The Lost Boys review

When young Sam (Corey Haim), his older brother Michael (Patric) and their mum Lucy (Dianne Wiest) move to the seaside town of Santa Carla to live with the boys’ crusty old grandpa, little do they know that they have relocated to the mass-murder capital of the world. For while the town looks okay during the day, at night it plays host to a group of teen bikers led by spiky blond-haired David (a mesmerising Sutherland), who takes a special interest in Michael after the newcomer makes a play for young beauty Star (Jamie Gertz). What Michael doesn’t know is that this biker gang are more than just thugs, they are vampires, responsible for the numerous missing children in the town. And when he hangs round with the gang and they get him to drink a bottle of red stuff that we know isn’t cranberry juice, it’s not long before Michael wants to sleep all day and hide his eyes from bright lights.

A stylish, slick teen horror comedy, this works thanks to a snappy script (‘My own brother a goddamn, s**t-sucking vampire! Oh, you wait ’til Mom finds out, buddy!’), great performances – Haim was never better than as Sam, who is informed of the ways of vampires by comic book geeks the Frog brothers (Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander) – and nice twists on the vampire legend (the three boys arm themselves with water pistols filled with holy water). It also looks really cool, from the camera zooming over the water towards the town, to the scene in which the vamps dangle from a bridge, daring Michael to let go and hurtle through the mist with them to whatever is below, and boasts a memorable soundtrack (including Echo and the Bunnymen’s appropriately creepy version of ‘People are Strange’ and Gerard McMann’s spooky ‘Cry Little Sister’).