Movies

Video: Stranger Things Film References Side By Side Comparison

Video: Stranger Things Film References Side By Side Comparison
By Peter Sciretta

Yes, Stranger Things is very much an homage to the movies of the 1970s and 1980s, but I think it's a bit too simplistic to say it's just an Amblin homage. It's not just another Super 8, and it's more than repackaged nostalgia. I'm only a handful of episodes into the first season, and it seems that the series is more of a tribute to the cinematic adaptations of Stephen King and the era horror films than Steven Spielberg. Regardless of the inspirations, Stranger Things is must-see television. There aren't many movies this summer that are more worth your time than this Netflix original series.

Ulysses Thevenon has put together a fantastic four-and-a-half-minute video showing side-by-side comparisons of some of the films that the Duffer Brothers pay homage to in this television show. Hit the jump to watch the Stranger Things Film References Side By Side Comparison video.

Stranger Things Film References

Sploid discovered the following video:

While this video is pretty great, it's not extensive. The four-and-a-half-minute supercut only features a dozen movies, whereas Stranger Things features many more inspirations and references. The films featured this video include: The Goonies, Alien, E.T the Extra-Terrestrial, Firestarter, Poltergeist, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Explorers, The Shining, Stand by Me, Carrie, and Commando. Others have pointed out the film also pays homage/references The Lost Boys, The Terminator, IT, Evil Dead 2, Jaws, and The Frighteners. And I'm sure there are many more inspirations and references that no one has yet to pick up on in this series.

And let's not forget the typography of the show, which seems inspired by Stephen King:

. AndNelson Cash has talked way more extensively about that. But again, at the end of the day, while this show does employ the Everything Is a Remix method of remixing, it is truly a great piece of work as a whole, regardless of the many parts that have been inspired by other works. And watching this video, it's hard not to take notice of the series' incredible music. The synth-based score composed by Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein of the Austin-based band S U R V I V E is not available to download currently, but Netflix has recently announced that a music release is in the works:

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