One of the benefits of Doctor Sleep is that it explores multiple genres, surpassing its horror trappings. There are elements of fantasy, drama, thrills, and more. But, keeping true to both Stephen King and Stanley Kubrick, the film certainly is primarily horror.
There are multiple scenes of horror throughout the film, but they appear in surprising new ways. Just as Flanagan surprises in his multiple other projects, Doctor Sleep embraces a wide scope of horror imagery and techniques. Here are some of the highlights of this sequel to The Shining.
Returning To The Overlook
This moment might not be outright horrifying, but it was one of the most foreboding sequences in the entire film. Flanagan recreates the iconic journey up to the Overlook hotel via the mountain pass from the first film. This time though, the journey is shrouded in the darkness of night.
The updated Shining theme paired with the slow descent to this haunting location is one of the most exciting and spine-tingling sequences of the whole movie. Though it totally plays on nostalgia for the first film, it still holds a lot of emotional power.
Grandpa Flick’s Death
In the film, as well as the book, the cult of The True Knot has lost all of their humanity. When they finally die, their physical f0rm erases from existence, dissolving into nothing but the steam they’ve consumed.
The death scene for Grandpa Flick showcased this perfectly, serving up some of the best body horrors in recent memory. The phasing in and out was subtle enough not to look too hokey, and the performance from The Addam’s Family actor Carel Struycken is a disturbing showcase of his physicality.
Jack’s Temptation of Danny
One of the tensest moments of the whole film is when Danny visits the Overlook Hotel Bar in the gold room. There he is met with the spirit of his dead father, Jack, who has now taken on the moniker of Lloyd the bartender.
Jack’s spirit has totally succumbed to the hotel, becoming nothing more than a puppet. This tragic sequence is equally horrifying, as it shows the futility of Danny attempting to reason with his long lost father. Henry Thomas brings Jack to life in all of his Jack Nicholson glory too, adding that necessary bit of anger and tension.
The True Knot’s Hunger For Steam
The True Knot are some of the strangest vampire-like characters ever to appear on the big screen. Though they are not the traditional bloodsuckers, their cruelty, lack of humanity, and sheer hunger for the steam of others drive them to horrifying desperation.
There is a specific blocking choice that Flanagan instituted when it came to the movement of the True Knot that is horrifying to watch. When they rush in like a pack of hungry animals, their monstrous selves come out. Every time they rush in to feed is disturbing as hell.
Return Of The Overlook’s Ghosts
Though the scene was mostly triggered by nostalgia, you can’t help but feel that similar trigger of fear from seeing the resident spirits of the Overlook again. Whether it is the creepy twins (not really twins), the lady from 237, or Delbert Grady, there is a sense of evil about them.
Pair that with similar blocking as the True Knot, and there is a brand new scare tactic with these characters. They way they destroy Rose the Hat and finally take over Danny is some of the scariest imagery from the whole film.
Uncovering The Baseball Boy
One of the darkest moments of the whole film is when Dan and Billy uncover the body of the baseball boy, eaten alive by The True Knot. The way that Flanagan chooses to slowly reveal the corpse of the boy is one of the smartest and most disturbing ways one could.
It is not shown much, but when the hands, feet, and face are slowly uncovered, they are shrouded in darkness and dirt. But, the camera shows just enough to trigger a response from the audience, and the reactions from Dan and Billy are just enough to show how horrifying this situation really is.
Deenie’s Ghost
The reveal that Deenie’s ghost was in bed with Dan is one of the creepiest moments in the whole film. It obviously holds a lot of narrative weight, showing that this person and Dan’s shame truly haunts him to this day.
But even on a basic level, the reveal that she is spooning him in bed is one of the unnerving scenarios one could experience. Then, when she grabs him as he sneaks out of bed, is a perfect way to end the scare.
The Baby’s Ghost
Even creepier than Deenie though, is the reveal left out of the trailer. Deenie on her own is horrifying, but anyone who had seen marketing had already seen that moment. What audiences hadn’t seen though was the reveal of who else was in the bed.
The sound cue of the baby cry and the slow pan down to its soulless eyes was horrifying. Seeing a decaying ghost of an infant is one of the most jarring examples of horror imagery one could imagine. It terrifies and makes one sick.
Violet Trapped
The ghosts of the film are scary enough, but it is the deaths of children by the hands of The True Knot that leaves the biggest horror impact. There is an invisible line that presents itself when kids are in danger in horror films.
Mike Flanagan crosses it multiple times, condemning kid characters to brutal deaths by the hands of this evil cult. One of the tensest and most disturbing moments in the film is when the little girl Violet is caught by the group.
Murder of The Baseball Boy
Luckily, we are spared the gruesome murder of Violet. Sadly, we have to go through an even worse moment when Jacob Tremblay’s Baseball Boy is murdered. Watching the scene, you can see why Tremblay was recruited for such a small role.
The agony that he portrays while The True Knot guts him alive makes you want to leave the theater. Although it doesn’t show exactly what they’re doing to him, the splattering of blood, the brutality of the cult, and the screams of Tremblay show how awful this moment really is.
