Al filo del abismo

Films like this one were released by the bucket load in the 1980's, but as 1990 approached; they became less and less common. Still, there are a lot of silly horror flicks that were released in the 90's debut year, and, surprisingly, this one isn't all that bad. It lacks all the elements that make great films great films, of course; things such as brains, coherency and any whisper of characters has been neglected in favour of monster special effects and a few nice death scenes; but seriously, that's all you want from a film like this, so to say that Graveyard Shift does it's job isn't wrong. The film is based on a short story by Stephen King. Nearly everything that King has ever touched has been turned into a film, with a lot of mixed results. I would put this one in the middling category, which isn't a bad place to be in considering all the failed adaptations. The plot is typically thin (it is a SHORT story!) and it follows a man who gets a job in a cotton mill. The place is infested with rats, and after being charged with cleaning the place up, our hero finds a trapdoor and soon he and his team are up against the reason rats have made their home in the mill...

One thing that really stands out about this film is the atmosphere. Director Ralph S. Singleton delights in presenting a fetid and disturbing aura around the central location, and this helps the story massively and gives the film an almost 'odyssey' approach when the characters finally make their way underground. I don't find rats scary, personally, but many people do and this film could easily be a reason why! The way that the rats surround the characters is brooding and frightening and provides the film with one of it's key elements. Acting definitely isn't a key element of Graveyard Shift, but the appearance of popular cult actor Brad Dourif will please many of this films' audience. I'm not a massive of fan of Dourif personally, but I respect his ability to shine in campy productions. The story doesn't offer anything in the way of a point, and it's incoherency will annoy many - but if you go into this film with the right sort of expectations, and don't think you're about to see a horror classic, Graveyard Shift really shouldn't disappoint.

In a dark and nasty textile factory close to a cemetery and infested of rats, many workers are missing. When the corrupt manager Warwick (Stephen Macht) is forced by a sanitary agent to hire the exterminator Tucker Cleveland (Brad Dourif), he asks Tucker to use less poison than necessary to reduce the costs. Meanwhile, the drifter John Hall (David Andrews) applies for a job and accepts the position of operator of a textile machine in the graveyard shift. What they do not know is that there is a huge creature is in the underground of the mill threatening the workers.

"Graveyard Shift" is a gruesome horror tale with a dark story, rats, and nasty and disgusting locations. Most of the characters are unpleasant but the direction and performances are good. This film is certainly recommended for a very specific audience and may not please the viewer. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "A Criatura do Cemitério" ("The Creature from the Cemetery")

Note: On 30 Aug 2020, I saw this film again.

I love the atmospheric setting for Graveyard Shift, a run down, rat-infested textile mill built over a network of tunnels and next to a cemetery. I love rodents: I used to own a lovely pair of white rats. I like bats (which are essentially flying rodents). And I like the rat/bat monster in Graveyard Shift, which isn't nearly as bad as some of the reviews here would have you believe.

What I don't like about this film, however, are the people. Drifter John Hall (David Andrews) makes for a bland hero, mill foreman Warwick (Stephen Macht) is an obnoxious bastard with a really annoying accent, Brad Dourif as The Exterminator is way too over the top (even by Brad's standards), and Andrew Divoff and Vic Polizos are terrible as Hall's co-workers Danson and Brogan, the latter almost making me switch off as he blasts rats with a high pressure hose (not because I felt for the rats, but because he screams at the top of his voice with each blast. Very irritating!).

Super cringe-worthy scenes include Warwick suddenly going nutzoid, smearing his face with dirt and acting like Rambo, and Danson suddenly breaking down in hysterics. Still, with a decent creature (I've seen plenty worse) and a fair amount of gore, Graveyard Shift is still worth a look, especially for Stephen King fans, on whose short story the film is based.

5.5 out of 10, rounded up to 6 for the so-bad-it's-brilliant end credits song that is comprised of snippets of dialogue from the film set to a cheesy backing track.

A surprisingly good rat flick (another in a long line of minor classic neglected King adaptations). The changes made to the story are really quite good. In particular Brad Dourif as the Exterminator. He has a scene where he's describing how rats were used in 'Nam (not present in the short story) that's mesmerizing -- Dourif completely owns it.

Stephen Macht is great with his ridiculous "Maine" accent and scene chewing. It's a kind of perfect demented B-movie performance.

This is just another good rat movie let down by an abrupt, nonsensical ending. This one ends as just a boring creature feature with a giant bat underground. None of the foreboding or terror that preceded it. Killing off the best characters in lackluster ways. It really felt like the filmmakers had no idea where to take it, or ran out of time and money. Sad.

You don't hear or read much about this movie based on a short story written by Stephen King and I think that's a shame. It sure ain't no big masterpiece but it got several things going for it. Though, there is ONE aspect that makes this film very memorable ! The very creepy atmosphere. Graveyard Shift takes place is a textile factory during a very hot summer. Temperatures are so high, the men have to work at night...during the Graveyard Shift !

You can actually feel the heat these men are working in. You can feel the sweat running down their back and you can feel the dirt on their bodies, caused by the hard work. That's a very good mood being set. When it comes to the level of "scary" I would dare to say that some scenes equal to that of "Arachnophobia"... Because the hideous little creatures here are rats, and these animals scare and disgust people as much as spiders do. Graveyard Shift contains some great acting performances as well. Andrew Divoff is a decent actor and the guy who plays Warwick is fantastic ! He has the face of a natural born bastard so the role he plays fits him very well. I don't know his name but he reminds me of Fred Ward. I'll keep my eyes open for possible other movies he starred in. And then there's ...Brad Dourif!! This guy always delivers !!! Whether he plays in big budget productions like LOTR: The Two Towers or in small obscure horror films, he's always brilliant. Especially here, as the "Exterminator". His little Vietnam anecdote is the best scene in the whole film. He's still too underrated, if you ask me. So these are all good elements, no ? Then, why is Graveyard Shift not up there with the big titles in the genre? Well, the low budget obviously killed this movie. Most scenes are very dark and hard to follow. The big monster is supposed to be very impressive, but you're never able to see it properly. Half of the time, you're wondering "what? ...what happened ??" Real shame and waste. I'm convinced that with a few clear and decent special effects and make-up, this movie could have been one of the best horror films of the 90's.