Pre-viewed for quality and plays great. Cassette is nice and clean. Feature was a pilot for a TV series that never happened.

Several plot threads are tied together as follows:

Harry Miller (Harley Venton), a "Carpathian American" of vampiric ancestry, confronts the disapproval of his blood (drinking) relatives when he starts dating a WASPish district attorney (Kim Johnston-Ulrich); Cody (Jason London), the innocent offspring of two Carpathians murdered by a religous right cult called the S.C.A.V.--The Southern Coalition Against Vampirism (led by Bo Hopkins and Grace Zabriskie)-- finds himself adopted by motorcycle marauding cousins bent on awakening his dormant self; and Harry's wealthy uncle (Patrick Bachau) prepares to indulge in a bit of corporate-style blood-sucking by evicting the poor of Long Beach, California and replacing their run-down housing with an exclusive highrise complex dubbed Xanadu.

In addition to these dramas, director Jim McBride ('Glen and Randa') and writer Richard Shapiro use the opportunity to address such subjects as inter-breeding, prejudice, "country justice," and the thin line between individuality and familial responsibility. The fact that BLOOD TIES accomplishes all of this while reinventing vampirism in a believable way, makes it all the more special an achievement.

There isn't a bad performance in the entire picture, and it's full of surprising and remarkable moments--not least of all Michelle Johnson's delicious "human fly" act, executed in a clingy evening dress and high heels. Though not labeled as such, this is actually a "director's cut" containing a small amount of additional, never televised footage to earn the requisite 'R' rating.