Night Shift is a 1982 comedy film directed by Ron Howard, starring Henry Winkler, Michael Keaton, and Shelley Long.
Having gotten reassigned to the unenviable night shift at the New York City morgue where he works, mild-mannered Chuck Lumley (Winkler) struggles to get along with his new assistant, the exuberant and downright wacky Bill Blazejowski (Keaton, in his Star-Making Role). Meanwhile, Chuck's neighbor Belinda Keaton (Long) is a Hooker with a Heart of Gold who's struggling to get along since her pimp was murdered. Chuck's Good Samaritan efforts to help Belinda and Bill, and the latter's penchant for Zany Schemes, eventually lead to them running a prostitution ring out of the morgue. Hilarity Ensues.
Gina Hecht plays Chuck's boring, nagging fiancée Charlotte. Shannen Doherty made her film debut as one of the "Blue Bells" (Girl Scouts) that attack Chuck. Kevin Costner can be seen, in his second film role, as one of the drunk frat boys at the party. Richard Belzer plays one of the two goons that killed Belinda's first pimp, and who eventually come after Chuck.
No relation to Stephen King's Night Shift.
This film provides examples of:
- Angry Guard Dog: Chuck is tormented by one throughout the film. After his Character Development, he sends it away be yelling, "Go home!"
- Attention Deficit... Ooh, Shiny!: Bill definitely seems to have this. His first scene has him practically bouncing off the walls.
- Big "SHUT UP!": Bill carries around a tape recorder for all the times when he's struck by one of his "good ideas". At a moment when he's particularly annoyed at Bill, Chuck grabs his tape recorder and yells "This is Chuck telling Bill to SHUT UP!" into it.
- The Big Rotten Apple: It's early 80s New York and the grime is on full display.
- Creator Cameo: That's Ron Howard as the annoying saxophone player on the subway.
- Destination Defenestration: The movie kicks off with Belinda's pimp, F.D.R. Jones, being chased down by people he didn't pay, and tossed out the window of his apartment tied to a chair, just as a guy dunks a basketball (flattening the basket on his way down).
- Disposable Fiancé: Chuck's is Charlotte Koogle, played by Gina Hecht.
- Establishing Character Moment: After Chuck methodically sets up his night shift desk, we hear Bill's arrival by his singing along to "Jumping Jack Flash" on a tape recorder, then bursting into the room and energetically introducing himself.
- Henpecked Husband: Apparently, Chuck's mother attends a once-a-week seance just to yell at her deceased husband more.
- I'm a Man; I Can't Help It: Bill offers this as a reason why their scheme is moral, claiming that men will either use hookers to relieve their urges or else they will sexually assault little Girl Scouts. ("He goes and jumps on a Girl Scout and breaks her cookies and you call that moral?")
- Motor Mouth: Bill, who seemingly talks all the frickin time.
- My Girl Is Not a Slut: After Chuck and Belinda hook up, he just assumes that she will give up prostitution even though she has apparently no other means of supporting herself and he's still engaged to Charlotte at this point. The resulting disagreement results in a Second-Act Breakup.
- Nepotism: Chuck gets reassigned to the night shift because his boss decided to give his nephew a job instead.
- Off-into-the-Distance Ending: Chuck, Belinda, and Bill walk away from the brothel after escaping.
- Prison Rape: After ending up in prison, Chuck declares that, "At this moment, I have sunk as low as I can go." Cue effeminate man holding up a piece of paper with hearts cut out of it. This joke is often judged to be homophobic.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Bill is the Red to Chuck's Blue.
- Scout-Out: A bunch of "Blue Bells"—that is, Girl Scouts—mistake Chuck for a mugger and attack him.
- Spiteful Spit: How Charlotte lets Chuck know that she's breaking up with him, by spitting into his face through the bars of the jail cell.
- Sympathetic Adulterer: By hooking up with Belinda, Chuck is cheating on Charlotte. But don't worry, it's okay because Charlotte is portrayed as boring and naggy.
- Very Loosely Based on a True Story: Producer Brian Grazer conceived of the premise for Night Shift after reading a 1976 New York Times
article about three guys who got arrested for running a prostitution ring inside of a city morgue. - Weight Woe: Charlotte has this. She's introduced using an exercise bike to lose weight before her wedding... in nine months.
