Hurry Sundown is a racially driven melodrama set just after WWII in the deep south- regarding the devious corporate takeover of rural land. The late 60’s film features the likes of Michael Cain, Jane Fonda and Faye Dunaway. Acting alongside great African American talent such as Diahann Carroll, Robert Hooks, & Beah Richards. Here from Imprint is a Blu-Ray release of the film, taking in a 2k scan of the picture, a commentary track, and a few new/ archive extras.

From the year 1967 Hurry Sundown was shot on location in hot & sticky Louisiana. It was directed by Austria-Hungary (now Ukraine) born Otto Preminger- who between the early 1930s & the late 1970s had forty-two features to his name. These went from noir Laura (1944), romantic comedy The Fan(1949), junkie crime drama featuring Frank Sinatra The Man With The Golden Arm (1955), classic musical Porgy and Bess (1959), and action-adventure Rosebud (1975). Hurry Sundown is often seen as one Preminger's lesser/ problematic films, and well, yes it has its issues- some of its casting choice, pacing issues, and early moments of southern-fired soapiness. There certainly is worth and passion to the project, and in the end, I found it an entertaining at times impactful melodrama.

The film begins with Henry Warren(Michael Cain) in a chopper flying over the development he’s the local representative for. His bosses are pressing him to get the project done & dusted- but there are two farmers who won’t sell. And he’s determined to do whatever he can to get the deal sealed & done. 

The two farms are the McDowell’s- taking in just back from severing in the army Rad ( John Phillip Law), his wife Lou( Fay Dunaway), and their three children including their eldest just on the cusp of teen Charles? ( Steve Sanders)- who is constantly bucking horns with his father. And the African American Scott farm- taking in twenty-something Reeve (Robert Hooks), and his ageing mother Rose( Beah Richards).

Henry lives in a huge plantation mansion with his wife Julie Ann (Jane Fonda), and their autistic son- who Henry has little to no time or patience with- and when the boy was in his crib he tied him down, and left him for some hours alone. There is a connection between the Warren & Scott family, as the ageing Rose was Julie Ann's wet nurse/ nanny- so as result, she is less than impressed by her husband's plan to push the family out of their farm. Added into the mix we have a selection of local characters- such as bigoted & openly unpleasant Judge Purell(Burgess Meredith), and wanting an easy life Sheriff Combs( George Kendy).

The film runs two hours and twenty-two minutes- and really feels like a game of two halves. The first hour or so plays like a rather soapy drama with constantly smouldering racial undercurrents. Then in the second half, things rather seem to tip towards Henry Warren's devious plans- and the race prejudice in most of the town's residents rises, with both some quite tense, at points emotionally impactful moments playing out. 

Acting-wise, Cain seems like a rather odd/ bizarre choice for its shady dealing & arrogant white southern American lead. Apparently, this was his first try at doing an American accent, and it’s certainly noticeable to begin with, as he keeps awkwardly slipping in & out of it. But in time this issue fades, and he works rather well as the character. Otherwise, both Dunaway & John Phillip Law make for a believable trying to do their best farmers. Hooks is both passionate & focused as the farmer who could lose everything. But I’d say the most memorable here is Meredith, as the truly unpleasant judge- with neat character tropes, like he always carries around a small inner tube to sit on.

Hurry Sundown is most certainly a film you have to sit with/ let it pull you in, as initially the Cain issue & overtly soapiness are a little off-putting. But hang in there, and you’ll find it a well-acted, entertaining & impactful film- which rather surprisingly had me tearing up towards its conclusion, which is certainly not something I'd ever expected when the film started.

The new 2k scan of the film looks good & bold, as is it's audio/ soundtrack- though at times the score does sound a little too hammy old fashion western soundtrack-like, though that is not the fault of the scan!. On the extras side, we get a commentary track with film historian Daniel Kremer featuring input from actor Robert Hooks. This really is an excellent/ insightful track, and to start with we get a lot of input from Mr Hooks. He discusses how he got his role in the film after the director saw him in a play. The actor talks about the filming location around Baton Rouge- which at that point was the centre of KKK operation- there were extras from the organisation in the film, crew tires were slashed, and at one point while driving along after filming the actor got shot at. We find out he & his co-actors were the first African Americans to stay in the local hotel, and that he brought a gun- due to being so worried for his safety. We get a discussion about how Preminger was a very Jekyll & Hyde character on set, as they discuss his treatment of some of the stars on Hurry Sundown, and how he treated other actors in other films. Though we also find out that the director had a returning crew & cast from film to film- so he did manage to work well with some people.  Later on, the pair discusses on set issues, and then after this Kremer goes solo to talk about the director's shooting styles, themes repeated in all his films, and what to expect from his output. We get talk about how Hurry Sundown was the first appearance of more openly sexual elements in the director's work, and how he often pushed against the censors throughout his career. A really must-play track- which I’ll most certainly be returning to!. Otherwise, we have The Great Ecstasy of Tree-Climber Otto- Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Late Preminger (12.53) which is a video essay from film historian Daniel Kremer- he touches on the different sides of the director's persona, before focusing on talking about his latter films- both there issues/critical bashing, and how they succeeded/ worked. Lastly, we have Directed by Otto Preminger (32.37) which is an onscreen appreciation/ interview with director Peter Bogdanovich regarding Preminger. So, a good selection of worthy extras.

In finishing this Imprint release is a great presentation of this lesser thought of Otto Preminger film. If you enjoy well-acted/ (largely) well-realized melodramas with racial tension/ edge, Hurry Sundown is something certainly you’ll be wanting to see.