Stranger Things 4 review vol. 2: the beginning of the end

Millions of For You Page full of “video-edits”, memes of all kinds and boys in tears, to the tune of the iconic “Running up that hill” di Kate Bushstorm our social networks for the finale of the fourth season of Stranger Things.

The penultimate chapter ended, with two very long episodes as a function of immense introduction to the fifth and final season and today we will talk about it together in much more detail.

Stranger Things 4 vol.2: Trama

Everything picks up exactly where it left off, with the only difference being that our brave friends devise a plan to return to the upside and defeat Vecna ​​for good. A plan that involves putting Max in the spotlight and exposing everyone to danger, with the risk of not coming back alive from the upside down. On the other side we have the rest of the group looking for Eleven to return to Hawkins and Joyce, Hopper and Murray in Russia along with Enzo on an attempted escape to America.

Stranger Things 4: Some Curiosities

1. Shawn Levy, director of the series, stated that the scene of the shooting in the fourth episode it was shot entirely in sequence (without editing interruptions), which is quite difficult to achieve for such a scene.
2. Il finale of the fourth episodewhich together with Eddie Munsen’s metal concert in 9, constitutes one of the most beautiful scenes of the last ten years, took four days of filming.
3. Joe Keery (Steve Harrington) was not supposed to take part in the fourth season, simply because his character was not expected to undergo this beautiful evolution and maturation. Thank god the Duffer Brothers chose differently, betting on relationship of Steve and Dustin, giving us a beloved character who otherwise, as they declared, would have died soon. Luckily they have changed it!
4. One of the most emotional scenes of the fourth season is the death of Eddie Munson. In the scene of his death he tells Dustin “I love you, friend.”, A sentence improvised by the actor but which left us all deeply moved.

Cast and Characters

In this fourth season, our friends meet new characters. First of all Argyle (Eduardo Franco), fundamental for the homecoming of the group, an eccentric friend of Jonathan, a lover of highs and a pizza delivery boy for “Surfer Boy”. Jason Carver (Mason Dye), who wins the award for the most hated character of this fourth season, the classic sportsman and school bully engaged to the not-so-classic cheerleader, Chrissy, whose fate is to become the first victim of Vecna. After his death, Jason sets out on a search for what he thinks is his killer, Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn), il leader dell’Hellfire club (club in D&D of which Dustin Lucas and Mike are part), school repeat who tries in vain to graduate and the perfect “metalhead”. It will be for his slightly grumpy character that he usually wins, for that smile full of sadness, for being the protagonist of the most touching scene of the season, or simply for his hair, the fact is that Eddie is the character who has entered the most. in the hearts of the spectators. When he is singled out as the killer of Chrissy and the promoter of the “Hellfire sect”, We all began to appreciate it. He tries to escape from a city that labels him a crazy killer, unable and unable to explain what he has seen but when he meets Dustin and his friends, that strange and supernatural things eat them in the morning for breakfast, he realizes that he is in the right hands. From them, in fact, he is welcomed with open arms to hide from Jason, intent with his gang of bambocci to avenge Chrissy.

Eddie loves himself in a short time also for the classic storyline of the misunderstood victim, Argyle gets attached to him because he manages to get us a laugh at any time, with that very eccentric calm with which he cooks a pineapple pizza while Undi tries to save the world ; Jason is hated more than Vecna ​​without the need for many explanations, while for Brenner there is no way, every time we see him we invoke his death. A successful and well-played character by Modine who only on the verge of no return understands what he really did, like any villain, but the difference lies in whether or not he deserves to be understood.

One thing that we lacked instead is the intensity of the relationship between Steve and Dustin, that strange couple that works perfectly thanks to the friendship that slowly makes its way and exchanges of hilarious jokes. A slight gap that perhaps did Steve good, allowing him to mature more and more. A series of quarrels typical of a married couple, however, will bring a smile to their relationship in this fourth chapter. Fortunately the duo Nancy Robin this season has convinced us in a big way, forming a duo in antithesis that convinces and amuses us.

