at the beginning of The Shining was very cool and all the scenes in the hotel were mysterious and atmospheric.

I liked Doctor Sleep. I think that it’s an enjoyable if slightly flawed film. If you go in expecting this film to be better than The Shining then you will be disappointed but if you in not expecting it to be as good then you will enjoy it. The film is two and a half hours long and I actually thought that it was the right amount of time.