Lost Boys: The Tribe (2008) (V)

Director:

P.J. Pesce

Writers:

Janice Fischer (characters) &
James Jeremias (characters) ...

Release Date:

29 July 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Never grow old. Never die. Never know fear again.

Plot:

The orphan and former surfer Chris Emerson and his sister Nicole Emerson move to Luna Bay expecting...

Plot Keywords:

Vampire | Trailer | Blood | Vampire Hunter | Party

Cast

Tad Hilgenbrink	...	Chris (as Tad Hilgenbrinck)
Angus Sutherland	...	Shane
Autumn Reeser	...	Nicole
Gabrielle Rose	...	Aunt Jillian
Corey Feldman	...	Edgar Frog
Shaun Sipos	...	Kyle
Merwin Mondesir	...	Erik
Kyle Cassie	...	Jon
Moneca Delain	...	Lisa
Greyston Holt	...	Evan
Tom Savini	...	David Van Etten
Daryl Shuttleworth	...	McGraw
Sarah Smyth	...	Hayden
P.J. Pesce	...	Italian Motorcyclist
Alexander Calvert	...	Grom

Also Known As:

Lost Boys 2: The Tribe (Australia)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong vampire violence and gore, language, sexuality and some drug use.

Runtime:

92 min | 94 min (uncut version)

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (Approved #44157) | Singapore:R21 | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-18 | Australia:R (2008) | Netherlands:16 | South Africa:18LNPS | Australia:R | New Zealand:R18 | UK:18 | Ireland:18 (DVD rating) | Norway:15 (TV rating) | Canada:18A (Canadian Home Video rating) (uncut version) | USA:Not Rated (uncut version)

Filming Locations:

Malibu, California, USA

Company:

Warner Premiere

Trivia:

Corey Haim and Corey Feldman are the only cast members from the The Lost Boys (1987) to return.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Nichole sleeps with Shane, he removes her red bra. The breasts are covered with white pads. Shortly after this, a white bra is visible on the actress as well.

Quotes:

Edgar Frog: Do you smell that? It smells like death and fungus. It's Vampire BO.

Movie Connections:

References The Goonies (1985)

Soundtrack:

Dizzy

A surprisingly enjoyable sequel to the 80s vamp classic.

Hands up who thought that The Lost Boys: The Tribe was gonna blow big-time.

Yeah, me too.... but the good news is that, although nowhere near on a par with the 80s original, The Tribe is still an enjoyable ride that remains true to the spirit of its predecessor: it's tongue is firmly in cheek, the vampires are cool (and once again make being undead look like a viable option), the characters are likable, and, best of all, Corey Feldman returns as comic-book-loving vampire hunter Edgar Frog.

The film opens with a group of young surfers breaking into the grounds of an exclusive beach-front property for a spot of late night wave action, only to be confronted by the landowner, a rather miffed vampire (played by FX legend Tom Savini). However, rather than ending up as vamp fodder, the surfers reveal that they too are bloodsuckers, and proceed to tear off the rich vamp's head and use it for a spot of football practice. Now I don't know about you, but any film that begins with Tom Savini having his noggin bloodily removed and kicked into his pool gets my full attention (and admiration)!

After this gory introduction, it's into the story proper, which sees a pair of orphaned teenage siblings, ex-surfer Chris (Tad Hilgenbrink) and his hottie sister Nicole (Autumn Reeser), experiencing vampire trouble after going to to stay with their aunt in Santa Carla (which, as we all know, is a haven for the pale of skin and pointy of tooth): Nicole is seduced by head vamp Shane (Angus Sutherland, Kiefer's half-brother) and becomes a half-vampire, and it is up to her older brother to save her from eternal youth and all-night partying (I said this film made vampirism seem appealing, didn't I!).

As you can probably tell, the plot ain't exactly groundbreaking, being not much more than a reworking of the original film, but this matters not: there is still plenty of fun to be had, with some nice in-jokes (the fat shirtless Sax player was priceless!), sexy shenanigans with one hell of a horny undead babe who takes a shine to Chris, and the inevitable showdown at the end, which sees Edgar breaking out his full arsenal of vampire-slaying weapons for the occasion.

It would be easy to dismiss this STV effort as a cheap cash-in on a cult favourite (it is definitely a shame that a sequel to such a great 80s classic didn't get a bigger budget and a major release); however, if you approach The Tribe with an open mind and without prejudice, then there's a good chance you'll find much to like about it. I did, and I look forward to further installments (although I don't want to wait 20 years between films: after all, I'm still mortal!).

6.5 out of 10, rounded up to 7 for IMDb.