It is likely that this sounds familiar: a movie about a group of people who enter an unusual strip club that ends up being packed with vampires – I would fashion a guess that most film afficionado’s would immediately point to the now iconic Quentin Tarantino penned (and executive produced), Robert Rodriguez directed 1996 horror feature From Dusk Till Dawn. . . though this concept was actually first done a decade earlier in the 1986 horror comedy Vamp.
Producer Donald P. Borchers came up with a simple idea, ‘vampire strippers’, and decided to take it to a young filmmaker with only one well respected short film to his name – Dracula Bites the Big Apple, Richard Wenk (now a well respected screenwriter who has penned such films as 16 Blocks, The Equalizer, the remake of The Magnificent Seven and Jack Reacher: Never Go Back), who expanded the idea and took on the role of director as well.
Keith (Chris Makepeace) and A.J. (Robert Rusler) are buddies who are pledging for a fraternity. . . after a lame attempt at horror by those running the show at the frat house, the pair decide to offer their services at procuring a stripper for their next party in order to be accepted into the fold.
Heading out of their quaint little college town with the help of Duncan (Gedde Watanabe), a wealthy yet unpopular student at the school, he allows them to use his car as long as they let him tag along. Making their way to Los Angeles, the strip club they choose is in a seedy area of town, the filmmakers adding a neo-noir urban asphalt jungle vibe. Gangs of off-putting punks patrol the streets (the leader of which is played with an alluring yet threatening mysterious quality by Billy Drago – The Untouchables), while the “After Dark” club draws in the seedy dredges of society.
The three enter the establishment, their ID checked at the door, though as soon as the head of the club, Vic (Sandy Baron – Jack Klompus in Seinfeld), sees the cash in their wallets, he waves them in. With A.J. having entered before the other two, he talks his way into the dressing rooms after seeing the mesmerizing performance of Katrina (Grace Jones), looking to nab her for the party. Meanwhile, a chipper waitress named Amaretto (Dedee Pfeiffer) is excited to see Keith, though he cannot place her. Of course, things gets sticky – from blood, garbage, and sewer juices, among other fluids, leaving our youthful protagonists in a bind.
Filled with intriguing characters, Keith is an innocent though rather sharp individual, his friend A. J. being the fast talking, bullshit-baffles-brains type. Though the latter projects a semblance of experience, he is likely just as wet behind the ears as his compatriot. Together, with the tag along in Duncan, a guy willing to try any experience to fit in, they must trudge their way through this seedy underworld. Vic is the disenchanted club owner, desperate to pack up and open anew in Las Vegas, though it is the silent, narcissistic Katrina who calls the shots – Jones’ angular features, tight frame and well known, real life history, the perfect fit for the seductive vamp (she brought her team with her, helping her develop her vision – Jones herself sang the song she danced to, developed the routine, and designed the chair she utilizes in the form of her then boyfriend Dolph Lundgren). Then there is Amaretto, real name Allison, a doe-eyed girl next door type who seems infatuated with Keith, though, like the rest of those working in “After Hours”, we are left in suspense as to her real motives, be they true or not.
Another character is, in many ways, the location. Tinged with a transfixing green and purplish-pink neon hue, the cinematography of Elliot Davis and Douglas F. O’Neons’ matches the off-kilter angles Wenk uses to keep us on our toes. A unique B movie mash up, it is this tempting visual panache that is the backdrop to the strip club, back alleys, dead bodies in dumpsters, seedy rent-by-the-hour hotel rooms, gothic underground sewer systems, and the like. It is a world that is grand in its feeling of inescapability.
Often compared to After Hours, Martin Scorsese’s 1985 picture, it has some similar qualities to be sure. And, though it shows its flaws like a lot of 80’s movies, it is still a fun romp, playing with typical vampire conventions (Renfield eating bugs, wooden stakes). The pre-cursor to From Dusk Till Dawn, it is a cool hidden gem of a cult picture. So, let the sun shine down on this little known motion picture, it will have you escaping the traditional norms of Vlad.