Stanley Kubrick ‘The Shining’: Alternative Versions Of Iconic Line Released


“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”

Once the average movie fan sees The Shining for the very first time, that particular line finds a way to engrave itself in their minds forever.

The 1980 Stanley Kubrick-directed psychological horror film still haunts the minds and memories of movie fans and critics over 35 years after it was first released in theaters.

The iconic “All work and no play” line has been mocked, parodied, praised, applauded, and imitated in so many different ways by so many different people over the past three decades.

When listing the different Stanley Kubrick movies that had a lasting impact on its viewers, it is very hard to not put The Shining toward the top of the list. However, a new report claims that “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” could have very easily been changed to something else.

According to film director Lee Unkrich, Stanley Kubrick filmed multiple versions of the same line.

“Kubrick filmed a number of different language versions of the ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’ insert shot as Wendy leafs through Jack’s work.”

The Independent published a list of the different language that were used by Stanley Kubrick for that memorable line along with their translations.

According to the report, Stanley Kubrick understood the value of that memorable scene of the movie when Jack is seen repeatedly typing the same sentence without letup. He also knew that it would not deliver the same impact in foreign language versions of the film if it had to explained in subtitles. Therefore, instead of translating the original phrase, Stanley Kubrick came up with this wide variety of repeated and somehow unsettling sentences.

ITALIAN: “The morning has gold in its mouth.” (Il mattino ha l’oro in bocca

GERMAN: “Never put off until tomorrow what can be done today.” (Was du heute kannst besorgen, das verschiebe nicht auf morgen)

SPANISH: “No matter how early you get up, you can’t make the sun rise any sooner.” (No por mucho madrugar amanece más temprano)

FRENCH: “What you have is worth much more than what you will have.” (Un Tiens vaut mieux que deux Tu l’auras)

Seven years after The Shining was released, Stanley Kubrick wrote, produced and directed another film that is viewed today as a cinematic classic – Full Metal Jacket.

[Image Credit: Mark Renders/Getty Images]

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