How “Stranger Things” Revived the 1980s: From Eggo Waffles to Kate Bush
Most people who lived through the 80s remember the big hair, questionable neon fashion, and analog inconveniences with a mix of fondness and maybe some regret. And yet, somehow, Stranger Things has convinced Gen Z that physical media is cool and mullets should make a comeback. Fashion quickly followed, with people searching for vintage denim jackets and other 80s-inspired clothes.
What started as a supernatural adventure set in 1983 has grown into a cultural force that does far more than reference nostalgia.
The Boy Who Survived: Will Byers’ Journey to the “Stranger Things” Finale
Since returning from the Upside Down in the first season, Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) has never truly been the same. Haunted by possession, sensing the hive mind and the lingering presence of Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower), Will moves through Hawkins with the weight of an entire other world on his shoulders. Some fans believe that Vecna was the force that first pulled Will into the darkness, setting everything in motion.
“Stranger Things” Season 4 Recap: Getting Upside Down From Eddie’s Guitar Solo to Vecna’s Revenge
We took you through the first three seasons of all the supernatural doings in Hawkins, Indiana. It’s not often that a show surges to its peak level of popularity in the fourth season, but that’s precisely what happened with the Duffer Brothers’ juggernaut series. Stranger Things season 4 broke records and the internet. In June 2022, The Credits wrote that season 4 “smashed the record for the best premiere for an English-language series,
“Stranger Things” Seasons 1-3 Summary: What You Need to Know Ahead of Season 5
You may have watched all 35 hours of Stranger Things seasons 1-4, but with those releases spread across the past decade, many viewers are in need of a recap. Season 5 is set to be even more jam-packed and arrives at the speed of a scampering demogorgon on November 26. Volume 1 consists of the first four episodes and runs 4 hours and 31 minutes. Run times for Volume 2, which streams on Netflix on Christmas Day and consists of three episodes and the finale.
Edgar Wright & Screenwriter Michael Bacall on Sending Glen Powell Into a Retro-Futuristic Nightmare in “The Running Man”
The Running Man is both an Edgar Wright film and a faithful adaptation of Stephen King. Long before the director made the cult comedy series Spaced and shot his Cornetto Trilogy, he had the inkling that this story would make for a proper film. The fun and violent hijinks aside, the Arnold Schwarzenegger-led film from ’87 isn’t exactly true to the source material.
For Wright and his co-writer,
“Stranger Things” Unleashes Kinetic Final Trailer for Season 5, Vol. 1
The final trailer for Stranger Things season 5 (volume 1) has arrived, revealing our fearless Hawkins’ heroes have a plan to take the battle to Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) and end his reign of terror once and for all. “I want to see Vecna’s heart on a platter,” says the always game Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), and his comrades agree.
The new trailer isn’t nearly as long as the bombastic,
C’est La Vie: “The White Lotus” Season 4 Is Going to France
While it seemed like the most likely destination for a while now, HBO and HBO Max Chairman and CEO Casey Bloys finally said oui, Mike White‘s The White Lotus will be heading to France for season 4.
Bloys confirmed France as the destination for White’s perennially buzzy series during Thursday’s HBO Max programming slate presentation in New York.
“It’s going to be in France,” Bloys said at the presentation,
“Wicked: For Good” DP Alice Brooks on Harnessing Fire & Shadows to Forge an Unforgettable Finale
A wizard of color and light, cinematographer Alice Brooks knew Wicked: For Good would require a very different tone and texture from what she delivered for audiences in the first film.
The second part of the epic adaptation of the Broadway musical, itself a prequel to The Wizard of Oz and adapted from Gregory Maguire’s novel, focuses on the maelstrom surrounding Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West,
Tom Cruise Shares First Look at Mysterious New Film From Oscar-Winning Director Alejandro G. Iñárritu
This past weekend at the Governors Awards in Los Angeles, Tom Cruise received his first Oscar and delivered an emotional speech about the role that film has in his life. “Making films is not what I do, it is who I am,” Cruise said, and few could argue with the statement. When Cruise took to the stage, the man to greet him there was visionary Mexican filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu, who said, “This may be his first Oscar,
How “SISU: Road to Revenge” Writer/Director Jalmari Helander Crafted Seven Chapters of Unrelenting Chaos
If John Wick had a Finnish uncle, it would probably be Aatami Korpi (Jorma Tommila) from writer-director Jalmari Helander’s sleeper hit SISU (2022). In those events, the unspoken, never say die ex-soldier unearths gold in his war-torn country only to fend off German officers trying to steal it, killing hundreds in the process and earning him the moniker sisu. (The Finnish word roughly translates to “unyielding courage in the face of impossible odds.”)
