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STRANGER THINGS


Jay

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The scares in Stranger Things are mild at best.  

2 hours ago, KK said:

What I don't understand is why that warrants holding  this show up on a pedestal, or why this suddenly makes the show "brilliant". 

This.  It's a solid yarn but the endless praise and discussion that it's generated is excessive.  Despite with all of the hoopla surrounding it, I've already forgotten most of it.  

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6 hours ago, KK said:

 

Fargo is FX. And yes it's based on the film, but it revels in expanding that universe in a way that certainly boasts merit. They're doing "Coen brothers" better than the original Coens currently are! You should check it out Steef.
 

 

Indeed! Check it out, Steef. I think you will utterly love S1 of Fargo. KK is right. It's better than what the Coens are doing today with movies (that's the golden age of TV for ya). Somehow it reminded me of Twin Peaks but in a new form. 

 

 

2 hours ago, TheWhiteRider said:

 

Truth will out!

 

You have to admit, each time Nick66 is posting, you seem to be away.

 

 

 

Alex

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8 hours ago, KK said:

 

When they decided to entirely embrace it's operatic, over-the-top depiction of American politics. Absurd it may be, but that's what made it so enjoyable and able to stand on its own feet apart from its UK predecessor, which I believe takes a more Shakesperean approach (haven't watched it...will check it out eventually).

It's interesting that Game of Thrones and House of Cards are on the air at the same time.

One is of course pure fantasy that strains credibility.

The other features White Walkers. :)

 

I agree with your points about Stranger Things. I found it enjoyable enough, but didn't think it was the work of genius many apparently do. It' coming back for Season 2, so I'll check it out again. If it wasn't coming back, I'd have already forgotten about it. Good, but not great.

 

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12 hours ago, Thor said:

 

HOUSE OF CARDS is pretty extraordinary.

 

12 hours ago, Stefancos said:

A remake of an old English TV show though. Again, not very groundbreaking.

 

12 hours ago, Thor said:

Right. For a moment there, I thought I would see something other than raging cynicism on this board. Too naïve of me.

 

(what British TV show are you talking about, btw? YES, MINISTER? LOL!)

 

 

Wide open.

 

<------Wide-----> open.

 

A better poster would have dismantled you where you stood after this disastrous faux pas, Thor. But alas I'd already gone up to bed when the event occurred and now the moment has sadly passed. Ah well. 

 

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What are you talking about? That I didn't know HOUSE OF CARDS was based on a British show? I freely admit that. That doesn't make the US version any less good, nor the level of cynicism here any lower.

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It isn't. Maybe I don't frequent enough threads here, but my impression is that most of it is sour-stomached, negative blanket statements. I really don't see much unadulterated praise and enthusiasm of anything around here (unless it's STAR WARS or STREK TREK or Tolkien).

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9 minutes ago, Thor said:

What are you talking about? That I didn't know HOUSE OF CARDS was based on a British show?

 

But Thor, the whole basis of your argument is that Stranger Things does things which you say haven't been done before, no? 

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2 minutes ago, Quintus said:

But Thor, the whole basis of your argument is that Stranger Things does things which you say haven't been done before, no? 

 

No, most everything in STRANGER THINGS has been done before to some extent or another.

 

But the combination of familiar things both new and old is a refreshing spin.

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Except you have been shown to have gaping black holes in your knowledge of the medium in terms of historical works produced thus far. So how can we take your word for it when you assert the originality claims about Stranger Things which you are intent on making? 

 

Also, semantics and pedantry weaken your stance further. As does labelling anyone who disagrees with you about this "cynical". 

 

16 minutes ago, Thor said:

Maybe I don't frequent enough threads here, but my impression is that most of it is sour-stomached, negative blanket statements

 

This old chestnut being wheeled out yet again? Thor, you're part of the furniture here. Stop that nonsense now, come on. How is playing the ignorant card ever going to assist you? 

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The fact that the show managed to combine things both new and old isn't in itself that impressive to me, tbh. This is 2016, so obviously the show will have some "modern" things in it. That to me is a given. But yeah, it's set in the '80s and is based on tropes from that period. That is quite refreshing and adds a nice spin to it. But, if you showed this series to E.T. and asked him what he thought of it, he wouldn't start praising it based on the fact that it combines '80s and modern influences, because he wouldn't know what those influences were. You'd have to be aware of those tropes in the first place to see it that way. So I just see it as an interesting footnote, really.

 

As I said before, I think the mere execution of the series was terrific, in terms of production, casting, acting, cinematography, sound etc...But for this series to have some real staying power with me, it had to have a compelling story, and for me they simply undelivered with that. It was good, but it wasn't anything new. And that to me is what counts, rather than the fact that the creators managed to make a list of '80s and modern tropes and combine them.

