Being a vampire never looked more stylish than it did in The Lost Boys. Joel Schumacher's cult, leather-clad horror-comedy, now 35 years old, returns to its natural home on the big screen this Halloween, ready to envelop fans and newcomers alike in its blend of big hair, bad attitude and quotable lines.
Corey Haim and Jason Patric play the two brothers who are newly arrived in a California town. The bad news is their arrival prompts the interest of a clan of vampires, spearheaded by the mysterious, punk-attired David (Kiefer Sutherland on star-making form).
Of course, one cannot separate the experience of watching The Lost Boys from its soundtrack. The movie's savvy blend of new wave and romantic/electronic chic helps embolden its portrayal of vampires as perpetually bored, rebellious adolescents.
The movie's visuals and soundtrack are poised to stand out all the more thanks to the movie's bold new 4K restoration. Here are five classic music moments from the movie that you need to experience again on the big screen.
1. "Good Times" – Jimmy Barnes and INXS
Never one for understatement, Schumacher foregrounds 'Good Times' as an implicit suggestion that we're about to see anything but.
The track encompasses the intriguing methodology behind the soundtrack of The Lost Boys: a sense of the old blending with the distinctly new, a perfect encapsulation of the movie's vampire anti-heroes. After all, they're arcane creatures locked in perpetually young bodies. In this case, it's INXS and Jimmy Barnes covering an early 1960s hit from Aussie group The Easybeats.
2. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me" – Roger Daltrey
No, the inherent musical analogy ain't subtle. Even so, Daltrey's dynamic reworking of Elton John and Bernie Taupin's melancholic classic possesses a somewhat harder edge that befits the movie's rampaging vampire posse.
Even so, there is still a residual sadness lurking in the background of Daltrey's take, anticipating the tragic turn of events between brothers Michael (Patric) and Sam (Haim) when the former is turned into a vampire by David.
3. "People Are Strange" – Echo & the Bunnymen
Once again, Schumacher favours a cover version that takes a 1960s counter-culture staple and updates it with plenty of late-80s synth-pop glam.
In this instance, The Doors' 'People Are Strange', dating from 1967, is treated to a lushly moody take by eighties alternative act Echo & The Bunnymen. (Fans will remember the sublime use of the band's 'The Killing Moon' at the start of the theatrical cut of Donnie Darko.)
4. "Cry Little Sister" – Gerard McMahon
This is the de facto theme song of The Lost Boys. However, because Gerard McMahon hadn't seen any footage prior to recording the track, he didn't specifically refer to vampires in the lyrics.
"I always say that if I'd have seen the film first, I would probably not have written 'Cry Little Sister'," McMahon later explained. "I didn't want the song to be specific to the vampire. I wanted it to be about the longing for family from a rejected youth's perspective, which I went through myself and that many of us have felt."
5. "I Still Believe" – Tim Cappello
Instrumentalist Tim Cappello doubles up as soundtrack artist and extra. (He appears in the movie playing the saxophone on the Santa Cruz boardwalk.) 'I Still Believe' is a cover of the song of the same name from the American rock group The Call.
Has our feature unlocked the inner vampire within you? Then click here to book your Cineworld tickets for The Lost Boys. The movie tears up the big screen again from October 17.
In the meantime, don't forget to check out our Halloween horror movie preview for all the ghoulish big-screen goodness this October.
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