Into the Night (1985)

Director:

John Landis

Writer:

Ron Koslow (written by)

Release Date:

22 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:

Chase | Airport | Iranian | Los Angeles California | Mistress

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Jeff Goldblum	...	Ed Okin
Michelle Pfeiffer	...	Diana
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
Christopher George	...	L.A.P.D
Ali Madani	...	Hasi
Stacey Pickren	...	Ellen Okin
Michael Zand	...	SAVAK
Hadi Sadjadi	...	SAVAK
Beruce Gramian	...	SAVAK
John Landis	...	SAVAK
Hope Clarke	...	Airport Cop
Eric Lee	...	Parking Attendant
Jake Steinfeld	...	Larry
Sue Bowser	...	Girl on Boat
Waldo Salt	...	Male Derelict
Viola Kates Stimpson	...	Female Derelict
Bruce McGill	...	Charlie
Jon Stephen Fink	...	Don
Dedee Pfeiffer	...	Hooker (as Deedee Pfeiffer)
Rick Baker	...	Drug Dealer
Colin Higgins	...	Kalijak Actor
Kathryn Harrold	...	Christie
Daniel Petrie	...	Kalijak Director
David Sosna	...	Kalijak Assistant Director
Mark L. Levine	...	Kalijak Grip (as Mark Levine)
William B. Kaplan	...	Kalijak Grip
Jonathan Kaufer	...	Kalijak Script Clerk
Paul Mazursky	...	Bud Herman
Saul Kahan	...	Kalijak Publicist
Rory Barish	...	SAVAK Bimbo
Jean Pelton	...	SAVAK Bimbo
Jonathan Lynn	...	Tailor
Paul Bartel	...	Beverly Wilshire Hotel Doorman
Bill Taylor	...	Host
Jim Bentley	...	Baccarat Dealer
Houshang Touzie	...	Hamid
Slavka	...	Hamid's Girl
Erica Sakai	...	Hamid's Girl
Carl Perkins	...	Mr. Williams
Don Siegel	...	Embarrassed Man
Peggy McIntaggart	...	Shameless Woman (as Peggy Sands)
Jim Henson	...	Man on Phone
David Bowie	...	Colin Morris
Robert Traynor	...	Beverly Hills Cop
Art Evans	...	Jimmy
Bud Abbott	...	Chick Young in 'Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein' (archive footage)
Lou Costello	...	Wilbur Grey in 'Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein' (archive footage)
Bela Lugosi	...	Count Dracula (archive footage)
Lon Chaney Jr.	...	The Wolfman (archive footage)
Jack Arnold	...	Man with Dog
Pete Ellis	...	Himself
Domingo Ambriz	...	Taxi Driver
Amy Heckerling	...	Ships Waitress
Robert LaBassiere	...	Melville's Man
Yacub Salih	...	Melville's Man
Roger Vadim	...	Monsieur Melville
John Roberts	...	Malibu Neighbor (as Jack Roberts)
Diane Roberts	...	Malibu Neighbor (as Dian Roberts)
Reid Smith	...	Sheriff Peterson
Rusdi Lane	...	Detective #1
Lawrence Kasdan	...	Detective #2
Richard Farnsworth	...	Jack Caper
Vera Miles	...	Joan Caper
Irene Papas	...	Shaheen Parvici
Hassan Ildari	...	Shaheen's Assistant
Zoreh Ramsey	...	Lady In Waiting
Beulah Quo	...	Mrs. Yakamura
Patricia Gaul	...	Stewardess
Clu Gulager	...	Federal Agent
Jonathan Demme	...	Federal Agent
Tracy Hutchinson	...	Federal Agent
Gene Whittington	...	Federal Agent
Eddy Donno	...	L.A.P.D
Carl Gottlieb	...	Federal Agent
Alma Beltran	...	Cleaning Woman
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ava Cadell	...	(scenes deleted)
Reed Armstrong	...	Driver (uncredited)
Cynthia Lea Clark	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Veronica Gamba	...	Miss South America (uncredited)
Marianne Gravatte	...	Hamid's Girl (uncredited)
Lesa Ann Pedriana	...	Miss Asia (uncredited)
Carina Persson	...	Miss Australia (uncredited)
John Richard Petersen	...	Marine at Airport (uncredited)
Susie Scott	...	Miss Eastern Europe (uncredited)
Heidi Sorenson	...	Miss Scandanavia (uncredited)
Dona Speir	...	Miss Western Europe (uncredited)

