Probably one of the grossest looking factories in film history, this isn't for the squeamish, for those who hate vermin. If you walk down Manhattan streets at night and panic when you see the number of rats coming out of the sewers, skip this film at all costs. There are more rats here than in "Ben", and that includes the human variety. It's pure horror trash of the most repulsive kind, featuring a cast of B actors who have faded so far into obscurity that you'd need a shovel to dig up their careers. If the cast, only Brad Mourif is a slightly known name. The factory setting is impressive if disgusting but the script is so cheesy that it could feed the entire NYC subway system of all the creatures that dwell there.

The bottom line of the plot is the secrets of the bowels of the factory and what it contains. It's something much worse than eats, and by the time you see it, you may not be interested because the plot has dealt with so many characters that are just completely repulsive that you may just give up. At times, the film just becomes too satisfied with its disgusting elements to even watch, and the shots of rats constantly looking on as if they are making a big plot ready to erupt at any moment, and it just becomes tiresome.

At times it becomes so slow moving with tons of unnecessary dialogue that you're fighting to stay awake over the squeaks and squawks of the rats. This one is very easy to pass on with the film to gross and it's horrific moments to really enjoy watching. The bottom of the factory truly is like hell on Earth.

This cheesy adaptation of a Stephen King short story is a bad film lover's dream come true. Fans widely agree that this is possibly the worst of the King stories, but I'm forced to disagree. Didn't anybody else realise how bad PET SEMATARY was? GRAVEYARD SHIFT is a hoot from start to finish, packed with atrocious acting, stereotyped characters, and all manner of rubbery gore to boot. There isn't really much of a plot with this one, it's just about people running around in the basement of a wool mill and in the catacombs beneath.

In most cases, it's as bad as you would expect. They forgot to add a story, the dialogue is stupid, and the acting is about as bad as you can see - I've seen amateur productions where the actors display more conviction with their lines. David Andrews is particularly poor as the charisma-free lead. An exceptionally poor performance from a young Andrew Divoff also comes as a surprise, seeing as he later when on to bigger and better things when cast as a villain in the likes of WISHMASTER.

Elsewhere, we have a totally forgettable love interest, a Fred Ward lookalike who goes crazy in the dank darkness, and a reliable Brad Dourif who is probably this film's only saving grace, giving as he does a hilariously over the top portrayal of a crazy exterminator who is the film's greasiest, most likable character. Where this film did surprise me were the number of atmospheric, haunting moments as characters run around some old caves while the beast lurks in the shadows. It's surprising for a film of this variety to actually be scary but it does work occasionally. I also liked the deeply macabre moment where one guy falls through the ground onto a giant pile of mouldering skeletons. With this and the tentacled monster, it's almost Lovecraftian in nature.

It goes without saying that the monster is most effective when we don't see it, and the final appearance is a rubbery monstrosity for all the wrong reasons. For the monster turns out to be a giant slimy bat, which has been eating people for ages without anybody finding out (they never explain this). It's painfully obvious how fake the beast is but I admired the gore-splattered finale which has it crushed to death in a press. This move is to be avoided by fans of decent films and rat haters. For those to like their cheese mature and enjoy playing "guess who's gonna be killed next" then GRAVEYARD SHIFT is for you.

The town has a rat infested ancient textile mill. The big problem is that people on the graveyard shift get eaten by a monster in the basement. John Hall (David Andrews) is a newcomer in town. He's given the opportunity to earn double by the manager Warwick (Stephen Macht). Over the July 4th weekend, a group of workers are given the task to clear out the basement.

The actors are mostly unknowns. Brad Dourif does a good turn as a crazy creepy exterminator. Most everybody is over acting, doing a lot of manic performances, and being mean all the time. It's all forgettable.

The least forgettable is all the rats. If anybody has a rat phobia, this movie will scare the it out of you. The rats are pretty good. I particularly like that the rats are big on the screen. They're not small rodents down at our feet. The audience sees them face to face with their beady little eyes. That's a great touch.

Other than the rats, the directing is perfunctory at best. The pace is slow as director Singleton doesn't edit to ramp up the tension. The set is artificial but still somewhat creepy. Damn basement is always good horror material. The kills are pretty good. Again I think it's the rats. It's always creepy to have real rats around.