Review of After Hours (1985) by David P — 24 Jul 2007

This is Scorcese's first picture. Based on a student script, After Hours is the story of a hapless office worker who, on leaving work, stumbles into a chain of events, each one more increasingly bizarre than the last.

The film has an odd feel about it from the off. Like something's not quite right, it gets your sixth sense tingling almost immediately, and this just adds to the atmosphere. This is compounded by the bizarre characters and scenarios Griffin Dunne finds himself in.

Don't be fooled although this is an eighties movie it has a timeless feel about it. This film has it all, especially when it comes to sexual fantasy, Horst and Kiki's (played by the fantastic Linda Fiorentino) S&M loft, unhinged self-mutilation courtesy of Rosanna Arquette, with a healthy dose of gay, straight and otherwise into the bargain.

But this film is much more than the sex (perversions or otherwise), you are taken on a journey, in places a very uncomfortable journey but hilarious and bizarre. The situations dreamt up are insane. The ending is just classic, rounding off the whole uncomfortable night perfectly.