Directed by
John Landis

Writing credits
Ron Koslow		(written by)

Produced by
Dan Allingham	....	executive producer
Leslie Belzberg	....	co-associate producer
George Folsey Jr.	....	producer
Ron Koslow	....	producer
David Sosna	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Ira Newborn

Cinematography by
Robert Paynter

Film Editing by
Malcolm Campbell

Casting by
Jackie Burch
Michael Chinich

Production Design by
John J. Lloyd		(as John Lloyd)

Set Decoration by
Jerry Wunderlich

Costume Design by
Deborah Nadoolman

Makeup Department
Silvia Abascal	....	hair stylist
Wes Dawn	....	makeup artist
Jim Kail	....	makeup artist (as James Kail)

Production Management
Dan Allingham	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Carol D. Bonnefil	....	dga trainee (as Carol Bonnefil)
Harry V. Bring	....	second assistant director (additional photography)
George Folsey Jr.	....	second unit director
Maggie Parker	....	additional second assistant director
Robert D. Simon	....	second assistant director (as Robert Simon)
David Sosna	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Robert L. Anderson	....	construction coordinator (as Robert Anderson)
Barry Bedig	....	property master
Nigel A. Boucher	....	set dresser
Jim Callan	....	stand-by painter (as James Callan)
Stan Cockerell	....	assistant property master
Henry Larrecq	....	assistant art director
Charles R. Lipscomb	....	set dresser (as Chuck Lipscomb)
Robert Misetich	....	painter (uncredited)

Sound Department
Bruce Bell	....	sound editor
Peter Berkos	....	sound editor
Don Digirolamo	....	sound re-recording mixer
Robert Glass	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Robert J. Glass)
Gil Hudson	....	adr editor
William B. Kaplan	....	sound mixer
David Kelson	....	cable person
Robert Knudson	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Buzz Knudson)
Angie Luckey	....	sound effects assistant
Ian MacGregor-Scott	....	sound editor (as Ian MacGregor Scott)
Sam Reynolds	....	sound editor
John Roesch	....	foley artist
Joan Rowe	....	foley artist
Earl Sampson	....	boom operator
Sam F. Shaw	....	sound editor (as Sam Shaw)
John Stacy	....	supervising sound editor
Kyle Wright	....	sound editor

Special Effects by
Michael Wood	....	special effects (as Mike Wood)

Stunts
Brass Adams	....	stunts
Gregory J. Barnett	....	stunts (as Greg Barnett)
Sandy Berumen	....	stunts
Janet Brady	....	stunts
Tony Brubaker	....	stunts
David Burton	....	stunts
Danny Costa	....	stunts
Bill Couch	....	stunts
Steve Cremin	....	stunts (as Stephen Cremin)
Steve M. Davison	....	stunts (as Steve Davison)
Justin De Rosa	....	stunts (as Justin Derosa)
Eddy Donno	....	stunt coordinator
Eddy Donno	....	stunts
Kenny Endoso	....	stunts
Gary Epper	....	stunts
Freddie Hice	....	stunts (as Freddy Hice)
Billy Hank Hooker	....	stunts (as Hank Hooker)
Buddy Joe Hooker	....	stunts
Chris Howell	....	stunts
Tommy J. Huff	....	stunts (as Tom Huff)
Tracy Hutchinson	....	stunts
David LeBell	....	stunts (as David LaBell)
Gary McLarty	....	stunts
John Moio	....	stunts
Bennie Moore	....	stunts (as Benny Moore)
Mike Moore	....	stunts
Jimmy Nickerson	....	stunts
Beth Nufer	....	stunts
Frank Orsatti	....	stunts
Chuck Picerni Jr.	....	stunts (as Charlie Picerni Jr.)
Charlie Picerni	....	stunts
Sandy Robertson	....	stunts
Mic Rodgers	....	stunts
Reid Rondell	....	stunts
Michael Runyard	....	stunts (as Mike Runyard)
Steve Santosusso	....	stunts (as Stephen J. Santosusso)
Joe Tornatore	....	stunts
Scott Wilder	....	stunts
Walter Wyatt	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Michael W. Blymyer	....	electrician (as Michael Blymeyer)
Dan Brewer	....	video playback operator
Philip Caplan	....	camera operator
Tom Connole	....	first assistant camera
Romeo De Santis Jr.	....	electrician
Chuy Elizondo	....	camera operator (as Jesus Elizondo)
Michael Franz	....	best boy (as Mike Franz)
Christopher Dunn George	....	second assistant camera (as Christopher George)
James Globus	....	still photographer
Marlin Hall	....	grip
Joe Hicks	....	dolly grip
T. Sano Kwong	....	grip
Johnny London Jr.	....	grip
John London	....	key grip
Ross A. Maehl	....	gaffer (as Ross Maehl)
Tom D. May	....	second key grip (as Tom May)
Montey Menapace	....	best boy
Glenn K. Shimada	....	first assistant camera (as Glenn Shimada)
David St. Onge	....	electrician
Phil Walker	....	electrician

