The Lost Boys
How can a movie be both a comedy AND a horror? I'm not talking about true horror films that contain a few scenes of comic relief. What I'm referring to are movies with typical horrifying plots but also a comedic tone. The whole idea of a comedy-horror genre is counter-intuitive, because horror movies are supposed to tense you up to the point that the next shock might add weight to your underwear. Some filmmakers have been able to combine a suspenseful subject, a twisting plot, and good fun. Joel Schumacher succeeds with the '80s classic The Lost Boys.
Lucy Emerson and her two sons, Michael and Sam, are moving to Santa Carla, California, to live with her father. The younger son Sam begins to notice odd things about the new town; for example, someone spray painted "Murder Capital of the World" on the back of a billboard. Also, the town is riddled with posters of lost people. Meanwhile, Michael looks for a job and people his age.
Sam meets two boys at the comics store who fight vampires in their spare time. They give Sam a vampire comic book to acquaint him with survival tactics against the vampires who are infesting Santa Carla. Michael, however, is hanging out with a wild gang of young males. Unbeknownst to Michael, his new friends are the vampires who are terrorizing the town. The vampires turn Michael into one of them. Sam doesn't appreciate the new changes in his brother, but will he let his vampire-hunting friends execute Michael?
The Lost Boys is not a milestone in horror or comedy. The violence is hardly graphic, but it's brutal enough for an R-rating. The plot has a good number of twists, making it easy to follow the action. The jokes aren't gut-busting, but there is enough humor to keep the tension low. Sam and Michael's eccentric grandfather provides more than his fair share of the laughs.
The soundtrack sets the tone of The Lost Boys. Segments of the film's theme, "Cry Little Sister" by Gerald McMann, plays during the opening scene and repeatedly throughout the movie. This song has a dark feeling that suits the tone perfectly. Another example of good song placement is Lou Grahmm's "Lost In the Shadows" playing during the motorbike race scene.
Another attractive feature is the collection of young stars from the '80s, such as Coreys Feldman and Haim, Kiefer Sutherland, Jason Patric, and pre-Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure Alex Winter. Of all those names, only Sutherland is still in demand, thanks to the success of his TV series 24.
Even though Halloween has passed, you can still watch The Lost Boys any time of the year. I personally watch it three or four times a year because it's that good. Hopefully, you will agree.
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If you must drink during this movie, you'll want to avoid anything red.
Besides a standard love subplot between Michael and Star, there isn't much about this movie that'll spark any flames.
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