Courtesy Warner Bros.
My childhood was defined by ‘80s movies, music, fashion, and malls. It was a fantastically colorful, loud, fun and progressive decade to live through (although not as good as we have it today).
Although every decade has its share of hit films, the ‘80s are especially known for their irreverent, imaginative, and spectacular movies. Heck, they even invented “the blockbuster.”
If I could only watch 20 movies from the ‘80s, what would they be? In my opinion, you won’t find anything more iconic, classic, and radical than these: Continue reading…
I recently re-watched Top Gun with my children. This is what we thought of it: Radical!
As I always do with movies I love, I immediately headed to Wikipedia after the screening to soak up additional context. Turns out, the movie was inspired by this incredibly written article by Ehud Yonay in California Magazine. First published in 1983, Yonay tells the story of two pilots named “Yogi” and “Possum” and how they navigate “Top Gun,” along with two excellent sidebar stories about taking a flight in an F-5 and how to fly one.
“When I climbed out of the cockpit at the end of our hourlong flight, I couldn’t even swagger,” Yonay writes. “Every muscle in my body ached, I was exhausted and slightly nauseated, and all I wanted to do was go to sleep. But they tell me the first time is the worst, and I can’t wait to get up there again.”
FUN FACT: Top Gun has since moved to Fallon, Nevada. My family visited it several years ago on a press trip and were floored by the air maneuvers (or “hops” as they used to say). Looked like something out of Inception—jets flying straight up and down at speeds I’ve never seen before!
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MT_msVoRAg[/youtube]
My wife and I watched Atari: Game Over last night on YouTube (part II here). It’s an hour long documentary about the fast rise and even faster demise of video games in the early ’80s and the misinformation surrounding their fall (the games, not the decade).
That’s just the pretext, however. The documentary is really about hurtful group think, toxic urban legends, and the unfair, if not tragic, treatment of Howard Warshaw, a talented and pioneering game designer that was ostracized for his largely innocent role.
Although the documentary handles some weighty baggage, director Zak Penn keeps it fun, fast-paced, and peppered with likable characters. When Warshaw is partially redeemed by the end of the movie, I was rattled with sympathy.
Atari: Game Over isn’t as fist-pumping fun as Kong of Kong, which you should watch posthaste if you haven’t already. But the former is more accurate and just as endearing. Furthermore, it challenges the viewer to scrutinize their beliefs before accepting them and encourages us to give others the benefit of the doubt.
Five stars out of five.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyO-MyJ4R1g[/youtube]
Fun stuff for those who grew up in the ’80s. See also: Starcadian’s spacey Heart video
If you haven’t already, consider buying Starcadian’s Sunset Blood, from which this song came. It’s one of my top 5 albums of the year.
I owned my fair share of Air Jordans growing up. But as a jack of all trades, I always had a soft spot for Bo Jackson, his amazing talent, and his cross training shoes. In fact, I probably owned more Bo Jacksons than Air Jordans. I certainly drew more cross trainers than basketball shoes.
Unfortunately, Bo Jackson was only superhuman for four years until he suffered a hip injury. But for those four years, he was arguably bigger than even Jordan, as this wonderful profile of him suggests. Bo, it turns out, really did know.
The two-sided Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming by M83. 22 tracks. Catchy hooks. Soaring synthesizers. Big drums.
So far, Intro, Midnight City, Reunion, Claudia Lewis, This Bright Flash, OK Pal, and Steve Mc Queen are my favorite cuts.
Hope you enjoy it as much as I have.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWHOF_0-6Hg[/youtube]
(Thanks, Tim)
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yviIgIDxlwc[/youtube]
It’s gonna be awesome.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9SPuUntnno[/youtube]
Bonus points to Russ for saying “scuzzed out.” And I love how tiny his head looks when he walks onto the street in new looks.
Buy it here. A vast majority of the songs are keepers, particularly If You Want It, History of Modern, and Sister Marie Says.
You cannot call yourself an ’80s fan if you pass this up. Well, you can. But I’ll think less of you for it.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idA9Vym1F54[/youtube]
It was the ’80s or ’90s. It moved at a faster pace because officials actually let the players play, unlike today. And uh, as the above video shows, it was a lot more physical. Good times. (Thanks, Tim).
Are we human, or are we forever young? (click to play, right click to “save as” mp3). Thanks, Tim.
It’s all over the second we ride up Troy’s bucket. Or is it?
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhzEzaYXxdo[/youtube]
Lindsey and I watched Some Kind of Wonderful last night. Having not seen it since the mid ’90s, I had forgotten how funny, well-cast, and totally awesome it is. While there are numerous memorable scenes, this one, entitled “Kissing Lesson,” takes the cake for its effective use of music, humor, and one-liners (“Lesson’s over; you’re cool”). If only more movies were so well done.
I used to watch a lot of wrestling when I was in elementary school. Saturday mornings with my buddy Chris and a box of Fruit Rollups was always a good time. My interest for macho soap operas later waned in middle school, but I briefly rekindled my love for pro wrestling as a sophomore and junior in high school when WCW was at its peak. Call it a guilty pleasure. I haven’t watched it since.
While “the sport” is pure trash now (in the 80s it was only part trash), I still have fond memories of those fake-baked, bad actors with muscles and lots of fluorescent tights. Here are my favorites. Do share yours. Continue reading…
Warner Bros has confirmed that Goonies 2 is in production, reports Moviehole. “A source at Warner Bros has since confirmed [Goonies 2],” the site asserts, “saying they are developing it as a major movie, but won’t share anything other than that.”
Here’s hoping the news is legit. What with the recent announcement of Tron 2, I’ll soon be in 80s geek heaven.