Casting Department
David Gonzales	....	casting assistant
Nancy Nayor	....	casting assistant
Bonnie Timmermann	....	casting: New York
Michelle Troxell	....	casting coordinator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Sue Dugan	....	costumer: women
Hugo Peña	....	costume supervisor
Don Snyder	....	costumer: men

Editorial Department
Margaret Adachi	....	assistant editor
Donah Bassett	....	negative cutter
Vaune Kirby Frechette	....	assistant film editor (as Vaune Kirby)
Lori Hollingshead	....	assistant film editor (as Lorinda Hollingshead)
Bob Noland	....	color timer

Music Department
Jeff Carson	....	music editor
Alf Clausen	....	orchestrator
B.B. King	....	musician
Gary Ladinsky	....	score mixer
Dan Wallin	....	score mixer
Ernie Watts	....	musician: tenor sax

Transportation Department
Bob Bailey	....	transportation captain
Jeff F. Renfro	....	transportation coordinator (as Jeff Renfro)

Other crew
Pamela Alch	....	script supervisor
Jan A. Campbell	....	assistant accountant (as Jan Campbell)
Pam Cornfeld-Walker	....	production coordinator (as Pam Cornfeld)
Dawn Darfus	....	production assistant
Sharon Dolin	....	secretary: John Landis
Nancy Henkle Green	....	production assistant (as Nancy Henkle)
Bruce Hanson	....	craft service
Hassan Ildari	....	advisor: farsi
Saul Kahan	....	unit publicist
David R. Lawson	....	first aid (as David Lawson)
Leanne Moore	....	production accountant
Lori Pfeiffer	....	production assistant
Leslie Schwartz	....	production assistant
Randee Lois Smith	....	assistant: John Landis (as Randee Smith)
Janet L. Wattles	....	assistant accountant (as Janet Wattles)

Thanks
Tom Bradley	....	thanks (as Mayor Tom Bradley)
Rachel Landis	....	thanks
Pat Russell	....	thanks (as Councilwoman Pat Russell)

Production Companies

• Universal Pictures

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1985) (USA) (theatrical)
• GoodTimes Home Video (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Universal Home Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures (Spain) (2004) (Spain) (DVD)
• Cinema International Corporation (CIC) (1985) (France) (theatrical)
• CIC Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Home Video Hellas (HVH) (1987) (Greece) (VHS)
• MCA/Universal Home Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• MCA/Universal Home Video (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2010) (Australia) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Los Angeles International Airport  thanks
• Modern Film Effects  titles and opticals
• Movie Movers  cast trailers
• TPI/PPI  payroll services
• Todd-AO Studios  re-recording
• Tony's Food Service  catering
• Western Airlines  thanks

Also Known As:

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Persian | French | Spanish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Norway:15 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:16 (w) | Singapore:M18 | Iceland:16 | Canada:R (Ontario) | Portugal:M/12

Filming Locations:

2250 Montecito Drive, San Marino, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Includes a cameo by David Cronenberg, who a year later would direct Jeff Goldblum in The Fly (1986).

Goofs:

Continuity: The Ramada room door opens one way when Clu Gulager and others enter the room (714?), and opens the opposite direction when he leaves the room

Quotes:

Bud Herman:[Opens his front door, sees the four SAVAK guys] Who the hell are you?
[SAVAK pulls gun]
Bud Herman:Won't you come in?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in One Fine Day (1996)

Soundtrack:

LET'S GET IT ON

Now that's a night on the town you won't forget!

