Movie Reviews

‘Sundown: The Vampire In Retreat’ Blu-Ray Review – Comedic Vampire Western Is A Hilarious Underground Treat

By Dillon Gonzales
September 7, 2021
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One of the great joys in this age of boutique labels releasing carefully-curated packages for home media collectors is the unearthing of underappreciated gems that for one reason or another were kicked to the curb upon their initial debut into the world. When a new release was announced for Sundown: The Vampire In Retreat even some of the most avid genre fans were surprised to learn of its existence. This is not a total surprise given that when the Anthony Hickox (Waxwork) directed film was released in 1989 it was contained to a handful of festivals before arriving on VHS a few years later. Despite a fantastic cast of fan-favorite character actors and a subversive sensibility, many may only be familiar with it as a part of a multi-pack of B-or-C-grade films on DVD. This hilarious and adventurous take on vampire lore does not deserve such treatment; Sundown: The Vampire In Retreat is a genuine gem of a film that is just waiting to be discovered by a new audience.

As we learn in an opening text crawl, this is not your typical vampire setup. In Sundown, an ancient vampire named Mardulak (David Carradine, Kill Bill) has endeavored to get away from the barbaric ways of feeding on human blood and living in the shadows. Instead, he has gathered some of the last remaining vampires to settle down in the most unlikely of places: the desolate, sunny desert town of Purgatory. It is here where they have learned to stop killing (for the most part) and learned to adapt to their environment with some top-of-the-line sunblock, some protected glass to shield them from UV rays and fake blood synthesized at a plant that may not taste great but helps further their agenda of living in harmony with humans. Of course, not everyone is on board for this idyllic fantasy like Ethan Jefferson (John Ireland, All The King’s Men), a vampire who wants to return to the old ways and is gathering forces for a climactic revolution.

The key to the film’s success is the outlandish tone it establishes early on as three elderly gentlemen swing in unison on a bench-swing like a scene out of an early Coen Bros. movie. These three men are brothers who operate the local gas station, and one in particular (M. Emmet Walsh, Cannery Row) has very little patience for a rude customer before ultimately swiping his head off his body. He is just one of the many colorful characters who find themselves ensconced in this western vampire tale. David Harrison (Jim Metzler) and his family, wife Sarah (Morgan Brittany) and daughters Gwendolyn (Vanessa Pierson) and Juliet (Erin Gourlay), are among the handful of humans who get waylaid in the course of what should be a pleasant desert vacation. Bruce Campbell (Evil Dead) plays a delightfully out-of-his-depth Van Helsing who gets mixed up with Sandy (Deborah Foreman, Valley Girl), a recently-turned vampire who has a fondness for him. All of the performers bring a confidence to the comedy that really sells the picture.

The film is not confined just strictly to jokes, though; the dramatic western elements are pulled off just as deftly as the comedic moments. The villainous showdown between Ireland and Carradine has two of the greats coming together for some high-quality, jagged exchanges. The typical ending assault provides some enjoyable action elements, but it does reach a point where you feel that it goes on a bit too long for its own good. While not overly bloated at a decent 104 minutes, the film would probably feel a bit more spry at a tight 90 minutes. The practical special effects that are used are wonderfully low-rent in their execution, which only adds to the charm. The film can be cheesy, but overall the humor is really clever and genuinely hilarious even with modern sensibilities. Even with performers who have more of a niche appeal, this feels like a film that would have had a sizable cult following before this point. Sundown: The Vampire In Retreat will now hopefully get the audience it so richly deserves.

Video Quality

Sundown: The Vampire In Retreat finally makes its Blu-Ray debut with a 1080p transfer that is overall pretty great. While I have no specific details about the transfer, this appears to be derived from a dated master that has not had a huge amount of work done to it. For the majority of the film it looks incredibly clear and detailed, but there are a few shots that look a bit soft and lacking in fine detail. The transfer is naturally filmic with some decent detail in the production design and texture of clothing. Colors are vibrant enough to make an impression, especially when capturing the varied earth tones in the landscape. The black levels are passable in their depth and white levels do not give into blooming very often. There are some occasional specks of print damage present in the transfer, but overall the source is not terribly flawed. This is the best that the film has ever looked on home entertainment, so fans should be pleased by the presentation.

Audio Quality

Lionsgate Home Entertainment brings us this new Blu-Ray with a lossless DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix that perfectly reproduces the film sonically. The dialogue holds up quite nicely, coming though clearly without being stepped on by the score or sound effects. The environmental effects are delineated nicely from the chatter in the diner to the flapping of bat wings. The large confrontation at the end with the onslaught of wooden bullets being fired holds up well with clarity being top notch. The movie is accompanied by a soaring score from Richard Stone that sounds great here. This is a track that represents the film in a very satisfying way. Optional English (SDH) and Spanish subtitles are provided on this disc.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Host Michael Felsher from Red Shirt Pictures conducts an interview with Director Anthony Hickox and Director of Photography Levie Isaacks in which they discuss the origins of the project, fun easter eggs they put in the film, memories of the performers, shooting in Moab, the special effects in the film, crafting the look of the movie and more. This is a really fun track in which the participants can recall a lot of information despite not having seen the film in years.

Isolated Score Selection And Audio Interviews: An option to watch the film with only the score audible with audio interviews with Music Historian Randall Larson and Producer Jefferson Richard interspersed that provide some great background on the score from Richard Stone.

Wild Weird West with Anthony Hickox: A new 16-minute interview with Director Anthony Hickox in which he talks about bringing his father’s love of westerns to the film, putting his own stamp on the script, the town of Moab adapting to the schedules of the production, the philosophy when it comes to capturing performances, the special effects, his affection for the movie and more.

Bloodsuckers From Purgatory with Tony Gardner: A new nearly 15-minute interview with Special-Make-Up Effects Creator Tony Gardner in which he discusses getting involved with the project, creating the look of the vampires, the use of extras in the transformation process, the biggest unexpected challenge in getting the teeth to match and more.

Memories of Moab with Bruce Campbell: A 13-minute interview in which actor Bruce Campbell shares his excitement about shooting in Moab, his strange shooting schedule, getting paid a rate that was shocking to him, memories of his costars and much more that is a lot of fun.

A Vampire Reformed with David Carradine: A 13-minute interview with actor David Carradine in which he discusses becoming his character, risky flights he took, his regrets over not getting to spend time with his fellow performers and more.

A True Character with M. Emmet Walsh: An 11-minute interview with actor M. Emmet Walsh in which he discusses settling into his performance, memories from the production, his thoughts in the film and more.

Theatrical Trailer: The minute-long trailer for the film is provided here.

Still Gallery: A 15-minute collection of images from the production and promotional material is provided here.

Final Thoughts

Sundown: The Vampire In Retreat is a delightful discovery that offers up equal parts gut-busting humor and exciting action-drama. The performances from M. Emmet Walsh and Bruce Campbell are the highlights in an ensemble that goes very deep when it comes to impressive character actors. The film could have been tightened up a little bit more, but overall the quality is mostly maintained throughout the runtime. Lionsgate Home Entertainment has released a new Blu-Ray as a part of the Vestron Video Collector’s Series which sports a strong A/V presentation and some fantastic supplemental features. If a comedic vampire western sounds like a fun time to you, do not hesitate to pick this one up. Recommended

Sundown: The Vampire In Retreat is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and Digital.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Lionsgate Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.