The Case of The Lost Boys (1987)
In the summer of 1987, movie-goers were exposed to one of the most popular horror comedies of all time: Joel Schumacher’s The Lost Boys. This frightening–yet sometimes goofy–romp introduced the idea of a teenage gang of vampires, living it up and having the time of their (after) lives. Much like the famed Dracula, they live in a dark and unkempt lair, surrounded by all that pleases them.
The Lost Boys continues to be a hit with audiences over 35 years after its release. The film is often referenced in popular media, and celebrated for its take on the horror genre. So let’s join in on the fun! Ride with us to Santa Carla, California, the supposed murder capital of the world (according to some spray paint on a billboard). We’ll sleep all day and party all night, and learn about how fun it is to be a vampire!
Summary
Sam and his older brother Michael have just moved into Santa Carla, California with their newly-divorced mom. While staying with their grandfather, the boys try to find their place amongst the teenagers that live in the town and crowd the boardwalk each night. Michael immediately falls in love with a girl named Star, who is part of a mysterious gang that hangs out underground and only comes out at night. In an attempt to impress her, Michael gives in to the pressure of the gang’s leader and drinks an unknown liquid, causing him to undergo some serious physical changes.
Meanwhile, Sam befriends a couple of boys that are convinced that vampires walk among them, and they believe these undead fiends are responsible for a string of murders and missing children. Just as Sam begins to believe in the existence of vampires, he realizes that his brother is becoming one.
Making of
Writers Janice Fischer and James Jeremias developed the original story for The Lost Boys. It was an alternate universe to the one in J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, taking its name from the gang of children living in Neverland under Peter’s leadership. Their screenplay was a more family-friendly story than the one that eventually made it to the big screen.
Richard Donner, the director known for movies like The Goonies and Superman was originally set to direct this film. But, he was offered Lethal Weapon, and decided to take the role as producer instead. Donner’s wife, Lauren, had worked with Joel Schumacher on one of his previous films and only had positive things to say about him. This made Donner consider him for The Lost Boys.
Mark Canton, then-president of Warner Brothers, took Schumacher out to lunch and asked him if he would be interested in directing a vampire movie. At that time, the plot was much more child-friendly, which made Schumacher hesitant to accept the job.
When Joel ultimately considered the possibilities of the film, he agreed to give it a chance. At that point, Jeff Boam was hired as a screenwriter to revise the script, which was already almost a decade old at the time.
Joel Schumacher was originally a fashion designer before he became a filmmaker. He created cut-outs of what he thought the costumes should look like and showed them to Donner. The styles were very innovative for the time, with outfits that had never appeared in mainstream films before. This made Richard Donner confident that he had chosen the right director for the movie.
As filming began, the comedic points in the movie were made up on the spot. The comedy confused Warner Brothers, and they would ask Schumacher if he were making a horror film or a comedy. He responded with “yes” every time. The executives seemed unsure about the combination of those two genres, and weren’t sure that a horror-comedy would work.
Horror-comedies have gained popularity in recent years, but they weren’t very big in the 1980s. There’s often a thin line between what scares us and what makes us laugh. When a horror film goes a little too far, shows too much blood, or presents a plot too unbelievable, audiences might find it funny. Because laughing can be a natural release of anxiety, the combination of horror and comedy works really well.
Cinematographer Michael Chapman was a big fan of old cheesy vampire movies, and even though he had left cinematography, he jumped at the chance to be Director of Photography on The Lost Boys. Chapman had worked on movies like Taxi Driver and Raging Bull before this film.
The Lost Boys was primarily shot on location in Santa Cruz, California. Joel Schumacher believed that if there were teenage vampires in the 1980s, they would probably live in Santa Cruz, with the glorious boardwalk.
In the opening, the characters are driving through the town. The extras in these shots were regular people, just hanging out on the street.
The city of Santa Cruz did not want to be connected to the crime that happens in the movie, so they asked the production to change the name of the town in the film. So the movie takes place in the fictional city of Santa Carla.
Two Warner Brothers sound stages were also used. One housed the cave where the lost boys hangout, and the other was the home that Sam and Michael stay in with their mom and grandfather.
The sets were created by production designer Bo Welch. He’s worked on several films since, including Edward Scissorhands. He’s also married to THE Catherine O’Hara!
