working off source material that is very different from its predecessor, anyone expecting a straightforward "Shining" sequel will be disappointed. This isn't a gruelling exercise in pure horror. It's odder and more contemplative, but worth checking in
with "Doctor Sleep", Mike Flanagan has assuredly crafted a compelling, heartfelt, and horrifying tale of redemption, trauma, and embracing your own sense of power, all while celebrating the works of Kubrick, King, and his own career as well
Rebecca Ferguson is the best thing in this overlong sequel; when she's around, she's the whole show, threatening, cajoling, erotically boiling when prey is at hand
it is more than half an hour longer than the Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining", although it seems more than that – laborious, directionless and densely populated with boring new characters among whom the narrative focus is muddled and split
Dan (Ewan McGregor) and Abra's (Lyleigh Curran) psychic connections are smartly realised. The horrifying moments are fleeting and expertly executed, aided by a perfectly pitched cast
"Doctor Sleep" shows considerable effort to ingratiate itself to discerning cinephiles; as a whole, the movie conjures an eerie and wondrous atmosphere that blends abject terror with a somber, mournful quality unique to Mike Flanagan's oeuvre
by Heather Wixson [Daily Dead ]
by Peter Bradshaw [The Guardian ]
by Richard Phippen [HeyUGuys ]
