Into the Night (1985/I)

Director:

John Landis

Writer:

Ron Koslow (writer)

Release Date:

15 February 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Comedy | Thriller

Tagline:

Ed Okin used to have a boring life. Then, one night, he met Diana. Now, Ed's having trouble staying alive.

Plot:

Ed Okin's life is somewhat out of control. He can't sleep, his wife betrays him and his job is dull...

Plot Keywords:

Elvis Presley | Elvis Impersonator | Dead Woman On Floor | Bodyguard | Striptease

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Jeff Goldblum	...	Ed Okin
Stacey Pickren	...	Ellen Okin
Carmen Argenziano	...	Stan
Andrew Marton	...	Freeway Driver
Sue Dugan	...	Freeway Driver
Elizabeth Solorzano	...	Freeway Driver
Dan Aykroyd	...	Herb
Robert Paynter	...	Security Guard
David Cronenberg	...	Group Supervisor
Robert Moberly	...	Aerospace Engineer
John Hostetter	...	Aerospace Engineer
Dick Balduzzi	...	Aerospace Engineer
Richard Franklin	...	Aerospace Engineer
Cal Worthington	...	Himself
Wes Dawn	...	L.A.P.D

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Persian | French | Spanish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Canada:R (Ontario) | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Norway:15 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:16 (w) | Singapore:M18

Filming Locations:

Avenue of the Stars, Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

The crew of the Kalijak movie were played by the actual crew of this movie. Some crew members have other small roles too.

Quotes:

[the federal agent turns to leave the couple alone with $750,000, less some wads of bills stuffed into his pockets]
Ed: Do we *thank* you, or what?
Federal Agent: I'd say I fall in the "or what" category.

Movie Connections:

References Easy Come, Easy Go (1967)

Soundtrack:

MY LUCILLE

excellent film with a casting twist

A man's depression and insomnia drive him "Into the Night" and a lot of trouble in this enjoyable 1985 film. Goldblum is Ed Okin, an LA aerospace engineer whose sleep problems are causing him difficulty on his demanding job. His friend (Dan Ackroyd) suggests that the next time he has insomnia, he head for Las Vegas where no one sleeps. After he sees his wife cheating on him, that's just what he does. Then Diana (Michelle Pfeiffer) jumps into his car and his night turns into a dangerous adventure. Pfeiffer has smuggled perfect emeralds into the country for a promised fee, except that everybody is now after her and willing to kill to get them.

There are some great, quirky moments in this film, and one of my favorites occurs when Ed and Diana walk into the apartment of her brother (Bruce McGill) which is wall to wall Elvis. Then her brother walks in - he's an Elvis impersonator. Priceless. Diana and Ed take his car which has the words THE KING LIVES painted across it. One faction looking for the emeralds come off like the Middle Eastern version of the Stooges, particularly in a beach house scene where, trying to get out of a door, one of them keeps hitting himself in the face with it.

The unique thing is that director John Landis has cast many of his fellow directors: Lawrence Kasdan, Jonathan Demme, Paul Mazurski, Amy Heckerling, David Cronenberg, Roger Vadim, Jonathan Lynn, Jack Arnold, Don Siegel, Andrew Marton, Richard Franklin, Colin Higgins, Jonathan Kaufer and Carl Gottlieb - that's a partial list. They're all good, too.

The always terrific Jeff Goldblum gives us a shell-shocked Ed who seems to take each moment as it comes with what is either calm or numbness - it's unclear which, but it works in the role. Pfeiffer is a young beauty in this - she has a very brief, distant nude scene - and is certainly the type of gal a man would go out of his way to help. She's very appealing. Old-timer Clu Gulager also makes an appearance toward the end, and David Bowie has a menacing role as one of the people after the emeralds. There are some fun shots of Los Angeles like Hollywood Boulevard in front of Frederick's of Hollywood that are a real kick.

"Into the Night" is offbeat and fun with enough violence to make it somewhat edgy. A real find.