The Lost Boys (1987)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Joel Schumacher

Writers:

Janice Fischer (story) &
James Jeremias (story) ...

Release Date:

31 July 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Fantasy | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Sleep all day. Party all night. Never grow old. Never die. It's fun to be a vampire.

Plot:

After moving to a new town, two brothers are convinced that the area is frequented by vampires.

Plot Keywords:

Vampire | California | Small Town | Divorcee | Amusement Park

Awards:

3 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Jason Patric	...	Michael
Corey Haim	...	Sam
Dianne Wiest	...	Lucy
Barnard Hughes	...	Grandpa
Edward Herrmann	...	Max (as Ed Herrmann)
Kiefer Sutherland	...	David
Jami Gertz	...	Star
Corey Feldman	...	Edgar Frog
Jamison Newlander	...	Alan Frog
Brooke McCarter	...	Paul
Billy Wirth	...	Dwayne
Alex Winter	...	Marko (as Alexander Winter)
Chance Michael Corbitt	...	Laddie
Alexander Bacon Chapman	...	Greg
Nori Morgan	...	Shelly

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35mm prints)

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Finland:K-14 (1987) | Finland:K-15 (2004) | Finland:S (1999) | Netherlands:16 | USA:R (#28541) | South Africa:16LV | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Australia:M | Canada:14A (TV rating) | Norway:15 | Singapore:NC-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, Santa Cruz, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Sam (Corey Haim) has a poster of Rob Lowe on the outside of his closet door. On the DVD commentary, Joel Schumacher says that it was there because had recently directed Lowe in St. Elmo's Fire (1985).

Goofs:

Continuity: In the "death by stereo" scene, both of the vampire's hands pop off midway through the electrocution. However, after he has exploded, a clothed forearm with an attached hand falls to the ground.

Quotes:

David: It is too late, my blood is in your veins.
Michael Emerson: So is mine!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Psych: Poker? I Barely Know Her (#1.14)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Cry Little Sister (Theme From The Lost Boys)

Schumacher mocks the shoes off vampires!

Without a doubt, among the most brilliant of vampire movies ever made, in the modern film era. Jason Patric and Kiefer Sutherland are destined to blow away all audiences of this visual masterpiece. However, the twist at the end, which I plan not to give away, was made slightly obvious, though well hidden at the same time. Joel Schumacher does a splendid job directing this true work of art. The frog brothers did a great job of adding humor to this otherwise, mainly serious film, without spoiling the suspense. That made the film far more enjoyable to people with interests in multiple genres. Jami Gertz looks absolutely attractive in her role as Star. However, the show is undoubtedly stolen by Kiefer Sutherland, in the role of David, the rebellious, dangerous, rude and rambunctious, teenaged vampire, who seduces Michael (Jason Patric) into joining his gang of vampires. The story is of a woman (Dianne Wiest), and her two sons, Sam (Corey Haim) and Michael (Patric), who move to a small Californian town, called Santa Carla, often referred to as the murder capital of the world, to live with her father after getting divorced. Little to their knowledge, the town happens to be inhabited by a motorcycle gang of Jim Morrison obsessed, teenage vampires. While the mother begins to fall in love with her boss from the video store, where she has been employed, Sam spends his time reading vampire comics, which were given to him by two brothers (Corey Feldman, Jamison Newlander), who claim the town is infested by vampires. He does not believe them, but grows to almost immediately, upon realizing that his brother, Michael, has been seduced by the beautiful half-vampiress, Star (Gertz), and joins the gang, led by David (Sutherland). He realizes that neither Star nor Michael are true vampire until they make their first kill, and they will not become normal again until the head vampire is killed. So, he calls up the brothers Frog, and gets them to come in and help him solve the job, though he is scared that he might have to kill his brother. Overall, a cinematic masterpiece. The directing, acting, writing, camera work, special effects, stunts and, of course, the epic cinematography work with the astounding score to bring together one of the most loved films of all time. The story is in fact an allegory to that of the lost boys of Neverland, from Peter Pan. A contemporary, without the temporary, classic.