Night Shift [Blu-ray]

Overview

Straight-laced Henry Winkler takes a night-shift job as a morgue attendant. Winkler falls under the spell of wheeler-dealer coworker Michael Keaton, whose catchphrase "Is this a great country or what?" is the clarion call for his many get-rich-quick schemes. His latest plan is to turn the morgue into a nocturnal brothel, for the benefit of anything-goes hooker Shelley Long-and incidentally, to line their own pockets. Director Ron Howard and his frequent scripters Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel turn the potentially lurid story material of Night Shift into an endearing comedy, with winning performances from its three often miscast stars. Keep an eye out during one of the party sequences for Kevin Costner as a carousing college boy.

Product Details

Release Date:	10/05/2021
UPC:	0883929778133
Original Release:	1982
Source:	Warner Archives
Language:	English
Sales rank:	13,898

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Henry Winkler	Chuck Lumley,Cheryl
Michael Keaton	Bill Blazejowski
Shelley Long	Belinda Keaton,Turkey Man
Gina Hecht	Charlotte Koogle
Pat Corley	Edward Koogle
Bobby Di Cicco	Leonard
Nita Talbot	Vivian
Basil Hoffman	Drollhauser
Tim Rossovich	Luke
Clint Howard	Jefferey
Joe Spinell	Manetti
Cheryl Carter	Tanya
Jane Jenkins	Actor
Becky Gonzales	Lupe
Corki Corman	Sylvia
Becky Gonzalez	Lupe
Ildiko Jaid	Joyce
Ava Lazar	Sharon
Robbin Young	Nancy
Ola Ray	Dawn
Cassandra Gava	J.J.
Mimi Lieber	Linda
Ashley Cox	Jenny Lynn
Elizabeth Carder	Dolores
Dawn Dunlap	Maxine
Jeanne Mori	Marsha
Catherine Gilmour	Kim
Monique Gabriel	Tessie
Jim Staahl	Red
Monique Gabrielle	Tessie
Richard Belzer	Pig
Badja Djola	Cleon
Marc Flanagan	Steve
Beau Billingslea	Donny
Kevin Sullivan	Tyrone
Grand L. Bush	Mustafa
Julius LeFlore	Franklin
Floyd Levine	Sal Carboni
Reid Cruickshanks	Sgt. Averbach
Charles Fleischer	Prisoner
Tom Mahoney	Judge
Vincent Schiavelli	Carl
Jack Perkins	Tuttle
James Ritz	Morgue Worker
Brett Clark	Paradise Doorman,Paradise Doorman
John Boyle	Leopard Boy
Paul Kaufman	Paradise Patron
Joy Michael Vogelbacher	Jacuzzi Girl
Hugo Napier	Blind Man
Tom Candela	Sailor #1
Edward G. Betlow	Sailor #2
Leonard Termo	Actor
Angelo Vignari	Barber
Kevin Costner	Frat Boy #1
Rick Starr	Frat Boy #2
Russell Forte	Frat Boy #3
Jim Greenleaf	Frat Boy #4
Jason Fitz-Gerald	Frat Boy #5
Jeremy Lawrence	Frat Boy #6
Shannen Doherty	Bluebird

Technical Credits

Lowell Ganz

Babaloo Mandel

Ron Howard	Director
Brian Grazer	Producer
Allen Hall	Special Effects
Donald Kranze	Executive Producer
Lowell Ganz	Screenwriter
Babaloo Mandel	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Young kids swear because doing something you are not supposed to do, something unexpected, usually provides a rush of freedom, the feeling that permeates Night Shift. Four of the brain trusts behind the genial situation comedy Happy Days, head writers Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel, director Ron Howard and lead actor Henry Winkler declared their freedom from their past with this adult-themed comedy about morgue workers who become pimps. Winkler plays a character as far away from Fonzie as one could imagine, while the writers pepper the material with jokes they could never have dreamed of getting away with on the small screen. Winkler's character, who grows from a put-upon quiet "good" guy into an assertive man of action, feels like a symbol for the Happy Days alumni. Michael Keaton, in his first film role, is the spark of energy that allows them to break free; he is like the older kid at school who teaches the younger kids the dirty words. His explanation of the root meaning of "prostitution" is a great example of schoolyard comedy. As seemingly "adult" as this film pretends to be, it is at heart the work of nice young boys who are enjoying the rush of talking dirty. Mix this film's sense of freedom with Happy Days wholesomeness, and you have the best of Howard, Ganz, and Mandel's collaborations -- Parenthood.

All Movie Guide - Perry Seibert