Room 237

Room 237, Rodney Ascher’s documentary about Stanley Kubrick’s horror film The Shining, artfully explores the various conspiracy theories associated with the movie. In one theory, the number 42 and a German typewriter suggest the film makes some kind of statement about the Holocaust. The film’s title refers to the fact that Kubrick changed the name of the room in King’s novel from 217 to 237, but Ascher also explores another theory about how numbers divisible by seven repeat throughout the movie. A guy who calls himself MSTRMIND—incidentally, he declined Ascher’s request to be interviewed—asserts the film should be seen both forward and backward. A fascinating documentary that uses footage from a variety of Kubrick movies, Room 237 is as much a tribute to the late director as it is a documentary about one of the greatest horror movies of all time. (Jeff Niesel)