365 Days- Day 64

Movie: Lost Boys 3 The Thirst
starring: Corey Feldman, Jamison Newlander
genre: Horror
year: 2010
format: DVD

plot: Edgar Frog is hired by a wealthy female author who writes teen vampire stories, to rescue her brother from a head vampire. She tells him that this is the ultimate first vampire, and if he manages to kill this vampire, all others will die with him. Edgar turns to his brother Allan, who is now a vampire himself, for help as well as a female friend who works at the local book store. Before long though, they are joined by a reality star hired by the author. They manage to locate the vampire's lair, but not everything is as it's suppose to be. The hunters find themselves neck deep in a trap and face to face with the head vampire.

This is the final (that I'm aware of) movie in the Lost Boys series. And I have to say, this one stacks up a lot better then the second one in the series. This even uses scenes from the original movie to tie the storyline together.

I liked that they brought the elements from the first movie of having the comic book store, and showing someone continuing the idea of taxidermy. (though not my favourite thing, but good to see they brought that from the first movie)

what do i think i learned from this film? Impalement is always the best way to go, specially when you stab the heart. That and don't dismiss comics, they have a lot of good advice.

365 Days- Day 63

movie: The Lost Boys 2 Tribe
starring: Corey Feldman, Tad Hilgenbrink
genre: Comedy,Thriller
year: 2008
format: DVD

plot: The Emerson kids find themselves in a small surfing town after the death of their parents. Unfortunately for them, the town is also the hot spot for a group of vampires, lead by two of Chris' old surfing rivals. It doesn't take long before the head vampire decides to seduce Chris's sister, in hopes of building his family.

I've gone back and forth over the years on this film. It has it's moments, most of which are when Feldman is on screen. But it's got a lot of dragging in it too.
The original Lost Boys, was a movie that affected my life on so many levels, so when I first heard about this sequel I was beyond thrilled.  The first time I saw it, I was so disappointed that I nearly turned the tv off.  I think I've watched this sequel maybe five times in the last six years. And each time, something different either delights me or makes me want to break the tv.
There are so many elements from the original that are rebooted in this film, and I think that is actually one of the weaknesses. Had they taken one strong element from the original and spent all their energy on doing it properly, instead of trying to remake everything plus the kitchen sink, it would have been a better offering.

what do i think i learned from this film?
The original points that made the first movie so good, were about family and fitting in, but this one doesn't really seem to have a solid point to it. It tries to be about family but in the end it falls way short. 
I don't think I learned much from this on this showing. Who knows, maybe next time I'll get something more out of it?

365 Days- Day 62

Movie: The Lost Boys
starring: Corey Feldman, Corey Haim
genre: Horror, Comedy,
year: 1987
format: DVD

plot: Sam and Micheal move with their mother after she gets a divorce. To their horror, they have moved to what seems to be the murder capital of the west coast, as hundreds of people are either dead or missing in the small sea side town. Soon, both boys have made some new friends, Micheal has been hanging around a group of teenaged bikers, and Sam a couple of guys who work in their parent's comic book store. They soon find out that neither is really what they first appear to be. Micheal's new gang are actually a group of blood sucking vampires and Sam's buddies are the hunters that are set to kill them. Meanwhile, their mom ends up dating the head vampire.

Cult classic!
There is so much to say about this film, but at the same time nothing to say because it's all been said a million times over the last twenty plus years.

What at first seems like just another teen horror film from the 80's, is more a discussion on finding the truth about yourself, and how far you are willing to go to learn it. (as seen in the classic line uttered by David "How far are you willing to go Micheal?" )

What do i think i learned from this film?
I think the film fits better of what have I not learned from it?  This movie single handedly changed the way I think, act, breathe for that matter.

Feb 21st

Just a short note.  I realize I missed both Tuesday and Wednesday this week on the 365 Days challenge. (and tonight as well) And the reason is I'm not home this week (spending a week with mother)  and do  not have access to my vampire collection. 
I thought that maybe I'd have access to episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer at lest, but it doesn't look like it.   I'll be back home in a few days and back to the challenge (most likely Monday)  and will have a couple of days of "marathons"  next week.