Korpi now returns in SISU: Road to Revenge,
“Wicked: For Good” Review Round-Up: An Emotionally Resonant Finale With Two Unforgettable Performances
The first reactions to Jon M. Chu‘s Wicked: For Good were stellar when we reported on them back in late September. Now, the embargo for full-scale reviews has been lifted, and the critics have spoken. Chu and his team, most crucially his two mega-stars, Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda, have stuck the landing—Wicked: For Good is being hailed by most critics as even better and more emotionally resonant than the critically acclaimed blockbuster that preceded it.
The Legend Comes to Life: First Look at Zelda and Link in Nintendo’s Live-Action Epic “The Legend of Zelda”
Nintendo and Sony have revealed the first look at their live-action The Legend of Zelda. The image features Bo Bragason as Princess Zelda and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as the young swordsman Link. The adaptation of Nintendo’s iconic game is directed by Wes Ball (Maze Runner, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes) from a script by Derek Connolly and T.S. Nowlin.
“Moana” Live-Action Trailer Reveals Catherine Laga’aia & Dwayne Johnson’s Epic Adventure
The first look at Disney’s live-action Moana has taken to the high seas with a new swashbuckling trailer. Dwayne Johnson returns as Maui—now in the flesh after having voiced the character in the original 2016 animated blockbuster and the 2024 sequel Moana 2. He’s joined by Catherine Laga‘aia as the titular character (previously voiced by Auli‘i Cravalho), the adventurous teenager who, with Maui’s help, sets off on a daring quest to save her island home and her people.
“Train Dreams”: Behind the Majestic Visuals of Joel Edgerton’s Pacific Northwest Epic
The Train Dreams (now in theaters; streaming on Netflix, November 21) story ends in 1968, but the film about the fictitious logger and railroad worker Robert Grainier chimes with contemporary echoes. Grainier, played by Joel Edgerton, sees a Chinese immigrant being wrestled to the ground by bigots and thrown off a train trestle. He sees a wildfire ravage lives and landscapes in the Pacific Northwest. He helps saw down centuries-old trees in the name of progress.
“You’re One of the Best Actors of All Time”: Timothée Chalamet Praises Adam Sandler at “Sandler x Chalamet” Event
Timothée Chalamet and Adam Sandler took a break from their respective schedules to spend an evening together in Fairfax High School’s gymnasium in Los Angeles. To play a game of pickup? Well, kind of, but first, they broke down their most iconic roles.
On Saturday night, November 15, the “Sandler x Chalamet” event commenced with a packed crowd of students and other audience members. The pair gave a sneak peek of their respective upcoming films.
Tom Cruise Receives First Oscar at 2025 Governors Awards: “Making Films Is Who I Am”
“Making films is not what I do, it is who I am,” Tom Cruise said while accepting an honorary Oscar at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 16th Governors Awards on Sunday Night. Cruise was one of four film artists selected for this year’s ceremony, held at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Ovation Hollywood, the seventh produced by Jennifer Fox.
Cruise was feted alongside actress/singer/songwriter Dolly Parton—who collected, in absentia,
Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey”: An Attempt to Break New Cinematic Ground
Christopher Nolan is no stranger to grand ambitions. He has been an advocate and early adopter of using IMAX cameras in his films, dating back to The Dark Knight (2008), his superhero masterclass, which utilized the large-format cameras for the gangbusters opening bank robbery scene. He’s been deploying the cameras ever since, even helping IMAX push their own technology further, creating newer, lighter-weight equipment.
For his latest epic,
“A House of Dynamite”: How Production Designer Jeremy Hindle Built a Nuclear Crisis in Real Time – Part 2
Filmed primarily in New Jersey with the help of $30 million in production incentives, Oscar-winner Kathryn Bigelow’s A House of Dynamite is a sobering look at how the response to a nuclear attack on U.S. soil might unfold. It’s not an easy watch, but it’s relentlessly compelling and superbly crafted, hallmarks of Bigelow’s distinguished career.
The cortisol-triggering film follows major players in the government during the 20 minutes before an inbound nuclear missile hits a major American city.
How “The Beast in Me” Cinematographer Lyle Vincent Brought ’70s Noir to Netflix’s Claire Danes Thriller
The Beast in Me opens on a tableau of sorrow. Claire Danes, who plays author Aggie Wiggs, is driving her son Cooper (Leonard Gerome) when the unthinkable happens: a car accident takes his life. In the aftermath, her partner Shelly (Natalie Morales) rushes towards her, calling out for him. Drowning in pain, Aggie’s bloodied face can only twist a piercing scream underscored by a cacophonous mix of music and effects. The bleak moment abruptly cuts to a close-up of her against a warm,
Bringing Guillermo del Toro’s Creature Into the Light With “Frankenstein” Cinematographer Dan Laustsen
Dan Laustsen likes to make even the most fantastical frame pop with an authentic, organic humanity. The cinematographer extraordinaire and filmmaker Guillermo del Toro wants tangibility, regardless of whether his stories are as slippery and bittersweet as The Shape of Water or as beguiling and deceptive as Nightmare Alley. In the case of Frankenstein, organic is a more-than-fitting approach for the story of men and the monsters within,
