The Lost Boys

Summary

“We’re fighters for truth, justice, and the American way.”

As I mentioned in my review yesterday of Flatliners, this year has been pretty kind to the filmmaking career of Joel Schumacher. The director died in 2020 at the age of 80. His most popular films were made in the Eighties and Nineties, but he worked until he was in his Seventies. As a child I was a big fan of Schumacher’s work. I still love his best films. This month finds two of his most popular films arriving on 4K UHD within weeks of each other – Arrow Video has released Flatliners and Warner Bros. has released The Lost Boys. I was lucky enough to watch both of those releases over the course of the last couple nights.

I had grown up watching The Lost Boys on television when it aired, and have rewatched it every now and then over the years. I firmly remember watching The Lost Boys on my television in my room on FOX16 when I was less than ten years old. I decided to let my twelve year old son Holden watch the film with me to see how it would be received by the younger generation. Luckily, the film was just as enjoyable as I remembered and we all had fun watching it. Warner’s new 4K UHD offers a beautiful way to experience the film.

At an oceanfront boardwalk in Santa Carla, California, mysterious teenager David (Kiefer Sutherland) and his friends – Marko (Alex Winter,) Dwayne (Billy Wirth,) and Paul (Brooke McCarter) – are kicked off of a carousel when they approach a girl and end up in a fight with some other patrons of the fair. They are forced to leave the boardwalk by a security guard. That night, the security guard is killed when a vampire flys down and grabs him in an extreme show of force. As she enters the town with her two sons, Mike (Jason Patrick) and his younger brother Sam (Corey Haim.), Lucy (Dianne Wiest) drives past the sign for Santa Carla. They notice that the back of the sign says that Santa Carla is the Murder Capital of the World. Lucy has recently divorced and is moving her family from Phoenix. They are moving in with her eccentric woodcarving taxidermist father (Barnard Hughes.) On the boardwalk, Lucy meets a man named Max (Edward Herrmann) who owns a videotape store when she goes in to apply for a job. They have a nice conversation and she accepts a job. At a concert nearby on the boardwalk, Mike sees a beautiful girl (Jami Gertz) and, almost hypnotized, he follows her when she walks off. At a comic book store, Sam meets the Frog brothers – Edgar (Corey Feldman) and Alan (Jamison Newlander.) The two brothers are pretty militant, and they give Sam a comic book called “Vampires Everywhere.” Mike, still following the girl, sees her get on a motorcycle with David to his dismay. She rides off with David and his friends. The next day, at the comic book store, the Frog brothers talk some more to Sam about vampires, warning him that they are real and a danger. Mike talks with the girl on the boardwalk, and finds out her name is Star. Once again, she ends up hopping on a motorcycle with David. David asks if Mike knows where a certain point is. Mike explains that his dirt bike could never outrace his motorcycle. David tells him to just keep up. They drive through the forestry and to the edge of a cliff. David walks Mike into a cave where the gang hangs out. It holds the remains of a hotel that collapsed into the cave when the San Andreas opened up. They party and Mike is given a mysterious bottle to drink by David. Star warns him not to drink it, but Mike drinks from the bottle. Mike does not realize that the bottle will turn him into a creature of the night. His brother Sam and the Frog brothers will need to help Mike to reclaim his life before he becomes a full-fledged vampire.

The Lost Boys is one of Joel Schumacher’s best films. I have always had a fondness for the film since I first saw it as a child on TV. Produced by Richard Donner, the film was meant to be a Goonies-style vampire film for kids. Donner had planned to direct the script by Jan Fischer and James Jeremias, but had an opportunity to direct another film. Donner’s wife recommended that he reach out to Joel Schumacher to direct the script. He sent the script to Joel Schumacher, and he did not want to do the film at first. He went on a run and began to think of the script as something sexier and darker. He envisioned the vampires being older teenagers, riding motorcycles, looking like gypsies, and living in a cave that holds a hotel that was swallowed in an earthquake. With these changes in mind, he agreed to do the film. He hired on the legendary screenwriter Jeffrey Boam to tweak the script with his ideas, and that his how The Lost Boys came to be. Without Joel Schumacher, The Lost Boys would not have ever come to fruition in the form that we saw the film. I think those changes (which defined the film) made by Schumacher helped make the film a more personal project for the director. Schumacher enlisted the help of cinematographer Michael Chapman to realize his vision. Chapman was an amazing cinematographer who is probably best known for his work with Martin Scorsese on Raging Bull and Taxi Driver. Chapman had an incredible career, and died in 2020. His work on The Lost Boys is really solid. Like many of Schumacher’s films, vibrant lighting plays a crucial role in the film. While the lighting is less pronounced than on Flatliners, The Lost Boys looks great. Marrying Schumacher’s more pronounced direction with Chapman’s more grounded eye leads to a really interesting looking teenage vampire film. The film is helped along by a solid score by Thomas Newman and a bevy of excellent songs on the soundtrack. Songs by INXS, The Doors, Aerosmith and more play in the film, but the standout song is “Cry Little Sister (Theme to The Lost Boys)” by GeRard McMann. That song was a minor hit, and helped to define the movie’s particular vibe.

