Stranger Things poster

Stranger Things (2016)

Directed by David Champion

When a young boy vanishes, a small town uncovers a mystery involving secret experiments, terrifying supernatural forces, and one strange little girl.

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81 films that influenced Stranger Things

What critics say influenced Stranger Things

The Goonies poster
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.
Garret Castleberry • PopMatters • Jul 27, 2016
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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.
Brian Lowry • CNN • Jul 14, 2016
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…they ride out into the night streets on their bicycles (a touch of the Goonies and Stand by Me springs to mind)…
Helen Archer • VODzilla.co
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Their entire dynamic is undoubtedly inspired by the likes of The Goonies and E.T…
Fiona Flynn • Entertainment.ie • Jul 21, 2016
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…taps into a potent nostalgia for ’80s-era, kid-friendly supernatural thrillers like The Goonies and E.T.
Lara Zarum • Flavorwire • Aug 3, 2016
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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.
Donald Strohman, www.facebook.com, donald.strohman • The Young Folks • Jul 16, 2016
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Poltergeist poster
“They’re here.” – the obvious but direct reference certainly plays into the Poltergeist vibes of the season.
Alan French • Sunshine State Cineplex • Dec 31, 2025
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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.
Tara Bennett • IGN • Nov 27, 2025
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This season draws heavily from Poltergeist and Mad Max Thunderdome, while getting back to the spirit of adventure.
Sunshine State Cineplex Staff • Sunshine State Cineplex • Dec 12, 2025
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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.
Brian Lowry • CNN • Jul 14, 2016
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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.
Vinnie Mancuso, observer.com, vincent-mancuso • Observer • Jul 26, 2016
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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.
Robert Bianco, USA TODAY, Robert Bianco • USA Today • Jul 13, 2016
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The latest season of The X-Files, at times, just made me sad.
Vinnie Mancuso, observer.com, vincent-mancuso • Observer • Jul 26, 2016
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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.
John Doyle • The Globe and Mail • Jul 13, 2016
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But it’s also inspired by modern-day references such as The X-Files and Super 8.
Confessions from a Geek Mind • Jul 24, 2016
confessionsfromageekmind.com ↗
…government conspiracies, straight out of The X-Files…
CMS Admin, Alissa Wilkinson • Christianity Today • Jul 26, 2016
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Perhaps the most satisfying is classic Steven Spielberg meets Chris Carter’s “The X-Files”.
Keith Garlington • Keith & The Movies • Jul 25, 2019
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…with moments of unseen creatures and strange abductions that would feel right at home in an episode of The X-Files.
Sarah Moran • Screen Rant • Jul 15, 2016
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Close Encounters of the Third Kind poster
…we’re in Close Encounters of the Third Kind territory, as freaky power surges light up the night sky.
Helen Archer • VODzilla.co
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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.”
Ben Travers • IndieWire • Jul 15, 2016
indiewire.com ↗
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.
Vinnie Mancuso, observer.com, vincent-mancuso • Observer • Jul 26, 2016
observer.com ↗
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.
David Houghton, www.gamesradar.com, david-houghton • GamesRadar+ • Jul 22, 2016
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…cómo disfrutamos con E.T., Los Goonies o Encuentros en la tercera fase…
Natalia Marcos • El País • Jul 11, 2016
elpais.com ↗
You see the influences of Spielberg’s “E.T.” and “Close Encounters”…
Keith Garlington • Keith & The Movies • Jul 25, 2019
keithandthemovies.com ↗
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Super 8 poster
Basically, it felt like an homage to “Super 8,” J.J. Abrams’ homage to Spielberg; an homage to an homage.
Ben Travers • IndieWire • Jul 15, 2016
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Stranger Things, much like J.J. Abrams' 2011 film, Super 8, is an overt piece of nostalgia for everything early '80s.
Corey Atad • Esquire • Jul 20, 2016
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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.
Digital Spy • Jul 13, 2016
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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.
The Ringer • Jul 18, 2016
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Lo que Super 8, de J.J. Abrams, fue en el cine es Stranger Things, de los hermanos Duffer, en la televisión.
Natalia Marcos • El País • Jul 11, 2016
