All over the damn place, seemingly normal randos begin acting strange as fuck…
Then a parrot says the film’s title a few times (and unbelievably this becomes important later) before the action transitions to a party that features Brion James (Blade Runner) acting like a bird…
And thus begins Jeff Lieberman’s (Squirm, Satan’s Little Helper) Blue Sunshine.
Back to that party… it ends with resident crooner Frannie Scott (Richard Crystal) getting his wig ripped off to reveal his Gollum-like dome which causes him to go ape-shit and burn a woman alive in a fireplace before cold cocking another lady… after which he hauls ass.
Eventually one of the party guests, Jerry Zipkin (Zalman King, director of such cock pleasin’ fare as Wild Orchid (and it’s sequel!) and The Red Shoe Diaries… and appeared before the camera again as Baelon in the Roger Corman produced Aliensploitation flick Galaxy of Terror from 1981) chases Frannie into the road and kinda pushes his former friend/now homicidal maniac in front of a truck… that results in our hero getting shot by one of the occupants of said vehicle.
This gets his former college buddy Dr. David Blume (Robert Walden, Lou Grant) involved to patch him up… and it’s that acquaintance that is just one cog in the mystery of Frannie’s goin’ berserk… a mystery that involves everyone from a divorcee to an up-and-coming politician are involved… though the catalyst seems to be a form of LSD that takes 10 years to come to full effect… and when it does, you better look the fuck out as the hair falls the rage rises and no one is safe!
It’s suitable that Lieberman’s Blue Sunshine concerns a highly potent form of LSD because it is one hell of a psychotronic, fever dream experience easily on par with the insanity the likes of Larry Cohen (It’s Alive, God Told Me To) was putting out at the same time… it’s no easy feat to top that, but Blue Sunshine does a hell of a job!
In a narrative that concerns celebrity-impersonating puppets, children in peril, a mouthy bird, blood-crazed LSD fueled murderous maniacs, and that hoary ol’ chestnut; a loud disco tune. It’s all delightfully, stunningly weird and that off-the-wall aesthetic is echoed perfectly in our leading man, Zalman King…
King gives a performance so strange it needs to be seen to be believed… he’s near-catatonic one second, screaming, seeing visions, and plastered with a veneer of sweat the next… it’s an odd combination that often hinders his investigation… it’s a fascinating performance of the Nicholas Cage (a favorite around these parts) mold (and the mind boggles to think of what this performance would have been like when paired with alternate choice for Dr. Blume, one Jeff Goldblum… ).
The supporting cast is aces as well, with Lost in Space‘s Mark Goddard giving a convincing performance as suitably charming, shady politician Edward Flemming, Ray Young (Bigfoot from the Kroft Supershow’s Bigfoot and Wildboy segments… which are admired greatly by yours cruelly) portraying a menacing, rapidly devolving, assistant/thug to the aforementioned Flemming, Ann Cooper as Flemming’s estranged wife who goes completely off the deep end as she goes from best friend to worst nightmare… but the real standout is Deborah Winters as Alicia Sweeney; Zipkin’s girlfriend who is smart, a competent armature sleuth, hard-drinkin’, sassy, and often dressed to the nines… it’s a dynamite, totally committed performance that adds immeasurably to the film.
All of the cinematic lunacy mentioned previous looks top shelf here as the 4K restoration sourced from the original 35mm camera negative looks fuckin’ sharp with rich, vibrant color, a clear picture, and the ability to see the bird trainer’s arm huck that parrot directly towards the ol’ camera lens!
Special features on this 4K release from Synapse kick off with an intro to the film courtesy of Lieberman, along with two audio commentary tracks featuring Lieberman (along with film historian Howard S. Burger and filmmaker Elijah Drenner respectively) that when taken together, provide a laid back, no bullshit detailing of how the film was made.
Following that comes three archival interviews with Lieberman (one being from 2003, another hosted by a young Mick Garris from Channel “Z”, and finally comes a chat where the director discusses his life and career), a Q&A sesh from a screening of Blue Sunshine at the Fantasia film festival, a duo of theatrical trailers, 2 vintage shorts detailing the dangers of using LSD, a 1972 anti-advertising short film from Lieberman called The Ringer (which also features an audio commentary from Lieberman, as well as edited and uncut versions), and a still gallery.
This release also features a Blu-ray edition of Blue Sunshine with the same extra features found on Disc One, and a separate CD featuring the film’s often nerve janglin’ soundtrack courtesy of composer Charles Gross.
Also included in the package are a liner notes booklet by Jeff Lieberman ( featuring a chapter on the making of Blue Sunshine from his book Day of the Living Me: Adventures of a Subversive Cult Filmmaker from the Golden Age, and a fold-out poster.
Surreal, bizarre, and thoroughly entertaining; Blue Sunshine is a can’t miss fright flick for those that like their films psychotronic as all hell!