The comic book store featured in the movie was a real shop! The vampire comics that they kids read, however, were created specifically for the movie.
Although Joel Schumacher came in with ideas on how the costumes should look, Susan Becker designed the threads for the film.
The costumes in The Lost Boys reflect the punk counterculture of the 1980s. All throughout the film you can see kids with dyed hair and mohawks, wearing leather bands and long coats in the California sun.
Sam, one of the two main characters, wore clothes that stood out against the backdrop of his new home, which signified that he didn’t want to move there.
Greg Cannom was in charge of the special effects make-up for the vampires. He grew up loving horror, especially creature features. Specifically a 1963 episode of the sci-fi TV series The Outer Limits inspired him to pursue a career in special effects make-up
Dick Smith, the make-up artist responsible for The Exorcist, was also a huge influence on Cannom. He started practicing with make-up as a high schooler and later when he attended college. In the mid-1970s, he worked with the well-known artist Rick Baker. The two men worked together on a film called The Fury in 1978.
Cannom’s vampires in The Lost Boys fulfilled Joel Schumacher’s vision of sleek monsters. The teenagers never completely change, they just become more intimidating versions of themselves. Cannom designed contact lenses that became the focal point of the make-up. Contacts that changed the look of a character’s eyes were rare at the time and very uncomfortable. The actors could only wear them for 3 or 4 minutes because they completely blocked all oxygen from hitting the eyes, making them dry out. When Keifer Sutherland cries in the film, it’s because the contacts were making his eyes water.
Each actor also wore custom fangs that were designed by Cannom. The teeth were understated versions of the ones we see in classic vampire films, and Cannom really wanted them to look smooth like pearls. There was a wire in each tooth, making them very strong, and they hooked onto the actors’ real teeth.
Cannom’s version of vampires was pretty groundbreaking, and helped revitalize the vampire subgenre of horror. His make-up design was inspired by an old newspaper clipping of a tennis player. The photo was faded, and made the cheekbones and forehead of the player’s face seem more pronounced. This gave him the idea for the make-up used on the characters in their final vampire forms.
The special effects make-up team created casts of the actors’ faces. The prosthetics were hand-sculpted from foam latex and painted with PAX paint, which is a very strong adhesive make-up. Cannom was blown away by how well the young actors dealt with the heavy make-up and prosthetics.
The Lost Boys didn’t have a large budget, so there weren’t a lot of special effects that the production could afford. Because of this, we don’t see the vampires in full until late in the film. Early on, there are shots from the vampire’s perspective as they swoop down and snatch up their prey, which Schumacher found to be more frightening anyway.
The Lost Boys benefits from a fantastic cast, including a group of teen stars at the beginning of their careers.
Jason Patrick as Michael. Jason came on the first day that Joel was auditioning. He had just turned 18 and was serious about his acting. He had the looks and the talent but he did not originally want the part. His manager and Schumacher took about 6 weeks to convince him. He’s been in several since Lost Boys and is still acting today.
Corey Haim plays Sam, the younger brother. Corey was just 13 and had done a film called Lucas. This is the first movie to star him with Corey Feldman which would begin them as a famous duo.
Dianne Wiest plays their mother, Lucy. Schumacher had her in mind for the role from the beginning and was thrilled that she said yes. Dianne had just won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in Hannah and Her Sisters.
Barnard Hughes plays the Grandpa. Schumacher said he was perfect for the role and so much fun to work with.
He was a Broadway and theatre actor that became known for his character acting, especially from the 1978 production of High Leonard’s “Da.”
Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander as the Frog Brothers.
Corey Feldman had stayed good friends with Richard Donner from his directing The Goonies. Donner called him up for this role and told him he would be perfect for it.
Jamison Newlander had Schumacher as a guest in the acting class he was taking. This gave him the confidence to go in for the audition, especially since Schumacher had answered one of his questions.
Feldman and Newlander were told that they were the GI Joes of the movie. They were to take themselves very seriously. Feldman was even told to watch all the Rocky and Rambo type movies to model his character after.
Jami Gertz plays Star. Schumacher had envisioned a blond pixie-like character for Star but thankfully Jason Patrick had pushed for Jami, as they had done a play together previously.
Kiefer Sutherland plays David, the leader of the teen Vamps. Keifer had just wrapped his first US film which was Stand By Me. He had also finished At Close Range where he had a close-up in the film. Schumacher saw this close-up and wanted him to audition.
