The Boys Next Door (1985)

[7]

Charlie Sheen and Maxwell Caulfield (Grease 2) star as high school graduates who take a weekend car trip to L.A. where they start a killing spree. Sheen’s character slowly begins to wrestle with his lingering empathy, while Caulfield’s grows more homicidal. The film heads toward a climax where the boys turn on each other while the cops are hot on their tails.

The Boys Next Door is directed by Penelope Spheeris (Suburbia) and retains some of her edgy, punk filmmaking quality. Her voyeuristic and fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants nature of the storytelling are among the movie’s strengths. Sheen and Caulfield give strong performances and there are a few genuinely unsettling scenes, especially after the boys accidentally enter a gay bar and end up going home with one of the customers. Screenwriters Glen Morgan and James Wong (The X-Files, Final Destination) have Caulfield’s character begin to seduce the oblivious man before ultimately murdering him. A later scene sees Caulfield go into another rage after he sees Sheen making love to a female stranger.

Spheeris and the writers seem to be indicating an explanation for Caulfield’s violent tendencies, and self-hatred for same-sex feelings is certainly cause for a schizophrenic snap. But I may be one of few who read into the movie like this. The Boys Next Door really isn’t too obvious in its explanation for the boys’ behavior, despite a ‘ripped from the headlines’ prologue that promises illumination. On one hand, I like that the film doesn’t spoonfeed. But on the other, the subtext is so meaningful and fascinating, I wish it went further.

With Christopher McDonald.