REVIEW: SHIFT

There are fewer film genres that I enjoy more than a good noir, and SHIFT by writer/director Max Neace delivers the goods and then some.

This is a period piece set in the late 90's in a Chicago storage facility, and while that seems like an unlikely setting for this type of film, man does it ever work. The tale opens with our scrappy hero Tom (Connor McGill) just starting a job as the late night watchman/custodian at Your Storage - scrap that. The film starts with an office chair which director Neace has somehow managed to imbue with a life of its own, and I gotta admit, that was a first for me!

We are also introduced to owner Hal (Sean O'Bryan) who does a damn fine job chanelling his inner Herb Tarlek, the sleazy sales manager from the late, great 70's/80's sitcom WKRP in Cincinatti. So far, so good.

A lot of the story unfolds and moves forward through the use of VHS-recorded security camera footage and late night radio call in host Iris Keen (Angela Alise) It's all smartly done stuff, and the use of these devices (including the chair, which is named Grace Kelly, by the way) works really well to create both depth and separation from events. But what kind of film noir would we have without a femme fatale? Luckily SHIFT serves this up in the form of the sultry and mysterious Mrs. Jones (Allison McAtee) and once this final element is in place, we are off to the races!

SHIFT really hits all of the right notes with enough mystery, twists, strangeness, action, and humor to keep you spellbound until the very end. Picture and sound are sharp as a tack, the pacing moves briskly along, the soundtrack is killer, and the performances were really outstanding. I cannot recommend this film highly enough!