Room 237

It's obvious that The Shining is much more than a mere horror film, but what exactly is it? Rodney Ascher's highly entertaining Room 237 invites a group of Shining devotees to share their theories after examining Stanley Kubrick's film in astounding detail, and the results are alternately persuasive and ridiculous. Is the film a metaphor for the genocide of Native Americans? Is it a veiled admission by Kubrick that he helped fake the moon landing? Is it something to do with minotaurs?

Ascher smartly uses a variety of footage from Kubrick's films and other sources to illustrate these ideas, and edits it all together in a witty, playful fashion. Despite the utter conviction with which each contributor presents their evidence, none seem likely to be taken as a definitive explanation for Kubrick's eerily ambiguous masterpiece, but Room 237 does highlight aspects of the movie that you've never noticed before, and it guarantees that you'll be more attentive than ever the next time you watch The Shining.