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…much like J.J. Abrams did in his similarly hued Super 8 (a dreamy wonder of a Spielberg paean)…
Richard Lawson • Vanity Fair • Jul 13, 2016
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Alien poster
…everything from Invasion of the Body Snatchers to Alien via The Terminator…
Helen Archer • VODzilla.co
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Ridley Scott’s “Alien” and Stephen King just for starters.
Keith Garlington • Keith & The Movies • Jul 25, 2019
keithandthemovies.com ↗
You’ll get vibes from “The Goonies,” John Hughes’ teen films, Stephen King stories, “E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial,” “Alien” and so much more…
Mark Perigard • Boston Herald • Jul 10, 2016
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…that keeps it from being the kind of transcendent experience it’s honoring, like E.T. and Alien and Stand By Me.
Sarah • Lainey Gossip • Jul 28, 2016
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These three plots collide with an “X-Files” scenario involving a scary monster (“Alien”-sticky) and a scarier governmental-scientific conspiracy (creepily clean).
Emily Nussbaum • The New Yorker • Aug 22, 2016
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That Alien theory, you feel me? This kid is full of bugs.
Moviejawn Account • MovieJawn • Sep 17, 2016
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A Nightmare on Elm Street poster
Bölümler yoğunlukla 1984 tarihli Wes Craven mucizesi, “Elm Sokağı’nda Kabus” u bize ziyadesiyle yaşattı.
kinoavantgarde • Kino Avantgarde • Dec 24, 2025
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Korku öğeleri sıklıkla kullanılan dizide, ayrıca 1984 tarihli Wes Craven klasiği Elm Sokağı’nda Kabus’tan izleri sıklıkla görürüz.
kinoavantgarde • Kino Avantgarde • Dec 12, 2025
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Wes Craven’s 1984 horror masterpiece A Nightmare on Elm Street left its fingerprints on the dreamlike terror of the Upside Down.
kinoavantgarde • Kino Avantgarde • Dec 10, 2025
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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.
Jonathan Hatfull • SciFiNow • Jul 17, 2016
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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.
Evan Valentine • Collider • Jul 22, 2016
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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.
Matt Webb Mitovich • TVLine • Jul 19, 2016
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Jaws poster
…(spot the Jaws poster - stalked by monsters, yadda yadda)…
Moviejawn Account • MovieJawn • Sep 17, 2016
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The Demo Dog return was a nice set piece, even if it was riffing heavily off both Jurassic Park and Jaws.
Alan French • Sunshine State Cineplex • Dec 31, 2025
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Raiders of the Lost Ark and Jaws and E.T. and all of those Spielberg movies from that era — that was my film upbringing.
The Ringer • Jul 18, 2016
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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.”
Ben Travers • IndieWire • Jul 15, 2016
indiewire.com ↗
She re-watched Stand By Me, Pan’s Labyrinth, Jaws, E.T., and Freaks and Geeks when preparing to cast Stranger Things.
Lara Zarum • Flavorwire • Aug 3, 2016
flavorwire.com ↗
Spielberg’ün Jaws’ı elbette ikonik posteriyle arz-ı endam etmektedir.
kinoavantgarde • Kino Avantgarde • Dec 12, 2025
kinoavantgarde.com ↗
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Halloween poster
John Carpenter’s Halloween…
Arun Kumar, www.facebook.com • High on Films • Jul 30, 2016
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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.
Ben Travers • IndieWire • Jul 15, 2016
indiewire.com ↗
It's not by accident that by minute five of the show you've already caught homages to E.T., Poltergeist, and Halloween.
Corey Atad • Esquire • Jul 20, 2016
esquire.com ↗
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.
Jonathan Hatfull • SciFiNow • Jul 17, 2016
co.uk ↗
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.
Emily St. James • Vox • Jul 17, 2016
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There are lens flares, dolly zooms, and Spielberg Faces galore, and the score is an explicit nod to Carpenter’s Halloween music.
The Ringer • Jul 18, 2016
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The Thing poster
Örneğin 1982 tarihli kült Carpenter filmi The Thing, dizinin canavarlarına ilham olan eserlerden bir diğeri.
kinoavantgarde • Kino Avantgarde • Dec 12, 2025
kinoavantgarde.com ↗
The Thing…
Arun Kumar, www.facebook.com • High on Films • Jul 30, 2016
highonfilms.com ↗
John Carpenter’s 1982 classic The Thing served as an inspiration for the show’s monsters.
kinoavantgarde • Kino Avantgarde • Dec 10, 2025
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Imagine The Thing as written by John Hughes…
Lili Loofbourow, theweek.com, lili-loofbourow • The Week • Jul 26, 2016
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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)…
Moviejawn Account • MovieJawn • Sep 11, 2016
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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.
Chuck Bowen • Slant Magazine • Jul 14, 2016
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