Vampires are everywhere these days.
Not in real life, mind you. But in popular culture, vampires are all over the entertainment map. Movies, television shows, books. No longer relegated to evil villain roles, vampires have stepped into the spotlight as sexy, smart lead characters in a variety of mediums.
Fans of the current genre agree that this trend started with the premiere of "The Lost Boys" (1987). After a divorce, Lucy, Michael and Sam Emerson move from Phoenix to Santa Clara, California. Santa Clara's claim to fame? It's the murder capital of the world. Michael becomes attracted to a girl named Star, who runs with a pack of good looking, street wise young guys who invite Michael to tag along on a night of fun. They invite Michael to become "one of them." Michael doesn't realize until he's halfway there that "one of them" means becoming a vampire.
The rest of the movie becomes silly and childish as Sam and his two friends, the Frog Brothers, team up with Michael and Star to stop the vampires and turn half vampires into humans again. What started out as a solid story disappears among a tired set of vampire clichés like garlic, holy water, and inviting a vampire into your home.
What makes this movie worth watching is the way the pack of vampires is portrayed. Led by Keifer Sutherland as David, the leader and strongest vampire, they manage to be menacing yet appealing at the same time. His hair, his clothes and his entire attitude give off an air of detached cool. The rest of his gang is just as edgy. With long hair, leather jackets and fast motorcycles they give vampire culture a rock and roll sensibility it never had before. Adding to that rock and roll mystique is a phenomenal film soundtrack and a gigantic picture of Jim Morrison in the vampires' lair.
"The Lost Boys" also made the vampire lifestyle a thing of social status in the community. Rather than hide out and avoid the company of others, they are known throughout the town, feared as well as revered. They mingle with humans as if they were still living. They aren't loners, but instead seem eager to reel in members to their elite club. They consider themselves a family and take care of each other accordingly.
Since "The Lost Boys" was released, many more films and television shows have debuted, and just about all of them have included elements from this movie. "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" (1992) was campy and tongue-in-cheek, but the TV show of the same name featured a character named Spike who was strikingly similar in appearance to Sutherland's David. He was billed as the Sid Vicious of the vampire set, with his long leather jacket and bleached hair. The main character on the show "Angel" had the broodiness of Michael. Stephen Dorff's character Deacon Frost in "Blade" (1998) is also remarkably similar to David. Even the makeup artist in that film is the same as "The Lost Boys."
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