 

So I think I see what Thor is saying, that this show manages to combine '80s and modern tropes in an almost seamless manner. But that's only one of the means by which the series was crafted, and I was simply a little underwhelmed by the final product.

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The execution of the story in particular was ultimately unsatisfying to me. That, and a distinct lack of real suspense I've come to expect from the genre. So I'd struggle to say the show was "terrifically executed" overall.

 

Stranger Things was fine, if decidedly vanilla. I believe though that the basic foundation has been established to allow the sequel to grow and improve. 

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1 hour ago, Quintus said:

 

A better poster would have dismantled you where you stood after this disastrous faux pas, Thor.

Pretty harsh.

 

Quintus, why are you armed?

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28 minutes ago, Quintus said:

The execution of the story in particular was ultimately unsatisfying to me. That, and a distinct lack of real suspense I've come to expect from the genre. So I'd struggle to say the show was "terrifically executed" overall.

 

I was thinking more in terms of production quality (which includes casting). But the story was the weak spot for me and I too felt a lack of suspense; honestly by the 6th episode I was beginning to get bored by the whole thing, which is really odd because I love the mystery genre (it's why I picked up the show in the first place). However, the scene where Will is cycling home in the first episode did give me a genuine "sweaty-palms" scare and it was the most memorable part of the show for me. 

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2 hours ago, Quintus said:

Except you have been shown to have gaping black holes in your knowledge of the medium in terms of historical works produced thus far. So how can we take your word for it when you assert the originality claims about Stranger Things which you are intent on making? 

 

Now you're just going off the rails, Quintus. What 'gaping holes' are these, prey tell? That I didn't know HOUSE OF CARDS was based on a British show?

 

It's pretty clear that you have some ulterior motive or hidden agenda here. You're being far more dramatic and personal than the discussion calls for.

 

Or perhaps you're just joking. Remember, I have no sense of humour!

 

 

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9 minutes ago, Quintus said:

 

Nah, if you stick around long enough you'll soon find out it's just games. 

Yeah I know. I was kidding. :)

 

It was a Gladiator quote that maybe wasn't clear enough. :)

 

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/7808231/gladiator_2000_capturing_maximus/

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18 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

One of Thor's favorite! ?

 

Gladiator was probably an ethereal outer body experience for him though, during which a great emotion washed over his glistening naked body, leaving him feeling cleansed of all sin.

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3 hours ago, Nick66 said:

So cool! Nice find Jay.

Some of those are a little bit of a stretch, but mostly spot on.

 

Though funny, I don't see any references to modern Japanese horror. ;)

 

Probably because that is a 2000s phenomenon, and this was a video about its 80s and 70s references.

 

But nice little comparison. I agree that some of them were quite a stretch (the scene where the kid gears up and takes on the bandana is more a reference to Rambo than COMMANDO), while others were spot-on.

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Holy cow! Tangerine Dream -- one of the primary influences on the score of STRANGER THINGS -- made their own version of the title theme. I think I prefer this over the original (good as that may be):

 

 

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6 hours ago, Jay said:

Very cool they did that!

But I significantly prefer the original.

 

It doesn't sound very much like the original. Still a cool piece, but I agree. 

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The original has greater clarity in its basic layers for me so I prefer it over this still decent but overlong re-imagining, which sounds like the bastard child of Queen's Flash Gordon and the legendary soundtrack to The Last Ninja 2 on the C64. 

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After some consideration, I'm inclined to agree too. I love what Tangerine Dream did, but ultimately I prefer the more modern, Cliff Martinez-like sound of the original.

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44 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

At least it's giving Tangerine Dream some press, which must be very rare for them nowadays.

 

When Edgar Froese died last year, they got some press again, but curiously not in Norway. Which is why I did my Tangerine Dream tribute webcast. But yeah -- all these 70s and 80s retro soundtracks and pop albums are slowly, but certainly giving some of the old heroes press again. It's amazing that TD is still going on, even now after all the original members are gone.

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21 hours ago, Thor said:

Holy cow! Tangerine Dream -- one of the primary influences on the score of STRANGER THINGS -- made their own version of the title theme. I think I prefer this over the original (good as that may be):

 

 

 

That's really neat! I like it's expansion of the original material, but halfway through, it does overstay its welcome. The original had a simple idea, but not something that was really designed for a 6 minute setpiece like this.

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2 hours ago, Stefancos said:

You could tell then how it's really not an 80's homage, and how it references modern horror films!

 

Feeble attempt at ridicule, as I never said it's "not really an 80s hommage".

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