#thirddufferbrothering

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ST s2: how costumes mirror character arcs and personalities

On my rewatch I noticed that in s2 a lot of characters dress up and the costumes always tell a story.

Steve and Nancy: Joel and Lana

Steve and Nancy are dressed up as Joel and Lana from Risky Business (1983).

They've been planning their outfits for some time:

A cute couple look, you'd say?

WRONG The movie is about a rich high school boy Joel who meets a hooker (a call girl) and they organize a brothel in his house (that's presented as Joel's character's growth, he became 'an entrepreneur', got a stupid amount of money becoming a pimp, yay). They part ways in the end (She was also lying to him throughout the movie and orchestrated his house robbery) (Just like Nancy was lying to Steve about her feelings and they separated)

We know that Nancy's a fan of Tom Cruise.

Of course she would like the movie. But actually choosing the character of Lana is OOC for her. Unless Steve has chosen their outfits!

Joel is a lot like Steve: a popular guy, rich parents who dictate his future, strict house rules. I can totally imagine Steve making Nancy dress up as Lana because he saw himself in Joel.

2) Joyce and Bob: Mina and Dracula

Winona Ryder played Mina/Elisabeta in Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) and the Duffers (nerds!!!) couldn't resist referencing this scene. (NERDS)

Plot-wise, Mina and Dracula were a thing in this movie with Mina loving her husband Jonathan and Dracula at the same time. A possible hint at a Bob-Joyce-Hopper love triangle.

Dracula also dies in Mina's arms. Foreshadows Bob's death at the end of the season.

3) the Party: Ghostbusters

Juxtaposition.

Will's costume is handmade while Lucas, Mike and Dustin's are store bought. A classic reminder of how different their social backgrounds are.

Two Venkmans:

The continuation of Lucas/Mike 'rivalry' in the Party. Lucas and Mike are both striving for leadership. They are compared and contrasted throughout the whole show. Sharing the role of Peter Venkman in the group is a metaphorical way of showing this (Dr. Peter Venkman was the leader of the Ghostbusters).

In season 1 Lucas was against El being in the Party while Mike was actively trying to advocate for her. Season 2 switched their dynamic – now Lucas is the one who wants another girl (Max) to join their Party. Dustin also calls Mike and Lucas best friends (s1) separating himself from the two and highlighting their roles in the Party.

2. Nobody wants to be Winston. Being a black guy in the 80's in a small Indiana town was a shitty experience: casual racism and casual slurs were very common. s1 was more open in that department, s2 is more subtle. However, this lays a foundation for the later Billy/Lucas conflict.

Worth mentioning: the obvious 'possessed love interest' (Will/Max) interpretation of the 'Two Venkmans' scene.

4) Max: Michael Myers

This one is particularly interesting because at the end of Halloween II Michael Myers 'dies': Laurie, the main protagonist, shoots him in both eyes blinding him and then he perishes in fire. In Halloween IV we find out that Michael didn't die and was in a coma for 10 years.

Crazy how they thought everything through...

5) El: The ghost costume

We get it, they are incompatible. No 'ghosts' for Mike.

El's arc that season reminds me of 'ghosts' as well.

She's barely seen (if not at all) but her presence is felt.

Her ghost costume is also a reference to E.T.

6) El: the Kali makeover

El's character arc is about her identity, she wants to find out who she is as a person: is she Eleven, a lab kid? is she Jane? is she one of Kali's bandits? or someone else?

Throughout the whole show she's trying to find the answer and her outfits show that path.

The 'bitching' look definitely doesn't match who she is at her core. She's still a child who was dressed to look like an adult (or an MTV punk, if you will)

The baby mask that El wore is proving the same point.

The mask is literally a baby with makeup. Fitting, right?

7) Snow ball: the Party

This one is ... weird. We all know the fact that the Snow Ball outfits might show the boys 'future careers'.

But is it even true? The only piece of information I found is this bit from an interview with Kim Wilcox, s2 costume designer.

The way I see it, 'might be becoming' refers to their personalities and how they gradually mature and find their sense of self. Not their actual 'future careers'.

The outfits also show their role models at the time: Dustin is copying Steve (the hair), Will is dressed like Mr Clark.

Of course, there are other possible inspirations and references but these two are the most obvious.

Remember 'I specifically asked not to be Winston' line? Lucas' grey jacket and shirt remind me of Winston lmao.

8) Snow ball: El

El is literally dressed and styled like Nancy: the same eyeshadow and lipgloss. She's probably wearing Nancy's dress.

El and Nancy are both wearing golden bracelets on the same arm. Nancy probably gave El the clothes and helped her with makeup. Familial parallels never end with Mike and El and we love to see it.

Worth mentioning: Hopper finally gave El the hair tie symbolizing him moving on from the loss of Sarah.

TLDR: The Costume Department rocks!

