Stranger Things Series Review (Season 1)

Released: July 15th 2016

Created by: The Duffer Brothers

Number of episodes: 8

Where to watch: Netflix (UK and United States)

Starring: Winona Ryder, Noah Schnapp, Millie Bobbie Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, David Harbour and Matthew Modine

Relatively new to the entertainment scene, The Duffer Brothers have previously produced Hidden and Wayward Pines. In their Netflix debut, Stranger Things, they wind the clock backwards to form an enticing tribute to all those zany sci-fi flicks.

Set in the small town of Hawkins, Indiana, Stranger Things follows a relatively simple plot; a monster on the lose, an escaped experiment and all manner of different characters caught up in the mystery. When the young Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) disappears without a trace, his mother Joyce (Winona Ryder) and three best friends Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) and Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) set about finding him, only to be caught up in some sinister business surrounding a girl named "Eleven" with a shaved head and mind-boggling abilities (Mille Bobbie Brown). We follow the tale from multiple perspectives as the plot thickens, a rabbit hole that gets deeper with every episode, inevitably venturing into the realms of scientific and paranormal horror. With a clear focus in mind, Stranger Things has every eighties cliché and pop culture reference down to a tee; kids going around on their bikes and getting into old table-top games, the school bullies who never listen, the care-free high school girls sleeping around in-between study sessions and the divisive lad who doesn’t quite fit in. These have been used many times before but in Stranger Things they have a real charm in the way they transport the viewer back to a simpler time. What's also impressive about the series is that as it goes along, every character is incorporated into the central story in some way, maintaining a steady build-up to the bigger reveals. This method of directing ensures a consistently exciting and intriguing narrative.

Stranger Things features a fairly wide spectrum of actors, though much of the attention is directed towards the younger ones. The child actors all do a terrific job of selling you on their charisma and not once do they ever become annoying or unlikeable; they’re smart and inventive, but can also be more emotional and conflicted at times. It’s very reminiscent of 1985’s The Goonies in which a collection of likeable characters pulls the audience in to a fairly straightforward plot. Millie Bobbie Brown does a particularly excellent job as Eleven, and carries her character's tortured ordeals with great dedication. These great performances are matched, for the most part, by the adult actors. Winona Ryder stands out as Joyce Boyers and her desperate attempts to find her son and David Harbour's Jim Hopper has his personal faults but remains good-natured as the Hawkins Police Chief. Towards the end of the season both characters have some heart-wrenching moments that really get the audience to care for them. If there's one gap in the characterisation, it's the main antagonist played by Matthew Modine. For the first half of the season, his motives do contribute to the mysterious narrative but at the end, he falters quite a bit; not much is revealed about him as the revelations come to light. Apart from this however, the characters of the series all work to immerse the audience; you'll be hoping that they manage to make it through the dark events in one piece.

Stranger Things has a very synthesised look, from the pulsing, luminous soundtrack to the countless homages paid to old eighties fiction; you'll be reminded a lot of Alien, Tobe Hooper's Poltergeist and Stand by Me to name a few. It puts elements of all these fictional works together very well, creating an air of spookiness that hangs over the series; with many scenes being set at night, this sense of tension is only amplified further. As things become more detached from reality, classical family homes give way to suitably icky set designs that push the atmosphere even more. A mixture of practical and digital effects never becomes too intrusive while a flashy neon aesthetic and a carefully chosen soundtrack featuring the likes of New Order nail the feel of an eighties production the series shoots for. Each scene transition is handled deftly, with the script and events often pointing to the next establishing shot and overall the series is very well-produced, falling more in line with a feature length film than a linear series.

It may have a weak antagonist but Stranger Things is otherwise an energised injection of eighties flair, connected to an intriguing mystery that builds and builds over the course of its eight episodes. If you can stomach the creepier aspects, it’s hard not to be pulled into its mysteries.

Rating: 4/5 Stars (Great)