David Harrison (Jim Metzler) and engineer, is told to go Purgatory, Utah, where an artificial blood manufacturing plant he designed has been constructed. The town’s economy is dependent on the plant working, so David’s arrival is considered vital. Harrison brings along his wife Sarah (Morgan Brittany) and his two young daughters. As soon as the Harrison’s arrive in town, it’s pretty clear something strange is going on. All the townspeople wear a lot of sun block and they look at the Harrison’s very strangely. After a few choice events, it becomes clear that these people are all vampires.
David Carradine as Count Mardulak.
Count Mardulak (David Carradine) and his followers want to create a world where humans and vampires can co-exist peacefully. He figures if the blood manufacturing plant is fixed, they will no longer have to take human lives to survive. Vampires Shane (Maxwell Caulfield) and Jefferson (John Ireland) prefer the old ways, and their followers plan to slaughter all the peaceful vampires, whom they view as traitors. Also, young Van Helsing (Bruce Campbell), descendent of the Van Helsing who defeated Dracula, has come to town with some bloodsucking murder on his mind. However, that goes awry when he meets a sexy, blonde vampire.
Sound a bit silly? Well, it is. Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat mixes the horror, comedy and western genres to create a strange but fun piece of entertainment. Of the three, horror is ironically the least used of the three genres despite the town’s vampire population. There are a few bloody moments here, but this is mostly an exercise in physical comedy, silly parody, and shoot-em-up theatrics.
If I had one complaint about Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat, it would be the length. At 104 minutes, the film is probably about twenty minutes longer than it needs to be. There are some minor characters, repetitive action sequences and a final fight scene that could have been edited to make the story tighter. However, Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat was an unexpected treat to watch and horror and/or Carradine fans should give the film a look.
The video is presented in 16×9 Widescreen 2.35:1format. The anamorphic image is bright and clear with good colors and details. There is some minor graininess but nothing dramatic.
Two English language audio tracks are provided here: Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby Digital 2.0. The 5.1 track appears to be the default and it sounds great. English and Spanish subtitles are also provided.
Sundown – The Vampire in Retreat (Special Edition) delivers a nice selection of special features:
• A Feature Length Commentary – Director Anthony Hickox and director of photography Levie Isaacks comment on different aspects of the film.
• Memories of Moab: Interview with Bruce Campbell (12:53) – The actor discusses his experiences making the film.
• A Vampire Reformed: Interview with David Carradine (13:45) – The actor discusses his experiences making the film.
• A True Character: Interview with M. Emmet Walsh (10:59) – The actor discusses his experiences making the film.
• A Slideshow of Images from the Film (6:43) – Accompanied by the films score.
