Night Shift (2024) review

Night Shift is a very effective, intimately shot thriller that actually delivers on scares and building an escalating sense of dread. The cast is small, but they bring such personality and spark to their characters it’s a shame they all won’t make it to the end credits. Production is top shelf with the filmmakers knowing exactly which buttons to push for maximum jump scares.

The only thing holding the film back is the final act. It’s relatively clever, but the only aspect of Night Shift that invites a greater analysis with some of the plot holes created for its payoff.

Gwen (Phoebe Tonkin) arrives at The All Tucked Inn ready to start her first evening as the inn’s night shift supervisor. Owner Teddy Miles (Lamorne Morris) is grateful to get someone to fill in on such short notice. Teddy’s nickel tour of the inn reveals some obvious issues like the door of one room that won’t stay shut or cockroaches in another.

There’s a problematic door that only opens from the outside, so Gwen is warned not to forget the brick keeping it open. And there’s some loud scurrying suggesting rats are also fairly comfortable running around. Also, the pool has a sinkhole. Probably not a big issue at night, but no one’s going to be taking a dip anytime soon. At least not intentionally.

The film’s premise requires Teddy to be away for most of it, which comes at the cost of keeping Morris off screen. Morris brings a fun quirkiness to Teddy and would have been a welcome presence throughout Grace’s ordeal. Keeping Teddy around would have required a massive overhaul of the script, however.

Gwen isn’t totally alone on site. One guest, Alice (Madison Hu, Voyagers), is still up. She initially seems leery of Gwen, but the two eventually form a quick bond after a bizarre incident.

Sibling directors/writers Benjamin and Paul China do a fantastic job of making Gwen’s mundane patrol of the grounds eerie and creepy. From the spotty lighting with unwelcoming dark spots to the constant hum of old machinery, the inn is not exactly inviting. And that’s before Gwen starts hallucinating. Or is she?

A room with no occupant begins calling the front door. Grace is hearing noises much louder than rats. Worse, she’s starting to see three long dead women slowly approaching her. The makeup work on these victims is just right. They don’t appear hokey and have a genuinely creepy enough appearance to be highly effective jump scare content creators. And there’s also a car with a hidden driver that keeps circling the inn every so often.

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Fortunately for Gwen, Alice doesn’t laugh her off as a crazy person. Alice is pretty sure the inn is renowned for being haunted. That would explain a lot. The China Brothers do create some logistical obstacles such as making the inn decidedly low-tech. There’s just one outdated surveillance camera and not much by way of protection for Gwen.

Gwen isn’t written like a horror/thriller idiot. When she starts getting suspicious about some of the weird events, Gwen arms herself and generally doesn’t act like a victim in waiting.

Alice isn’t carrying around a knife and her cell phone is messed up, but she’s not a liability either. Tonkin is terrific throughout giving Gwen a surprising amount of depth for a “final girl” type character in a limited time frame. Hu is also likable making Alice a strong and reliable sounding board for Gwen as the night gets wilder.

The final act’s payoff could have worked with a few tweaks and the ending also creates more questions than was necessary.

Night Shift is a worthwhile thriller, but it was one that could have been truly special with a stronger ending.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Photo Credit: Quiver Distribution