Near Dark

1987’s “Near Dark”, directed by Kathryn Bigelow.

Starring Adrian Pasdar, Jenny Wright, Lance Henriksen, Bill Paxton, Jenette Goldstein, Tim Thomerson, Joshua John Miller, Marcie Leeds, and Troy Evans.

Adrian Pasdar leads as a small town farmer’s son, who has little ambition but to sew his wild seeds. One late night, he meets Jenny Wright, who seems a little aloof, and he has trouble acknowledging her rejections to his advances. Stubborn to a fault, before he knows it, she has drank his blood. He isn’t sure what to think about the young lady (other than that she’s a biter), and the next day he sizzles when exposed to sunlight and has little taste for any kind of nourishment but blood. Re-connecting with Wright, she hooks him up with her surrogate vampire family. Lead by the father figure (a sinister Lance Henrikson), with alpha male right hand (Bill Paxton, majestically preening about), with the mother figure (Jenette Goldstein, a chameleon), and the baby of the family (the strangely enigmatic Joshua John Miller). All of them are mistrustful of the new vampire boy that Wright brings home, as Pasdar is still squeamish about murdering people. The rest of the gang show no such reservations, and rampage throughout the American West in the dark hours. While Pasdar struggles with whatever or not he belongs with the undead and with feelings of estrangement from his former blood family, him and Wright work to sort out if they can be in a relationship despite her family’s objections. 

A cult classic, almost to the point where it’s overrated for being underrated, “Dark” is commendable in it’s commitment to a genre that seems commonplace today, but must have felt like it came out of nowhere in ’87. A lean vampire Western, taking place across the badlands of America instead of New Orleans or Europe, certainly had no comparable rivals at the time. Featuring plenty of interesting characters, the most interesting one might be the dream fueled Tangerine Dream score. It features so prominently and expertly (reminding me of “Aguirre: Wrath of God”’s score), that you start to miss it when it is quiet. But as mentioned above, there are plenty of interesting characters, chomping on the flesh of those unlucky enough to be in their wanton path. Bigelow aims high, and creates an original take on a campy idea. The result can be as visceral and impactful as beams of sunlight.

4/5

Trailer: Click Here.