Opening

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—— Alyce Kills May 24

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Coming Soon

—— After Earth May 31
—— Now You See Me May 31
100% The Kings of Summer May 31
89% The East May 31

Near Dark (1987)

tomatometer

90

Average Rating: 7.4/10
Reviews Counted: 41
Fresh: 37 | Rotten: 4

Near Dark is at once a creepy vampire film, a thrilling western, and a poignant family tale, with humor and scares in abundance.

86

Average Rating: 7/10
Critic Reviews: 7
Fresh: 6 | Rotten: 1

Near Dark is at once a creepy vampire film, a thrilling western, and a poignant family tale, with humor and scares in abundance.

audience

72

liked it
Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 23,304

My Rating

Movie Info

In Kathryn Bigelow's tale of vampires in the American Southwest, the creatures of the night aren't elegant, cloaked aristocrats. They're a gun-toting gang that dresses and acts like a motorcycle gang. Caleb (Adrian Pasdar), a restless young man from a small farm town, meets an alluring drifter named Mae (Jenny Wright). She reveals herself to be a vampire, who "turns" Caleb into one of her kind rather than kill him. But the rest of her "family" is slow to accept the newcomer. The ancient leader,

R,

Western, Horror, Romance, Mystery & Suspense

Sep 10, 2002

Lions Gate Films

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Cast

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All Critics (41) | Top Critics (7) | Fresh (45) | Rotten (4) | DVD (30)

Near Dark has filmmaking finesse to spare, but puts its dank characters on display rather than cadging sympathy for them. It is the Blue Velvet of date-night spook shows.

October 14, 2008 Full Review Source: TIME Magazine
TIME Magazine
Top Critic IconTop Critic

This is on the whole a striking directorial debut, at once scary and erotic, with lots of sidelong touches in the casting, direction, and script.

September 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader
Chicago Reader
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High-powered but pared down, slick but spare, this is a tale that introduces the unearthly into the banality of rural American existence.

September 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Variety
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Bigelow's artful handling of the magic and menace of the night is hauntingly apparent.

August 14, 2007
Rolling Stone
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A subtle study in the seductiveness of evil and a terrifying ride to the edge of darkness.

January 26, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out
Time Out
Top Critic IconTop Critic

You might call this the scattershot school of film making.

May 20, 2003 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comments (3)
New York Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Como terror focado em vampiros, empalidece diante de Garotos Perdidos, lançado no mesmo ano; como alegoria do submundo das drogas e de uma época em que o sexo se tornou letal, é óbvio e infantil. Como esta bobagem virou cult, não sei explicar.

February 6, 2010
Cinema em Cena

Bigelow's night shooting has a stiletto crispness to it, her daytime scenes have a foggy haze, and her sunlight sears like a laser...

December 6, 2009 Full Review Source: Seanax.com
Seanax.com

One of the better vampire films.

April 16, 2008 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

... both ferocious and lyrical, a moody horror film with the frontier community romanticism of a John Ford Western and the violent ferocity of a Sam Peckinpah film.

March 5, 2008 Full Review Source: Seanax.com
Seanax.com

As much as it is a horror film and western, it is equally and perhaps more pronouncedly a romance.

October 30, 2007 Full Review Source: Not Coming to a Theater Near You
Not Coming to a Theater Near You

Dark, bloody and very stylish, this genre-busting western-noir-vampire hybrid is a toothsome joy and definitely one of the best horror films of the 1980s.

September 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Film4
Film4

An auspicious solo directing debut from Kathryn Bigelow.

September 26, 2007 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Still by far Bigelow's best film, this seductive vampire tale is suffused with the unique beauty of the SouthWest and eerie pacing that enrich the narrative and elevate it to a reverie about the sanctity and unity of the family.

August 21, 2006 Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com
EmanuelLevy.Com

One of the best vampire movies ever made....if you liked "The Lost Boys", you'll love this!

May 6, 2005
Moviehole

Southern-fried vampire-noir romance action horror tragedy. I love this movie.

April 3, 2005
eFilmCritic.com

Audience Reviews for Near Dark

A sexually charged tale of vampirism created decades before it was considered vogue by Pattinson-worshiping pre-teens.
When young Caleb is picked up by a marauding band of night-walkers, he is forced to learn how to survive in his new skin without abandoning what he knows to be right.
Created in the midst of the Reagan Revolution, with it's intense focus on private gain as opposed to the public good, young Caleb must learn to see his fellow humans not as equals, but rather as something to be exploited. He must learn that a way of life is something that has to be taken from others, even if that means taking their very lifesblood.
Politics aside, Bigelow deftly blends horror and the Western in a way that is, pardon the pun, very infectious. Accented by a Tangerine Dream score, this moody coming of age story is sadly underrated. Overshadowed by The Lost Boys, which hit cinemas a mere three months before the release of Near Dark.
Structurally, the film is a bit sloppy. Some scenes are awkwardly forced in to satisfy sub-plots and the end feels a bit slapdash. Also, the dialogue hasn't aged particularly well.
For example:
Caleb: What's going on?
Severen: It's not what's going on, it's what's coming off....your face.

So while not without it's flaws, Near Dark is a dark and fun piece of 80's cinema.
May 29, 2012
axadntpron
Reid Volk

Super Reviewer

Hell yeah, what a cast! my dream team almost, Paxton, Henriksen, Goldstein, Wright, perfect. I dont like the desert feel for the vamps but this is still an awesome bloodsucker. The classic bar scene is violent and sadistic yet you wanna join them haha Wright is cute and Henriksen rules as always, Bishop as a vampire lol!

Almost the best of the 'Aliens' cast in a desert based vampire flick, seriously! 'Private Hudson' is reborn as 'Severen' hehe over the top and totally bad ass, Bigelow delivers another truly adrenaline pumping (blood draining) flick which came before 'Point Break', this woman knows how to make a good action thriller.

'I taught Severen everything he knows, but not everything I know'
August 20, 2007
phubbs1

Super Reviewer

    1. Loy Colton: What in the God Damn Hell is goin' on here?
    – Submitted by Alex B (6 months ago)
    1. Severen: It's finger-lickin' good!
    – Submitted by Tina R (10 months ago)
    1. Severen: Hey, Jesse, remember that fire we started in Chicago?
    – Submitted by Tricia M (18 months ago)
    1. Bartender: What do you people want?
    2. Jesse: Just a couple more minutes of your time... about the same duration as the rest of your life.
    – Submitted by Tricia M (18 months ago)
    1. Severen: I'm gonna separate your head from your shoulders. Hope you don't mind none.
    – Submitted by Tricia M (18 months ago)

Discussion Forum

There are no discussion threads for Near Dark yet.

Latest News on Near Dark

December 12, 2008:
Brad Fuller Declares Near Dark Remake Dead
That long-in-the-works "Near Dark" remake will remain unreleased: According to producer Brad Fuller,...

August 22, 2008:
Further Reading: Hammer Horror's MySpace Revival Stumbles
Does a new collection of webisodes hosted on MySpace and featuring tabloid teen favourites Jamie...

July 17, 2007:
Kathryn Bigelow to Tackle Iraq War Drama
Jeremy Renner, Brian Geraghty, and Anthony Mackie have signed on to star in Kathryn Bigelow's Iraq...

Foreign Titles

  • Near Dark - Die Nacht hat ihren Preis (DE)
  • Near Dark (Die Nacht hat ihren Preis) (UK)
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