Schumacher said that Kiefer was a great character actor and that even though he has the least amount of dialogue in the film his presence shines through the entire film.
Edward Herrmann plays Max, though you may know him better as the Grandpa from Gilmore Girls. Schumacher really needed a “nice guy” to play Max, someone you would not suspect as the character is more domesticated and a mix of whimsy and scary.
The other Lost Boys were played by Chance Michael Corbitt (the youngest), Brooke McCarte, Billie Wirth, and Alex Winter.
One of the things that makes The Lost Boys stand out is the eerie score and soundtrack filled with recognizable songs.
Well-known composer Thomas Newman wrote the score. Newman has since composed for films like Finding Nemo and A Series of Unfortunate Events. He’s one of the most well-known composers in Hollywood.
During the opening of the movie, we hear a cover of The Doors’ People Are Strange by Echo and the Bunnymen, accompanied by Ray Manzarek, the original keyboard artist for The Doors. Schumacher wanted the song in the movie because he felt like the lost boys would identify with Jim Morrison’s music. So, he asked Manzarek to re-record the song with the new artist.
Cry Little Sister (The Lost Boys Theme) was written for the film by Mike Mainieri and McMahon. The song was a hit and made it all the way to number 15 on the Billboard top 200.
Reception and Impact
The Lost Boys had a domestic gross of over $5.2 million on its opening weekend, placing it at #2. In the end, it generated domestic revenue of almost $32.2 million with a budget of only $8.5 million.
The movie has a 77% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 77 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10. The general consensus among critics is that the movie is "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."
In his review of Lost Boys, Roger Ebert gave it two and a half out of four stars while appreciating the photography and "a cast that's good right down the line." However, he ultimately called the movie "an ambitious entertainment that starts out well but ends up selling its soul." Additionally, Dianne Wiest's character was described as a "dopey mom" by Caryn James of The New York Times, and Barnard Hughes' character was described as "a caricature of a feisty old Grandpa." She thought the movie was more of a comedy than a horror.
The film won three out of the 8 awards it was nominated for. Including the Saturn award for Best Horror Film! The others were both Young Artist Awards for Best Young Actor in a Horror Motion Picture (Cory Feldman) and Teenage Favorite Horror/Drama Motion Picture.
The Lost Boys is recognized for changing how vampires are portrayed in popular culture and giving the vampire genre a more youthful appeal. For example, it could be said that later movies like Buffy the Vampire Slayer were inspired by this.
It would continue to garner fans with the releases of a novelization of the film, comic books based on the Frog brothers, and two straight to DVD sequels.
Fun Facts
Before selecting the final cast, Schumacher and renowned casting director Marion Dougherty reportedly sat through numerous auditions with eager young performers; Ben Stiller claimed to be one of those newcomers. At the Hollywood Life Young Hollywood Awards in 2010, Stiller reportedly commented, "The last time I saw a room full of so many talented faces was when I auditioned for The Lost Boys... it was between me, Kiefer, and the two Coreys."
Warner Brothers held a research screening of the movie in Long Beach before it was released. About 750 people attended, and the crowd was akin to a rock concert. Schumacher said that some of the viewers got so worked up, they ripped the stuffing out of their seats.
The Frog brothers (Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander) were told to channel their best Selvester Stalone and Chuck Noris impressions.
David wears gloves to hide that Sutherland broke his wrist during filming. Ironically, given that the young vamps are bikers, Sutherland sustained this injury after falling off his motorbike.
Conclusion
The Lost Boys delivers on its promise for a fun teen romp with just enough horror to keep the audience on its toes. It completely submerges viewers into the 1980s, with a cast of future stars before the launch of their careers.
The 1980s was clearly a great decade for horror, with campy classics like A Nightmare on Elm Street and Evil Dead 2 finding their places in the hearts of the viewers for decades to come. But when The Lost Boys hit the big screen, it scratched an itch that other teen horror films hadn’t. It had been over half a century since Universal’s Dracula, and vampire movies weren’t popular. This movie changed that by creating a new kind of vampire, one that wore modern clothing, had an updated sex appeal, and appealed to the modern world. In some ways, The Lost Boys changed the aesthetic of the modern film vampire, and altered the vampire horror subgenre altogether. I guess you could say that this FANGtastic movie hasn’t LOST its appeal.