In the meantime, I took over my mother's kitchen yesterday and did a post on my movie blog that is connected to Lost Boys.  

Playing catch up

There was a situation that I blogged about on my main blog last week.  (Ardeth the Vampire Detective)
That got me thinking about a few things.  Add to this that I just did a book review for work on my book blog, that was in my mind a vampire story. 

On the weekend, I had a coffee with a member of my book club, and we talked about vampire and zombie books.  The ever growing trends and what we have liked in the past vs what we've hated.

All this has me getting very nostalgic over my old ... way of life.  Put it bluntly,  I miss my vampires.

It was more then a hobby for me (collecting movies, books, posters, etc) , more then a job (studying the medical and psychological elements along with the folklore), more then a state of mind.  It was me. 

This morning I broke out the collection.  All three movies of Lost Boys and have been sitting down just absorbing.

I have long since stopped paying attention to the one thing in my life that used to be the core of it.  I keep promising myself, that I will return to it.   Bear with me as I try to maneuver through the next few stages of things.  My writing/book reviews + wrestling + food + vampires = chaos.   But a full expression of myself.

The Lost Boys

In 1987 a movie came out that changed the whole framework of how a vampire was seen. It became a cult classic on so many levels.

Thanks in part of the popularity of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles  vampire fans had something fresh to sink their teeth into, and they wanted their movies to reflect that.

The Lost Boys  served up the vampire as a young, hip, journey of teenaged confusion masked in a wrap of peer pressure and rock n roll.
The catch phrase of that year was "sleep all day, party all night, never grow old, never die it's fun being a vampire"
Many films and books tried to copy the formula that made Edgar, Allan - the Frog Brothers- and their friend Sam so cool, but just could not hack it.

It would take 20 years for a sequel to show up.  With promises of bringing a new generation of fans to the edge of cultism.

Unfortunately, 20 years was just a bit long.  Even die hard fans were left with a bad taste in our mouths.

Even given the addition of Kiefer Sutherlands'  younger brother -Angus- as the lead vampire, it just did not do much for the fans who'd waited and waited and waited.

The 2008 offering was a nightmare not a dream come true.



Seeing the error of their mistake (total quote from the original Buffy movie here) the producers went back to the drawing board and came up with another offering.

This one picks up 20 years after the first one, with only a slight nod to few themes used in the second film, giving fans a more stable offering with the return of the Frog Brothers.

The only real thread that ties the three films together would be Corey Feldman, who starred in all three as head vampire hunter Edgar Frog.

Some would say the first and third offerings foreshadowed Feldman's career.   The first saw him paired off with Corey Haim, who would gone on to co-star in close to 80% of the movies Feldman put out over the years, and the third film sees Haim's character of Sam Emerson, as having died; which ironically was filmed around the same time as the death of the actor in real life.

There was a tease at the end of the LBThirst, giving a nod to a secluded quote in the first film about werewolves in office, that there might be a fourth LostBoys.  It would be interesting to see what they could do with another creature.


Plot: Two brothers, Sam and Michael, move with their mother to Santa Carla, to live with their grandfather.  While out one night, Michael meets Starr and forms a crush. Starr, to his disappointment is already seeing David, and part of his biker gang. Meanwhile, Sam heads to the comic book store where he meets Edgar and Allan Frog, who believe in the monsters they read about. Sam's mother gets a job working at a video store owned by Max, who no one ever sees in the day. Soon bodies are piling up, and the boys are finding themselves pit against each other brother against brother, vampire against hunter.  Will they be able to survive or will they all become one big happy blood sucking family? Twenty years later, Sam has fallen into the same fate his brother had, while Edgar is still hunting vampires. Sam's younger cousins move to the area and find themselves at the mercy of a vampire gang. The leader who happens to have been the best surfer in the last few years, and Chris Emerson's old surfing rival. Who's got the skill to stay on top, and who's going to end up deader then dead?
A year later, Edgar Frog gets hired by an author who writes vamp-pop-lit. She wants him to find her brother and kill the vampire who is holding him. Edgar having found himself alone and broke has no choice but to take the gig. What he finds underground is a rave of innocent victims and the Head Vampire, whom he's been hunting for years. Will he make it out and save the world?