The Lost Boys - 1987

You may not know this about me, but I loved vampires when I was younger. I was a huge fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, both the series and the movie. I think it all stemmed from The Lost Boys. It’s one of those movies that I really liked when I was young, but for some reason didn’t carry on into adulthood. The film is about a newly divorce mother and her two teenage boys moving to the Santa Clarita, California. Even though it’s a nice coastal town there is definitely something amiss. The town is overrun with drugs, missing people and troublesome youth, some whom turn out to be vampires. The film famously stars the two Coreys, Haim and Feldman, as well as a young Kiefer Sutherland. 

Since it’s from the 80s, it really reminded me of my childhood and I loved that nostalgia. Corey Haim is actually really good in this movie and he is the epitome of an 80s kid brother. He’s got the brightly colored wardrobe (that I was obsessed with), the cool attractive older brother and he loves comic books. I didn’t know this film was directed by Joel Schumacher but it was very apparent during this viewing. There’s some weird editing and some even weirder placed eroticism in scenes that definitely didn’t need it. He also plays the song Cry Little Sister over and over and it gets a bit tiresome after a while. I did like the other Corey, as a humorously militant vampire hunter. He was so earnest and believable as only a teenage boy can be. Sutherland’s performance as the antagonist was great, and his character is so iconic. Lost Boys isn’t the greatest vampire movie I’ve ever seen, but it’s definitely a lot of fun. 

The Addams Family - 1991

One of my favorite movies from the 90s is Addams Family Values. It’s one of the rare sequels that is really memorable and watchable. I rewatched it multiple times and felt a strong connection to Wednesday Addams. Despite all the rewatching of Addams Family Values, I didn’t do the same for its predecessor. I actually didn’t remember it very well and was happy to watch it again this year. 

The Addams Family is based off the illustrated characters created by Charles Addams. The macabre and bizarre titular family are definitely iconic and have been remade into many different films, cartoons and shows. The 1990 version was directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and focuses on the family reuniting with their long lost Uncle Fester. I really liked this film, not as much as Addams Family Values, but it’s a lot of fun. I love Raul Julia and Angelica Huston as Gomez and Mortecia Addams. Julia is so over the top, but not in a hokey way, and Raul will always be my Gomez. There’s something so enjoyable about this series. It’s dark comedy at its finest as only the 90s can deliver.

Phantasm - 1979

Phantasm is an independent horror film from the 70s and the first in the franchise. The film takes place in a small town and focuses on a teenage boy, his brother and friends as they encounter a supernatural foe known as The Tallman who is killing off locals and wreaking havoc on the town. 

Not sure if you can tell from my previous reviews, but I’m not the biggest fan of 70s films. I’m sad to say it, but Phantasm also falls into this category. The pacing of the film is really slow and there are a lot of weird shots and odd choices that don’t sit well with me. Not much happens for the first half and it only gets interesting around 37 minutes into the film. For me, that’s way too long. The acting is very stiff, awkward and unnatural. The character development is fairly weak and you don’t feel a connection to any of the leads. They’re all two dimensional and the relationship between the two brothers is never really solidified. The only interesting character is the Tall Man played by Angus Scrimm. He’s barely in the film and only has a few lines. Apparently, he has a huge cult following and his character is fleshed out in the following sequels. Unfortunately for me, I didn’t like this film enough to want to watch the rest.