Put on your Ray-Bans, because this is a BRIGHT movie. Ouch!! I know it's a weird thing to fixate on, but every scene has glaring overhead lighting- like they turned on the "ugly lights" at the bar at closing time. I personally am really into lighting and cinematography, so the look of this film was a real problem for me- to the point where I actually struggled to finish it. Especially because the cover shows a cool 90s-style neon color palette, I thought this movie would have more of that visual style... but not so much.
I just read "The Late Shift" by Bill Carter, and found it totally fascinating. That book was updated in 2019, and is a great piece of cultural history. But I think this film was made too close to the actual events- it was filmed only 3 or 4 years after the events it depicts. So it plays as a weird mix of docu-drama and camp.
Even as a big fan of the book, I can't really recommend this movie. It's more informative than enjoyable, and the lack of visual style made it feel a bit mundane.
I just read "The Late Shift" by Bill Carter, and found it totally fascinating. That book was updated in 2019, and is a great piece of cultural history. But I think this film was made too close to the actual events- it was filmed only 3 or 4 years after the events it depicts. So it plays as a weird mix of docu-drama and camp.
Even as a big fan of the book, I can't really recommend this movie. It's more informative than enjoyable, and the lack of visual style made it feel a bit mundane.