Into the Night

What can I say, my husband and I adore this movie. We first discovered it soon after it came out - first on late night weekend TV and later again through cable and Blockbuster rentals. This is one of John Landis’ early movies and features tremendous cameos by many of his friends in the movie and entertainment business. And with a soundtrack that features BB King - how could you not love this? Jeff Goldblum is an aerospace engineer who is bored with his life to the point of insomnia. A critical discovery sends him reeling to the airport to fly somewhere, anywhere (but probably Las Vegas), just to switch up his life. As he sits in the parking garage changing his mind, a woman (Michelle Pfeiffer in her movie debut - stunning!) runs to his car in fear of her life as four men chase her. And thus starts an adventure back and forth across Los Angeles that changes his life. There’s intrigue, humor, excellent music, and a wild ending. It’s an absolutely fantastic movie that we still watch again and again. The movie came out in 1985, so expect to have a laugh at the obvious 1980s clothing and hair. But the acting is solid - Jeff Goldblum is a joy and Michelle Pfeiffer is just tremendous. It’s a gas picking out all the cameos (including Jim Henson being interrupted during a phone call with Bert). All in all, it’s a movie well worth seeing at least once. Read more

I saw this years ago in theaters and absolutely loved it. I'd been searching for a DVD version of it for a long time. I finally found it! Amazon has become the last refuge for the long forgotten movies of yesteryear. Films like Into the Night may not be Oscar caliber material, but they manage to retain their greatness in their own special way. Into the Night is the story of a working class man suffering from insomnia, who discovers his wife is having an affair with her boss. Unable to sleep, Ed (played by Jeff Goldblum) finds himself out for a drive in downtown LA, where he gets mixed up with the hauntingly beautiful Diana (played by Michelle Pfeiffer). I won't spoil the rest of the movie but, needless to say, action, adventure, violent gun battles, car chases, comic relief, a bit of nudity, and John Landis's camera/script genius make one fun, entertaining, popcorn induced joyride to be watched and treasured again and again! Check it out!! Read more

This is one of Jeff Goldblum's first movies and raising star Michelle Pfeifer's best rolls. Jeff's roll is about a husband in a marriage on the rocks, and this drives him to being an insomniac as he discovers his wife is cheating on him, which almost costs him his aerospace engineering job. After passing one sleepless night, he decides he will find a place to park and get a few winks. He meanders around LA, winding up at LA International Airport blurry-eyed and almost falling asleep. He parks in a parking structure, sure he can now get a little sleep, when out of the elevator door walks Michelle Pfieffer and her Persian boyfriend. Suddenly a car pulls up and three men get out. They kill the boyfriend and are going to kidnap Michelle when she gets away from them and runs directly into Jeff's car, who is stunned, awakened by her screaming at him to get her out of here. The action is fast as the plot unfolds and the twists and turns never stop. Many co-stars make this an intriguing movie worthy of a place in your library. Directed by John Landis, this movie is R rated for good reason. If you ask me if I love this flick, or what, I'd would probably say "or what". Read more

BOTTOM LINE: One of the best quirky comedies ever made; still fun & funny after 30+ years! Plays like a screwball comedy, with noir-ish overtones. Goldblum & Pfeiffer make a great couple with genuine chemistry. The story keeps you moving briskly along from one odd situation to another without ever running out of steam. A terrific bluesy soundtrack adds color and character to the proceedings. This Shout!Select hi-def Blu-ray gives fans even more for their buck besides improved audio & video, as it includes some decent bonus content, too. 5 STARS THE STORY: Ed Okin can't sleep. Late one night he goes for a drive, idling aimlessly around L.A. before eventually ending up at the airport. There he encounters Diane, a beautiful but mysterious girl who's running for her life from four Iranian assassins hell-bent on recovering six perfect emeralds she smuggled into the country. From that point on the two pinball from one bizarre encounter to the next, trying to stay one step ahead of the killer quartet. Can Ed keep Diane safe? What will happen to them both? And will poor Ed ever be able to get a decent night's sleep? THOUGHTS: I have loved this movie ever since I first saw it on cable TV decades ago. Prior to this movie I had only known of Goldblum from his short-lived TV series, TENSPEED & BROWNSHOE, with Ben Vereen. He was so memorably off-kilter in that show that I knew I had to check out INTO THE NIGHT. This movie has so much going for it. Great lead actors, a bevy of cameo parts by Hollywood directing legends, off-the-wall situations, and a surreal trip through the glamorous yet seedy afterhours world of Los Angeles. A wonderful B.B. King-flavored blues soundtrack adds immeasurably to the overall product, so much so that I couldn't imagine liking this film anywhere near as much if it had a more traditional score. And at it's center, a smart and witty script from Ron Koslow. Director John Landis steers things deftly, and also gives a side-splitting slapstick performance as one of the Iranian hitmen. I honestly find it amazing that this film isn't more well-known and well-loved. It is so much fun to watch unfold. Do yourself a favor and go along for the ride. THE BLU-RAY: A nice offering from Shout!Factory's Shout!Select branch. A nicely remastered transfer gives the film a new life. The picture looks crisp & clean and the audio is likewise clear, with a fairly even soundmix. Extra goodies include separate new on-camera interviews with director John Landis & star Jeff Goldblum, (wherein you can clearly see that Goldblum's iconic stumble-mumbly, stop & start acting style isn't really acting; he's just naturally that strange & scatterbrained. LOL). There's also a short but entertaining documentary about B.B King and his life and involvement with the film. I wished that Landis and or Goldblum had done a commentary but alas, it wasn't meant to be. It's also regrettable that Michelle Pfeiffer couldn't or wouldn't be interviewed about her memories of the film. Even without, this Blu-ray is a solid buy for fans of the film and comes highly recommended. Read more