The Lost Boys follows a gang of vampires as they cause trouble around a quaint California town. As a new family moves into town, their oldest son Michael (Jason Patric) becomes drawn into their group, forcing his little brother, Sam (Corey Haim), to fight to get him back. As the action ramps up, and his brother grows more involved, they try to kill the head vampire to get him back… if only they knew who he was.
Lured in by the hot (and weirdly only female) vampire in the group, Star, and apparently unphased by the fact she has a small child dressed in a civil war army jacket with her at all times, he reluctantly enters their group. Lounging in their weird sex pit, filled with velvet and one unnaturally large poster of the Doors, he finds himself becoming one of them, turning into a vampire himself. Meanwhile his brother calls upon two weird kids, Edgar and Alan (Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander), from the comic book store that claim to be expert vampire killers to help save his brother.
This movie is peak 80s horror, fully equipped with goofy over-acted kill scenes and weirdly censored but way overly done sex scenes. You really know it’s the 80s when the main character only wears oversized patterned shitys, Kiefer Sutherland is supposed to be the sexy male lead and they put in him in a bleach mullet, and Corey Feldman still exists. Never mind the fact that Michael is the most discount Danny Zuko I have ever seen, and instead of driving a hot rod he has a bike. The special effects are definitely campy, but really not all that bad. The final showdown delivers some pretty decent gore and the prosthetics are really kind of cool. There’s even a nice twist as the end.
Although it falls victim to 80s annoyances, like the little brother who is funny at times but mostly annoying in that shrieky teen kind of way. And it definitely has the Joel Schumacher flair that weirdly works well in this setting. Still, it has all the things that make 80s movies so good! Cheesy quips, kids riding bikes, those jackets with the gold tassles over the boobs, piball, movie stores! It’s a fun vampire movie with a goonies-like mission and a weird cult-classic comedy vibe to it. It may not be the flick for a full on scare, but if you want a cool punk bite-fest this may be just right for you.
Amy’s Recommendation: 8/10.
Reel Time with Amy 