![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The 5.1 track offers a nice and open soundscape with some decent imaging and atmosphere - especially whenever mill equipment is running or during the climax in the tunnels. It's dealer's choice here as both tracks have their strengths and weaknesses. Graveyard Shift also enjoys two solid audio mixes - a DTS-HD MA 5.1 track and a DTS-HD MA 2.0 track. The disc loads to a static image main menu with traditional navigation options. No slipcover or reversible artwork for this release. Pressed onto a BD-50 Region A locked disc, the disc is housed in a standard Blu-ray case. Graveyard Shift makes it's debut on Blu-ray in the US thanks to Scream Factory in a single-disc set. Laugh with it or at it - Graveyard Shift is hardly the worst cinematic Stephen King adaptation to come down the pipeline. And that's all it needs to do - entertain. This movie was churned out fast to make a Halloween weekend release to entertain an audience. I could blow this review picking it apart, but there's no fun in that. I may be fond of this movie, it's one of my favorite King adaptations because of my youthful nostalgia, but I'm not above being critical of it. There are parts that work, and there are parts that don't really go anywhere. As I mentioned in my review of The Outsider - whenever someone feels the need to adapt a Stephen King novel or story, they usually have to make a lot of changes or outright make up a ton of stuff. My fondness was cemented when I was finally old enough to rent the tape and get to see all of the nasty bits that were cut for content. I have fond memories of watching it with my sister laughing at various parts but then cowering when something gory came up. Entire days were wasted trying to get the thing to do what it was supposed to so it was relegated to quick cuts and shadows until the grotesque finale.Įven when I was a kid I knew this movie wasn't "great," but it was a hell of a lot of fun. Like the shark from Jaws, the overly elaborate creature didn't work. But it's the Bat-Rat that steals the show. David Andrews, Kelly Wolf, Andrew Divoff, Vic Polizos, and Robert Alan Beuth are stuck reacting to them and picking up the scraps hoping to be noticed. Then we have Brad Dourif going full nut as the Exterminator chewing more scenery than anyone else in he show. First up we have Stephen Macht who goes full out loon complete with thick Maine accent - that none of the other cast even tries to wear. The willing cast with a fun gooey final creature is what makes the film work. But I always had television! Thanks to the local Detroit stations I got to watch a lot of these movies edited for content - such was the case for Graveyard Shift. As a kid growing up I saw trailers for these movies all the time and was always excited to see them but disappointed when my mom would pull rank and not let me. The less said about Maximum Overdrive the better. For every great film like The Shining, there was an iffy entry like Firestarter or Cat's Eye. One adaptation after another was pushed into production with filmmakers taking any novel or short story they could find and churn a movie out of it as fast as they could its cinematic potential be damned. It's a hell of a creature, a bit goofy and doesn't make a lick of sense, but then whatever does make sense in a King creature feature?Įver since Carrie raced its way to movie screens and box office success - Stephen King was a cash cow for Hollywood. Instead, the filmmakers focused on one weird creature - the Bat-Rat. While the idea of a rat kingdom ecosystem with a number of species variations and a queen rat sounds kinda cool - it'd drift awful close to what James Cameron pulled off in Aliens. The short story essentially makes up the last act of the film but with a number of changes. Writer John Esposito did an amiable job taking little more than a dozen pages and working them into a full-length screenplay. Graveyard Shift is the example of adapting a short story from Stephen King and having to add a whole lot to the show. Only they're not alone in the basement - and the rats are the least of their problems. When Hall makes Warwick's shit list, he's enlisted over the July 4th break to clean out the basement with the other miscreants of the mill. Even the Exterminator (Brad Dourif) can't figure why there's so many as he kills them off by the dozen. But a man without prospects can't complain about working the graveyard shift handling the picker. But that doesn't stop drifter John Hall (David Andrews) from applying for the job with a cruel and abusive boss Warwick (Stephen Macht). Men have a bad habit of coming and going, often without collecting their last day's pay. The textile mill is looking for a few good men. ![]()
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