[krokodilsredimudil]

They forced me to do it. I'm innocent(?)* – Is Henry Creel really guilty and what does Sarah Fier from Fear Street have to do with this?

I have finished rewatching the Fear Street trilogy and the story of Sarah Fier is making my brain short-circuit because the way it is laid out is very similar to Henry/Vecna/001's.

In this post I'm gonna compare and contrast the shows, theorize and cornplate a lot. You've been warned!

Spoilers for both shows and the First Shadow below.

*Clockwork Orange, 1971

There are many theories floating around the Internet debating whether or not Henry Creel is the Big Bad of Stranger Things. Some believe that he is in fact behind the Mind Flayer and orchestrated all the killings while others are not so easily convinced.

Is Henry Vecna? How much of Henry is inside Vecna? Does Henry still exist? Is he a puppet of the Mind Flayer? Has Vecna ever existed? The answer is ... we don't know yet but we can speculate.

My blog is centered around finding movie parallels because Stranger Things is a giant homage to cinema: from independent movies to blockbusters and mainstream franchises. The Duffer brothers are movie nerds and they genuinely love adding easter eggs.

However, a reference is not always made for the sake of a reference. Sometimes directors watch other media to learn how different twists are executed, so they can implement those themselves.

This is where Fear Street (2021) comes.

The Fear Street trilogy is a horror series written and directed by Leigh Janiak, Ross Duffer's ex-wife. The series is full of Stranger Things callbacks, some cast and crew members are part of the trilogy. The first movie is a big ST3 homage.

Here's the summary from Google:

The "Fear Street" plot is about a centuries-old curse plaguing the town of Shadyside, caused by the vengeful spirit of a witch named Sarah Fier. A group of teenagers in 1994 discovers the curse and fights to break it, linking their present-day struggle to events in the past, including the original events in 1666 and a mall massacre in 1994. The curse makes people into killers, or possesses them to go on killing sprees, and the teenagers must uncover the truth behind the curse and unite Sarah's body to end the cycle of violence. 

What I find incredibly fascinating is that the story is divided into three parts covering three different periods of time, each installment giving more clues to the real identity of the Mastermind behind the curse.

That's right, it turns out Sarah Fier is a scapegoat, not the Villain. Over the course of the first two movies we learn that the Witch is turning Shadysiders into killers only to find out that it was all a lie. Sarah Fier was only trying to protect people and warn them about the real threat: the Goode Family. The Goodes were a generation of men who had made a deal with Satan in 1666. Shadyside residents were offered to the Devil, so that the Goodes could thrive and prosper for three centuries straight.

Fear Street Part Three: 1666 is where we learn that. And it was written by Kate Trefry. The same Kate Trefry who wrote the First Shadow. Both prequels tell the story of antagonists who were misunderstood, mistreated, framed and doomed by the narrative.

Coincidence? Oh no, I don't believe in coincidences, not anymore.

How did the writers lead us to the final reveal? And what can we, Stranger Things fans, learn from that?

Disclaimer: I don't mean to imply that the Duffer brothers referenced all of the points below (s4 did have an on-screen reference to Fear Street though). I'm presenting an observation on how similar plots are executed.

First, it's established that there's a Witch possessing people. Just like the demon that's been tormenting the Creel family.

Shadyside residents feel like they're cursed because bad things happen to them and occasionally someone 'snaps' and turns into a mass murderer. It's called 'the Witch's curse'.

The main character's girlfriend, Sam, is chosen as a target for the killers, so Deena and her brother Josh embark on a quest to end the curse. They discover an article that says there was a survivor of one of the many Shadyside massacres.

Newspaper articles are always important if shown to you

In the 1978 retelling of the events we get a lot of clues to the reveal. However, they become evident ONLY AFTER you know the twist.

C. Berman (Ziggy), the only survivor, was friends with Nick Goode, a boy who was destined to become a sheriff one day and continue his father's legacy (Satanism). We learn a lot about the Goode family from their interactions.

It was a lie. He did want that

The writing is very subtle, most of the audience wouldn't even think about these lines

Also very subtle. Ziggy is afraid of snakes, Nick is admiring it (a metaphor for him being a traitor).

Stranger Things writers do that as well: subtle hints and visuals here and there.

This scene, in my opinion, is THE proof that Henry is not in charge. The use of the word 'shadows', 'hiding' and that spider shot? This is not obvious, but Henry WAS POSSESSED by the SHADOW shaped like a SPIDER. That was later confirmed in the First Shadow.

Notice how both scenes focus on an animal representing the Big Bad. Nick Goode as a snake and the Mind Flayer as a spider.

If we look at 'Henry's' monologue in s4 ep7, we are led to believe that a 12 (or 14, whatever) year old Henry Creel was a psychopath, an egomaniac and a master planner that outsmarted his family, framed his father for the murders and decided to become 'a predator but for good'. This is unrealistic as hell.

