Target: Back to the 80s - 90s

Recently in the noise.cash channel 'En español' we made a dynamic called 'Noise Wars' in which users had to defend the qualities of their favorite decade. It is interesting that many of the posts yearned for the 80s and 90s: the music, the fashion, the movies…

Were bands better? Was the music more artistic? I don't know. But one of the conclusions we came to is that many singers and bands that appeared in that decade are still considered great talents. However, the same is not true for the later decades that are full of 'one hit wonders' that have already disappeared.

But I don't want to talk about music, I want to talk about cinema. Thinking about it, it turns out that something similar happens. Movies and series from the 80s and 90s are still highly valued 40 years later. And I wonder why…

Were you born in the 70s? Congratulations! You're a market target.

Those who were born in the 70s made it to the 80s as teenagers. Perhaps the time of life when you experience everything most intensely. But those who were teenagers in the 80s are over 40 today. And they are probably fathers or mothers of kids who are now teenagers.

This generation born in the 70s are now adults, probably have well paid job and are the ones who function as prescribers of what kids, who do not earn their own money yet, buy and consume. How to reach these adults so that they allow their kids to consume certain products and services?

Ah, nostalgia, that powerful feeling

It is impressive the amount of creations that go back to the 80s. Remakes, reboots, or creations set in that era are constantly being released. It's as if movies and series wanted to attract fathers and mothers to capture their sons and daughters. Don't believe me? I have plenty of examples.

Remakes of Robocop, Total Recall, Predator, It, Baywatch, The A-Team, Blade Runner, Karate Kid (the movie with Jackie Chan and Cobra Kai series), Footloose, Coming to America 2 (with Eddie Murphy, 90s icon), Star Trek, The Mandalorian, Jumanji, Dune… shall I go on?

All of them are remakes, reboots or continuations of movies (some, more than 40 years old). Then there are the nostalgic documentaries: the movies that made us, the toys that made us, High Score… not to mention the craze unleashed by channels to turn your old PC into a retro console to play that games, much simpler than those of today, but that occupy a privileged place in the colective memory of entire generations.

¿What about biopics of 80 and 90 stars? Freddie Mercury, Elton John, Motley Crew… have their own biopic. There are also series like Stranger Things, which mix a little of The Goonies with a little of Poltergeist and Alien. And others like Ready Player One, which are almost a tribute to the 80s and 90s. And directed by Spielberg! (iconic director of those years). There's even a prequel to The Dark Crystal with Jim Henson's puppets!.

Another obvious example:

In Guardians of the Galaxy (movie for a young audience), Starlord listens to 80's music on his Walkman! And the figure of David Hasselhoff (icon of the 80s and 90s thanks to Knight Rider and Baywatch) is recovered. Also are Sylvester Stallone and Kurt Russel (Tango & Cash), very famous and loved actors in the 80 & 90.

But if that's not enough, what about this music video promo from the movie?

Yondu (Michael Rooker), Gamorra (Zoe Saldaña) and Starlord, wait-until-the-end-of-the-video (Chriss Pratt) are the best! Ha ha ha!  (Can you recognize them all?)

It's hilarious, and clearly aimed at 80's nostalgics. And even the song is cool!

David Hasselhoff singing 'Zardu Hasselfrau' that means 'David Hasselhoff' (due to a pronunciation error by Gamorra in the movie) makes me cry with laughter.

I could go on much, much longer!

But I think you'll have gotten the point by now. All these series and movies, not only seem to be aimed at today's teenagers, but also at their parents (who are the ones who pay for movie tickets or subscriptions to streaming platforms).

I have a feeling that the 80s and 90s have become a nostalgic fetish capable of selling again, stories already sold decades ago. And in addition to those who feel that nostalgia, it reaches their sons and daughters.

The positive side is that I think that these works inspired by the 80s and 90s are able to seat fathers and sons, mothers and daughters in front of the same screen. They are like an intergenerational bridge that allows two generations separated by more than 30 or 40 years to share interests, stories, and narratives.

And the truth is that this part, even if it has a clear commercial purpose, seems fascinating to me.

Wouldn't you agree?

This article has been possible thanks to all the people that has written in our noise.cash channel 'En español'. But also thanks my sponsors that encouraged me to keep writting. Take a look to their posts. They are really great!