Power of Dialogues

A season marked by the inevitable growth of each character, both psychological and physical, marked by the evolution and maturation of each of them, albeit with many differences, transforming a script to “I goonies“In a real horror to Nigthmare ed Hellraiser. We begin to get to know all the main characters more deeply starting with Max, in his path of psychological rehabilitation after the death of his brother Billy, to whom Victor Creel’s inner monologue in the attic helped more than the analyst. Mike remains the usual critic but with more affection and awareness of his weaknesses, recognizing that he needs Eleven or rather that Eleven needs him, exploding into a touching speech to make the girl become aware of her abilities. Will, who also has a somewhat limited script this season, becomes the protagonist of one of the most exciting speeches of the entire series. When he tries to reassure Mike that Eleven will always need him, he comes out at the same time as a tearjerker without openly declaring himself, without telling anyone what he really feels for Mike, shedding sharp tears that like daggers enter the hearts of Jonathan and the spectator. . Last, but not least, Robin’s speech to be able to visit Victor Creel with Nancy; a dialogue overflowing with feminine strength, a symbol of the courage of a woman not yet ready to openly declare herself to that ignorant but strong and unshakable world, certainly more than a man.

Power of music and details

The fourth season of Stranger Things will remain in the mind of every viewer for a long time, not only thanks to the excellent photography and script, but also thanks to the choice of music. Without dwelling too much on Running Up That Hill di kate Bushthe soundtrack of one of the two most beautiful scenes of the chapter, which went viral on Tik Tok and returned to the top of the classics after four decades, let’s simply say that the Duffer Brothers they understand music and that their musical choices for the series are always peculiar and distinctive. Pass the Dutchie of the Musical Youth accompanies Mike Jonathan Will and Argyle’s escape from the house shooting, Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) dei Journey is the background to the journey towards the upside down of the boys (never more apt song), giving us an intense scene in which the silence is stronger than the din, while Master of Puppets of the Metallica it resonates upside down in the most beautiful stage sequence of the series, and perhaps of many TV series of the last ten years.

This song, played by Eddie Munson in the upside down, accompanies a sequence of typically action and horror images, with some touches of Scooby Doo. We cannot say that the scene is necessarily a reference to the famous cartoon but if so, if we hadn’t seen it wrong, it could really go down in history. Let’s think about it for a moment, we have the two friends a little more cowardly barricaded away from the main monster who despite everything find fun in a moment of danger, the three brave ones (a man and two women) on the other who try to kill the terrible monster overcoming various obstacles. Not to mention the victim (Max) who tries to escape and always finds the enemy in front of him.

The big difference is that the coward didn’t run away this time (we cry together again).

But you of Movie Blog are crazy, you will say, too bad that the canzone Pass The Dutchie, in those two specific scenes (Escape from the shooting and at the beginning to introduce Argyle smoking with a girl) you demonstrate that – hold on tight – Argyle, Scooby Doo and Shaggy are indeed best friends (in the last scene of the 2002 film. by Scooby Doo, we see Shaggy and Scooby, two years after the facts, smoking in the iconic van with a friend, to the tune of that same song). They are conjectures, yes, but we really want to believe them because it would be fantastic!

It’s the details that make the difference in Stranger Things, which make the whole of an unprecedented power. The power of an unhealthy father and daughter relationship ends with the fall of a collar smashing the ground, breaking the bond and representing the only right choice made by Dr. Brenner, which however does not make him worthy of an understanding of the “daughter”.

A series not lucky, as many like to call it, but finally done well. Maybe a little exhibitionist? In a good way, of course, but with special effects and Oscar-worthy photography that make it reality and fill our hearts.

While we should probably wait until 2024 to see the latest episodes of this masterpiece, grit your teeth and immerse yourself in the Rewatch. If you want some advice because you don’t know what to watch, now that your life doesn’t make sense, we will recommend series to watch this summer in the next article.