The First Shadow gives us another perspective: Henry Creel, a young quirky boy who has a strong moral compass, who doesn't want to hurt anyone, who is struggling because he has been possessed from a young age.

Let's look at two contrasting scenes:

Stranger things season 4 ep7. Henry's monologue

The First Shadow

Henry Creel likes animals and doesn't want to kill them. The Mind Flayer is using his body and is feeding off fear. The cat in the TFS scene was afraid of Henry, so the MF managed to use that to his advantage and kill it. Henry woke up and was utterly terrified. He calls it 'a nightmare', even though subconsciously he's aware that the Shadow is making him kill.

We can even see the Shadow in that scene.

The Shadow continuously tormented Henry for years. It wanted to 'groom' him into accepting it and becoming his host.

The play shows Henry as a traumatized boy who's constantly afraid and shaking every second. In the monologue montage we see a different 'person'– more confident, the one that's using his host to experiment, to explore, to give nightmares to his family, to generate more fear and bask in it.

'Henry' is talking about predators and how he was a solitary creature (just like a spider), an explorer in that foreign cruel world. That sounds exactly what an alien creature that got into a different world would say. But who is really speaking? Henry? The Shadow? Or both?

I can talk about the monologue for hours and what I believe the Shadow is, what exactly we're seeing in this scene and why the First Shadow differs from filmed canon (what I believe in is a little bit unorthodox) but let's save that for another time.

Henry's favorite character is Captain Midnight whose motto is: Justice through strength and courage. Henry wanted to be like Captain Midnight and help people. He wanted to help Patty find her mom, to do one good thing in his life.

His entire life he was miserable, afraid of making connections, afraid of hurting others. That voice in his head was driving him over the edge, making him succumb to the 'dark side'.

We know that Henry's been flayed for a long time. We know that he's aware of his own actions. However, he cannot control his body and mind anymore. 'The witch made him do it'.

In Fear Street, it's believed that the curse makes people go on killing sprees.

In FS 1978 we see one of the killers' mother, Mary Lane. Her daughter Ruby was one of the people chosen by the Goodes.

This is what Victor's been saying about Henry. This is what the First Shadow is about.

So Henry, metaphorically speaking, is a Shadyside killer and Sarah Fier at the same time. Vecna's curse can be applied not only to his victims, but to Henry as well. He's imprisoned (Henry's prison), he's under Vecna's curse himself.

What does all of that mean? We will know the truth in vol 2. I might be right, I might be wrong. Only time will tell.

[krokodilsredimudil]

Stranger things / The Evil Dead I

The Byers house IS a subtle nod to the Knowby Cabin from the Evil Dead I (I wasn't sure about this but the swing shot convinced me. I think there might be more similar shots in the season)

s1 Jonathan has an Evil Dead I poster in his room:

s4 Will is dressed like Scotty from Evil Dead I

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Children of Men (2006) | Stranger Things 5

One shot battle scene

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The sixth sense (1999) | Stranger things s2 ep1

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So Maurice, eh?

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Return to Oz (1985) | Stranger things

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The Village (2004) | Stranger things

M.Night Shyamalan is known for unexpected and bizarre plot twists in his movies. The Village is a prime example of that. The whole s5 Max-Henry-Holly sequence is based on that movie, dare I say it's a carbon copy.

Here I'll be talking about how much the Duffers love Shyamalan (I don't!) and how what we see on the screen is not what it seems.

Spoilers under the cut

The plot:

The main plot twist in The Village is that the village is not set in the 19th century, but in modern-day Pennsylvania, located inside a wildlife preserve. The "monsters" in the woods are a hoax created by the village elders, who are using costumes to scare the younger generation and prevent them from leaving the isolated community they created to escape past trauma. 

The main protagonist, Ivy, is the daughter of one of the elders. She sets out on a quest to fetch medicine for her dying boyfriend. To do that, she has to go through the woods (which is where the monsters live) (they're called 'those we don't speak of').

In the village the color red is forbidden, it's thought to attract monsters that always wear red (their capes are red). So the villagers always wear yellow, a contrasting color that you can easily see in the woods (there are other reasons, they're irrelevant here)

Ivy's path is EXACTLY what Max draws for Holly.

Woods? ✅

Fallen tree? ✅

Creek? ✅

ROCKS?

Let's see!

In the movie, the Village is located in the centre of the wildlife preserve. It is separated from the outer world by a large fence.

The rock formation in ST5 is an enclosure as well, it's a manifestation of the UD wall, I guess (while also being Henry's cave memory ofc).

So the only logical question is the following: why is Henry's evil prison for lost souls fake as hell? You don't add as many details from your favorite movie if you don't want the audience to look for similarities.

Why is Vecna's new form giving Those they don't speak of? Aka monsters that aren’t real?

Why is everything SO fake? Where's the real Henry Creel? We'll find out in Vol 2!