# Movies that shouldn't have aged well, but did **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 11, 2013, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826 "2013-01-11T04:29:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/41 "2013-01-12T10:26:50Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > The Blues Brothers still holds up. Absolutely, and from the same year, Airplane!. Both are very much products of their time, but my kids (born 1994 and 2000) and many of their friends love both movies - while missing nearly all of the pop-culture references in them. And by “love” I mean “have the entire script memorized”. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/42 "2013-01-12T10:47:30Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > Just for kicks, I looked up every title mentioned in this thread into the Netflix streaming list, and only 10% are available. Yet all are well-known movies, so it’s not obscurity that keeps them locked up. I can only conclude that the copyright owners are preventing distribution that way. Luddites. No, that’s because the Netflix streaming list sucks, on purpose, as [Netflix is trying to host mostly television shows instead of movies](http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/28/business/media/once-film-focused-netflix-shifts-to-tv-shows.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0). (Now that they’ve effectively killed the video stores, grumble grumble…) They have most (all? I’m too lazy to keep looking) of them on DVD. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/43 "2013-01-12T11:42:29Z")
**Strangers on a Train** has a drolly cynical sensibility commonly associated with much later movies. And **A Voice in the Crowd** , while seeming to be eerily timely in an era of a 24-hour news cycle, just reminds us that guys were doing a Glenn Beck schtick long before Glenn Beck was born. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/44 "2013-01-12T14:48:16Z")
How about Dinner At Eight (1933)? It’s dated, dealing with the Depression. But it deals with social climbers, an actor’s alcoholicism and huge ego, a secret medical problem, a sex addict, a gold digger…the dialogue is so sharp and witty, and because it’s not all frivolous problems of Our Betters, I can really feel for those people. It could be remade, updated with very little change. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/45 "2013-01-12T14:50:12Z")
> [@Snickers](#): > > I watched \*\*Willow \*\*a couple of years ago, and thought it had held up remarkably well. It’s got some stop-motion animation that does stand out a bit, but the acting, cinematography, and story are still quite good. I saw somewhere that the scene where Willow is attempting to turn Fin Raziel back into her human form is the first use of computer generated “morphing”, as she goes from animal to animal, before becoming human again. ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/46 "2013-01-12T15:56:12Z")
I think **Die Hard** holds up well. As it restricts itself to Nakatomi tower, you’ve mostly got office decor and business dress, neither of which have changed all that much since the 80s. The thing that catches me out on old movies is scenes were people scramble for a phone, instead of pulling out a cell phone. Ironic since my big peeve in modern stuff is scenes showing teenagers ignoring their cell phones, which they never do (there’s a bit in **Fades** where the 17 year old lead character doesn’t answer/check/use his cell for two days - yeah, right). ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/47 "2013-01-12T17:01:34Z")
> [@flodnak](#): > > Absolutely, and from the same year, Airplane!. Both are very much products of their time, but my kids (born 1994 and 2000) and many of their friends love both movies - while missing nearly all of the pop-culture references in them. And by “love” I mean “have the entire script memorized”. Surely you can’t be serious! 😉 😃 ---
**Author:** ![tim314](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim314/32/3468_2.png) [@tim314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim314)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/48 "2013-01-12T17:23:20Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > No, that’s because the Netflix streaming list sucks, on purpose, as [Netflix is trying to host mostly television shows instead of movies](http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/28/business/media/once-film-focused-netflix-shifts-to-tv-shows.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0). (Now that they’ve effectively killed the video stores, grumble grumble…) > > They have most (all? I’m too lazy to keep looking) of them on DVD. The way I’ve heard it, they’re focusing more on T.V. because it’s too damn hard to get the rights to stream movies, not because they don’t _want_ to stream everything. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/49 "2013-01-12T17:54:07Z")
_Dr Strangelove_ outlived the Cold War. So did _THEM!_ And _Godzilla._ ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/50 "2013-01-12T17:57:48Z")
> [@tim314](#): > > The way I’ve heard it, they’re focusing more on T.V. because it’s too damn hard to get the rights to stream movies, not because they don’t _want_ to stream everything. If by “too damn hard” you mean more expensive, then sure, I’ll agree with that. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/51 "2013-01-12T18:04:38Z")
> [@Purd\_Werfect](#): > > The original Terminator. The styles in the movie are definitely 80’s but its quality as a suspense film manages to overcome that. The way I look at this is the movie is a historical document, it is set in the 80s. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/52 "2013-01-12T18:09:20Z")
> [@tomcar](#): > > There is too much 80’s synth soundtrack hate on these threads. I love that stuff. Me too, I actually listen to 80s style synth stuff. But then I was born in 83 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/53 "2013-01-12T19:06:18Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > If by “too damn hard” you mean more expensive, then sure, I’ll agree with that. I don’t think it’s just the expense, but that things are getting trickier with the different options. I use iTunes, Netflix, and Amazon Instant Video/Prime - there used to be a lot of overlap, but in competing for customers it seems each of them is shooting for exclusive rights or aligning themselves with networks and studios. I’m noticing that shows pulled from Netflix show up on Amazon Prime soon after, and Amazon seems to be pursuing content more aggressively to make the Kindle Fire more appealing. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/54 "2013-01-12T20:31:43Z")
> [@Krokodil](#): > > **Strangers on a Train** has a drolly cynical sensibility commonly associated with much later movies. And **A Voice in the Crowd** , while seeming to be eerily timely in an era of a 24-hour news cycle, just reminds us that guys were doing a Glenn Beck schtick long before Glenn Beck was born. I think you mean [A Face in the Crowd](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Face_in_the_Crowd_%28film%29). ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2013, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/55 "2013-01-12T21:12:38Z")
> [@coffinjumper](#): > > It’s is definitely an 80’s time capsule of a movie, and I wasn’t even alive for over half of that decade, but damned if it isn’t still awesome and something my friends and I still really enjoy watching now. Cheesy action movie, but it is so much fun. And so much love for the Queen soundtrack. I saw **Highlander** in the theater when I was in high school. I thought it was great back then and I’ve seen it on video since then but it’s probably been 20 years. This kind of makes me want to see it again. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/56 "2013-01-13T03:41:41Z")
I watched Pee Wee’s Big Adventure the other day for the first time in at least 15 years. Still cracked me up repeatedly, and I picked up some stuff I didn’t even notice the first few times around. And for the record, Large Marge still made me jump. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/57 "2013-01-13T04:34:24Z")
You know what, [Hackers](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113243/) is still pretty good. The lingo and graphics were destined to be outdated a few years after the release (especially with the absurd internet surfing scenes), yet for the most part the movie is still pretty good. For a tech movie 13 years old, it holds up. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_A.Robrin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sam_a.robrin/32/14497_2.png) [@Sam\_A.Robrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_A.Robrin)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/58 "2013-01-13T05:59:05Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > Surely you can’t be serious! 😉 😃 No–“Serious” is the Dog Star, and Lassie wasn’t in that movie… ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/59 "2013-01-13T06:57:22Z")
Both the _Wayne’s World_ movies are actually pretty good, IMHO - especially considering they were based on a _Saturday Night Live_ character, which even I (living in a country were SNL is not a thing) know aren’t usually noted for doing particularly well. Even now, 20 years later, they’re both still very watchable and entertaining. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826/60 "2013-01-13T07:24:45Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I think you mean [A Face in the Crowd](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Face_in_the_Crowd_%28film%29). You are correct, sir! (Or ma’am.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-shouldnt-have-aged-well-but-did/646826.md?page=2)