The Lost Boys

Tinman · Oct 20, 2012

Warning! Spoiler Alert!

I just watched The Lost Boys -- the one with Jason Patrick and Keifer Sutherland. It's one of my favorite vampire movies, but there's a big plot hole at the end. If you've seen it, you know the grandpa shows up and crashes his truck through the living room wall, apparently backwards because the pointed logs fly through the wall skewering the vampires. He does this for no known reason. To me, it doesn't detract from the movie and it's barely noticeable.

Now my question: do you think it's easier to get away with something like this in a movie? With a novel, there are only two ways of dealing with it (assuming you have to leave the plot hole for some reason): you can do like in the movie and ignore it; or you can draw attention to it, writing something like, It was unbelievable, but grandpa arrived at just that moment and mistook the accelerator pedal for the brake, crashing through the wall. Well, you get the point.

What do you think?

ASC McLaren · Oct 20, 2012

I figured when grandpa said something to the effect of "The only thing wrong with Santa Clara is all the damn vampires!" and everyone looks at him gob smacked for not disclosing this gem sooner; that filled the hole of which you speak.

Tinman · Oct 20, 2012

I don't really think so. If it wasn't an accident, how did Grandpa know the vampire was there? And if he was going fast enough to crash through the wall and propel the fence posts forward hard enough to impale the vampire, how did he know the vampire was standing in just the right place in the living room? Lol. Maybe I'm overthinking it.

FOTSGreg · Oct 20, 2012

Grandpa's statement reveals it all. He's known all along. He's not quite the doddering old fool he's portrayed (or portrays himself as) all along. In fact, Grandpa might be the reason there aren't more vampires around. Could be there's a much deeper story buried there...

Tinman · Oct 21, 2012

FOTSGreg said:
Grandpa's statement reveals it all. He's known all along. He's not quite the doddering old fool he's portrayed (or portrays himself as) all along. In fact, Grandpa might be the reason there aren't more vampires around. Could be there's a much deeper story buried there...

Lol @ Greg. I didn't think of that. The two Corey's might even be in his employ as Vampire Killers.

Rhoda Nightingale · Oct 21, 2012

Grampa Knows All. He's had the drop on them the whole time. Just watch his face when Max shows up--he sneaks back into the taxidermy room with this look like, "Fuck, not another one."

ASC McLaren · Oct 21, 2012

Rhoda Nightingale said:
Grampa Knows All. He's had the drop on them the whole time. Just watch his face when Max shows up--he sneaks back into the taxidermy room with this look like, "Fuck, not another one."

I always attributed that one to the look any father gives a guy intent in banging his daughter but I think you may be right.

Alessandra Kelley · Oct 22, 2012

Didn't Grandpa spend much of the movie glowering and sharpening fence posts into stakes?

He clearly knew what was going on and kept it to himself until the end.

Tinman · Oct 23, 2012

Alessandra Kelley said:
Didn't Grandpa spend much of the movie glowering and sharpening fence posts into stakes?

The posts have to be pointed to drive them into the ground. Some wooden fence posts are already shaped that way when you buy them.

Obviously he knew about the vampires, but I still don't see ramming my pickup through the living room wall, even if I know a vampire is inside; he could be anywhere in the house, including upstairs.

I'm not calling any of you guys for help if my house ever becomes infested with blood suckers. "Well, we didn't kill any of the vampires, but the good news is all the vampires left. The bad news is we destroyed your house." lol

Vaulted · Oct 24, 2012

Sorry, I never made it past the shirtless saxophone player 8)

Tinman · Oct 25, 2012

Vaulted said:
Sorry, I never made it past the shirtless saxophone player 8)

Lol! I can understand that. But then you must've missed the part where Star (Jami Gertz) strips and runs topless on the beach.

Vaulted · Oct 25, 2012

Tinman said:
Lol! I can understand that. But then you must've missed the part where Star (Jami Gertz) strips and runs topless on the beach.

I think sax guy must've somehow cancelled out the boobies in my memory. Maybe his were bigger?

Tinman · Oct 25, 2012

Vaulted said:
I think sax guy must've somehow cancelled out the boobies in my memory. Maybe his were bigger?

Sorry. I was telling a friend about it and he said Jami Gertz doesn't go topless in the movie. Guess it was a dream or wishful thinking on my part. Or maybe it was from the porn version of the movie--The Lust Boys lol.

Jcomp · Oct 26, 2012

Tinman said:
Now my question: do you think it's easier to get away with something like this in a movie? With a novel, there are only two ways of dealing with it (assuming you have to leave the plot hole for some reason): you can do like in the movie and ignore it; or you can draw attention to it, writing something like, It was unbelievable, but grandpa arrived at just that moment and mistook the accelerator pedal for the brake, crashing through the wall. Well, you get the point.

What do you think?

I think it depends on the tone of the story. Even as a movie, The Lost Boys gets away with it in part because it overall doesn't come off as a grim, "serious" horror film. If a film like Near Dark had tried that ending it would've been groan-inducing. With The Lost Boys it feels like it's all part of the fun.

I also think that it is a little easier to get away with this in a film, because you always have the execution of the visual that helps win the audience over. As others have pointed out, the grandfather crashing into the house was intentional, but it still is ridiculously unlikely that the stakes just happen to ram straight into the vampire and miss everyone else. But with a movie, if the visual is executed well enough and looks cool enough, people can be more willing to forgive something like that. With a novel, all you have are the words, and I don't know if an excellent description alone is enough to get readers to overlook something like that.

Tinman · Oct 26, 2012

Jcomp said:
I think it depends on the tone of the story. Even as a movie, The Lost Boys gets away with it in part because it overall doesn't come off as a grim, "serious" horror film. If a film like Near Dark had tried that ending it would've been groan-inducing. With The Lost Boys it feels like it's all part of the fun.

Jcomp. I never thought of it that way, but everything you say makes sense, especially the fact that Lost Boys was a fun film. I guess different movies do require differing levels of suspension of disbelief. Thanks.

The Lost Boys

Tinman

ASC McLaren

Intended for mature audiences

Tinman

FOTSGreg

Today is your last day.

Tinman

Rhoda Nightingale

Vampire Junkie

ASC McLaren

Intended for mature audiences

Alessandra Kelley

Sophipygian

Tinman

Vaulted

Must try harder.

Tinman

Vaulted

Must try harder.

Tinman

Jcomp

Tinman