One Crazy Night
Movies where most of the story (over 2/3) take place in one night, and it's a major studio release. This narrative approach tends to carry a lot of momentum in most cases. Here's a list of some of these films I've seen, in no particular order. Let me know if I forgot one.
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- DirectorGeorge LucasStarsRichard DreyfussRon HowardPaul Le MatA group of teenagers in California's central valley spend one final night after their 1962 high school graduation cruising the strip with their buddies before they pursue their varying goals.Classic nostalgia film about the early sixties. A group of teenagers fresh out of high school contemplating their future. Classic soundtrack.
- DirectorRichard LinklaterStarsJason LondonWiley WigginsMatthew McConaugheyThe adventures of high school and junior high students on the last day of school in May 1976.'American Graffiti' about the 70s stoner decade. Starts at the end of the last day of the school year, and unfolds late into the night. Funny, insightful, and nostalgic.
- DirectorWalter HillStarsMichael BeckJames RemarDorsey WrightA street gang known as the Warriors must fight its way from the Bronx to its home turf on Coney Island when its members are falsely accused of assassinating a respected gang leader.Kicking asses and taking names. Oh, and also trying to get home to Coney Island in one piece. Like a live action comic book.
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsEdward NortonBarry PepperPhilip Seymour HoffmanCornered by the DEA, convicted New York drug dealer Montgomery Brogan reevaluates his life in the 24 remaining hours before facing a seven-year jail term.Deep brooding and introspection of a career criminal the night before loosing his freedom. The shot of Rosario Dawson and Ana Paquin entering the night club are ... geez words escape me....
One of Spike Lee's better efforts. - DirectorGreg MottolaStarsMichael CeraJonah HillChristopher Mintz-PlasseTwo co-dependent high school seniors are forced to deal with separation anxiety after their plan to stage a booze-soaked party goes awry.Were you a geek? Best buds with a geek? Still wanted to party? Right? Vulgar, gross, but also very funny, and somewhat charming.
- DirectorJohn LandisStarsJeff GoldblumMichelle PfeifferStacey PickrenAfter discovering that his wife is cheating on him, an insomniac aerospace engineer accidentally meets, and tries to help, a beautiful model on the run from some extremely dangerous people.Dark one moment, funny the next. Uneven, but still entertaining.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsGriffin DunneRosanna ArquetteVerna BloomAn ordinary word processor has the worst night of his life after he agrees to visit a girl in Soho he met that evening at a coffee shop.Like Landis' 'Into the Night', dark and funny, sometimes in the same scene. There are some head scratching moments, but ultimately entertaining, even if the ending is a little unsatifying.
- DirectorSteve De JarnattStarsAnthony EdwardsMare WinninghamJohn AgarA young man hears a chance phone call telling him that a nuclear war has started and missiles will hit his city in 70 minutes.Starts like a dream. But quickly devolves into a nightmare. The final twenty minutes convinced me that I prefer to NOT know that the world is ending. Probably best that no else know either.
- DirectorJohn McTiernanStarsBruce WillisAlan RickmanBonnie BedeliaA New York City police officer tries to save his estranged wife and several others taken hostage by terrorists during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles.Classic adventure of a bad-ass cop saving the day, or night.
- DirectorMichael MannStarsTom CruiseJamie FoxxJada Pinkett SmithA cab driver finds himself the hostage of an engaging contract killer as he makes his rounds from hit to hit during one night in Los Angeles.Michael Mann stripping it down to the bare essence of storytelling. A taxi driver, and a hit man, forced to drive him around town on a macabre mission.
- DirectorRobert RodriguezStarsHarvey KeitelGeorge ClooneyJuliette LewisTwo criminals and their hostages unknowingly seek temporary refuge in a truck stop populated by vampires, with chaotic results.Freaky, frightening, and fun.
- DirectorChris ColumbusStarsElisabeth ShueMaia BrewtonKeith CooganA babysitter must battle her way through the big city after being stranded there with the kids she's looking after.The 'Citizen Kane' of babysitting films. Okay, maybe I overstated it. Still alot of fun, though.
- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsDonald PleasenceJamie Lee CurtisTony MoranFifteen years after murdering his sister on Halloween night 1963, Michael Myers escapes from a mental hospital and returns to the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois to kill again.Probably won't 'move' young audiences desensitized by graphic gore and torture, but it did give me nightmares when I was a kid.
- DirectorOliver StoneStarsEric BogosianEllen GreeneLeslie HopeA rude, contemptuous talk show host becomes overwhelmed by the hatred that surrounds his program just before it goes national.A forgotten Oliver Stone gem. The freaks really do come out at night, and they're real, and they call in to talk radio.
- DirectorMichael DowseStarsTopher GraceAnna FarisDan FoglerFour years after graduation, an awkward high school genius uses his sister's boyfriend's Labor Day party as the perfect opportunity to make his move on his high school crush.Half-hearted attempt at 80s nostalgia about, you guessed it, young people contemplating their future. Although forgettable, still an okay way to pass an idle afternoon.
- DirectorDanny LeinerStarsJohn ChoKal PennEthan EmbryA Korean-American office worker and his Indian-American stoner friend embark on a quest to satisfy their desire for White Castle burgers.(cough! cough! cough!) Damn dude. Sure could go for some sliders.
- DirectorSydney PollackStarsJane FondaMichael SarrazinSusannah YorkThe lives of a disparate group of contestants intertwine in an inhumanely grueling dance marathon.Okay, this one is pushing it. But a good example of nihilistic movie making of the late 60s. And, most of it does happen in the final night.
- DirectorMatt ReevesStarsMike VogelJessica LucasLizzy CaplanA group of friends venture deep into the streets of New York on a rescue mission during a rampaging monster attack.Giant monster running amok in New York. Self absorbed Gen-Xers in peril. Sign me up!
- DirectorJames CameronStarsLeonardo DiCaprioKate WinsletBilly ZaneA seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.I know. I know. Too obvious and I'm really pushing it. However, it does meet the 2/3 criteria.
- DirectorRobert KlaneStarsDonna SummerValerie LandsburgTerri NunnA Friday in the life of the disco club The Zoo, where the staff and clients meet and dance their lives away.70s throwaway from the disco era. Not 'good' by any stretch of the imagination. But... meets the criteria of being a major studio release, and taking place in one night.
- DirectorNima NourizadehStarsThomas MannOliver CooperJonathan Daniel BrownThree high-school seniors throw a birthday party to make a name for themselves. As the night progresses, things spiral out of control as word of the party spreads.More kids partying, but without any real insight or genuine humor.
- DirectorGeorge A. RomeroStarsDuane JonesJudith O'DeaKarl HardmanA ragtag group of Pennsylvanians barricade themselves in an old farmhouse to remain safe from a horde of flesh-eating ghouls that are ravaging the Northeast of the United States.They're living AND dead. And, oh yeah, the want to eat you. Not 'Masterpiece Theater', but it's still kind of jarring, and it did singlehandedly start a genre. Not originally a major studio release, but enough of a classic to merit a mention.
- DirectorHarry ElfontDeborah KaplanStarsJennifer Love HewittEthan EmbryCharlie KorsmoA complete graduating class, consisting of beautiful girls, geeks and promising footballers, assemble at a rich classmate's residence for a party. Interesting developments follow at the get-together.Okay. Not a big fan of this one. But it fit my criteria. Jennifer Love Hewitt does look amazing, though.