Stephen King had been on a decade long tear of financially successful horror films and 1989’s Pet Sematary would be one of his biggest moneymakers. But was it good? Hmmm. Yeah. So, on its 30th Anniversary, there’s a new Pet Sematary! Is it any good? We get into that…but what is already evident is that it’s a money maker. One week into its release, the Pet Sematary remake with Jason Clarke and John Lithgow is already in King’s Top 10.
But, 1989’s Pet Sematary reflects something the new one doesn’t: Gen X parenting. The oldest Gen Xers were just starting to have children by the end of the ’80s – and, basically, everything that goes down in the Creed family only happens because of the new hands-on parenting that Gen Xers had adopted. Check out our take on our ’80s Movies: A Guide to What’s Wrong with Your Parents podcast…you’ll see the film in an entirely different light . And remember: little Ellie is a future Millennial.
PET SEMATARY: Why It Matters & Why the 2019 Remake Works
The Breakfast Club is the face of the ’80s Movies – the classic gave teens a voice, showed their box office power, and cemented John Hughes as the decade’s most influential director. This weekend marks the 35th Anniversary of Claire, Allison, John Bender, Andrew, and Brian’s Saturday detention (“March 24, 1984, Shermer High School, Shermer, Illinois….”)
The movie made an impact in the entertainment industry, in Hollywood history, and most certainly, on ’80s teens who absorbed a whole lot of negative messaging. From blaming their parents for all their problems to John Bender’s abusive and sexually harassing behavior of Claire that ends in his getting the girl, ’80s Movie Guide’s Tara McNamara (Gen X) and Riley Roberts (Gen Z) break down how The Breakfast Club may be the ’80s most influential film in all the wrong ways on our ’80s Movies: A Guide to What’s Wrong with Your Parents podcast. Take a listen and give us your take in the comments below.
Mystic Pizza is an anomaly among ’80s teen movies: it was written by a woman, about three women who had healthy attitudes toward sex – sort of. By 1988, the pendulum had swung from the orgy-filled ’70s to the good-girls-don’t sexual conservatism. That confusing perspective is on full display in Mystic Pizza, where best friends and sisters JoJo (Lili Taylor), Daisy (Julia Roberts), and Kat (Annabeth Gish) engage in sex without hangups but, at the same time, give and take all kinds of slut shame.
We explore that angle in our ’80s Movies: A Guide to What’s Wrong with Your Parents podcast, along with the sociological change that was taking place among young people and the changing attitude of what they are supposed to do with their life after high school. Please give it a listen and, let us know what you think in the comments below. You can currently stream Mystic Pizza on Hulu, Epix and Amazon Prime. And, read up on all the behind-the-scenes info of Mystic Pizza including what made it so rad and so wrong on our Mystic Pizza page: https://80smovieguide.com/mystic-pizza/
MYSTIC PIZZA reflected how young women were beginning to reconsider the idea of getting married right out of school.
Photo Above: Podcaster Riley Roberts gives her take on Splash. Photographer: Victoria Igloi.
Splash is a family film that began our modern-day fascination with mermaids, a film that made Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah bonafide movie stars, and began Hanks journey as American treasure. But, does the film live up to its legacy? In many ways, yes! It’s still a heartwarmer of a tale. But family friendly? Hmmm…maybe not.
On ’80s Movies: A Guide to What’s Wrong with Your Parents podcast, mother-daughter movie critics Tara McNamara (Gen X) and Riley Roberts (Gen Y) re-examine the film with a modern-day perspective and discuss how it turned the Disney princess trope on its fins, and yet, perpetuated the attitudes that successful men are pigs to women and that’s okay.
Please give a listen to Splash: A Lovable Disney Movie that Just Happens to Have Child Nudity, Bestiality, and a Sex Crime.* And, check out our other podcast episodes available on iTunes,Stitcher, and BlogTalkRadio. Also, please read our comprehensive behind the scenes guide to Splash here: https://80smovieguide.com/splash/
’80s Movies: A Guide to What’s Wrong with Your Parents PODCAST:
When you think of Thanksgiving movies, your brain might rush by Addams Family Values, Free Birds or Jack and Jill. Frankly, Thanksgiving movies of substance are few and far between. But hopefully, you’ll think of the greatest, most relatable Thanksgiving movie ever: Planes, Trains and Automobiles.
But let’s focus in on one word: relatable. In 1987, Neal Page’s (Steve Martin) teeth-gnashing journey was an anomaly. We’d all had a frustrating experience or two, but Neal’s three-day journey to get home was an exaggeration for most everyone (except John Hughes, whose five-day ordeal to get home one Thanksgiving inspired the script). In 2018, though, more cars are on the roads, more planes in the air, and more B.S. at the car rental counter. Is Planes, Trains and Automobiles now the American Thanksgiving experience? On our ‘80s Movies: A Guide to What’s Wrong with Your Experience podcast, mother-daughter movie critics Tara McNamara and Riley Roberts look at that concept, why a perceived “family film” got an R rating, and if this classic holds up for today’s youth.
