Near Dark (1987)

Director:

Kathryn Bigelow

Writers:

Kathryn Bigelow (written by) and
Eric Red (written by)

Release Date:

2 October 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Killing you would be easy, they'd rather terrify you...forever.

Plot:

A young man reluctantly joins a travelling "family" of evil vampires, when the girl he'd tried to seduce is part of that group.

Plot Keywords:

Farm | Blood | Vampire | Truck | Bar

Awards:

1 win & 8 nominations

Cast

Adrian Pasdar	...	Caleb Colton
Jenny Wright	...	Mae
Lance Henriksen	...	Jesse Hooker
Bill Paxton	...	Severen
Jenette Goldstein	...	Diamondback
Tim Thomerson	...	Loy Colton
Joshua John Miller	...	Homer (as Joshua Miller)
Marcie Leeds	...	Sarah Colton
Kenny Call	...	Deputy Sheriff
Ed Corbett	...	Ticket Seller
Troy Evans	...	Plainclothes Officer
Bill Cross	...	Sheriff Eakers
Roger Aaron Brown	...	Cajun Truck Driver
Thomas Wagner	...	Bartender
Robert Winley	...	Patron in Bar
James Le Gros	...	Teenage Cowboy (as James LeGros)
Jan King	...	Waitress
Danny Kopel	...	Biker in Bar
Billy Beck	...	Motel Manager
S.A. Griffin	...	Police Officer at Motel
Bob Terhune	...	State Trooper
William T. Lane	...	State Trooper
Gary Littlejohn	...	State Trooper
Paul M. Lane	...	State Trooper (as Paul Michael Lane)
Eddie Mulder	...	State Trooper
Don Pugsley	...	Truck Driver #2
Neith Hunter	...	Lady in Car
Theresa Randle	...	Lady in Car
Tony Pierce	...	Highway Youth
Gordon Haight	...	Highway Youth
Leo Geter	...	Caleb's Friend
Gary Wayne Cunningham	...	Caleb's Friend

Directed by
Kathryn Bigelow

Writing credits
Kathryn Bigelow		(written by) and
Eric Red		(written by)

Produced by
Mark Allan	....	associate producer
Edward S. Feldman	....	executive producer
Steven-Charles Jaffe	....	producer
Charles R. Meeker	....	executive producer
Diane Nabatoff	....	associate producer
Eric Red	....	co-producer

Original Music by
Tangerine Dream

Cinematography by
Adam Greenberg

Film Editing by
Howard E. Smith

Casting by
Karen Rea

Production Design by
Stephen Altman

Art Direction by
Dian Perryman

Costume Design by
Joseph A. Porro

Makeup Department
Derek Howard	....	sfx makeup artist
Daniel Marc	....	hair stylist
Linda Nottestad	....	hair stylist
Davida Simon	....	makeup artist
Gordon J. Smith	....	special makeup effects artist

Production Management
Mark Allan	....	production manager
Joe Dishner	....	unit manager
Brent Sellstrom	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Guy J. Louthan	....	first assistant director
Ian McVey	....	first assistant director: second unit
John Scherer	....	second assistant director
Chuck Williams	....	third assistant director

Art Department
John Bucklin	....	set dresser
Findlay Bunting	....	set dresser
Jay Burkhart	....	scenic artist
Eduardo H. Esparza	....	set construction
James Monroe	....	set dresser
Alan Munro	....	storyboard artist
Brett Palmer	....	set dresser
Jennifer Pray	....	set dresser
Thomas P. Wilkins	....	scenic designer (as Tom Wilkins)
Eileen Winterkorn	....	scenic artist
Gregory R. Wolf	....	property master (as Gregory Wolf)

Sound Department
Lee Chaloukian	....	sound director (as Leo Chaloukian)
Holly Davis	....	sound effects editor
Ted Goodspeed	....	sound effects editor
Grover B. Helsley	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Grover Helsley)
F. Hudson Miller	....	foley editor
R.J. Palmer	....	supervising sound editor
Steve Rice	....	adr editor
Steve Rice	....	dialogue editor
Richard D. Rogers	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Richard Rogers)
Joan Rowe	....	foley artist
Steve Sollars	....	boom operator
Don Summer	....	sound mixer
Kelly Tartan	....	sound effects editor
Jerry Trent	....	foley artist
John Wilkinson	....	sound re-recording mixer (as John 'Doc' Wilkinson)
David Lewis Yewdall	....	sound designer

Special Effects by
Ray Beetz	....	special effects assistant
Al Broussard	....	special effects assistant
Edward J. Franklin	....	special effects assistant
Dale L. Martin	....	special effects coordinator (as Dale Martin)
Joseph C. Sasgen	....	special effects assistant (as Joseph Sasgen)

Visual Effects by
Bruce A. Block	....	matte cameraman
Bret Mixon	....	rotoscoping