The Lost Boys benefits from an excellent ensemble cast of young actors that were just starting their careers. Jason Patrick was largely an unknown actor before The Lost Boys, aside from a role in Solarbabies, and he is perfectly cast as Mike. Schumacher leans heavily into Patrick’s Jim Morrison style good looks, but Jason Patrick has some serious acting chops under the surface. He treats the role seriously, and the film is carried along on his performance and Kiefer Sutherland’s iconic performance as David. Kiefer Sutherland had just been in a breakout role in Stand by Me and another good role in At Close Range, but The Lost Boys made Kiefer a star. Looking back on the film in the archival featurette, Kiefer said that it was the role most often discussed with him all those years later. He is fantastic in the film. Jami Gertz was one of the most beautiful starlets of the Eighties. I don’t think you could cast anyone better in the role of Star. It is easy as an audience member to understand why Mike is so hypnotized by her from the start. Corey Haim is at the peak of his powers as Sam. Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander are both great as the Frog brothers. Schumacher had told the boys to deliver their lines as closely as possible to the action stars Stallone and Chuck Norris, lending the film some great comedic moments. Feldman even wears a red bandana for the duration of the film. Dianne Wiest, Barnard Hughes, and Edward Herrmann round out the cast effectively. The vampire makeup by Greg Cannon (who trained under Rick Baker,) looks fantastic.

Overall – The Lost Boys is one of Joel Schumacher’s best pictures. Schumacher invested a lot of imagination into reshaping The Lost Boys into the film that we have come to love, and its unique qualities continue to set it apart from standard horror films. It has stood the test of time and can easily be enjoyed by teenagers and adults equally.

Video

Presented in Native 4K in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1, The Lost Boys looks fantastic in Warner Bros. new UHD presentation. Fans of the picture should be extremely pleased with the work that Warner has done on this transfer. Fine detail is excellent with very well resolved grain.  Michael Chapman’s cinematography benefits from the increased color range available through HDR. The film looks great on the format, with really attractive color grading.

Audio

Warner Bros. has presented The Lost Boys with an engaging DTS-HD MA 5.1 track. While an Atmos track would have been a welcome addition, I was pleased with what Warner offered. The DTS-HD MA 5.1 track brings out the very best qualities of the great soundtrack. Featuring a solid score by Thomas Newman and excellent songs by INXS, The Doors, and the title track by Gerard McMann, the music fits the film perfectly. This track will make you want to play a saxophone shirtless.

Supplements:

4K Disc:

• Audio Commentary with director Joel Schumacher

Blu-ray Disc:

• Audio Commentary with director Joel Schumacher
• The Lost Boys: A Retrospective
• Inside the Vampire’s Cave
  • A Director’s Vision
  • Comedy vs. Horror
  • Fresh Blood: A New Look At Vampires
  • The Lost Boys Sequel?
• Vamping Out: The Undead Creations of Greg Cannom
• Haimster & Feldog: The Story of the 2 Coreys
• Multi-Angle Video Commentary for selected scenes
  • Corey Haim 
  • Corey Feldman
  • Jamison Newlander
• A World of Vampires
• The Lost Scenes
• “Lost in the Shadows” Music Video
• Theatrical Trailer

Overall Scores:

Video – 4.75/5 

Audio – 4.5/5

Supplements – 4/5

Overall – 4.5/5

The Lost Boys is one of the best films from director Joel Schumacher. The Californian teenage vampire film has been a hit with audiences since its release in 1987. Schumacher invested a lot of his own ideas into the film and the payoff was a memorable and unique horror film that can be enjoyed equally by teenagers and adults alike. The film benefits from excellent cinematography by Michael Chapman and a wonderful cast. Fans of the film will be extremely pleased to see how good the film looks and sounds in the UHD format. Warner’s quality control on 4K releases remains excellent, and, although there are no new supplements, the archival supplements on the Blu-ray are of high quality. This release comes highly recommended.