On 31 July 1987, Warner Bros released The Lost Boys to the United States public. Today, it is considered a cult classic.
It is enjoyable enough. But it is yet another horror film for people who don’t like horror films. I tend to blame Joel Schumacher, who never made a film that didn’t leave me with the feeling that I should have picked something else. But I fear he is only part of the problem. Producer Harvey Bernhard brought us the tedious The Goonies two years earlier. Whereas that film was aimed at tweens, this one is aimed at teens.
Having said that, I am alone in my low opinion of The Lost Boys. My friends like it. And I fully accept that it is entertaining enough. And if people didn’t gush about the film so much, I’d leave it alone. There is lots to like. The cast is strong and the setting is good. But the writing is a bit of a problem with the two brothers’ stories not working well together.
But I’m really only here talking about it because of the one thing in the film that everyone remembers: “One thing about living in Santa Carla I never could stomach — all the damn vampires!” There are several things wrong with this.
It is the same as “It was all a dream!” endings. So nothing that went before matters. It is all retconned.
Throughout the film we learn that almost no one knows about the vampires. But no, it turns out everyone does! They just don’t bring it up in polite company.
But the film is enjoyable enough. And if you love it, great! What’s more, you can watch it now for free!
The Lost Boys (1987) poster via Wikipedia under Fair Use.
People my age really nostalgize the 1980s. And the 1980s were f***ing HORRIBLE. There were good movies coming out. For the most part, nobody saw them — they saw “Top Gun.” There was good music coming out. For the most part, nobody listened to it — they bought the “Top Gun” soundtrack.
Joel Schumacher was the ideal director that movie studios loved. He worked entirely on “high concept” products (where the ad campaign for the movie was the reason it got made), gladly followed every studio executive’s memos, and got the things done on time/on budget because he did not give One S**t about making them look good or have good performances.
He was as hacky as any director who’s ever made films. And while his movies made money in the 80s and 90s, they all flopped afterwards, he never had any problems getting work. A good little errand boy who gives studios exactly what they want will always get work. He and Garry Marshall and Ivan Reitman probably hang out in Hack Heaven and watch each others’ movies all the time. (I don’t believe anybody deserves to go to Hack Hell, except maybe NYT editorial writers.)
You need to slap your 80s nostalgia friends and make them watch the GOOD stuff. It doesn’t have to be horror! It could be like Bill Forsyth movies!
I can’t add anything to what you said about Schumacher. He was awful. I remember seeing him interviewed for Batman Forever, and he went on at length about how Michael Keaton was lying about turning down the film. I’m not a Keaton fan but even at the time it just seemed like such a dick move. If he was actually fired, why not allow him to save face? But everything I’ve seen since then indicates that Keaton really did turn down the role. So what was that all about? Settling a score? Keaton was certainly better than Val Kilmer, who I always find pointless — not bad but if her were a painting, he’d be a blank canvas. And when he tried to act, well, have you seen him in True Romance?!