Last Shift

My quick rating - 6,3/10. Another surprise low budget horror film that shows the amount of money you put in has nothing to do with the end product. The movie itself starts out simple (yet obvious) enough with a rookie officer, Loren (Juliana Harkavy) pulling last shift duty on a closing precinct. I use that word since the premise is awfully familiar with "Assault on Precinct 13". Anyway, that being said, the story similarities end there. I did catch a few camera shots and setup scares that also reminded me of John Carpenter style, but what is wrong with borrowing from a master? So the inevitable ensues and a story of a cult leader type figure killing a few of his followers and himself in the prison (the story is intermingled throughout via flashbacks and visions of old footage) turns into a living nightmare for Loren. Throughout the film it is hard to tell if she is imagining it, being taunted for being a rookie or legit is in a haunted police station. This is what makes the tension build and keep you watching. Their are some truly disturbing images in this movie that are subtle yet very effective to get under your skin. The highlight of this movie is just not being sure through the whole thing just what exactly is going on. This leads you to a fantastic ending that will keep you thinking after the credits roll. All the elements of a quality horror movie are here along with a capable cast of actors and some film devotion from director Anthony DiBlasi. Great Shocktober flick. Check it out.

Rookie cop Jessica Loren (Juliana Harkavy) spends her first shift manning the desk at a soon-to-be-decommissioned police station, waiting for a clean-up team to come and dispose of some hazardous material. Inexplicable occurrences turn Jessica's first night on the job into a nightmare, as it becomes apparent that the cop shop is haunted by the ghosts of murderous cultists who committed suicide there, as well as the restless spirits of their victims (including Jessica's own father).

A person left alone in a creepy haunted location is hardly a groundbreaking idea for a horror film (indeed, this film reminds me a lot of a film I saw a few nights ago, The Possession of Hannah Grace), and the majority of the time is spent watching Jessica investigating the rooms and corridors of the station after hearing strange noises. It all becomes very repetitive, director Anthony DiBlasi resorting to mechanical jump scares to keep his audience from zoning out entirely. Harkavy does a pretty good job, looking convincingly disturbed by what she is experiencing, but one does wonder what it would take for Loren to call it quits and get the hell out of dodge. I think that a bloody levitating corpse with a bag on its head would be enough for me chuck in my badge and call it a night.

Jessica, however, is made of sterner stuff and sticks it out to the end, which doesn't work out that well for her. Sometimes, it's better to be a coward and live to see another day.

I wasn't expecting much from this film having read some reviews, but I really enjoyed it. Scary,jumpy and unpredictable.Some reviewers have criticised the acting of the main actress but I think she did a good job ;not easy to carry an entire movie by yourself and she had beautiful green eyes to boot. Was riveted by this film from the very start which managed to suggest nasty things to come without telling you why,what or from which direction.Good storyline and reasonable script coupled with a few chair arm-gripping moments and what more could you want? It just shows what you can achieve with some level of intelligence,dedication,imagination and skill even if your budget is limited.Producers of mindless Hollywood pap please take note.

Starts solid with building a creepy atmosphere but after 20 minutes it becomes "Jump scare on Precinct 13". Actually, I don't hate jump scares and I think if used effectively and moderately this scare tactic can be terrifying and entertaining. Many successful films like Jaws, The Thing or Se7en use it marvelously and sometimes mediocre movies like The Exorcist III can earn a legendary status with a well-made jump scare scene. Last Shift isn't terrible at using jump scares. Most of the time the build-up is fine and sometimes instead of loud noises and quick editing you just see something sinister crawling behind the actress, but there are so many scenes in this film where Juliana Harkavy wanders around. Without a jump scare in the end those scenes would be just pointless and boring. I wish there were more scenes with Officer Price or phone conversations with Monica. It would be much better than watching the protagonist on a loop, investigating the same type of noises and seeing the same creepy images over and over again. The movie also suffers from the clichés of the genre and tries to explain some of them like why she isn't leaving the station or call for back up, why she thinks there is a logical explanation for the things she has witnessed but I think those answers come a little too late. Last Shift is still not bad for a low budget horror movie and at least it mostly uses practical effects instead of crappy CGI and it has pretty decent acting in it.

Last Shift was a nice little surprise, yes it's low-budget & straight-to-dvd but it's better than you would think.

Last Shift is about rookie police officer Jessica Loren (an really good JULIANA HARKAVY) who has been assigned the last shift at a closing down police station & must wait for a hazard crew to collect biochemical evidence. That crew will come at some point through the night & into the early morning hours & Jessica is told not to leave the premises under any circumstances but no one knew that the old police station would be a nightmare of horrific incidents that terrorise poor Jessica. I loved the simple setup, just like how great John Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13 was in a similar setup, but here the threat comes from inside the closing down police station & not from outside. Actress Juliana Harkavy is great & she is the main focus & the lead solo star of the entire film & she holds everything together & she's excellent to be honest. Juliana gives a strong woman performance but also has the vulnerable & emotional sides to be totally believable, a great actress that i had never seen before so she's an unknown new comer to me & a damn good one.

The scary stuff is all done so well by director Anthony Diblasi (a director that's new to me) & he crafted a psychological horror with the police procedural thriller & made a real treat. I love films set over a night shift (i really like The Possession of Hannah Grace) & someone who has to deal with strange happenings. There's creepy cult stuff going on here & horrific ghostly figures & lots of psychological torment that our rookie endures throughout this night shift. This is a slower paced horror that concentrates on building suspense & an atmosphere of fear & dread & uses its isolated setting to unnerve us, as we feel for rookie Jessica & want her to get the hell outta there. Last Shift makes for a great late-night movie.

I was pleasantly surprised by this little horror gem, a simple setup, a strong lead & a gory good time.

Will Jessica survive the night? Check it out.