. . . AFTER HOURS must have seemed like pure drivel. This tedious sequel to MEAN STREETS seems to drag on aimlessly for two or three times its length by the clock. If mentioned in the same breath with THE RAGING BULL or TAXI DRIVER, film students would bet their bottom wooden nickel that director Martin Scorsese had suffered a stroke or lobotomy (perhaps both!) prior to releasing AFTER HOURS. But it's said that Warner Bros. works in Mysterious Ways, and we now know that America's Extreme Early Warning System was actually focusing its far-sighted energies upon providing a cautionary AFTER HOURS tale for We Citizens of (The Then) Far Future. Serial woman-abusing snoop deadbeat "Paul Hackett" is NOT foretelling the upcoming misdeeds of Bill Cosby (too pale), Bill Clinton (too Northern), or Harvey Weinstein (too thin). No, it's clear that Manhattanite Paul--with his mangled hair-do, unwillingness to pay cab or subway fares, and misogynistic woman-hopping ways--represents none other than the Bane of Modern America, Manhattanite Don Juan Rump, as Rump was then, is now, and ever will be. The last third of AFTER HOURS is more of a personal warning to Master Rump himself, as a lynch mob of wised-up citizens pursues his stand-in Paul to deliver long overdue Justice!

Like it or not. This film does one thing really well. It does really, really well at catching your attention and never letting go of it. You can regard it as one giant attention-catching moment that is the whole film in its entirety, or a series of attention-catching spurts that somehow don't get formulaic and redundant.The events happening aren't even that interesting or brilliant, but they do so well at keeping you, the viewer, hooked and curious what happens next. At very, very least, even stripped of its symbols and what not, in its most plain viewing, this film must be considered an entertaining watch.Not being a Scorsese fan at all myself, the directing is really good. It conveys that sense of a Kafkaesque-nightmarish sort of feel and does really well at being straight to the point, and not dwelling too long on its weirdness. It's strange, original, but efficient. It is not self-indulgent or edgy like such films always are.It's also just the right length. The story of a man who can never get home, in a familiar but equally surrealistic environment, told in just the right amount of time, with just the right start and ending to it. Doesn't get cute with itself.Also, very good job from lead actor Griffin Dunne.Really well done. 8/10.

Found this by accident the other day. I've never heard of it and only bought it because I saw it was directed by Martin Scorsese. It is a rather odd film but good. Everyone is basically nuts in this movie. Everyone the main character meets is either crazy or very strange. There's a few things that don't really make a lot of sense. Every person he meets invites them into their apartment. Even the bartender. Although it seems rather strange that you meet a person on a deserted street at 3:00 a.m. and say, "Hey, I live right across the road. Come on up." The only thing I would have changed is the ending. As Paul is now concealed in a plaster of Paris casting, I would have had the thieves sell the statue, with the last shot of Paul on a street corner or in a town square, forever tombed inside the statue. But that's only my version of the ending.!

After Hours (1985): Dir: Martin Scorsese / Cast: Griffin Dunne, Rosanna Arquette, John Heard, Linda Fiorentino, Teri Garr: Underrated Martin Scorsese dark comedy about that counter to normality that provides a nightmare. Griffin Dunne plays software programmer Paul Hackett who is bored with life. He meets Marcy Franklin, played by Rosanna Arquette and a chance encounter turns into a trip to Soho where everything that can go wrong does. Dunne plays off the irritable nature of Hackett who discovers a dead body, has his head nearly shaved, and is pursued by a mob who believe that he is robbing apartments. Arquette as Marcy is sexy and mysterious leaving Hackett with nervous sexual tension. John Heard plays a bartender who offers to financially assist Hackett when he is stranded without subway fare. It becomes bizarre when he ties in when he receives a phone call tying an overdosed female to himself. Linda Fiorentino plays Soho artist Kiki Bridges who is roommates with Marcy, and into BDSM relationships. Teri Garr plays a feisty waitress whose bed is surrounded by mouse traps. Scorsese fills the film with intriguing comedic characters thus throwing Hackett into awkward pearl that ends brilliantly where it all begins. Beautiful locations and a theme of normality and consequences of venturing outside the comfort zone in those after hours where anything can and will occur. Score: 9 / 10