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22. The Lost Boys (1987 / 242 points)
Directed by: Joel Schumacher / Screenplay by: Janice Fischer, James Jeremias, and Jeffrey Boam
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Why Its Significant - Prior to The Lost Boys, vampires were typically depicted as aristocratic, brooding figures shrouded in mystery with very rare exceptions. However, David and his gang of young, punk rock bloodsuckers resulted in a cooler take on the classic stock monster, and the rest of the film followed this youthful reimagining, with a soundtrack lead by INXS and Cry Little Sister by Gerard McMann, a brooding goth-rock staple thats been covered by dozens of artists since its release and remains a yearly Halloween anthem. What resulted was something that almost wasn't even horror anymore - it was trendy, it was slick, it was hip, it resembled high-concept movies produced by Jerry Bruckheimer & Don Simpson. Placing teenage brothers as the protagonists only enhanced this feeling, their struggles with adolescence, peer pressure, and family drama resonating perfectly with young viewers at the time. The influence of The Lost Boys can be seen in countless horror properties that followed - mostly teen-focused, pseudo-horror, shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the books & films of Twilight taking inspiration from the film's portrayal of alluring, yet dangerous vampires and a trend towards teenage audiences. So yes, its safe to say you can blame The Lost Boys for Twilight. The Lost Boys received two sequels and multiple comic book series.

The Rankers
Bitto - 5
Johnbobb - 10
Fortybelowsummer - 13
Lightning - 13
Evilordexdeath - 15
Inviso - 17
Mythiot - 17
Plasmabeam - 19
Karo - 25
Seginustemple - 25
Rockus - 26
Snake - 28
Jcgamer107 - 29

Bitto - Rating: B+

Excellent premise for a movie. I especially like that there's two really strong tones: a brooding movie about transformation and peer pressure for the older brother and a lighthearted, more heroic movie for the younger brother. I also like that the younger brother refused to kill the older brother and instead look for a way to change him back to normal. I wish there were a few more characters so that there's more suspicion on who the head vampire is, but this is a pretty big cast already. The humor and jokes are spot on too. Though, as someone who lived very close to Santa Cruz, it was jarring to hear everyone call it "Santa Carla" when it's obviously Santa Cruz.

Johnbobb - sorry don't have time to do a write-up, too busy listening to Cry Little Sister on repeat

Fortybelowsummer - No 80s-centric list would be complete without the two Coreys! The Lost Boys was largely (perhaps single-handedly) responsible for how vampires were depicted in popular culture. It ushered in the new era of young, cool, and sexy vampires as a modern alternative to the traditional (some would say dated) Dracula types of old. Vampires have always been sexy and cool, but never before did they ride motorcycles, sneering and smirking with beautiful mullets and rad dangly earrings. The movie itself is definitely more style than substance, but thats ok. The plot is pretty thin, but its funny, the cinematography is great, and most importantly its just very watchable. Also, theres no way Im ending this writeup without mentioning that the soundtrack, especially the theme song, Cry Little Sister, absolutely slaps. For a good portion of an entire generation, Lost Boys is the best vampire movie that there is, and while Im not in that portion myself, it is definitely up there.

Lightning - One thing about living in Santa Carla I never could stomach, all the damn vampires.

Among each and every movie on this list, The Lost Boys may be the most quintessentially 80s. From the hair to the style to the themes to the increasing self awareness, it almost feels like it learned from the seven previous years of horror movies and combined them into one film. Of course along with Fright Night this is also a key influence on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, giving it a lot of the setting as well as the romantic and teenage elements. This film was both very influenced by its era and very influential on the next era and its easy to see why.

This is just a really enjoyable, really stylish film that sets a unique tone and atmosphere while also being a lot of fun. I think one of my favourite moments is the montage right at the beginning where you see the sundrenched seaside town and people living it up intercut with missing persons posters showing us that something is definitely not right here. Joel Schumacher (of Batman and Robin fame) really uses his exaggerated, neon drenched style to full effect here, creating a world that seems both alluring and threatening. Keifer Sutherland gives a great villain performance too, with some truly remarkable hair. The jokes also still land today, it might be the funniest film on this list and its not even one of the comedies.

This is not a perfect film, you can see the twist coming a mile away (also the film gets very flimsy with its own rules there), it does sag a bit in the middle and the addiction metaphor is tremendously obvious. However, it really is a film you can just let wash over you and soak it in like the Santa Carla sun those vampires are avoiding.

Also, saxophone guy the best

4/5

Evilordexdeath - Years before I ever saw this movie, when my mother introduced me to online piracy by downloading songs on Bearshare, I heard the song Cry Little Sister and knew that it was from a movie about vampires. I distinctly remember finding the song kind of scary as a kid - it made me think of the idea of an older brother who had become a vampire and was about to kill and feed on his own sister. This is not a scary movie and there are no little sisters in it. It's a goofy movie about four boys, one of whom is a teenage Corey Feldman putting on a deeper voice to try and sound mysterious and tough, who have to fight some vampires. There's also an incredibly cheesy sex scene with funny music, even though the guy involved has more romantic chemistry with Keifer Sutherlands character. The whole thing maintains enough self awareness and a deliberate enough aesthetic that it works.

Inviso - This movies lives or dies on whether you can tolerate Corey Haims annoying, high-pitched pre-teen antics throughout the film. I cantI found him unbearable (and by association, Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander), and the fact that half the movie is that trio trying to do the standard We know vampires exist and we need to defeat them thing you get in any teen/pre-teen monster movieit wasnt enjoyable. And the other half of the movie with Jason Patric falling in with the wrong crowd and getting inducted into a vampire cultit could have worked, but it came across as a little melodramatic and it made what could have been a comedic vampire movie feel far too much like a teen drama. Eh.