SUNDOWN: THE VAMPIRE IN RETREAT - DVD review

I consider myself a pretty big horror movie fan, and I've spent the majority of my time on this Earth either watching these flicks or reading about them in various magazines and books. At this point it's extremely rare for me to stumble across any unknown American-made genre flick from the 90's or earlier. How the 1990 release "Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat" managed to stay completely off my radar until I put the DVD into my player is beyond me. The fact that this fantastic movie existed for eighteen years without my ever having heard a murmur about it is shocking. With its fan-favorite cast featuring memorable faces like David Carradine, Bruce Campbell, Maxwell Caulfield, John Ireland, and character actor gods George "Buck" Flower and M. Emmet Walsh, it's a damn crime that this film has been kept from me for so long. How did I miss this flick when it first came out? Perhaps it's the fact that it's a vampire flick, my least favorite of all cinematic monsters. Maybe I skipped it due to the absurd title. But most likely it had to do with the fact that it was Vestron's last picture before going out of business; thus, it never received a theatrical run and was relatively hard to find on VHS. Once again Lionsgate has come to the rescue of a great, forgotten film that never got its chance in the sun…er, moon that is.

"Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat" is a bizarre and welcome take on the long-in-the-tooth vampire genre that has been run into the ground with over dramatic Anne Rice sad-sack vamps. David Harrison (Jim Metzler), his wife Sarah (Morgan Brittany), and their two daughters travel to the dusty town of Purgatory. David is a scientist working on a project with some of the locals, and knowing that he would be away from them for an extended period of time, he brings his family along for the trip. Although David knows his liaison for the project is his wife's ex, Shane (Caulfield), he agrees to work on it even while Shane constantly says things to try and get his dander up. What David doesn't know is that the town of Sundown is completely inhabited by a clan of vampires lead by Jozek Mardulak (Carradine), a man with an unusual name, one he came up with after he no longer desired to be known by his original…Count Dracula. On top of being unaware of his benefactor's nocturnal alignments, David is also kept in the dark about what it is he's actually working on, a synthetic blood substitute.

The vampires of Purgatory have all gathered there with the intent of giving up on sucking the blood of humans. They're tired of harming us and instead have decided to try and live in harmony with us. Most of the town is behind Mardulak's decision to go "clean," all except for his right-hand man Ethan Jefferson (Ireland), who believes that vampires should be a ruling class with humans kept as cattle. Under Mardulak's nose Ethan's been building a small army of new vampires, and he's been keeping them in a cavern just outside of town while he waits for his mutinous plan to reach fruition. While all might seem lost for the Harrison family, who have unknowingly arrived at the dawn of a civil war amongst the undead, a hero arrives in the form of Robert Van Helsing (Campbell). Although Robert is a direct descendent of the famous original vampire hunter, he's a bit of a moron and may prove to be more of a hindrance to the Harrisons than a helpful hand. Will evil prevail, or can Mardulak convince his people to change their ways and spare the lives of the humans who have found their way into their desert nest?

"Sundown" is a hell of a lot of fun; it manages to combine the perfect amount of silliness, gore, vampire action, breathtaking locations, and literal horseplay to secure its place as one of the most memorable vampire films ever made. Aided by his veteran-filled cast, writer/director Anthony Hickox creates a surreal film that gleefully straddles the line between cheesy horror and slapstick comedy. One of the best moments of the film comes within the first few minutes, featuring three fat hillbilly vampire brothers who maintain a gas station just outside of town. Donning sombreros, snow goggles, overalls, and gardening gloves, the Bisby brothers sit beneath an umbrella applying sunblock while waiting for any humans that might find their way onto the road to Purgatory. If so, one of them sounds an alarm that alerts the town that strangers will be passing through soon. The vampiric townsfolk all coat themselves in SPF 1000 and clothe themselves head to toe, grab their umbrellas, and attempt to make the town seem normal. I suppose after passing by three identical looking guys dressed like the Olympic Mexican snowboarding team, a town where everybody is carrying an open umbrella on a beautiful sunny day, might not seem that odd. Either way, the effect is marvelous and immediately sets the tone for this quirky, enjoyable film.

Video:
For a movie shot in 1990 that never got a theatrical run, "Sundown" looks spectacular. This is one of the best-looking transfers of a nearly twenty-year-old film I've ever seen. The anamorphic widescreen in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio is simply tremendous. "Sundown" was shot on location in Moab, Utah, and their tourism board should seriously consider lifting scenes from this flick to show off how breathtaking their area is.

Audio:
The 5.1 audio track sounds great. Richard Stone's wonderfully charismatic soundtrack is engaging and complements every scene it's in, never once overpowering any of the dialogue. The 2.0 track is good, too, but pales in comparison.

Extras:
The feature-length commentary with Hickox, director of photography Levie Isaacks, and moderator Michael Felsher of Red Shirt Pictures gives a ton of insight into the making of the film. The trio discuss everything from the score to the immense codpiece Caulfield wears during a nude scene with great enjoyment. One of the more interesting tidbits exposed during the commentary is the fact that this DVD is the first time this visually impressive flick has even been seen in widescreen. With the exception of a couple of festival screenings, anyone who has seen "Sundown" on VHS has only seen half of the film.

Also included on this special edition disc are three solo interviews with the film's biggest cast members. "Memories of Moab" is a thirteen-minute interview with horror icon Bruce Campbell. It's extremely candid, and Campbell takes a few pot shots at fellow cast member Carradine during his reflection upon filming "Sundown." Carradine gets his own interview spot in the fourteen-minute "A Vampire Returned," where he doesn't waste any time talking about anything except his favorite subject…himself. The final interview is a wonderful eleven-minute piece entitled "A True Character," with the memorable M. Emmet Walsh. In addition to these features, a photo gallery is also included. All of which add up to yet another amazing batch of special features courtesy of the brilliant people at Red Shirt Pictures, the company that put together the bonus stuff for this disc as well as the recent releases of "The Monster Squad," "The Burning," and "Eaten Alive," three other long-awaited horror DVDs that had way better special features than any fan thought possible. Every company putting out special-edition DVDs should take note of what Red Shirt has accomplished with their interviews and featurettes.

Film Value:
"Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat" was a film far ahead of its time. It's unfortunate that it took this long to give this film the exposure it rightfully deserves. I'm not sure if Joss Whedon ever saw this flick, but somebody working on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" must have, for "Sundown's" influence will be noticeable to any fan of Sunnydale's resident slayer. The film's not perfect, some of the effects are a bit on the cheap side, all of the actors playing vampires have trouble properly enunciating through their fake teeth, and the two kids playing the Harrison's daughter's are absolutely dreadful. Both of the girls constantly look like they're on the verge of laughter. "Sundown's" a funny movie but their inability to keep from cracking comes at poor times. Still, in the end these are very minor problems with a movie that more than makes up for it with sublime stop-motion vampire bats, magnificent actors, the best anti-vamp ammunition ever seen, and beautifully filmed locations. "Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat" is a real gem. Thanks to Lionsgate and Michael Felsher of Red Shirt Pictures for dusting it off, shining it up, and giving it the treatment it so rightfully deserves.