Ed Orkin is an ordinary guy with insomnia, has a very boring job and finds out his wife is having an affair. Can his jaded life get any better? Well one night, it does take a sharp turn when he rescues a lovely, but mysterious blonde named Diana from some ruthlessly zany thugs at the airport. From this point onwards Ed and Diana are caught up in a cheerfully dashing and murderous chase throughout the night in Los Angeles. Where everyone seems to want a piece of those six emeralds, which Diana has smuggled into the country.

The first time I saw this flick I stumbled across it accidentally when I was on holidays. Instead of going out for the night in the rain I decided to stay in and watch some telly. Well, from the opening scene I was totally captivated by its maniac humour, trigger-happy cameos, kooky situations and that this road movie took place mostly at night. I don't why, but I just dig that last point about the flick. Years later I had forgot what the title was called, but I still could remember certain scenes and it entered on my ever-growing film list to track down. After a while I kind of forgot about it, but like my first viewing I came across it unknowingly on cable and it came flooding back again. That time I got the title! And I tracked down the DVD only a couple of weeks ago. From my second viewing of it I thought it was John Landis' best film, so when I got the DVD, I was hoping that it would be as good as I remembered it to be. So was it? Oh yeah, it was! I'll definitely go to say that this is my favourite Landis flick, yeah even more than "Animal House", yep more so than "Trading Places", a tad better than "An American Werewolf in London" and way ahead of "The Blues Brothers". I know that's a pretty big statement, but I thoroughly had a wowser with Landis' woozy attempt at film noir.

There's no denying that it's pretty much a self-indulgent flick with Landis getting a whole bunch of friends to join in the act, or is it just one big joke? But I didn't care as I just rolled with the punches and tried to pick up on all the familiar faces. Gee, there are a lot of them popping up, especially directors. The story of a bored guy meets strange gal and get into some weird mess where they're both risk their lives on a plan to get rich has been done time after time, well bits and pieces out of the story obviously have. Though, it just has a knack with its quirkiness, murderous impulse and unpredictable pattern. I can see why some people say it's disjointed, overly padded and that it doesn't know what it wants to be. Sure some things lack depth and meaning, but those out-of-the-blue situations make it more eventful and the pacing can somewhat become plodded, but I always found something noticeable in every frame to keep my full attention. Hmm, maybe it's just me? One moment would be when "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein" is playing on a TV and what's happening there seems to fit in to what's going on in the particular scene. The dialog just seems to clash with the action. But then again maybe I'm reading things that aren't there?

This is not all a light-hearted comedy even if it has some slapstick shenanigans mixed with some offbeat and eccentric charm. The thriller element gives it a serious boot and the violence doesn't hold back with some outrageous murders. That especially goes for the tense and forceful climax, where nothing goes to plan. The story's idea is cleverly conducted with its many unexpected turns, scheming and plenty of fruitful characters adding to the zaniness. When it gets going, it gets going. Now what did get going was the simply smooth and steamy soundtrack. It ran with an oozing blues score and legendary musician B.B King was involved and he provided the main theme song. The melodies and score had a strangely hypnotic appeal weaved into them. The glowing performances are all great, though it's Michelle Pfeiffer that heads the top. She was just gracefully attractive with her glittering appearance and believably convincing as the mysterious Diana. Jeff Goldblum as Ed was his usual glum and awkward self with his dry sarcasm. But he has a watchable screen presence even though he seems to be sleepwalking. Even saying that, both of the leads are fleshed out rather well and they fit their parts perfectly. The sensational supporting cast provide a lot of odd and wonderful characters too. With the likes of Irene Papas, Paul Mazursky, Roger Vadim, Richard Farnsworth, John Landis, David Bowie, Kathryn Harrold, Clue Gulager, Dan Aykroyd, Vera Miles and Carl Perkins. Then you got the blink and you'll miss them cameos, which are rather diverting from Amy Heckerling, Jim Henson, Don Siegel, Rick Baker and David Cronenberg. I told ya it was long, but that's just the tip. All of these familiar faces had a witty script to work along with too. Well, what can I say; stimulating madness that dabs some touches of film-noir, comedy and thriller to proceedings.

An excitingly dangerous and unusual night road flick that has a variety of ingredients chucked into this very much 80s product.