20 awesome ’80s movies you should totally see before you die

18. The Lost Boys (1987)

Director Joel Schumacher proved to be way ahead of the curve when he helmed this tale of two brothers, Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam (Corey Haim), who move to a picturesque California town that happens to be crawling with vampires.

There are no witches, no werewolves, and very few deviations from traditional vamp folklore. They can’t go out in daylight, holy water hurts like hell, a stake to the heart always does the trick and they crave blood — human blood. But gone are the ghoulish likes of Bella Lugosi. The Lost Boys gives audiences young hot vampires to lust over.

Kiefer Sutherland (24) plays Michael, the head of a group of vampires who are looking to expand their ranks. Enter Michael, who is drawn to half-vamp, half-mortal Star (Jamie Gertz). One thing leads to another, and it’s up to Sam to save his brother from becoming a blood-sucking creature of the night.

There is a ton of gore, a bit of mystery, and The Lost Boys manages to be scary without crossing the line into campy.

Dianne Wiest (Hannah and Her Sisters) nails it as Michael and Sam’s clueless but concerned single mom. Further lending the film some pedigree is Edward Herrmann a five-time Emmy nominee who many readers know as the gruff but loving patriarch, Richard Gilmore, on Gilmore Girls.

Another notable cast member is Corey Feldman who, along with Haim, was a huge ’80s heart throb. Feldman reprises his role as vampire hunter Edgar Frog in the direct-to-DVD sequel, Lost Boys: The Tribe.