What happens when you combine the visions of three masters of horror: Stephen King, Stanley Kubrick, and Mike Flanagan? You get Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep – a thrilling adaptation of King’s follow-up novel to The Shining, which also follows up the Stanley Kubrick adaptation that remains among the scariest movies of all time. Kubrick’s iconic vision of the Overlook Hotel and the ghosts that unravel alcoholic author and caretaker Jack Torrance is beloved the world over – but famously made some key changes from the original book. Which makes it all the more fascinating and impressive that with Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep, director Mike Flanagan has faithfully adapted King’s subsequent novel in a film that also connects to the world of Kubrick’s 1980 masterpiece. It’s something of a cinematic miracle – and now you can enjoy it from the comfort of your own home on 4K, Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital Download.
Not only that, but the home entertainment release brings with it a new extended Limited Edition Director’s Cut created by Flanagan himself, featuring nearly 30 minutes of new, alternate and extended scenes. It makes for an even fuller telling of King’s story, an even deeper exploration of the film’s characters and themes – and it's available now from select digital partners, and arriving on 9th March on 4K and Blu-ray™.
The film stars Ewan McGregor as a grown-up Danny Torrance (now just ‘Dan’), who has locked away his childhood trauma from the Overlook Hotel, but finds himself plagued by the same issues with addiction that corrupted his father. He’s forced to reconcile with his past and re-engage with his ‘Shining’ abilities when he finds himself psychically linked to young girl Abra (Kyliegh Curran) whose powerful Shine attracts the attention of the True Knot – a cult of immortal beings led by Rebecca Ferguson’s Rose The Hat – with an extended life-span that depends on the steady consumption of Shine-abled children. As a story, it’s its own fantasy-horror beast, expanding The Shining story in all-new eerie, unexpected ways. But when the film inevitably returns to the Overlook Hotel, Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep brilliantly reawakens Kubrick’s meticulously-designed lodgings – from those orange patterned carpets, to the blue dress-wearing twins, to Room 237 – with thrilling panache and emotional resonance, a fascinating invocation of cinema’s ultimate haunted hotel.
It’s the latest success from director Mike Flanagan, whose hugely impressive output has made him one of the most exciting and accomplished horror filmmakers working today – from his chilling haunted mirror movie Oculus, to his other inventive Stephen King adaptation Gerald’s Game, to his knockout Netflix series The Haunting Of Hill House, of which he directed every single episode.
Get lost in the next chapter of The Shining story with Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep, out now on Digital Download. It arrives on 4K Ultra-HD and Blu-ray™ – with the Limited Edition Director’s Cut and bonus features including Return To The Overlook, The Making Of Doctor Sleep: A New Vision, and From Shining To Sleep – and on DVD from 9 March. Prepare to shine again.
Purchase Stephen King's Doctor Sleep on Digital Download here, or order a physical copy online here.
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