Countdown to Esmeralda Bay Blu Ray Review (Full Moon Features)

Countdown to Esmeralda Bay (aKa La Bahía Esmeralda and Esmeralda Bay) is a 1989 action film co-written and directed by Jesus Franco (Jailhouse Wardress, Golden Temple Amazons, Faceless, House of Cruel Dolls, Zombie Lake, Barbed Wire Dolls, The Sadist of Notre Dame, Angel of Death, Diamonds of Kilimandjaro, Panther Squad, Dracula Prisoner of Frankenstein, Night of the Blood Monster, and Sinfonía Erótica). It was co-written by H.L. Rostaine (Maniac Killer, Cannibal Terror, Police Destination Oasis, The Girls of the Golden Saloon, and Golden Jail). It was produced and co-written by Daniel Lesoeur (Maniac Killer, The Panther Squad, Night of the Eagles, Diamonds of Kilimandjaro, Revenge in the House of Usher, Zombie Lake, Oasis of the Zombies, White Cannibal Queen, Devil Hunter, A Virgin Among the Living Dead, and Angel of Death). In the sweaty, politically volatile South American country of Puerto Santo, there’s a vicious battle brewing. When an American arms-dealer Wilson (played by: George Kennedy from The Naked Gun franchise, Just Before Dawn, Death Ship, Creepshow 2, The Delta Force, Top Line, and Cool Hand Luke) begins selling weapons to the local rebels, he stirs the ire of a hot-headed General Madero (played by: Robert Forster from Jackie Brown, Alligator, Vigilante, The Delta Force, Uncle Sam, Psycho, and Mulholland Drive) and raises the blood-pressure of the country’s powerful President Ramos (played by: Fernando Rey from The French Connection franchise, 1492: Conquest of Paradise, Tristana, Jesus of Nazareth, Villa Rides, and Angel of Death). As deadly tensions rise, a Priest (played by: Antonio Mayans from Diamonds of Kilimandjaro, Angel of Death, The Panther Squad, Night Has a Thousand Desires, Cecilia, Oasis of the Zombies, and Mansion of the Living Dead) who has had finally had enough so he takes command of the rebels and leads his brave people to the most dangerous battle of their lives in Esmeralda Bay against the corrupt military dictatorship of a Central American country!!!! Countdown to Esmeralda Bay is probably Jesus Franco’s most normal film that he’s ever made in his career. It doesn’t feel like his typical sleazy or weird production. It’s more like the popular 80’s action flicks that were dominating the box office at the time. It was produced and written by veteran Daniel Lesoeur. As you know, Jesus Franco always kept it very low budget with his Eurocine features and this one was no different from those but it was loaded with all kinds of familiar faces. George Kennedy as Wilson is the one responsible for starting all this chaos by selling weapons to the locals so they can actually defend themselves. Robert Forster as General Madero is the main villain in this. Fernando Rey as President Ramos lets the General have too much power when it comes to shutting down the rebels and it backfires on him after he gets too greedy. Franco regular Antonio Mayans is the Priest that stands up for his country against corruption and pure greed. He doesn’t back down at all. The rest of the supporting cast includes Ramon Estevez (Alligator II: The Mutation), Brett Halsey (Return of the Fly), Lina Romay (Female Vampire), Silvia Tortosa (Horror Express), Craig Hill (The Bloodstained Shadow), Teri Vallee (Night of the Eagles), Daniel Grimm (Faceless), Karin Well (Burial Ground), Robert Long (The Machinist), and Daniel Katz (Rest in Pieces). Countdown to Esmeralda Bay has one of the greatest groups of actors that Franco ever had during his long career and it really elevated this entire 80’s action movie. Esmeralda Bay had an odd pace to it. It would be loaded with plenty of action and violence then it go off to some drama for a little bit. It would repeat that formula a few times. It doesn’t shy away from gore or nudity for this. Franco proves that he could do any genre with this one and it’s honestly what I’d recommend to casual people when it comes to his work. Countdown to Esmeralda Bay keeps itself interesting and fun with all it’s madness. RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s talk about the high definition presentation and special features from Full Moon Features! This 1080p (1.78:1) uncensored transfer is a massive improvement compared to all those low quality VHS, DVD, and bootleg home video releases over the years. This forgotten 80’s action flick has been through hell and this is the best that will ever look on home video. It has a few different audio options which includes English Dolby Digital 2.0 and 5.1 tracks. These are also a nice upgrade compared to past versions. All of the dialogue is clean, all the action is elevated, and the music has a great boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. The only extras it has is a few “Eurocine Trailers”. It has the original “Trailer” for Countdown to Esmeralda Bay. This release is fully uncut and all region. It was originally only available in The Eurocine Collection: Vol. 1 collection but now it has it’s own solo release. It’s available everywhere right now including FullMoonHorror.com, CHECK IT OUT!!!!