You'll never grow old, Michael, and you'll never die. But you must feed!

Title: The Lost Boys (1987)

There are vampire movies and there are 80's vampire movies. Many 80s movies broke grounds by mixing genres that create lasting experiences. The Lost Boys is such an example mixing primarily teen comedy and horror.

In The Lost Boys, the Emersons, two teenage brothers and their newly-divorced mom, moved-in with their grandpa at Santa Carla in Northern California only to become entangled with a gang of motorcycle-riding vampires. Unbeknownst to the family, the vampires conspired to assimilate them into vampire kin by first recruiting David, the older brother played by Jason Patric.

True to its teen appeal, The Lost Boys featured 80s teen icons, the two Coreys (Wikipedia), Haim and Feldman who were both age 16 at the time. Corey Feldman played Edgar Frog one half of the self-proclaimed ruthless vampire killers, the Frog Brothers. Jamison Newlander played Alan, the other half.

The Frog Brothers befriended Sam, the youngest Emerson played by Corey Haim. They cautioned him of vampires living in Santa Carla and eagerly jumped to assist when Sam solicited their help for David. The trio provided the movie's comedic relief with tough talks, spurts of cowardness in face of dangers, and over-the-top probing for vampirism (dinner scene at Sam's house with Edward Herrmann as Max).

The movie culminated in a last stand fight at Sam's house when the true intentions of the vampires to convert the Emersons were finally revealed. The last scenes also brought on speculation on whether or not Grandpa was a vampire himself.

The rest of the cast include Keifer Sutherland as the leader of the biker gang, Jamie Gertz as Star the vampire vixen who was recruiting Michael, Dianne Weist as mommy Emerson, Bernard Hughes as Grandpa, Alex Winter as Marko, and Cody as Nanook.

What I like most about the movie is the rock-n-roll, summer appeal. The storyline took place in a beach town, probably over the summer since the kids didn't have school. Most vampire movies I've seen prior to The Lost Boys were gothic in nature. Joel Schumacher, the director, modernized the vampire genre by targetting young adults. They even have surf nazis (Fast-Rewind.com).

Currently, The-Top-Tens.com lists The Lost Boys as number 3 in the Top Vampire Movie.

The script for The Lost Boys can be found here: The Lost Boys Script by Jeffrey Boam

The Lost Boys Best Movie Quotes

"If you try to stop us, or vamp out in any way, I'll stake you without even thinking twice about it!" -- Note: The Lost Boys has the distinction of first coining the term "vamp out". It's been used in other shows and films, including the CW TV show, Supernatural, i.e. vamped out Gordon.

"Second shelf is mine. That's where I keep my rootbeers and my double-thick Oreo cookies. Nobody touches the second shelf but me."

"Don't ever invite a vampire into your house, you silly boy. It renders you powerless."

"Holy shit! It's the attack of Eddie Munster!"

"The bloodsucking Brady Bunch!"

"You're a vampire Michael! My own brother, a goddamn, shit-sucking vampire. You wait 'till mom finds out, buddy!"

"Death by stereo!"

The Lost Boys Soundtrack

Can't talk about The Lost Boys without acknowledging its soundtrack. The music perfectly captured the tone. And many songs remain in my head with some movie visuals, including:

• Peoples Are Strange - Echo and the Bunnymen


• Lost In The Shadows (The Lost Boys) - Lou Gramm


• I Still Believe - Tim Cappello

UPDATE: The sequel, Lost Boys: The Tribe, is available for pre-order on Amazon. The release date is listed at July 29, 2008.

Technorati Tags: 80's Films, Comedy, horror, The Lost Boys, Kiefer Sutherland, Jami Gertz, Corey Feldman, Corey Haim, Frog Brothers

Bright light. Bright light.

Title: Gremlins (1984)

When this movie came out, I thought it was unique because it featured violent puppets. As a fan of the benign and family-themed Muppets, the black humor of Gremlins movie was refreshing. In particular, I had a sense of awe from the fantastic adventure that Billy, Kate and their small town had to go through in a few scarce hours before sunrise.

For those who haven't seen Gremlins the movie yet, it is about the invasion of a fictional small American town by a horde of small feisty rat-like monsters who sought to take over one evening during the Christmas holidays. The monsters sprung, literally, from a mogwai named Gizmo, an exotic pet that required three fastidious rules for safe maintenance, otherwise all hell will (and did) break loose. The three rules I'm paraphrasing:

• Keep away from bright light
• Don't get them wet
• And never feed them after midnight
  

Billy (Zach Galligan), who received the cute and loveable Gizmo as a gift from his inventor dad (Hoyt Axton), managed to break all three rules. By getting Gizmo wet, little furball chunks popped out of Gizmo's back and immediately grew into other mogwai's but with much more aggressive personalities. Then the little furries managed to get a hold of some snacks after midnight ...

Favorite Scene

Kate (Phoebe Cates, also the linking actress from Fast Times) in the bar serving the Gremlins. Not since Star Wars cantina scene that we get an entertainingly unconventional cast of characters in a bar. The ones I recall were the group of Gremlins playing poker and smoking, a Gremlin flashing, and one swinging around from the ceiling fans. Please add more in the comments if you remember them. But I know the gags were funny.

Gremlins movie quotes

Bright light. Bright light.

They're watching Snow White. And they love it.

Rand Peltzer, Fantastic ideas for a Fantastic World, I make the illogical logical.

Technorati Tags: 80's Films, Comedy, Fantasy, Gremlins, Phoebe Cates, Joe Dante

A naked American man stole my balloons.

Title: An American Werewolf in London (1981)

From John Landis this is my favorite werewolf movie and one of my favorite movies of all time. Two American students were touring the English countryside when they were attacked by a lycanthrope (werewolf for the lay person). One dies, the other survived, but infected to become a werewolf in a murderous rampage about London.

Memorable Quotes:

Jack: It's a full moon.
Jack, David: Beware the moon.
David: And stick to the road. Oops.
Jack: I vote we go back to the Slaughtered Lamb

"On the moors, we were attacked by a lycanthrope, a werewolf. I was murdered, an unnatural death, and now I walk the earth in limbo until the werewolf's curse is lifted. The wolf's bloodline must be severed; the last remaining werewolf must be destroyed. It's you David."

"A naked American man stole my balloons."

The linking actor is Jenny Agutter. She was probably my first glimpse of a naked woman. Could there be a hotter actress in a nurse uniform than her? I also didn't see this movie in the theatres. I saw it on either HBO or ON TV (remember them?)