A deep dive into Stranger Things’ video store
The following contains no story spoilers for Stranger Things.
As a white male rapidly approaching 40 with a penchant for 80s sci-fi and horror, I am squarely in Stranger Things‘ target demographic. While the show has always purposely drenched itself in nostalgia and pop culture references from the decade in which it is set, season three saw these references go into overdrive. Much of this was due to the insanely elaborate and detailed Starcourt Mall set, which many have already commented on in regards to its authenticity, with era appropriate logos of several mall standards (such as The Gap and Orange Julius) being prominently displayed. The brief scene in a supermarket also served as a nostalgia injection for many, thanks to several shots of 80s brands, including some favorite high-sugar licensed-property cereals being flashed on the screen.
For me though, the biggest nostalgia-bomb in the show came at the end, when two characters visit a video store. My family owned and operated a video store for most of the 80s and into the 90s, so whenever I get to see one on-screen, I always want to get my pause button ready just to see how many of the old VHS tapes I can recognize, and this was no exception. So, what VHS classics did the makers of Stranger Things deem worthy for inclusion into their video store? And were all of them era-appropriate? Let’s take a look.
Prepare to be impressed by my ability to identify out-of-focus VHS box art. Continue reading
The Star Wars Trailer Sound Tape – What The Hell is This Thing?
I bought this tape and I don’t know what it is.
I picked it up at a local record store last month. It had literally been there most of the year. First it was priced at 5,000 yen. After a few months with no takers, they sliced it down to 3,000 yen. At that point it became tempting, but I held my ground, telling my boyfriend that I wouldn’t buy it for any more than 2,000 yen. Cue a few months later, and they cut it down to 1,500, so I snagged it.
But, like I said, I don’t know what it is. Continue reading
VHS Zombie Anxiety – How George A. Romero Nearly Ruined My Life (But It’s Not His Fault)
Obits and tributes around the web have said more about him than I ever could. He’s being lauded as a true innovator, a man who changed cinema and pop culture forever, a renegade film icon that played by his own rules to make the movies he wanted to make, making some of the most beloved and acclaimed horror movies by doing so.
But to me he’ll always be remembered as the man who gave me a near-debilitating anxiety disorder that lasted a better part of my life. This is through no direct fault of his own – I don’t hold him personally responsible.
It was really my dad’s fault, if I’m honest. Continue reading
The Second Version of The Mummy You Should See (After The 1932 One)
I’ve been reading a lot about the new Mummy film and how it’s a complete shitshow trainwreck that somehow shows simultaneously everything that’s wrong with Hollywood blockbusters, reboots, and Tom Cruise (which if you think about it, is kind of impressive in its own right.)
One thing I repeatedly see, in both the articles about the new film and in the comments that reply to it, is that the film doesn’t hold a candle to the 1999 Mummy film starring Brendan Fraser. I even saw an article that said, more or less, “if you only see one Mummy movie, make it the 1999 version.”
Fuck. That. Continue reading
Tales Of Woe And Analog-To-Digital Conversion
It’s eight o’clock on a beautiful Sunday evening. I worked a long day, time to relax.
And by “relax” I mean “work on dubbing a VHS tape to a DVD via a VCR/HDD/DVD combo unit I bought last week, while copying a new record to my hard drive via a USB phono-preamp, followed by copying an obscure ambient audio tape to my computer via the same device. I’m also ripping a concert DVD to my hard drive so I can convert it to audio and then into individual MP3s.
Sometimes I wonder why I can’t just stream shit like everyone else. Continue reading
The Ghostbusters Trailer Is Horrible
Have you seen the trailer for Ghostbusters? It’s exceptionally bad in nearly every way imaginable. The jokes fall flat, the pacing is strange, and it feels like that it spoils large portions of the film all for the sake of fitting as many flashy things as possible into a two minute sizzle reel! It’s a real shitshow.
In case you haven’t seen it, here’s a look.
Yeah, I’m really clever, I know. Continue reading
The Wonders of Japanese Movie Programs
There are a lot of differences between going to the movies in Japan and going in the United States. For starters, tickets cost a heck of a lot more, usually upwards of $20, and the seats are assigned. Many theaters also have deluxe seats that offer anything from increased leg room to full-on private suites. The theater near me even has a private waiting area for premium members where champagne and chocolate are served. It all combines to create a feeling that turns going to the movies into more of an event, much like going to a live stage show or a concert.
And just like a live event, in Japan, movies often get their own specially made programs.
And they’re dope. Continue reading
An S.O.S. from a Portishead fan
Hey, did you hear there’s a new Portishead track out? It’s for that new flick High Rise and is a cover of Abba’s classic “S.O.S.” I bet you want to hear that, right? I bet you’re curious as to what a Portishead cover of an Abba song is like, considering it’s one of the strangest, most unlikely cover choices since Sonic Youth gave the world their take on The Carpenters. I bet you can’t wait to give it a listen on YouTube or even shell out the 99 cents to $1.29 on your favorite digital music storefront to buy it. Maybe you might even go to a physical location and hand a real person actual money in exchange for a physical good with the song on it either digitally or analog.
Well, too bad. You can’t. Continue reading
Targets: When Reality Eclipses Fantasy
When people talk about movies that predict the future, they often turn to sci-fi. Back To the Future II was recently focused in many articles, with it being the year in which the film took place. And many a clickbait has been published showing how a few of the predictions made in Back To The Future II hit the mark, while countless more were off by a mile. Other movies I see mentioned when talking about celluloid-based crystal balls include Escape From New York, Demolition Man, The Terminator and Mad Max. But no sci-fi film has come as close to predicting the dystopic future we find ourselves trapped in now as Targets, a little-known low-budget drama/thriller from 1968.
It foresees the sad future we live in so much that when I recently watched it for the first time it literally gave me chills. Continue reading