Family and 'The Lost Boys'

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer notes that the family plays a large role in horror films. The way that family is depicted in movies usually reflects the typical family makeup of that particular time period. The writer discusses that the 1987 vampire film 'The Lost Boys' echoes the time period by featuring a single parent family, and it ascertains that because of the economic adversity and the damaging effects of divorce on children single parent families are not an ideal situation. The writer maintains that 'The Lost Boys' uses the family situation of the 1980s to promote families that stay together. The writer then concludes that 'The Lost Boys' goes beyond just reflecting the time period by warning of the effects of divorce and advocating a traditional nuclear family.

From the Paper:

"The family in The Lost Boys centers around a single parent household run by the mother, Lucy. She has two teenage sons, Michael and Sam. Divorced and struggling financially, she moves the three of them to Santa Carla, California to live with her father. Michael meets a group in town quickly. Slowly both Michael and Sam realize that there is more to this gang of boys than they imagined. Not only are they vampires, but they have made Michael a vampire as well. To save his brother, Sam recruits two vampire hunters to help them in their attempt to kill the head vampire.
"The Lost Boys asserts that children are harmed by divorce and are better served by living in a strong established family environment."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Mahony, Rhona. Divorce, Nontraditional Families, and its Consequences for Children. 12 Nov. 2006 <http://www.stanford.edu/~rmahony/Divorce.html>
• Moen, Phyllis. "Unemployment, Public Policy, and Families: Forecasts for the 1980s." Journal of Marriage and the Family 45 (1983): 751-60
• Norton, Arthur J. "One Parent Families: A Social and Economic Profile." Family Relations 35 (1986): 9-17
• Spergel, Irving A. "Youth Gangs: Continuity and Change." Crime and Justice 12 (1990): 171-295
• The Lost Boys. Dir. Joel Shumacher. Perf. Corey Haim and Jason Patric. Warner Brothers, 1987.

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