David Champion
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Connections, in both directions
Herein lies the beginning of innumerable era-appropriate comparisons to Spielberg’s E.T., Stephen King/Rob Reiner’s Stand by Me, and Chris Columbus/Richard Donner’s The Goonies, to name just a few.
Clearly, there are touches of “Poltergeist” and “The Goonies” baked into the idea, as well as “The Fury,” Brian De Palma’s 1978 psychic thriller.
…they ride out into the night streets on their bicycles (a touch of the Goonies and Stand by Me springs to mind)…
Their entire dynamic is undoubtedly inspired by the likes of The Goonies and E.T…
…taps into a potent nostalgia for ’80s-era, kid-friendly supernatural thrillers like The Goonies and E.T.
With its themes of adventure and mystery, this supernatural sensation hearkens back to beloved 80s’ films like E.T or The Goonies, and anyone who’s been missing the magic of youngster escapades will undoubtedly find it here.
“They’re here.” – the obvious but direct reference certainly plays into the Poltergeist vibes of the season.
It opens with a terrifying Demogorgon attack that evokes one of the most memorable scenes in Poltergeist and immediately puts three long-time characters in mortal jeopardy.
This season draws heavily from Poltergeist and Mad Max Thunderdome, while getting back to the spirit of adventure.
Clearly, there are touches of “Poltergeist” and “The Goonies” baked into the idea, as well as “The Fury,” Brian De Palma’s 1978 psychic thriller.
It’s a bit that visually and emotionally pulls you toward the familiar—Poltergeist, the final scene from Close Encounters of the Third Kind—but at the same time is so distinctly its own thing.
Luckily, for those seeking the kind of action/horror adventure Poltergeist provided, Stranger Things generally delivers in sufficiently large amounts. Whether it’s family friendly is something parents must decide, but for guidance, sex and violence are more often hinted at than shown, gore is minimal, and the nightmare-inducement level is probably right around that Poltergeist mark.
The latest season of The X-Files, at times, just made me sad.
You will find hints of The X-Files in the plot thread about the inscrutable girl and the figures from the research facility who seem to be pursuing her.
But it’s also inspired by modern-day references such as The X-Files and Super 8.
…government conspiracies, straight out of The X-Files…
Perhaps the most satisfying is classic Steven Spielberg meets Chris Carter’s “The X-Files”.
…with moments of unseen creatures and strange abductions that would feel right at home in an episode of The X-Files.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
influenced Stranger Things (2016)
Visuals Themes
…we’re in Close Encounters of the Third Kind territory, as freaky power surges light up the night sky.
It’s the PG-rated ’80s movie that would land a PG-13 today — your “Jaws,” “Indiana Jones,” and, yes, “E.T.” and 1977’s “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.”
It’s a bit that visually and emotionally pulls you toward the familiar—Poltergeist, the final scene from Close Encounters of the Third Kind—but at the same time is so distinctly its own thing.
One sequence in particular - featuring Ryder’s Joyce, an empty house, and a bounty of Christmas fairy lights - is especially affecting, evoking a goose-bumping sense of splendour-from-normality powerful enough to stand side by side with anything in Close Encounters or Poltergeist, but without for a second paying homage.
…cómo disfrutamos con E.T., Los Goonies o Encuentros en la tercera fase…
You see the influences of Spielberg’s “E.T.” and “Close Encounters”…
Basically, it felt like an homage to “Super 8,” J.J. Abrams’ homage to Spielberg; an homage to an homage.
Stranger Things, much like J.J. Abrams' 2011 film, Super 8, is an overt piece of nostalgia for everything early '80s.
The whole thing has more than a touch of Stand By Me or Super 8 about it, but doesn't strain to place itself in period.
That was J.J. Abrams talking about his 2011 Spielberg-produced, Spielberg-homage Super 8, but it could have just as easily been the Duffer brothers talking about Stranger Things.
Lo que Super 8, de J.J. Abrams, fue en el cine es Stranger Things, de los hermanos Duffer, en la televisión.
…much like J.J. Abrams did in his similarly hued Super 8 (a dreamy wonder of a Spielberg paean)…
…everything from Invasion of the Body Snatchers to Alien via The Terminator…
Ridley Scott’s “Alien” and Stephen King just for starters.
You’ll get vibes from “The Goonies,” John Hughes’ teen films, Stephen King stories, “E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial,” “Alien” and so much more…
…that keeps it from being the kind of transcendent experience it’s honoring, like E.T. and Alien and Stand By Me.
These three plots collide with an “X-Files” scenario involving a scary monster (“Alien”-sticky) and a scarier governmental-scientific conspiracy (creepily clean).
That Alien theory, you feel me? This kid is full of bugs.
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Directed by Wes Craven
influenced Stranger Things (2016)
Themes Visuals Plot
Bölümler yoğunlukla 1984 tarihli Wes Craven mucizesi, “Elm Sokağı’nda Kabus” u bize ziyadesiyle yaşattı.
