A sequel to The Lost Boys has apparently been on the cards for a long while; and now, twenty one years after the release of the original, we've finally got one. Ironically, however, if this film were released without the 'Lost Boys' title, it would probably have gone down as a decent modern vampire flick; but the film has given itself too much to live up to, and it really never had a chance of doing justice to the 1987 horror classic. The film went direct to video, which is never a good sign and its cheap look and lack of original ideas ensures that it justifies this release; although on its own merits, The Lost Boys 2 is actually not too bad a film. The plot focuses on a brother and sister that move to Luna Bay after the death of their parents. The brother was once a successful surfer who got kicked off the circuit for beating someone up, and due to that it doesn't take the siblings long to get in with the local surfer crowd. However, it's not long before they realise that the surfer crowd are actually vampires and when the sister falls for the head vampire, the brother has to act fast to save her.
The story that the film is based on is clearly a direct rip-off of the original Lost Boys with only some minor character changes, although it is at least interesting. The direct to video feel is seen throughout, however, and this film never manages to capture the essence that made the original film great. Director P.J. Pesce does try, however, and does this mainly through bringing back Cory Feldman to reprise his role as one half of the vampire hunting Frog Brothers from the original film. Feldman's performance is a crowd pleaser and he has some amusing lines; but to be honest, if it was for the ties with the original; everyone would simply say he's irritating and unneeded (strangely, Jamison Newlander also gets a credit as the other Frog brother, despite seemingly not being in the film). Also in the film is Kiefer Sutherland's brother Angus who is actually one of the best things about it. Sadly, Cory Haim only appears after the credits have rolled. The first two thirds of the movie are really good; but things start to degenerate a bit as we get closer to the end which is a shame. Overall, The Lost Boys 2 has nothing on the original, but it's not as bad as its reputation suggests and is at least worth a look.
