Lost Boys vs Monster Squad: Showdown of 80s Teen Horror Films

A group of children are forced to fight evil together. The Lost Boys and The Monster Squad were both released within two weeks of each other in 1987.

I didn't see either film in the theater when they were released, but in the decades since, each has been hugely formative to me. The Lost Boys has a comic-book wit and A-list actors. I like The Monster Squad for its love of the monster genre, spot-on casting, and sense of cool.

Which one do I like more? I couldn't tell. It is possible that it is The Lost Boys because it is on TV a lot. I watched the film to see how it regained cultural relevancy. It is time to make a decision. I'm trying to decide between The Lost Boys or The Monster Squad, so I'm pitting them against each other.

The Lost Boys tells the story of two brothers and their recently divorced mother who move to a coastal California town and discover that it's crawling with Vampires. The vampire tried to get the family to join them.

A group of friends find an old book that tells them the world will end soon. They have to team up to fight the monsters to save the world.

The fact that The Monster Squad kids battle actual famous monsters instead of random sexy Vampires gives it an edge.

There is a point to The Monster squad.

Some of the most famous monsters in history include the Wolfman, the Creature, and the Mummy. It would be difficult to beat that.

The villains in The Lost Boys became famous because of the film. David, his three friends, and head vampire Max, the gang's seemingly kind but secretly deadly matriarch, are always remembered.

The Lost Boys created their own villains instead of just casting them.

The lost boys point.

The Lost Boys is famous for being the first time that the movie starred two people. Sam and Edgar are two of the main characters in the film. They are joined by Michael. A good team.

Sean, Patrick, Eugene, Michael Faustino, Horace, and Rudy are members of the Monster squad. Rudy is out-cooled by The Lost Boys team. Throw in the fact that a girl plays an active role in the movie and it's no contest.

The monster squad is the point.

You can't talk about 1980s movies without talking about music. Michael Sembello's "Rock Until You Drop" is one of the highlights of The Monster Squad, but it's not the only one.

"People Are Strange," "Lost in the Shadows," "Cry Little Sister," and "I Still Believe" are some of the best films of all time. It's a blow out.

The lost boys point.

I don't think The Lost Boys has any "catch phrases" There are lots of famous words. There were a lot of great conversations. The deliveries were memorable. "Wolfman's got nards" from The Monster Squad is the closest thing to it. If you haven't seen the movie, that's one you'll probably hear before.

The monster squad is the point.

Both The Lost Boys and The Monster Squad have fan bases. 35 years later we still talk about each film. Like The Lost Boys, The Monster Squad had to build up a fan base over many years. Monster Squad fans have a kinship with each other that is different from Lost Boys fans.

The monster squad is the point.

One thing is enough for fans to love something. People who aren't obsessive fans think the same thing as society as a whole. The Lost Boys was an immediate hit and made over $30 million against its $9 million budget. The Monster Squad only made $4 million against a $12 million budget, but it was an initial failure. That's really bad.

The Lost Boys take this category because of that. The people loved it from the beginning. It has a cast and crew that is better known today than it was back in the day. They keep the film fresh in the minds of fans and non-fans.

Hollywood tries to remake The Lost Boys. Are you talking about a monster squad? It's not much.

The lost boys point.

Both The Lost Boys and The Monster Squad were fun adventures in the 80's. Even though they both have laughs, that is not really of concern because The Monster Squad has more so thanks to the script written by Black. It is concerning how close each movie is to being horrible.

The Monster Squad has some great practical effects, like the head on a bat body and instances of characters cursing at children. The villains in the third act are frightening. The Lost Boys has all of that and more. The vampire POV shots in which the camera seems to be flying through the air and the use of shadows in the final battle make for some real terror and jump scares.

The lost boys point.

This category is very close to my heart. The characters in The Lost Boys and The Monster Squad were nerds, which is why I loved them so much when I was a kid. Geeks were cool before they became nerds.

The Frog Brothers meet Sam in their family's comic book store. Everyone talks about Superman. I had never seen that in a movie before. The Monster Squad kids are in trouble for drawing monsters at school and have their own club house. These were kids that I wanted to be like, and I already was, so that was a big part of my love for them.

Which one is better? I believe you have to go with The Monster Squad. They bond over their love of monsters because they will have to defeat them. The Frog Brothers don't care about comic books.

The monster squad is the point.

I was surprised by this. The Monster Squad is the 35-year-old film that I love the most, according to the narrow win. That is not a slight against the boys. I am a huge fan of the Lost Boys. It seems like The Monster squad spoke to me more. Are you in agreement?