Enough, Already With All the Sloppy '80s References in Movies and TV

Fascinated as I am with much of 1980s popular culture, I absolutely despise contemporary comedies set in that decade. I hit my breaking point last night when, after a day of post-blizzard 2010 traveling, I was too tired to get off my bed to retrieve the remote control that would allow me to watch anything other than a show on TBS called Glory Daze. Only then did I discover how Glory Daze symbolizes everything wrong about how we as a society treat the 1980s.

To wit, there seems to be a conventional wisdom when setting a film in the 1980s that "the '80s" were just one year. In other words, if a film is set in 1988, a reference that would have been appropriate from 1981 is acceptable. Also: the more references the better! Here's how the dialogue in pretty much any movie set in the '80s is written:

"Hey, buddy, what are you up to today?"

"Well, once I get out of my Jams and put my parachute pants on, I'm going to play Q*Bert until it's time to go to the Cutting Crew concert. Have you seen my one white glove?"

Believe it or not, there actually is a strong cultural difference between 1981 and 1988. On popular radio, the more New Wave sounds of a band like A Flock of Seagulls or Devo had, by 1988, been replaced by the musical stylings of Rick Astley and INXS. This would be like a movie being set in 2008 yet littered with Napster references and music by The Corrs. Admittedly, I've only seen one episode of Glory Daze, so perhaps it's not a big enough sample to make a judgment of its use of pop culture. But the show has been on for a few weeks, and based on this episode and the commercials, I feel like I can safely assume its constant 1980s references are a trend: Set in the fall of 1986, Glory Daze centers on a group of college students pledging a fraternity. That's right: 1986, even though the previews for Glory Daze feature Madness's song "Our House" playing in the background -- a song that was released in 1982. Though I was young, I don't remember anyone setting down Bon Jovi's Slippery When Wet long enough in '86 to jam to "Our House." Not to be outdone, the opening credits for Glory Daze feature Space Invaders, released in 1978, and a Rubik's Cube, released in 1980.

The main focus of this particular episode was Top Gun. Of course it is. References! At this point I will give credit that Top Gun actually did come out in the summer of 1986. Though, for a character (Eli) to be so enamored by Maverick in the late fall, considering Top Gun was released May 16, is a bit of a stretch. It would be like one of your friends all of a sudden showing up for work today dressed as Cobb from Inception. Also of note, when Eli purchases a ticket to Top Gun, the other three movies playing were Three Amigos, Hannah and her Sisters and Pretty in Pink. I can almost get that the theater would still be playing Top Gun from May, but Hannah and her Sisters was released on Feb. 7 and Pretty in Pink opened Feb. 28. And before you assume this was the dollar show for second-run films, apparently this theater was getting an advanced screening of Three Amigos, which didn't come out until Dec. 12. Considering all of those films actually were from 1986, I was about to give Glory Days a pass -- until, for no reason, a reference was made to Billy Idol's "Dancing with Myself," a song that was released in 1980 (and re-released in 1981).

If I had to guess, the movie that started this trend was Adam Sandler's The Wedding Singer. Released in 1998 and set in 1985, The Wedding Singer took a fairly lax attitude toward '80s historical accuracy. One example: Robbie's (Sandler) brother-in-law yells frantically that someone just shot J.R. -- a reference to J.R. Ewing being shot in a cliffhanger season finale of Dallas that originally aired on March 21, 1980. Again, this would be the equivalent of a show based in 2010 having a character yell from the other room, "Hey, get in here, Jack and Locke got the hatch open!" Regardless, considering the film's success, the trend continues today. I will spare you any examples from the short lived answer to That '70s Show, That '80s Show, but, in comparison, Glory Daze is a clinic on subtlety and accuracy.

Even this year's fairly enjoyable Hot Tub Time Machine was guilty. Actually, it might be a little worse. On the one hand, yes: The idea of criticizing Hot Tub Time Machine for anachronisms or plot holes is perhaps a bit much. The whole movie, about a hot tub that hurtles four men through time, is one giant plot hole. (Did they become their 1986 versions or did they just look like their 1986 versions?) On the other hand, it's just annoying me that most of the music referenced in a 1986-set film was from the early 1980s. The most egregious example: A group of preppy kids assault Lou (Rob Corddry), then steal his backpack. Inside they find a modern-day Russian energy drink. One preppy accuses Lou's group of being Red Dawn-style Communists and explains away their youth (remember, Lou and his friends appear young to the other characters) by comparing them to the show 21 Jump Street. It's early 1986 in the film; 21 Jump Street premiered April 12, 1987. How is that possible? Even with the silly rules that apply in this film, that reference defies every single one of them. But, hey, it's the 80s! Any reference will do!

Again, I know these properties are all silly comedies and, yes, I'm probably overreacting to their historical inaccuracies. But here's the thing about the 1980s: There is an absolute treasure trove of material to mine out of each and every year. Wouldn't this material be better if they stuck to the specific time period that the characters happen to be living in, maybe making a slightly more esoteric or singular reference than the all-encompassing '80s-reference jamboree? Why should the conventional wisdom hold that people love their references and like them easy? Enough, already. Meanwhile, if you will excuse me, I have to turn off my Glow Worm and get ready for the Stray Cats concert... as long as I can avoid the Noid. And also, for no reason, "Footloose."