So, in case you couldn’t tell from my previous random television review, I really, REALLY enjoyed the Netflix series Stranger Things. From the story to the score to the cinematography, it fulfilled all my needs in terms of shit I like about good story telling. Plus, you know, I’m an insanely nostalgic person who likes to feel warm and fuzzy inside and this show did that for me.
If you’re like me and you really dug Stranger Things and feel really bummed out now that you’ve watched the entire thing, here are 10 things (in no specific order) that you could sit down and watch that might make you feel the same way Stranger Things did.
The Goonies
Before you say “Duh bitch, that is a given”, I know it is. For most people born between 1980 and 1990, anyway, but some of the things on the list are going to be meant for those post-1990 kids who didn’t grow up on the shit that obviously heavily influenced Stranger Things, and deserve to know what they have to go watch ASAP. Plus, even if you’ve seen The Goonies, you should probably go re-watch it right now anyway.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
I know this seems like another painfully obvious choice, but I feel like The Goonies and E.T. were two major influences for Stranger Things, so see above explanation for The Goonies.
Super 8
Super 8 was a critical success and did ok at the box office, but never achieved the legendary status it deserved as The Goonies of the 2000s. Honestly, if you’re really bummed about finishing Stranger Things, I would send you to this film first. The child actors in it are phenomenal, the story is amazing and heartbreaking, and it checks off a ton of the same boxes as Stranger Things. This movie really deserves to be a cult classic.
Firestarter
From the second I started watching Stranger Things I said it felt like Stephen King and Stephen Spielberg got together in 1983 to make a miniseries. A Spielberg 80’s classic is already on the list, so here’s some King (also starring Drew Barrymore). If you really dug the character of Eleven/Elle on Stranger Things (which I did), then this movie is definitely a must see for you.
The X-Files
Again, this is kind of a given. I mean, it’s a show about fancy, FBI agents who investigate strange things.
It Follows
This is maybe a bold statement, but I think It Follows might be my favorite movie on this list. At the very least, it’s my favorite scary movie of the last 10 years. Though only a few years old, it feels incredibly nostalgic with it’s cinematography, storytelling and soundtrack/score. The scares are subtle and it feels like an amazing horror movie from the 80’s more so than anything I’ve seen in years. So, if you’re REALLY bummed about the end of Stranger Things I think I’d send you to Super 8 first, and then It Follows second. It’s one of the most atmospheric films I have ever seen.
Stand By Me
More Stephen King! Sure there aren’t supernatural scares in this story, but the story of four young boys in the 1950s going to find a dead body brings about many of the same feelings that Stranger Things did. Plus, it’s a really excellent movie for the ages.
House of the Devil
Like It Follows, House of the Devil is only a few years old, but has the amazing sensation of an 80’s horror film while focusing more on the atmosphere than just giving the audience cheap scares (plus this movie is actually set in the 80s).
Something Wicked This Ways Comes
This 1983 Ray Bradbury classic about two young boys and a spooky traveling circus isn’t exactly like Stranger Things, but it will give you the same sense of excitement.
Fringe
Fringe is kind of like The X Files, but not quite. Honestly, it’s probably closer to Stranger Things than The X Files, because while The X Files can be really aliens heavy, Fringe tends to deal with the same kinds of things Stranger Things did: government experiments, weird quasi-paranormal shit. You know, stuff like that!
feud666 says
House of the Devil….this is the first I’ve heard of this movie…..thanks for the recommendation. Stand by Me is so good…
Monster Squad is another underrated 80’s movie…