Tequila Sunrise - 4K Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Tequila Sunrise



Movie:
4K Video:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:


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Movie
Have you ever made a meal with some of the best ingredients available, did everything the directions said to do, and yet it still came out kinda mediocre? That’s pretty much what 1988’s Tequila Sunrise is from the outside looking in. It had an incredible pedigree, with Kurt Russell, Mel Gibson coming off of Lethal Weapon, Michelle Pfeiffer, Raul Julia as a drug kingpin, 1980s jazz music and rock for the score, and a story about a drug dealer, a cop, and the woman caught in between them. Not to mention a writer who had penned some great films over the years at the helm. But for some reason Tequila Sunrise just doesn’t work when all of those things are put together in this order.

The second of 4 films directed by famed Hollywood writer Robert Towne weaves an intricate tale of romance, friendship, betrayal, and dirty business on the California beaches. Dale McKussic (Mel Gibson) is an ex-drug dealer (one of the biggest) who has given up the game and tried to go legit. Detective Nick Frescia (Kurt Russell) is his childhood friend who has protected him from the cops more than a few times. And Jo Ann Vallenari (Michelle Pfeiffer) is a gorgeous restaurant owner whom McKussic spends his time mooning over. But after the federal government decides they want to take him down, Nick is forced to look into the situation. And unfortunately for McKussic, he’s caught between a rock and a hard place. On one hand,d he wants to quit the game completely and go straight, but his old Colombian friend Carlos is trying to bring another shipment to the States, and you don’t say no to Carlos, no matter how retired you are.

The film plays out as a veritable love triangle with both Nick and McKussic both vying for the affections of Jo Ann, and poor Jo Ann having to choose between the cop or the criminal. And to make matters worse, Nick’s loyalty is called into question when he has to choose between doing his job as a cop and protecting the life of his best friend. And yes, it IS as syrupy and soap opera-esque as that actually sounds. Tequila Sunrise sounds GREAT on paper, but in application it falls apart fast. Towne’s trademark ability to interweave personal relationships with hard choices is on full display here, with love triangles, slow jazz music, and poor Dale McKussic trying to figure out a way to have his cake and eat it too.

But what really surprised me was how over the top and syrupy the dialog was. Towne is known for great dialog, but here it’s straight-up low-budget movie tier at times. Don’t get me wrong, there are large swathes of the movie where Kurt Russell hams it up in pure 80s fashion, but near the end with Jo Ann and the hot tub (and the subsequent confession of love) the dialog devolves into just straight-up B-tier stuff. The action is too sparse throughout, and the romance too heavy, to the point where I started rolling my eyes more often than I ought. As I said at the beginning of this review, Tequila Sunrise has a lot going for it. A great cast, a great writer, and all that 80s cheese that we all love. But somehow, when all the elements are mixed together, we have a frustrating film that just never truly gets off the ground.

The saving graces are by far the cast, with Mel and Kurt doing their best to keep the picture afloat. Both were at the top of their game in 1988 and could do these types of cops and robbers roles in their sleep. But it’s really Raul Julia who steals the film as Carlos in every scene that he’s in. The classically trained actor could make the Van Damme Street Fighter look good, and he does the same here, hamming it up to level 15 as the maniacal drug lord.




Rating:

Rated by the MPAA




4K Video: Video:

According to Arrow’s information, Tequila Sunrise was restored by Arrow Films by scanning the 35mm OCN at 4K/16bit at Warner’s infamous MPI Studios. Then color graded at Duplitech and finished off with some QC work at Pixelogic.

Pretty standard stuff for a Warner Bro’s and Arrow 4K collaboration, and the results are spectacular. The old Warner Blu-ray released years ago looks absolutely atrocious in comparison, with the film looking clean, clear, and 1980s-precise with moderate grain and a heavy, HEAVY Sepia color grading. The fine details are superb, with every bit of makeup on Michelle’s face coming through perfectly clear, and shadow details even in the exploding boat at the end showing remarkable clarity. I did notice a teensy bit of black crush here and there (such as the opening bit where McKussic escapes the hotel), but overall this is a stunning-looking restoration by Arrow.








Audio:

Instead of the 2.0 DTS-HD MA track found on the aging Blu-ray, Arrow has given us a 2.0 LPCM lossless mix that mirrors that track, but also a 4.0 DTS-HD MA track that is designed to replicate the theatrical Dolby Digital Matrixed 2.0 track that many theaters had back in the day. And the 4.0 track is easily the best listening experience for the film in my opinion. Dialog is clean and clear up front of the room, and surrounds are active with the sax and electric-guitar-infused score. Action sequences light up the stage with the boat exploding, a chase, and some mild ambient effects from the restaurant or the streets. Not a powerhouse mix, but easily the best the film has ever sounded, and with a richer tone than the 2.0 mix by far.

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Extras:

• Commentary by Thom Mount
• California Dreaming
• From Chinatown to Manhattan Beach
• Sunrise to Sunset
• Sin City
•Theatrical Trailer
• Image Gallery

Final Score: ​

Ah well, you can’t win them all. And while Tequila Sunrise is not exactly the smash hit that it should have been, it’s still reasonably fun afternoon action/drama. Especially if you don’t mind a sappy love tale told in between the cops and robbers portion. Arrow’s new 4K UHD blows the old Warner Bro’s disc straight out of the water (my old Blu-ray looks awful in comparison) with new audio, some solid extras, and a video encode that is worth the price of admission if you’re a fan of this film. For everyone else? I’d suggest a rental first as it’s a polarizing 80s film.



Technical Specifications:

Starring: Mel Gibson, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kurt Russell, Raul Julia, J.T. Walsh, Arye Gross
Directed by: Robert Towne
Written by: Robert Towne
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 HEVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 4.0, English LPCM 2.0
Subtitles: English SDH
Studio: Arrow
Rated: R
Runtime: 115 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: September 15th, 2026

Recommendation: Decent Rental