The Classic Movies That Inspired Stranger Things
The Duffer brothers' Stranger Things has stolen the hearts of adventure horror fans, richly drawing on both 80s style and more contemporary teen dramas. The success of the Netflix series, however, would not have been possible without inspiration.
Table of Contents
- The Classic Movies That Inspired Stranger Things
- The Breakfast Club
- Carrie
- Ghostbusters
- Alien
- A Nightmare on Elm Street
- The Amityville Horror
- Firestarter
- Halloween
- E.T. the Extra-Terrestial
Firestarter
Firestarter, 1984, Mark L. Lester
- Year: 1984
- Directed by Mark L. Lester
- Genre: Thriller
- Where to watch: DVD
Does the Arsonist remind you of Carrie? Yes, but only in some respects. Firestarter is – despite references to horror movies – a thriller. The main character is younger, and she is also endowed with paranormal abilities, albeit under completely different circumstances. The girl's parents also possess them, which was not the case in Carrie.
Charlie McGee is a bit like Eleven – a distanced, silent heroine capable of damaging objects and harming creatures from afar. The heroine of Stranger Things doesn't set things on fire, but her powers work similarly in fact.
However, there's more of Lester's thriller inspirations in the Netflix show. The source of many problems of the heroes of both productions are secret government machinations and experiments. The film begins with an inconspicuous medical experiment, and then the whole family becomes targeted by special agents. Exactly like the heroes of Stranger Things.
