POP! Movies - The Shining: Jack Torrance

As a general rule, I’m a staunch believer that the book is better than the movie. But every rule has exceptions, and The Shining is one of them. 

I read the novel when I was probably 19 or 20, and reading a huge amount of Stephen King’s stuff in general. I don’t recall it doing a lot for me; it was entertaining, but didn’t leave nearly the same impression that say, IT did. I think that part of that is because I’ve never really believed in ghosts, and so they don’t hold a great deal of terror for me*.

The Stanley Kubrick adaptation, though…that was something else. I don’t remember whether I saw the film or read the book first, but the film has stuck with me for years. So many bizarre images, and so little explanation for them. A lack of exposition can be incredibly infuriating, but it works impressively well in The Shining. 

Much of what I said about the Mystery Mini version of Jack Torrance last year also applies here. The POP does a reasonable job of replicating Jack Nicholson’s “Here's Johnny” look in the film -- the red jacket, jeans and of course the axe. It looks a little more like Jack Nicholson, but it’s not exactly a dead ringer.

I have two main criticisms. The first is that the paint on the shirt is almost completely absent. The check pattern is present on the control art, but on the final POP it’s just plain blue. The other is with the hair. Jack Nicholson has never gone totally bald, but even by the time of The Shining it was looking pretty thin – though this is probably just a side-effect of the aesthetic.

The line also includes Wendy Torrance, Danny Torrance and the Grady Twins**. Funko are to be commended for doing more than one character – but Wendy et al are kind of boring. I feel that they could have gone in some more creative directions, considering the good work they’ve done with horror licenses in the past. The woman from the bath, the butler, the animal suit couple...they all would have been a lot better, though admittedly they’re not as retailer/family-friendly.

There’s also a 1:6 Chase version of Jack available. It’s the same sculpt, but has been given a “frozen” paintjob to depict him as he appears in his final moments alive in the movie. I like it okay, but it’s not essential.

Jack Torrance is ultimately an adequate but imperfect figure. This is one to keep in the box; the details like the carpet patterns, blood spatter and of course REDRUM all help elevate it above its shortcomings.

*Of course, I don’t believe in Jason, Pinhead, Pennywise or the Creature from the Black Lagoon either. But here we are.

**The Grady Twins are a Popcultcha exclusive in Australia. They’ve got a 1:6 bloodied Chase variant.

Funko Mystery Minis Horror Classics Series 3: Alex (A Clockwork Orange)

With its weird blend of a dystopian future, Russian slang, unusual fashion and unsettling violence, A Clockwork Orange is a film that may not exactly be horror – but is still shockingly dark at points, while being very, very funny in others. So today we take a look at Funko’s take on the lead character from the movie – Alex.

Cutesy as they are, the Horror Classics line is not really aimed at kids. Some of you are no doubt saying “duh”, but the addition of Alex to the line has really reminded me of that. Though he’s technically an anti-hero, Alex is considerably more perverse than most of the villains that have appeared in the line so far. 

Outside of t-shirts, A Clockwork Orange has not really been heavily merchandised, so it’s interesting to see Alex show up in this format. The figure replicates all the core elements of the costume – the bowler hat, the false eyelash, the bob haircut and the weird codpiece. I’d forgotten about the eyes on the sleeve cuffs, but looking back at stills from the film, they are quite prominent.  

Alex is a good addition to the line, meshing well with his companions in the series. I wouldn't class him as essential, but that's mostly because although I enjoyed the film I wouldn't call myself a devotee. But I would be remiss to not to note that there are also POPs of Alex available. One of them depicts him in this outfit, and the other (apparently somewhat rarer one) depicts him wearing the same outfit, but with the addition of a suspiciously phallic mask. I’ll probably pass on them myself, but they’ll be must-buys for fans of the film. 

Funko Mystery Minis Horror Classics Series 3: Jack Torrance (The Shining)

My parents – in hindsight – were not especially strict, particularly in comparison to some of my friends. But like all parents, they wanted to instil a certain set of values into me – and as such, most horror-related material was treated with a deep suspicion. 

And few names were more synonymous with horror than STEPHEN KING. Back in the 1990s, he was arguably at the height of his commercial (if not creative) powers. Bookstores were stuffed with his wares, and video stores seemed to overflow with filmic adaptations of his works. Being a keen reader from a young age, I was naturally very curious about him – but parental authority steered me away from him until I was a teenager. Probably wisely, in hindsight, though it was frustrating at the time.

In the long term, the parental admonition against horror didn’t work. What did I do as soon as I was old enough? Went out and read a ton of Stephen King books, and watched scores of horror films. I love both to this day -- and one of the best adaptations of King's work is The Shining, from Stanley Kubrick.

Stephen King was not thrilled with this adaptation. Having subsequently read the novel, I can kind of understand why, as it deviates from the source material on many important points. But I enjoyed it myself; the pace was probably just a little too slow for my tastes, but it was definitely bizarre and memorable. And its influence has been undeniable – every TV show on the planet of every genre seems to want to do some kind of tribute to scene with the twins at one point or another. 

This Mystery Mini does a reasonable job of replicating Jack Nicholson’s Here's Johnny look in the film -- the check shirt, red jacket, jeans, maniacal expression, and of course the axe. It doesn’t look like Jack Nicholson specifically, but that’s just the nature of the aesthetic –and at a glance, he could fit in reasonably well with the humans from the Walking Dead Mystery Minis too. My only real criticism is related to the hair. Jack Nicholson has never gone totally bald, but even by the time of The Shining it was looking pretty thin – though again, this is probably just a side-effect of the aesthetic.

Overall? Jack Torrance isn’t my favourite figure in the series, but there isn’t a ton of merch for The Shining out there. Given that we also got the Twins in this series, I assume we’ll get Danny soon too – viewed in combination, that would be a fun set.