Stunts
Mickey Alzola	....	stunts
Everett Creach	....	stunt coordinator
Bob Ivy	....	stunts
Mike Johnson	....	stunts
Paul M. Lane	....	stunts (as Paul Michael Lane)
William T. Lane	....	stunts
Mike H. McGaughy	....	stunts (as Mike McGaughy)
Eddie Mulder	....	stunts
Stevie Myers	....	stunts
Lee Poppie	....	stunts
Kristen Suzanne Raden	....	stunts (as Kristen Suzanne)
Michael Raden	....	stunts (as Mike Raden)
Bob Terhune	....	stunts
Jim Wilkey	....	stunts
Jerry Wills	....	stunts
William Yarbrough Jr.	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Chuck Colwell	....	director of photography: second unit
Alicia Craft	....	second assistant camera
Richard Crompton	....	grip
Gary Farr	....	still photographer
Ben Felthouse	....	electrician (as Ben Feldhouse)
Robert Gray	....	key grip
Khan Griffith	....	grip
Scott Howell	....	best boy grip
Jono Kouzouyan	....	lighting gaffer
Kyle T. MacDowell	....	best boy electric
Hugh McCallum	....	grip
Michael Ohrling	....	camera operator: second unit
George Palmer	....	electrician
Ron Phillips	....	still photographer
John Pierce	....	electrician
Vance Piper	....	first assistant camera
Lou Weinert	....	assistant camera
Jack Yanekian	....	best boy electric

Casting Department
Glenn F. Haines	....	casting associate

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Michael Tereschuk	....	wardrobe assistant
Leslie Weir	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Sally Dixon	....	negative cutter (as Sally Dodge)
Vivian Hengsteler	....	negative cutter
Mary Ann Skweres	....	second assistant editor
Arthur Tostado	....	color timer (as Art Tostado)
Grace Valenti	....	first assistant editor

Music Department
Jim Weidman	....	music editor

Transportation Department
Jeri Kelley	....	transportation captain
Fred Robbins	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Larry Bartels	....	double
Laura Cartwright	....	assistant production coordinator
Bundy Chanock	....	set medic
Kim Deen	....	production auditor
Lisa Etherington	....	assistant production accountant
George Herthel	....	location manager
Constance L. Hoy	....	script supervisor: second unit
Henry Humphreys	....	set medic
Carol Shapiro Janson	....	publicist (as Carol Janson)
Karen Altman Morgenstern	....	production coordinator
Connie Papineau	....	script supervisor
Wally Uchida	....	location manager (as Wallace Uchida)

Production Companies

• F/M
• Near Dark Joint Venture

Distributors

• Capital Cinéma (1988) (France) (theatrical)
• Chapel Distribution (1997) (Australia) (theatrical) (35mm print)
• De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG) (1987) (USA) (theatrical)
• Nea Kinisi (1988) (Greece) (theatrical)
• Plånborg Film (1989) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (USA) (DVD)
• Cinema Classics (video)
• Home Box Office Home Video (HBO) (video)
• Image Entertainment (laserdisc)
• Lions Gate Films Home Entertainment (2009) (USA) (DVD)
• M.I.B. (2008) (Germany) (DVD)
• Nea Kinisi Video (1990) (Greece) (VHS)
• Paramount Pictures (Canada)
• StudioCanal (2012) (Germany) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

94 min | Sweden:86 min (cut version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Certification:

Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Germany:16 (2003) | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 (1987) | New Zealand:R16 | Portugal:M/18 | Argentina:18 | Singapore:M18 | Norway:18 | Brazil:16

Filming Locations:

Casa Grande, Arizona, USA

Company:

F/M

Trivia:

Was the last movie produced and released by DEG (DeLaurentiis Entertainment Group) as the studio went bankrupt. As a result, the film did not receive much publicity during its release in the fall of 1987 which lead, in turn, to its box office failure.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Caleb is running from the motel and burning in the daylight at one point you can see the pipes running up the back of his jacket making the smoke.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Caleb Colton:[crushing a mosquito] Dumb suck.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A Night at the Movies: The Horrors of Stephen King (2011) (TV)

Soundtrack:

THE COWBOY RIDES AWAY

and they didn't even say the 'V' word!

One of the best modern vampire flicks around is this stylish, funny, and all around adventurous cult classic.

Young cowboy is literally bitten by a beautiful stranger and ends up joining a band of blood-suckers who roam the American heartland.

Although Near Dark is often over-shadowed by the ultra-hip vampire movie The Lost Boys (1987), Near Dark is a far more juicier treat for horror fans. Eric Red, who also wrote The Hitcher (1986), gives us a seemingly old-fashioned tale of struggle between human nature and savage lust with a nicely spun sense of modernism. Not to mention plenty of touches of dark humor. It's a story that does well with avoiding the obvious clichés of the vampire genre. Director Kathryn Bigelow gives this film terrific style, not only adding scenic beauty but sharply creating plenty of intense action sequences. Near Dark also packs some great makeup FX and occasional gore. The entire sequence in the bar has became a favorite among many. Adding even more to the film is the beautiful music score by Tangerine Dream.

The cast is quite good. Adrian Pasdar is believable as our formerly-human hero. Lance Henriksen is genuine in his role as the leader of the vamp' band. However it's young Bill Paxton who does most of the scene stealing (and the comic relief) as a scary, yet cheeky vampire thug.

A modern vamp classic that delivers on all levels, Near Dark firmly remains a favorite of the genre and one of the most entertaining horror films of the 80's.

**** out of ****