If nothing else, let our podcast entertain you on your long, long ride to Grandma’s house.
It’s the 30th Anniversary of Young Guns (currently steaming on Hulu and Netflix) and we’re celebrating. Young Guns is considered the most historically accurate version of Billy the Kid on film, but let’s be honest – the real Billy and the Regulators weren’t quite as attractive. By putting hot, cool actors like Emilio Estevez and Kiefer Sutherland in a testosterone-heavy “band of brothers” environment with a “heavy-metal” ’80s score, did Young Guns make gun ownership sexy to men? We explore how Young Guns affected its teen viewers in 1988 and how it still affects Gen X today on the latest episode of ’80s Movies: A Guide to What’s Wrong with Your Parents. Give a listen to our take on Young Guns below and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or Stitcher.
Also, check out the complete guide to Young Guns: https://80smovieguide.com/young-guns/
Today is the 34th Anniversary of The Karate Kid, a movie that continues to resonate with the kids of the ’80s…and Millennials and Generation Z. The film about a bullied teen (Ralph Macchio) who is trained in self-defense by a wise, elderly karate master (Pat Morita) spawned sequels, a spinoff, an animated series, and currently, the fantastic YouTube series “Cobra Kai.” Why does it work?
It’s the ultimate fantasy: taking on and conquering a bully.
The magical mentorship/friendship/surrogate parent-child relationship between Daniel and Mr. Miyagi.
The Crane Kick finale
Another reason The Karate Kid resonated with ’80s teens was that it represents how Generation X sees itself: an underdog, a latch-key kid who had to deal with life’s obstacles without a parent around, and who succeeded through hard work. ’80s MOVIES: A GUIDE TO WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOUR PARENTS podcast explores this and how today’s teens view this movie today. Listen to the end: Gen Z co-host Riley Roberts (pictured above) gives substantial and shocking insight of what it’s like to be a teen in today’s drug-filled high schools. Click HERE to check out our comprehensive guide to The Karate Kid.
Podcaster Riley Roberts gives the Gen Z take on BULL DURHAM. (photo by Victoria Igloi)
Bull Durham is the ultimate rom-com for men. The tagline says it all: “It’s about sex and sport. What else is there?” But the film provides plenty of fantasy for women (and not just Kevin Costner, who was at max dreaminess in 1988). Additionally, as much as it’s sexually progressive, it’s also detrimental.
On the ’80s MOVIES: A GUIDE TO WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOUR PARENTS podcast, ’80s Movie Guide co-founders Tara McNamara (’80s kid) and Riley Roberts (pictured right…age 17, so, still a kid) explore how Bull Durham is to men like Disney Princess movies are to women, creating an unattainable idea of the perfect woman. At the same time, for two hours women could live in an idyllic world where slut-shaming isn’t a thing. However, there’s a tragedy in Annie and Millie: they found a way to be an accepted part of the ballclub, but only by opening their legs.
Listen to the podcast to get historical perspective and to rethink Bull Durham in a whole different way:
Find out why Bull Durham was rad, behind the scenes info, and fun trivia on our Bull Durham page!
Footloose isn’t just a story about a group of kids fighting to have a prom. It’s about:
a suicidal girl suffering from depression and no one is noticing all the red flags she’s waving,
a community grieving over the loss of their loved ones and grappling to prevent another tragedy,
youth fighting “The Man,”
religious intrusion: how much we should trust our pastor’s interpretation of scripture versus our own,
how in 1980s small-town America, older white men held all the power.
In our “’80s Movies: A Guide to What’s Wrong with Your Parents” podcast, mother-daughter movie critics Tara McNamara and 17-year-old Riley Roberts look back at Footloose for why it’s fantastic, how it revolutionized movie marketing, how it took teen movies a different direction, and ultimately, how it’s the hallmark to understand exactly why the United States has become so polarized into “conservative” and “liberal” factions. (really!). Give it a listen and always, always…dance your a** off:
Check out the Footloosepage for all the behind-the-scenes info…like who really couldn’t dance, what happened when Kevin Bacon tried to get into character at the local high school, and how the film got the green light and how it almost lost it!
With the reboot of Overboard, mother-daughter movie critics Tara McNamara and 17-year-old Riley Roberts explore the original 1987 Goldie Hawn-Kurt Russell rom-com treasure, evaluate if it holds up today, and wonder why no one called out all the white slavery and stuff. The duo also review the new Anna Faris-Eugenio Derbez gender reversal remake and evaluate if the 2018 tweaks work and if it’s worth watching.
The duo have been reviewing and covering films for more than a decade on national TV programs like TODAY, ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT, INSIDE EDITION. They analyze what’s great about ’80s movies ..and what’s super. duper. messed. up.
Read all about made Overboard a classic, all the behind the scenes info, why it’s so ’80s, and all the headslap moments: https://80smovieguide.com/overboard/
With the reboot of