Room 237
IFC Films | Release Date: March 29, 2013
6.2
USER SCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 101 Ratings
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Positive:
53
Mixed:
29
Negative:
19
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User Reviews

User scoreBy dateMost helpful
6
BrianMcCriticJun 12, 2013
Some of the theories sound insane and probably are, but they are all entertaining. Any Kubrick fan should watch this documentary at least once. Just to see how through Kubrick's attention to detail and overall brilliance people can extractSome of the theories sound insane and probably are, but they are all entertaining. Any Kubrick fan should watch this documentary at least once. Just to see how through Kubrick's attention to detail and overall brilliance people can extract anything and everything.… Expand
2 of 2 users found this helpful20
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4
DudeManGuyApr 1, 2013
For every interesting point these Kubrick "experts" make, there are two Dark-Side-of-the-Moon-played-along-with-The-Wizard-of-Oz leaps of faith. There's value in exploring the intricacies of such a classic film, but the pacing of thisFor every interesting point these Kubrick "experts" make, there are two Dark-Side-of-the-Moon-played-along-with-The-Wizard-of-Oz leaps of faith. There's value in exploring the intricacies of such a classic film, but the pacing of this documentary suffers due to the inclusion of some pretty silly (and lengthy) conspiracy theories. Unless it's really a movie about ridiculous obsession. In that case, 11/10.… Expand
3 of 5 users found this helpful32
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4
SavvyApr 13, 2013
Went to this film with three The Shining/Kubrick devotees--ready to love this doc. Didn't happen. It opens with the descriptor: "a documentary in 9 parts" or something to that effect. Well, let me tell you that the sophisticated art houseWent to this film with three The Shining/Kubrick devotees--ready to love this doc. Didn't happen. It opens with the descriptor: "a documentary in 9 parts" or something to that effect. Well, let me tell you that the sophisticated art house audience I saw it with was antsy, annoyed and ready to walk out by part 5. Re-watching The Shining footage is fun. The obsessive, odd, contrived and ridiculous "thematic theory" voice overs of the five or six offstage talking heads are alternately funny, interesting and just plain dumb. But that is the conceit of this film... how one can piece together any theory that you're LOOKING for giving enough viewings. (Okay, honestly, that "Minotaur"-ski-poster woman is just nuts.) The 'food pantry scene' became fodder for several theories ranging from the genocide of the American Indians to Kubrick's guilt over participating in the faked footage of the Apollo Moon landing. Problem is that this all gets silly, boring and then annoying after an hour or so. NO ONE in the audience I saw with left pleased with the experience as a whole. It was more a shake-your-head and vow not to indulge this over-indulgent doc director with your valuable time again.… Expand
0 of 2 users found this helpful02
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5
RoccosRantJun 16, 2014
Slogs on by hitting every single conspiracy theory regardless of how absolutely moronic. If they just would have dissected the most popular and believable ones it would have been much better. Could have been interesting but halfway throughSlogs on by hitting every single conspiracy theory regardless of how absolutely moronic. If they just would have dissected the most popular and believable ones it would have been much better. Could have been interesting but halfway through I had a headache from rolling my eyes so much. Don't waste your time.… Expand
0 of 1 users found this helpful01
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6
FilipanOtinanDec 23, 2013
An interesting topic selection when it comes to the theme the doc is contributing. But, poor execution and unclear when the main suggestion is that the Moon landing was fake and that was Kubrick who directed the so called video of it. CouldAn interesting topic selection when it comes to the theme the doc is contributing. But, poor execution and unclear when the main suggestion is that the Moon landing was fake and that was Kubrick who directed the so called video of it. Could have been better … Expand
0 of 1 users found this helpful01
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4
LamontRaymondApr 8, 2013
This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I'm shocked the critics liked this as much as they did. It's strange that you never see the documentarians' faces during the film and the stock footage of old movie-goers is annoying as hell. Most importantly, toward the end, the narrator explains that he was unemployed at home thinking about the movie obsessively and that he has no idea if any of this stuff was really intended by Kubrick. He suggests that the subjective intent of the artist never really matters. Hmmmm. As for the good stuff, all of the Apollo 11 imagery is interesting, but suggesting that Kubrick faked the images of the actual moon landing seems like a stretch even though the never say that the moon landing didn't happen. The Native American images were certainly interesting to dwell on. But to spend so much time on "cool" coincidences in overlapping images when playing the film backwards and forwards at the same time is ridiculous. My final thought is that it's great dwelling on this film again after all these years, but this movie seems like the musings of the film editor for High Times magazine, not fodder for a feature film.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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5
GOUGHApr 13, 2013
