Today I wanted to review a movie about a monster that Hollywood has forgotten for far too long. In my not so humble opinion, should the big wigs in Hollywood remember this monster (and Green Light Films and TV series about them) they could just about print money. That’s right folks I’m talking about sexy teenage and young adult vampires.

“The Lost Boys” takes place in Santa Carla, the town that considers itself “the Murder Capital of the World”. Following the divorce of their parents, Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam (Corey Haim) Emerson, along with their mother Lucy (Dianne Wiest), move from Phoenix to the outskirts of Santa Carla to live with their cantankerous and eccentric grandfather. Lucy gets a job at a local video store and starts to fall for her boss Max (Edward Herrmann). At the same time her older son Michael becomes infatuated with a girl named Star (Jamie Gertz) and falls in with the local gang, lead by David (Kiefer Sutherland). To keep this synopsis somewhat short: It’s a story of boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love, but one of them is *gasp* a vampire! Oh what to do?

For the younger readers in the audience, this movie SCREAMS “I was made in the 80s!” It has the awesomely bad fashion and hairstyles that you look at and say “What were people thinking dressing like that?” It was also the start of “The Coreys” (it’s an 80’s teen heartthrob thing). It even contains a scene that has one of my personal favorite things to laugh at about the 80s – “Sax Offense” (a little known term that refers to saxophones being played badly or annoyingly in rock songs). Does it add a little extra fun and laughs to the film? Of course! However, “The Lost Boys” has plenty of other laughs and entertainment.

This movie has a lot of great things going for it. The grandpa (Barnard Hughes) steals every scene he’s in and makes me wish I had an old kooky uncle like him in my family. I really enjoyed the vampires in this film. They are strong, crafty and have interesting special abilities, but are definitely not overpowered. Plus, I get a kick out of seeing a young Jack Bauer from “24” and Bill S. Preston, Esquire from “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure” as vampires! And kudos to director Joel Schumacher, cinematographer Michael Chapman and the special effects crew for using a first person perspective with the vampire attacks and later on with the unique deaths of each vampire.

The biggest complaint I have about this film is the overuse of the theme song “Cry Little Sister”. Trust me when I say that by the end of this film you will be sick of hearing that song. Though to be honest, even that complaint is a little nitpicky.

I was introduced to this film by my wonderful sister-in-law since this is one of her guilty pleasure films. (Don’t worry folks, my next review won’t have anything to do with guilty pleasures… at least not that I know of.) However, I can proudly say without any guilt or shame, this film rocks! Go watch it. Seriously, why are you still reading this review? Go to Netflix and put it in your queue or go to your local video store and rent it.

Rating: Full Price

Fun Factor: 87%

Your pal, THE Brian