NOSTALGIA JUST ISN’T WHAT IT USED TO BE: How a particular period setting has replaced fantasy as the world to escape to

By Cormac McCarthy “They just don’t make rose-tinted glasses like they used to. “The word “nostalgia” refers to the notion of how we tend to remember the more pleasant aspects of our past and look back on older times more fondly. Thus, the negative aspects can become forgotten entirely as the allure of the relative innocence becomes stronger. This is often why the audience finds themselves retreating to the same tracks repeatedly because of a reluctance to take a risk in what they watch. It is a way for the audience to escape the monotony of modern life to a time when life was relatively easier. In the early 2000s, the method of escaping to another world was largely through the fantasy genre. The box office was dominated by Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Narnia, Avatar, Twilight among others. The Star Wars prequels could also be included in this list. In all these series, a lot of time and energy was spent on innocuous details by the production team which added depth and life to the film. These minor details, while inconsequential to the overall plot are crucial as the viewer feels a closer connection to the film, a desire to be within them and to walk around in the environs. While not many tv programs followed this genre, there were a few successful entries with the likes of Game of Thrones and The Witcher. However, in recent years the period setting of the 1980s has replaced the fantasy genre as the world of choice in which to escape to. Examples of this include films such as Wonder Woman 1984, Ready Player One, Captain Marvel and television shows like Stranger Things, The Umbrella Academy and Sex Education. All these films evoke a sense of nostalgia, particularly for the 1980s. What is particularly curious about this, however, is that these films and shows are largely marketed to an age demographic that has no memory of these time periods at all, thus creating a fictionalised version of these times. This has always occurred with Victorian and Georgian era settings, where the time period has been heavily sanitized by only focusing on the lives of the wealthy classes. However, what is different about these forms of entertainment is that they are set in a time just out of reach of the memory of those watching the show. As a result, the target audience has a sense of nostalgia for a time in which they did not exist. The creators of these forms of entertainment have managed to manufacture a fictionalized version of a time period in which the audience yearns to escape to. This was most notable in Stranger Things where a poll revealed that 31% of respondents between 18-29 had seen every episode of Stranger Things. In the younger demographic it was also prevalent. There was a significant rise in demand for “retro” items that was attributed to the show’s release. These included Walkman’s’, Dungeons and Dragons sets and Nintendo 64s. These commodities were treated with the same awe and wonder held for fantasy memorabilia like Harry’s wand or “The One Ring”.As a result, this can often lead to a quality in films where a negative aspect, such as having a poor plot or shabby dialogue, can be overlooked because the viewer is enthralled by the wonder of the seemingly idyllic 1980s. Wonder Woman 1984 and Captain Marvel were such culprits. There was no artistic reason to have the films set in this time period other than to sooth the viewer. The fact that that Wonder Woman 1984 would be set in the 1980s was deemed worthy enough to warrant an announcement in itself. The marketing team knew that the new world of choice to escape to wasn’t Paradise Island with the rest of the Amazons but a Blockbuster Video Rental Store in 1980s Washington D.C.Ready Player One is perhaps one of the worst offenders of this trend. The film throws references at the viewer in the same manner that you would jangle your keys in front of a crying baby to shut them up. It is full to the brim with references and call backs to films that came out ten years before the target audience was even born. It substitutes a well engineered plot for warm, friendly reminders that you could very easily be watching a much better film. Many shows choose a composite of both modern elements and items from the 1980s. Such an example is Sex Education which is trapped in a world filled with 80s and 90s era cars, furniture and cameras but still uses the modern world’s attitudes, smartphones and fashion. This results in a rather fractured fantasy where items are cherry picked and mixed around to achieve a sense of nostalgia for the modern world. A very confusing thing indeed.