80's film research

Stranger Things is a loving, fantastically unsubtle homage to classic horror and a nostalgic return to the 80's.

Close encounters of the third kind (1978) a science fiction adventure about a group of people who attempt to contact alien intelligence. This film was directed by Steven Spielberg a famous director known for portraying his films through young protagonist’s viewpoints. This iconic film can be shown in ST with the use of a sci-fi genre and both containing the fear of the unknown and what is beyond the norm. in both CEOTTK and ST there is a lot of similar lighting used being both of red and blue which stand against a dark background and the use of flashing lights and sounds used to communicate with the aliens in Close Encounters. Whereas will similarly communicates to his mother through flickering the lights in their house, a common ghost movie trope. (https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2017/10/stranger-things-pop-culture-references/)

Goonies (1985) another 80’s film reference to stranger things, follows a band of adventurous kids who take on the might of a property developing company which plans to destroy their home to build a country club. This is similar in ways with ST who also take on an adventure to stop the enemy i.e. the government and the upside down. Both hold themes such as mystery, adventure and romance and the main story follows these young characters take on this. Goonies also include bikes in their film which is heavily used in ST as well showing once again the intertextuality of both film and show. Sean Astin who played Mikey in goonies also featured as a significant role in the second series of stranger things playing Joyce’s love interest Bob Newby.

Ghostbusters (1984) is a key intertextuality represented throughout the show stranger things. Apart from the fact the boys wear the iconic boiler suits for Halloween, both film and TV Show fight against the supernatural in the forms of ghosts and monsters with four boys/men doing so. Music and instrumental are highly significant in both as well. In ghostbusters the fast rhythms and quick tempos build overall action and adventure whereas the use of climatic sound and sci-fi instrumentals adds to Stanger things creepier side due to the fact the Demogorgon’s in ST are far more complex and scary compared to the ghosts in GB. Along with this both film and show hold similar storylines that the four boys/men are capable of fighting the supernatural that no one else can do in which they are the heroes of the plot.