Near Dark

-- Video Business, 9/4/2002

Color, R, 97 min. plus supplements, Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS Surround, widescreen, $29.98, Street: Sept. 10, First Run: L, October 1987, $3.4 mil.

The word "vampire" is never spoken in Katherine Bigelow's 1987 horror-thriller Near Dark, a movie now considered to be one of the first and finest in a long line of modern takes on the ages-old bloodsucker myth. During various parts of Anchor Bay's sleek new two-disc edition of the film, director Bigelow offers that she aimed to explode the myth and create a new archetype--mischievous, wise crackin', redneck creatures who traveled in packs (in this case, a beat-up van) and were going a bit loopy from all that immortality. The 47-minute featurette produced by Blue Underground digs deep into the heart of the film, pointing out Bigelow's desire to prove that she had the britches for the kind of action, horror and thrills that were commonly reserved for male filmmakers. The cast members interview in the documentary are an enthusiastic bunch--Lance Henriksen and Bill Paxton, in particular, speak of the film's production and their characters with the kind of pride found in one-time indie players who have made the leap to the studio system. Also included is a deleted scene and a calm, cool commentary by Bigelow. --Cyril Pearl