Korku öğeleri sıklıkla kullanılan dizide, ayrıca 1984 tarihli Wes Craven klasiği Elm Sokağı’nda Kabus’tan izleri sıklıkla görürüz.
Wes Craven’s 1984 horror masterpiece A Nightmare on Elm Street left its fingerprints on the dreamlike terror of the Upside Down.
From the opening minutes of Stranger Things, it’s obvious that creators Matt and Ross Duffer want to put you in mind of ET, Halloween, A Nightmare On Elm Street and, most of all, Stephen King’s It.
The series is a love letter to horror and science fiction genres of the 80s, paying clear homage to the best movies of its timem such as Goonies, Nightmare on Elm Street, and all things Stephen King.
For one, you had kids trying to summon an ominous entity who was able to reach out to grab you through seemingly latex walls. But also think about the Upside Down world, which with its stark, dark mirroring of humdrum Hawkins was similar to how Freddy would pull us into a topsy-turvy dreamscape.
…(spot the Jaws poster - stalked by monsters, yadda yadda)…
The Demo Dog return was a nice set piece, even if it was riffing heavily off both Jurassic Park and Jaws.
Raiders of the Lost Ark and Jaws and E.T. and all of those Spielberg movies from that era — that was my film upbringing.
It’s the PG-rated ’80s movie that would land a PG-13 today — your “Jaws,” “Indiana Jones,” and, yes, “E.T.” and 1977’s “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.”
She re-watched Stand By Me, Pan’s Labyrinth, Jaws, E.T., and Freaks and Geeks when preparing to cast Stranger Things.
Spielberg’ün Jaws’ı elbette ikonik posteriyle arz-ı endam etmektedir.
John Carpenter’s Halloween…
The latter two examples are what the brothers draw from specifically (those and, oddly enough, “Halloween”/John Carpenter’s expansive early oeuvre) in creating an ’80s set homage to the decade, complete with bad haircuts, an electronic synth-driven score and Reagan-era paranoia.
It's not by accident that by minute five of the show you've already caught homages to E.T., Poltergeist, and Halloween.
From the opening minutes of Stranger Things, it’s obvious that creators Matt and Ross Duffer want to put you in mind of ET, Halloween, A Nightmare On Elm Street and, most of all, Stephen King’s It.
In short, Stranger Things is sort of like if E.T. took a left turn into It, with a stop along the way to pick up a bit of the small-town terror of Halloween.
There are lens flares, dolly zooms, and Spielberg Faces galore, and the score is an explicit nod to Carpenter’s Halloween music.
Örneğin 1982 tarihli kült Carpenter filmi The Thing, dizinin canavarlarına ilham olan eserlerden bir diğeri.
The Thing…
John Carpenter’s 1982 classic The Thing served as an inspiration for the show’s monsters.
Imagine The Thing as written by John Hughes…
Mr. Clarke is watching The Thing with a girlfriend (he tries to impress her by telling her one of the gross effects was achieved with melted plastic and microwaved bubblegum)…
The sets are steroidal wax-museum recreations of middle-class ’80s-era homes, riddled with posters of Jaws, The Evil Dead, and The Thing, in case we can’t discern the show’s aesthetic intention.
Aliens (1986)
Directed by James Cameron
influenced Stranger Things (2016)
Themes Visuals Characters Plot
…it references everything from E.T. to Stand by Me by way of Poltergeist, Aliens and plenty more…
…but a scene from Aliens gets lifted too…
She even gets her own Ripley-esque moment: “Stay away from my daughter!” she screams…
It’s a classic small-town-with-BIG-mysteries story (think Twin Peaks meets Aliens meets Monster Squad)…
“Dungeons & Dragons,” earth tones, rotary phones, wood paneling, banana seats, “Aliens,” “Star Wars,” pudding cups, Stephen King, John Carpenter, rugby shirts, all manner of terrible haircuts, John Hughes, the Evil Empire, “War Games” and, above all, the oeuvre of Steven Spielberg — “Stranger Things” creators Ross and Matt Duffer reference and re-reference the cultural touchstones of an American childhood they are too young to have shared with loving, amber-hued abandon.
…the first hour functions as a mega-budgeted, mashup homage to some of the great action classics of the ‘80s era — Red Dawn, Aliens, Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, and even TV miniseries IT.
Firestarter (1984)
Directed by Mark L. Lester
influenced Stranger Things (2016)
Themes Characters Plot
Stephen King novels/films – Stand By Me, Firestarter and IT…
Eleven's initially reluctant ability to use her mad mental powers during times of stress/anger echoed her Stephen King-sired sisters.
The series takes seemingly everything to which Steven Spielberg and Stephen King have signed their respective names, particularly E.T., Poltergeist, The Goonies, Firestarter, The Talisman, It, and The Langoliers…
There’s a superpowered girl, straight out of “Firestarter.”
