The Lost Boys (1987)
RT Audience Score: 85%
Awards & Nominations: 3 wins & 5 nominations
Flawed but eminently watchable, Joel Schumacher’s teen vampire thriller blends horror, humor, and plenty of visual style with standout performances from a cast full of young 1980s stars
The Lost Boys is like a bloody cocktail that’s hard to forget, with its exhilarating ride of quips and thrills. Sure, it may be a bit sloppy and thinly plotted, but it’s a summer movie, so who cares? And while it may not be the most character-driven film, it redefined vampires for a generation and gave us a nerdy dude version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer before there was Buffy. Plus, who doesn’t love a good gang of punk vampires terrorizing the new kids in town? So grab some popcorn, sink your fangs into this fancy trash, and enjoy the ride.
Production Company(ies)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer,
Distributor
Warner Bros., Warner Home Vídeo
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk – 400 Beach Street, Santa Cruz, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
R
Year of Release
1987
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:1h 37m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jul 31, 1987 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 6, 2006
Genre(s)
Horror/Comedy
Keyword(s)
starring Jason Patric, Corey Haim, Dianne Wiest, Barnard Hughes, Edward Herrmann, Kiefer Sutherland, Jami Gertz, Corey Feldman, Jamison Newlander, directed by Joel Schumacher, written by Jeffrey Boam, Jan Fischer, James Jeremias, horror, comedy, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Peter Bradshaw, Desmond Ryan, Jay Boyar, Peter Travers, Michael Wilmington, Dave Kehr, Kristy Strouse, Trace Thurman, Tom Meek, Sergio Benítez, Ángel Luis Inurria, produced by Harvey Bernhard, R rating, vampires, teenage brothers, small town, California, comic-book nerds, gang of vampires, undead, visual style, young 1980s stars, soundtrack, surreal visual aesthetic, fantasy themes, unique vision, cult classic, campy, comedy relief, seduction, thriller, horror-comedy
Worldwide gross: $32,481,775
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $86,701,486
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,082
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 9,454,906
US/Canada gross: $32,315,444
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $86,257,510
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 820
US/Canada opening weekend: $5,236,318
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $13,976,963
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 828
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $8,500,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $22,688,496
Production budget ranking: 1,305
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $12,217,755
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $51,795,235
ROI to date (est.): 148%
ROI ranking: 772
Corey Haim – Sam Emerson
Dianne Wiest – Lucy Emerson
Barnard Hughes – Grandpa
Edward Herrmann – Max
Kiefer Sutherland – David
Corey Feldman – Edward
Jamison Newlander – Alan
Director – Joel Schumacher
Producer – Harvey Bernhard
Writers – Jeffrey Boam, Jan Fischer, James Jeremias
Director(s)
Joel Schumacher
Writer(s)
Jeffrey Boam, Jan Fischer, James Jeremias
Producer(s)
Harvey Bernhard
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
3 wins & 5 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (69) | Top Critics (17) | Fresh (52) | Rotten (17)
The Lost Boys, in its artless way, asks us to consider that being for ever young isn’t a sweet Edwardian evocation of innocence, but a vision of pure hell, like vampirism.
February 14, 2020 | Rating: 4/5
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
Schumacher falls far short of the talent for pop wit that Joe Dante showed in Gremlins and The Howling.
January 21, 2014 | Rating: 2/4
Desmond Ryan
Philadelphia Inquirer
TOP CRITIC
The Lost Boys, which attempts to be funny while preserving the shock value of the vampire legend, aims somewhat higher… and misses.
January 21, 2014
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
It’s often sloppy and thinly plotted, but this is, after all, a summer movie, and if it’s nothing to really sink your fangs into, it’s often very funny.
January 21, 2014
Peter Travers
People Magazine
TOP CRITIC
There’s always room for fancy trash, and this movie — about a gang of punk vampires terrorizing the new kids in town — seems capable of providing some. Then the characters open their mouths.
January 21, 2014
Michael Wilmington
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
Schumacher`s sputtering, short-term approach to the material is a disappointment, because there’s something in it that ought to make for a good movie, and from time to time makes The Lost Boys good enough.
January 21, 2014 | Rating: 2/4
Dave Kehr
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
The Lost Boys gives an injection of lifeblood into a tired genre that needed some resurrecting at the time. It’s an exhilarating ride, a madcap line of quips and thrills that make it a hard to forget, bloody cocktail.
November 12, 2021
Kristy Strouse
Wonderfully Weird and Horrifying
The Lost Boys redefined vampires for a generation, and while it nails the aesthetic, it’s still a bit slight in the character department.
November 10, 2021 | Rating: 3/5
Trace Thurman
Horror Queers Podcast
Boys is something of the nerdy dude version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer before there was Buffy.
July 8, 2020 | Rating: 3/4
Tom Meek
Cambridge Day
Slick, savvy and scary, “The Lost Boys” is a hip horror comedy with the full-throttle excitement of a rollercoaster ride and the pop culture fluency of a Stephen King best seller.
June 25, 2020
Joe Leydon
The Moving Picture Show
It’s the more than correct direction of Schumacher that prints a good rhythm to the footage and shows he can be very imaginative at times. [Full Review in Spanish]
April 22, 2020
Sergio Benítez
Espinof
It’s not a fully realized product, but it brings new ideas, which, despite its limitations, is commendable. [Full Review in Spanish]
April 20, 2020
Ángel Luis Inurria
El Pais (Spain)…
Plot
A mother and her two sons move to a small coast town in California. The town is plagued by bikers and some mysterious deaths. The younger boy makes friends with two other boys who claim to be vampire hunters while the older boy is drawn into the gang of bikers by a beautiful girl. The older boy starts sleeping days and staying out all night while the younger boy starts getting into trouble because of his friends’ obsession.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The Lost Boys features a cast full of young 1980s stars, including Jason Patric, Corey Haim, Dianne Wiest, and Kiefer Sutherland.
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