Graveyard Shift (1987)

Director:

Jerry Ciccoritti

Writer:

Jerry Ciccoritti (writer)

Release Date:

12 June 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

Lots of people work the graveyard shift, policemen, waiters, taxi drivers... vampires

Plot:

A vampire who works as a taxi driver meets and romances a young woman whom he turns into a fellow vamp, which prompts her jealous and estranged husband to try to kill both of them.

Plot Keywords:

Vampire | Taxi Driver | Police | Sex In Coffin | Blood

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Michael A. Miranda	...	Stephen Tsepes (as Silvio Oliviero)
Helen Papas	...	Michelle Hayden
Cliff Stoker	...	Eric Hayden
Dorin Ferber	...	Gilda
Dan Rose	...	Robert Kopple
John Haslett Cuff	...	Det. Winsome
Don James	...	Det. Smith
Michael Bockner	...	Coronor
Lesley Kelly	...	Officer Arbus
Martin Bockner	...	Shlr Digger
Frank Procopio	...	Marlo Bava
Kim Cayer	...	Suzy
Sugar Bouche	...	Fabulous Franne
Jessie Taylor	...	Swimming Pool Blonde
Ron Bacardi	...	Guy in Strip Joint

Also Known As:

Central Park Drifter (USA) (video title)

Runtime:

USA:89 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | France:-12 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Cinema Ventures

Trivia:

Director Cameo: [Jerry Ciccoritti]punk with gun

Movie Connections:

Featured in Nightmare in Canada: Canadian Horror on Film (2004) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Alone in Love

Dull eighties vampire trash

Not to be confused with the (actually slightly superior) film from 1990 of the same title, Graveyard Shift is the story of a vampire taxi driver. The premise of the film actually seems quite interesting; a taxi driver would be a good job for a vampire considering all the opportunity he would have for finding victims and this coupled with a trashy eighties vibe and some decent gore could have lead to a decent film; but instead what we end up is a thoroughly turgid vampire flick devoid of most of the elements that make the subgenre great. The base plot sprang from the central premise is that the vampire/cabbie meets a young woman that he likes and turns her into a vampire instead of killing her; leading her jealous husband to take revenge. The main reason the film doesn't work is down to the dull script which doesn't give us any reason to care for the characters or anything that is happening in the film. The script defies logic and most of the characters are just 'there'. There a few good moments in the film, but mostly it's just trash and ultimately rather boring too. I'm not surprised that this film has not won itself a better reputation - the reason is simply that it doesn't deserve one. Leave this rubbish well alone!