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'Room 237' explores 'The Shining' and the conspiracy theories it spawned

'Room 237' explores 'The Shining' and the conspiracy theories it spawned

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Documentary on Kubrick's cult classic gets a new trailer ahead of US release

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room 237 poster
room 237 poster

IFC Midnight this week released a new trailer for Room 237 — the forthcoming documentary about Stanley Kubrick's 1980 masterpiece, The Shining. Directed by Rodney Ascher, the movie was released to largely glowing reviews at last year's Sundance Film Festival, and will be released in theaters and on iTunes on March 29th.

According to the film's website, Room 237 isn't so much a behind-the-scenes movie as it is a survey of wide-ranging conspiracy theories. Since its release more than three decades ago, The Shining has spawned countless theories about its symbolism and thematic overtones, ranging from the plausible to the grandiose. Michigan-based history professor Gregory Cocks, for instance, claims that the film is a metaphor for the Holocaust, while others see direct connections to the Native American genocide. Some have even held up The Shining as proof that the US government faked the moon landing (with Kubrick's help), pointing to a series of hexagonal, Apollo 11-like patterns that surface throughout the movie.

None of these theories receive much treatment in the trailer below, though the clip does make an obvious nod to the film's most famous — and nightmare-inducing — scene.