The Lost Boys Trilogy Steelbook Movie Review (2023)

A few months ago, I stumbled on the Steelbook Blu-ray edition of The Lost Boys Trilogy at Wal-Mart. It was a Wal-mart exclusive since they’ve taken up the Steelbook void now that Best Buy has abandoned physical media. I’d seen already all 3 movies, I’m a nerd when it comes to the Lost Boys. I snatched the set up and just went with it. I have a habit of reading reviews after the purchase of stuff before I watch it because I like to be prepared. On this release, I didn’t see anything positive, but then again, a lot of movie collectors are a bit boujee and will do shit like leave something on the shelf if it doesn’t have a slipcover! WTF does a slipcover have to do with anything. You can’t watch it, you can touch it, that’s it. On that note, I do go for flicks that have Slips, but I won’t leave something on the shelf because it doesn’t have one. That’s just silly and you’re not buying it to watch, you’re just collecting with no real reason which I find lame. In my house we don’t play the covers of anything so we don’t really care about the lack or damage if it's all we can purchase. This set features the 4k cuts on normal Blu-ray discs, so you don’t need a 4k players to purchase and enjoy, which I appreciate as I opted for a Region Free player over a 4k player because that tech wasn’t popular enough at the time to chance that a region free player would work out well for me. I’m a Horror fanatic and often a great deal of stuff I enjoy doesn’t get reissued here in the states, so the region free player allows me to buy anything released in the world and watch it! Let’s talk some trash about the Lost Boys shall we!

The Lost Boys was released in 1987 when the entertainment world was at its absolute peak or well at least that’s my thought on the matter – feel free to fight me if you feel otherwise. I’m sure by now most all of you have seen the Lost Boys. If you haven’t then you really need to stop and go watch it right now. It’s quintessential to the time frame and in Vampire Lore it’s quite possibly one of the last great Vampire movies we’ve been treated to. I know some would argue this logic, but again, fight me!

In ’87 going to the mall, big hair, long hair, tight pants, band tees and having fun was everything and everyone wanted to live in California because that’s where all the action and fun happened – it’s the place where dreams came true no matter who you were. At least that’s what I thought, but I was 12 and had big dreams of Rock Stardom, chic’s with huge breasts, endless parties and lots of drugs and booze! Yes, I’d already fallen prey to that lifestyle and thought process.
 
The Lost Boys romanticizes the California lifestyle perfectly. A recently divorced mother moves her two teenage boys (Michael & Sam) across the country to live with her father in Santa Carla, California which happens to be the murder capital of the world – lots of kids on the back of milk cartons and tons of debauchery are going down. Of course, they’re not in town a day or two before the oldest kid finds himself incensed with a girl, that he met on the boardwalk but she’s riding with a tough bunch of fellas who invite Michael along to race, drink and get into trouble. Trouble is exactly what Mikey runs face first into when he inadvertently drinks blood and then it’s on. Meanwhile the younger of the brothers, Sam, is still into comic books so he meets up with 2 kooky brothers (The Frog Brothers) who run a comic book shop for their hippie parents and they’re constantly pushing Vampire comics on him, he wants none of it, but ultimately, he gives in because they say it could save his life. It doesn’t take long before Sam starts noticing Michael’s lifestyle choices and changes are like what he’s reading in the Vamp comics. Shenanigans ensue when Sam enlists the help of the Frog Brothers going as far to seek out their lair and they’re strapped with stakes, holy water etc. The boys find the lair (a cave) and stake the smallest vampire and then they must haul ass out of the cave to save their skin. The boys know full well the rest of the gang are coming after them at sundown, so they head back to Pawpaw’s place and proceed to ready themselves for a fight with the undead. Bathtubs filled with garlic and Holy Water, stakes and water guns also filled with Holy Water are just a few of their tools. The boys are right the gang comes after them with furious anger hellbent on vengeance. This is when the one liners, cheesiness and hilariousness in the film really starts to come to life. “We just nailed one that looked like Twisted Sister” “Holy shit it’s the attack of Eddie Munster”! and my favorite “Death by Stereo”… I don’t like to give spoilers, so I won’t just in case there’s someone who hasn’t seen the movie.

At the time, The Lost Boys was packed with the who’s who in the acting world – Corey Haim, Corey Feldman, Jami Gertz, Keifer Sutherland, Jason Patric and Alex Winter just to name a few. There are also a few legends in the movie - Dianne Wiest and Edward Herrmann, specifically. Wiest was brilliant! I’ve watched the movie repeatedly over the years, it never gets old. But again, I was 12 when it was released, so it’s near and dear. Pound for pound it’s the best Vampire movie of the 80’s next to Fright Night in my opinion.

Also included in this set are the 2^nd and 3^rd installments of the Lost Boys series. If you’ve seen these, you know what we’re dealing with here – made for TV, B-movies. I’m not saying they’re not good, they are, and they have their place in the Lost Boys universe. The original movie deserved for the story be expanded and built upon. The issue with these is they came to late – way too late! “The Tribe” wasn’t released until 2008. This should’ve happened in ‘91 at the latest. The film suffers from the lack of actors from the original movie, the only one who shows up is Corey Feldman and while he can hold his own, it should’ve been the Corey’s because without Haim, Feldman doesn’t have the same machismo and appeal. The story also suffers a bit because they don’t pull any of the previous story lines in and the plot is a bit silly, even for me. Keifer Sutherland’s brother, Angus Sutherland, does get his turn to be a Vampire here, but his acting is awful and his character is lifeless, no pun intended. Part 3 is called “The Thirst”, this one is a bit better than part 2, the acting still suffers due to b/c grade actors/actresses but Feldman’s character in this one and the storyline surrounding him, and his brother Edgar is a nice twist. There’s also a bit more humor and tongue in cheek moments within the movie and it doesn’t feel as much like an amateur porno the way part 2 did. I enjoyed this one a good bit and I’ve watched it a few more times.

Overall, this Steelbook is a must own if you’re a fan of The Lost Boys and it’s every bit as nice as the Best Buy 4k edition as it features the same cut and for a fraction of the price it cost, you get the 2^nd and 3^rd installments which are worth a watch when you have a bit of time to waste. If you sit down and watch all 3 back-to-back it makes for a really good time, that’s what we did and we had a blast! I do wonder why Hollywood didn’t capitalize on the popularity of the original movie and push harder for a part 2 in the early 90’s. I’m sure if the powers that be would’ve signed off on it, we would’ve had several more legit movies from the franchise. As it stands this is all we have and Corey Haim is no longer with us, so a big budget re-do is out of the question. I’ve heard tell there’s going to be a remake, but I’m not going to waste a second of my time watching it. You can’t mess with the Lost Boys, it’s sacred, it’s a glimpse into a land where you’ll never grow old and you’ll never die, but you must FEED!!