Last Shift

I enjoy working night shifts. In my youth, i used to work night shifts, both at a company called Odal, and at different health care homes. Sometimes it was hard, since you had to stay awake all night long. So i used a lot of coffee, and energy drinks to make it work. One of the problems with working night shifts, is that your sleep does not always get enough hours. But, since the payment was better, and i did not mind the late hours, i choosed to stay instead of going back to daytime shifts. One of the things i do remember, is working with some very strange patients, who could be very odd at night. I can´t really go into what happened, because of rules, but there were some creepy moments. To be able to work night shifts, you have to be able to adjust yourself, both mentally and physically. I can tell you all the times i fell asleep, on the bus, going home. I remember people had to wake me up, just to let me know that the bus end station is almost there. Nowdays i work 25 hours shifts, in health care, and i like it very much. Long shifts, but more free time to plan all kinds of activities. There are a lot of occupations where you have to work night shifts. Just look at Police Officers, who have to be out on the streets, no matter what the situation is. You have to admire them, for putting up with all kinds of difficult situations, and i feel that people need to stop talking shit about police. Sure, everyone may not be good, but in general i belive we need to trust them. They are only humans, who dedicate their lives to protect and serve. Now, let´s imagine something in our minds. Think about yourself as an police officer, working a night shift in an abandon police station, while strange things are happening ? Does not sound like the perfect way to spend the weekend. New horror film Last Shift seems to bring this subject into the storyline. I accidently heard about this film on an podcast, where 2 film critics were talking about new releases, and their own recommendations. I never heard of Last Shift before, but after listening to the podcast, i decided that i had to check it out. When i noticed that Last Shift is directed by Anthony DiBlasi, i remembered his film Cassadaga from 2011. This was a low budget horror film, that actually had some nice treats along the way. Curious to see his latest film, is this the best work so far from director Anthony DiBlasi, or is he running out of ideas, like most Hollywood directors are ?

Police officer Jessica Loren ( Juliana Harkavy ) is asked to do a last shift, in an abandoned police station. As she arrives, she gets all the information she needs from a police officer, who give her a round tour of the building. She is told to just be in the building, until her shift is over. After a while, at the beginning of the shift, she is getting phone calls from a woman, saying she is in trouble. Jessica tries to find out who the woman is, but the call breaks up. Jessica contact dispatch, where she is told not to use the phone. And she is also told that if the woman contacts her again, she have to call 911 instead. As the night shift becomes late, strange things begin to happen. A homeless man is suddenly standing in the entrance, peeing on the floor. She throws him out, but later finds him inside the building again, up on a shelf. She decides to lock him up, since he can not walk around like this. As the night goes on, strange things begin to happen in different rooms, and Jessica see strange people showing up from nowhere. What seemed to be an ordinary night shift, is soon becoming a nightmare.

To be honest people, i am very pleased. Last Shift is actually one of the better horror films released this year, and i will explain why. This is a very simple horror film, but what makes Last Shift work so well is the camera work by director Anthony DiBlasi, and the lead actor Juliana Harkavy. The atmosphere with the well made camera angles, makes this film more creepy than many other mainstream releases. The religious theme, that is presented later on in the film, fits really good with the plot, when you put the pieces together of what is going on. Another detail that i like, is that the whole film takes place in the same building, and still you never get bored, because of director Anthony DiBlasi´s visual direction. I would not say that there are many fresh ideas here, but once you get the puzzle, and what the message is, i still feel that the concept feels tasteful. While watching Last Shift, i noticed that director Anthony DiBlasi might be influenced by John Carpenter´s classic film Assault On Precint 13 from 1976. That film takes place inside a police station, but with a completely different plot. The characters are not that many, if you look at the few actors who shows up for a few minutes. But that´s ok, lead actor Juliana Harkavy manage to make the film interesting with her presence. If you have been watching The Walking Dead, you might remember her character Alisha from Season 4. She have also been in a couple of films, like the film Dolphin Tale, who is popular among family movies. I would say that this might be the best performance i have seen her do, in Last Shift, outside of The Walking Dead series. Hopefully she have something else interesting waiting for us to see in 2016. It is great to see that horror films are not completely knocked out in 2015, that we still have some hope left. Last Shift may not be original, or will change the horror genre in any way, but this is still better than i have expected. I suggest you give this film a chance, who knows, you might actually find yourself having a good time.

Lesson learn kids, never get a night shift inside an abandoned building, The Dansband Demons might attack you, when you least expect it.

Rating: DDD