This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Yeah, sure, it's awful silly and, that's a good point. Great in fact. Anything over analyzed is, don't you think? And that's what's happening here, isn't it? Enjoy the ride and the film is fine, a 5 pointer out of 10. 10 being the best. Well, one could say, there are things that any film maker obsesses over, any film maker, and, that carries with all their films and approach, with every film. Maybe Kubrick made the landing for a deal to return to the states no harm no foul. But, he left because he hated what the U.S. govt. was has always seems to do. Someone forgot to bring the camera. It was faked so that, just in case it the live feed didn't work, they could show their fake footage as real, and, every one knows, we shoot into the trees in vietnam films to show folks back home we're doing something....… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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5
nutterjrJun 9, 2013
The Shining is a great film by a brilliant director known for his attention to detail. Therefore the assumption of this documentary that there is nothing on this film by accident is stretched to the point that every speck of dust is analysedThe Shining is a great film by a brilliant director known for his attention to detail. Therefore the assumption of this documentary that there is nothing on this film by accident is stretched to the point that every speck of dust is analysed and potentially paraphrased as noone is really in the mind of Stanley Kubrik. And even though parts of it are somewhat interesting as a topic of conversation between cine-files, the full picture carries far to many ludicrous theories to be taken seriously.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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5
TheQuietGamerMar 2, 2018
I believe Stanley Kubrick built a lot of symbolism into The Shining. That all of the visual inconsistencies, little flourishes, breaks in reality, and doses of repetition that can be found all throughout the film were intentional and designedI believe Stanley Kubrick built a lot of symbolism into The Shining. That all of the visual inconsistencies, little flourishes, breaks in reality, and doses of repetition that can be found all throughout the film were intentional and designed with some meaning in mind. I just find the crackpots in this documentary to be grasping at straws more often than not. One or two of them might be outright crazy. Every now and then the speakers will genuinely notice something great. The problem is that they won't follow up on it with a logical train of thought. Instead they wander off into left field and chase imaginary rabbits. Something that hurts the credibility of the project.

To be fair, Room 237 isn't about delivering plausible theories behind what was going on in Kubrick's head. Instead the point is to show just how film can capture the imagination and how the art form is often so much more than just what's on the surface level. In that regard it mostly succeeds, but the fact that most of it's speakers have nothing to offer and the rest have tricked themselves into seeing things that aren't there makes for an incredibly frustrating watch. Then there's that one annoying guy who keeps laughing after every sentence and interrupts his own dialog to try and quiet his crying child in another room. It makes the whole thing feel so amateurish. Why couldn't they have cut that part out? There are the rare moments of brilliance though. Such as the bit where we witness the overlapping of the film being played backwards and forwards at the same time. Something that actually make The Shining even creepier. I'll give Room 237 some credit. It did make me more interested in Kubrick himself as well as his other movies (specifically 2001: A Space Odyssey). I even want to rewatch The Shining again. Sadly it doesn't do much to make up for the moments where the speakers do little more than describe the scenes we're seeing with no point anywhere to be found, as well as the moments where they do something so ridiculously stupid like comparing scenes to stories their kids made up and act like that's some big eureka moment. Rodney Ascher's documentary takes an incredibly influential horror movie and uses it as a way to celebrate the medium of film as a whole. Though do to a lack of credible speakers the end results are something one is better off skipping. Despite a few hints of promise, there's nothing but disappointment to be found.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
oliver1hApr 25, 2013
A documentary, that in some way tries to prove that cinema is a form of art, because what is art, if not something (among other things) that makes us think?! Room 237 proves that certain movies and certain movie scenes can be interpreted manyA documentary, that in some way tries to prove that cinema is a form of art, because what is art, if not something (among other things) that makes us think?! Room 237 proves that certain movies and certain movie scenes can be interpreted many ways. Most of the ideas presented in this documentary are silly or ridiculous, so this way Room 237 is also about obsession. Movie obsession. Also about the human mind that seeks for hidden meaning, and pattern when there is none. Could be better if they would focus on some more "legit" theories, or made a comparison with Kubrick's other movies. Also felt it was overlong, and after about an hour I felt somewhat bored. Worth a look for anyone interested in cinema.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
JLuis_001Sep 7, 2017
Room 237 is an elegantly produced and enormously entertaining documentary, although I must clarify that it will only appeal to those who enjoyed The Shining and saw it as more than just a horror movie.
After all the creator of that film isRoom 237 is an elegantly produced and enormously entertaining documentary, although I must clarify that it will only appeal to those who enjoyed The Shining and saw it as more than just a horror movie.
After all the creator of that film is one of the greatest geniuses that the cinema has given the world and his film is an exceptional.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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