Doctor Sleep Movie Review

The following is a movie review “Doctor Sleep” by Marc Primo.

Release date: November 8, 2019 (United States)

Director: Mike Flanagan

Language: English

Production companies: Intrepid Pictures, Vertigo Entertainment,

Producers: Trevor Macy, Jon Berg

SPOILER ALERT-- From Stephen King’s 2013 follow-up to his breakthrough novel The Shining comes the film adaptation of Doctor Sleep led by the versatile Ewan McGregor as Dan Torrance, the traumatized child of Jack and Wendy.

As an offshoot of sorts from how King previously expressed his distaste for Stanley Kubrick’s handling of The Shining, Doctor Sleep slightly deviates itself from its predecessor but melds important themes so that audiences can follow what has been up to with little Danny as an adult.

The film picks up right after the tragedy that befell the Torrances at the Overlook Hotel. Young Danny (Roger Dale Floyd) is now living with his mother (Alex Essoe) in Florida where he finds out that he possesses telepathic and psychic abilities. With the demons of the Overlook Hotel behind him, Dan eventually matures finding solace in alcohol to bear his ever-present fear and unwanted gift.

His downward spiral eventually leads him to a small town in New Hampshire where he gets some life support from Alcoholics Anonymous, and his friends Billy (Cliff Curtis) and Dr. John Dalton (Bruce Greenwood). Things go well for a while until he connects with another troubled soul in Abra (Kyliegh Curran) who he finds out has the ability to shine brighter than he can.

Considering the King-Kubrick disagreement, Doctor Sleep director Mike Flanagan was able to retain the pop culture sensibilities of the first movie and create a new tale of drama and horror that even skeptical audiences can digest. If his work in another King novel-turned-movie, Netflix’s Gerald’s Game is any indication, Flanagan is certainly the right man to sit in Doctor Sleep’s director’s chair as his respect for both King and the genre is truly evident even in a low-budget thriller. And his reverence to masterful work doesn’t end there as he also exhibits the same regard for Kubrick’s initial vision for the franchise by bringing back the Overlook Hotel in all its ominous glory in Doctor Sleep.

Ewan McGregor also returns to his element in this one, bringing Dan the genetic anger and desolation he inherited from his father to the screen. You can feel the heaviness of his personal and emotional baggages follow him wherever he goes, which all makes for a very intense ride for audiences. Curran is equally impressive as she carries her role in effective harmony with McGregor’s, and movie buffs will definitely be excited to see her in more projects after this one.

However, in terms of lasting pop culture characters, new villain Rebecca Ferguson’s Rose the Hat absolutely belongs to King’s collection of memorable vicious characters onscreen. The way Ferguson plays the role with such seduction makes you want to love her for being evil, and for horror fans that’s all you can ever ask for in a true villain.

With great direction, spot-on production design, multi-dimensional characters, and central themes present in this ‘supposed’ sequel, Doctor Sleep still remains faithful to how fans remember one of the most terrifying films in history and for that, we thank Flanagan for giving us more nightmares.

If you want to read the latest movie reviews and find out more about Marc Primo click here.