The Late Shift - Spätvorstellung

The Late Shift is a great book, I read the book several years ago, and I was transfixed at the cutthroat debauchery that went on when Johnny Carson retired and Jay Leno and Johnny Carson tried to grab his spot. When the movie came out, I snagged a VHS copy of the movie, and having reread the book recently, it's hard to say which I enjoy more, because they're quite equal in the amount of information conveyed. The two lead actors, John Michael Higgins, and Daniel Roebuck, two actors I never heard of before, and haven't heard of since, play Leno and Letterman convincingly, despite Letterman's dismissal of his portrayal as being poor. They play the parts quite well, despite a lot of people looking for an imitation of the two. I wasn't as interested in that. The story is what counts. And that brings me to Kathy Bates. Kathy Bates, playing Helen Kushnick, IS this movie. She plays this evil bitch of a character so menacingly you realize how on earth can this woman control herself, much less a national TV show. Yikes! There should be a sequel!!

This movie is a surprisingly faithful adaptation of the book, so if there are any inaccuracies they trace to the book, not the movie. The only thing that I noticed was left out of the movie was some of the background that took place in the 80s and even 70s - the book opens by explaining that Carson wanted Letterman to follow him, and going into why Leno was so loyal to Kushnick. The film gives very abbreviated versions of this background two thirds of the way in, which I think would be confusing to viewers who hadn't read the book, making them wonder for most of the movie why people were behaving the way they were.

Sequencing aside, the movie is a quite good job of adapting the book. I do wish the film had done a better job of explaining Carson and Letterman's friendship, and the rather vile emotional manipulations the book alleges Kushnick used on Leno. However, most of what was left out wouldn't really have worked in film formanyway.

In so far as the book was an accurate story of the late night wars, the movie is too. If you're wondering what happened with Leno and Letterman, this movie will do in a pinch if you don't want to read the book.

If you don't care about Leno and Letterman, this is a decent drama full of intrigue that probably would be worth your time if you catch in on TV, but it's not really worth renting or buying, the movie kind of assumes you already know and care about the Leno and Letterman saga. Only Leno's background is hinted at, and again, not until late in the movie, and I think the entire movie manages to not mention Letterman is from Indiana, had a long-time friendship with Carson, and it fails to really explain why Letterman was even worth fighting over in the first place, mostly he comes off as an egotistical jerk in this movie.

This movie is mostly for fans of either of the late-night shows. It didn't have to be, with some better editing this could have been a fascinating story even if you'd never heard of El Chinno or the Gap-toothed one.

While The Late Shift is in no way as good as the original book that describes in detail what happened to David Letterman, Jay Leno, Johnny Carson, Helen Kushnik and the rest of the late night cast of Characters, it is quite enjoyable, a good ride, and a fun time. Both Leno and Letterman are played well, if not a wee bit over-acted. It's worth renting.

Alright, so maybe the impersonations of Jay Leno and David Letterman are not spot on, but you still get a sense of who these people are and how they operate behind the screen. Bob Balaban and Treat Williams are excellant as Warren Littlefield and Micheal Ovitz.

The movie doesn't go for joke and punchline but it is still funny. Kathy Bates in particular is amazing as Leno's manager.

Funny, amazing, interesting, very watchable, this is a good TV movie.

THE LATE SHIFT was an interesting made for HBO movie that took a detailed look at the power struggle that ensued between David Letterman and Jay Leno when Johnny Carson announced his retirement and both wanted to replace him. This struggle is now part of Hollywood folklore, but for those who don't know the story and are aware of where Letterman is now, it might be interesting to learn that David Letterman wanted to replace Johnny Carson as host of THE TONIGHT SHOW more than anything in the world, but Letterman found his dreams being derailed as frequent guest host Leno had one of Hollywood's most powerful agents, Helen Kushnick, in his corner and working tirelessly to get her client the job. It's not often that we get to see behind the scenes Hollywood machinations recreated for entertainment value, but for fans of these two late night superstars, this movie provided a fascinating look at a very turbulent period in late night television. According to this movie, Letterman was practically promised the job by Carson himself while NBC had promised the job to Leno and that's where Helen Kushnick came in. The movie presents Leno as sort of a milquetoast who allowed his career to be manipulated by Kushnick and feigned ignorance to some of Helen's strong-willed manipulations of some of NBC's biggest power players and it presents Letterman as this smart and savvy businessman who, despite having Carson's support, was railroaded by NBC and Kushnick. John Michael Higgins and Daniel Roebuck credibly recreate Letterman and Leno, respectively, but it is the razor-sharp performance of Oscar winner Kathy Bates as Helen Kushnick that keeps this movie bubbling. Bates commands the screen in one of her best, if not so well-known performances as the venomous Hollywood agent who eats television studio executives for breakfast. There is also a wonderful turn by impressionist Rich Little as Johnny Carson, but it is primarily a fascinating story and the powerhouse performance by Bates that make this one worth checking out.