You’d have to be blind to miss blatant homages to E.T., Poltergeist and Firestarter…
From Stand by Me, to IT, to Back to the Future.
Dizinin ilk sezonunda henüz 10’lu yaşlarının başında olan karakterlerimiz, elbette Stephen King romanından uyarlanan 1985 yapımı film “Stand By Me”yi de hemen hatırlatır.
The season also strongly recalls Stand By Me, the 1985 adaptation of Stephen King’s novella, one of the finest cinematic portrayals of friendship. While the film had not yet been released in the show’s timeline—Season 1 is set in 1983—the thematic echoes are unmistakable.
…they ride out into the night streets on their bicycles (a touch of the Goonies and Stand by Me springs to mind)…
Herein lies the beginning of innumerable era-appropriate comparisons to Spielberg’s E.T., Stephen King/Rob Reiner’s Stand by Me, and Chris Columbus/Richard Donner’s The Goonies, to name just a few.
…it references everything from E.T. to Stand by Me by way of Poltergeist, Aliens and plenty more…
Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
Directed by Guillermo del Toro
influenced Stranger Things (2016)
Visuals Themes Characters
It’s completely unnatural and unnerving, reminiscent of Guillermo del Toro‘s Pan’s Labyrinth and the monster from Cloverfield.
She re-watched Stand By Me, Pan’s Labyrinth, Jaws, E.T., and Freaks and Geeks when preparing to cast Stranger Things.
Though more recent than any of the films cited above, the Duffers worked with Guillermo del Toro's special effects house to come up with "the demogorgon," who especially in the early, fleeting glimpses stirred up memories of the spindly Pan's Labyrinth faun.
…monsters, like those that spring from the twisted imagination of Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth)…
She re-watched Stand By Me, Pan’s Labyrinth, Jaws, E.T., and Freaks and Geeks when preparing to cast Stranger Things.
And like another retro classic, “Freaks and Geeks,” “Stranger Things” takes refuge in the idea that hard-won connections with other human beings can be a balm in a sea of confusion.
While most of the series’ references come from the 80s, the teenagers (Nancy, Jonathan, Steve, Barb, and the malicious couple that are Tommy and Nicole) feel directly ported from Freaks and Geeks.
From Stand by Me, to IT, to Back to the Future.
…the profanity used is commensurate or even mild compared with PG-rated films of the early 80s (think the Back to the Future series or Ghostbusters)…
Robin uses Back to the Future jargon to get Will away from his mom…
She tricks Joyce, who clearly has not seen Back to the Future, with her best Doc Brown impression and a lie about needing two people to fix the flux capacitor in order to steal Will away.
It’s got everything: a movie theater showing Back to the Future, nautical-themed ice-cream shop Scoops Ahoy, a secret Russian bunker where they’re trying to reopen the gate to the Upside Down and harness its power for Cold War stuff, Zales, and enough space for a giant melted-flesh monster from another realm to battle a teen with telekinetic powers.
Steve’s verdict on Back to the Future (“I’m pretty sure he was trying to bang his mom”)…
…of Stand by Me and Under the Skin…
Or the images of Eleven encountering beings from other worlds in an inky realm, which called to mind the great sci-fi film Under the Skin.
The creature’s world -- shifting between that of something from Under the Skin and the video game Silent Hill -- is never boring, and supplies plenty of scares.
Meanwhile, in a storyline that begins like Pretty in Pink and then becomes a monster hunt, Mike’s type-A older sister Nancy (Natalia Dyer) teams up with Will’s brother Jonathan (Charlie Heaton), whose creepy vibe and shaggy hair obscure his heart of gold.
You’d have to have a heart of stone not to be touched by Dustin – Farrah Fawcett hairspray hair and all – standing at the sidelines of the dance floor, for all the world a pre-pubescent Duckie from Pretty in Pink.
Aboveground, Mike’s sister Nancy (Natalia Dyer) is following a more “Pretty in Pink” storyline until it goes John Carpenter, which eventually teams her up with Will’s brother, Jonathan (Charlie Heaton).
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Directed by Peter Jackson
influenced Stranger Things (2016)
The fifth and final season of Stranger Things concludes with an extended Return of the King style epilogue, so it seemed only fitting that we end our coverage of the show in a similar fashion.
…if you weren’t a fan of the multiple endings of Return of the King, you likely felt every minute of the successive chapter endings.
The End of Oak Street (2026)
Directed by David Robert Mitchell
influenced by Stranger Things (2016)
Themes
The Spirit of ’82 has lived on and the last couple of decades have given us attempts at homage set squarely in the summer blockbuster’s golden age, most notably Stranger Things and J.J. Abrams’ Super 8.
The Stranger Things vibes come hard, until one night a storm and intense light flashes shut off the power and the water.
Since Stranger Things is finally done (thank god) and left a sour taste in everyone’s mouth, someone proficient in milking ‘80s nostalgia had to pick up the slack.
Netflix's "Stranger Things" only just ended…