MovieChat Forums > 13 Going on 30 (2004) Discussion > This was not 1987!!!!

This was not 1987!!!!

posted 8 years ago by Jack2979
13 replies | jump to latest

I really hate when a movie is supposed to take place in a specific year in the 80's, and they are totally off point when it comes to songs/fashion/pop culture. I was born in 79, so 80-85 aren't clear to me since I was a baby/small child, but I remember 87 pretty clear. Even if I didn't remember it that well all you have to do is watch any movie from 87 like Can't Buy Me Love, Some Kind of Wonderful or Summer School for example. This movie was supposed to take place in 1987. The writers/wardrobe/stylists were wrong on almost everything and it drove me insane.

So Jenna was 13 in 1987 -

Jenna was practicing the choreography to Thriller(1983), she was kissing the tv when Rick Springfield Jessie's Girl(1981) was on, and using the lyrics to Pat Benatar's Love Is A Battlefield (1983) as a way to describe love. No 13 year old suburban girl was playing those songs on a regular basis! Paula Abdul, Belinda Carlisle(without The Go Go's), George Michael(Faith album), Debbie Gibson, Tiffany, Madonna (Who's That Girl/True Blue), etc. were some of the artists that had heavy rotation at the time. How in the hell did they come up with Thriller, Jessie's Girl and Love is a Battlefield as Jenna's favorite songs in 1987?!

The fashion was off when they showed Jenna on picture day. Those knitted sweaters with the hearts were popular in the early 80's. Even though Jenna wasn't cool she would not have been wearing an outfit like that. They kind of were right with the curled hair sprayed bangs, but the hair would have been higher with a lot of hairspray so it wouldn't move at all on top. They showed Chris Grandy and Matty with long early 80's hair that boys didn't really have in 87.

The whole idea of 1987 in this movie is what people wear for Halloween when they dress up as someone from the 80's. You have seen it before, they always exaggerate the outfit and it ends up looking like something no one wore in the 80's. Like girls in the 80's just walked around wearing aerobics spandex with a headband across their forehead 24/7! I doubt the writers and wardrobe stylists of the movies were all born in the 90's so why the hell are most movies like this so wrong?!

I really like your car Mrs. Larusso!

[–] stevenackerman69 8 years ago

As to the songs, it was what songs they could get the rights to that were around that period. As to her clothes as a teen, remember, she isn't exactly a big fashion person then.

[–] [deleted] 7 years ago

[deleted]

[–] SusieQ2 (5) 5 years ago

Then why not have the beginning of the movie take place in the early 80's? Characters born anywhere from 1968 to 1972. They could make it clear (like showing a date on a newspaper when Jenna wakes up at 30 and is freaking out) that it's anywhere from 1998 to 2002, as nothing changed drastically between those years and 2004. SO, no idea why it HAD to be 1987 since they had no music (except Mad about you)) that was popular at that time. This always bugged me too, even though I love the movie!

edited for typos

[–] jarethismyking 8 years ago

First of all, the second sentence of your post discounts everything you have to say. If you don't remember it, how can you say what it was "really like"? Do you think movies in 2016 are truly representative of how it is today? Second of all, music doesn't go away because the year ends. She could just be a really big fan of Rick Springfield and Michael Jackson. Lord knows I was a fan of things at that age that weren't always "up to the minute."

[–] pioneergrrrl 8 years ago

She would have been listening to Belinda Carlisle, Tiffany, and Debbie Gibson.

[–] PopSixSquish 7 years ago

^ EXACTLY!
We'll never stop listening to the music of the 40s & 50s. I myself listen to the 50s-80s all the time and don't enjoy too much of what's been recorded recently. How can one declare what somebody would or wouldn't have worn? Everyone's different and could have worn whatever they wanted at any time, regardless of the overall trends and "decade looks." OP=overly picky, imo.

[–] SusieQ2 (5) 5 years ago

13-year-olds love what's popular and on the top of the charts. Sure, some loved music from an earlier time, but tween girls love the stuff they buy at music stores and hear on the radio all the time.

[–] Catnip86 7 years ago

I think that was the point. 13-year-old Jenna was not cool. She liked things that weren't cool and the popular crowd didn't like. She was a wanna-be who missed the mark.

But guys did have long hair in 1987.

[–] MarblesLove 7 years ago

Why should the year being 1987 stop her from listing to the songs she listened to and wearing the things she wore? It's not the age of boy bands anymore but I still listen to Backstreet Boys and N'Sync sometimes. It's not the 90's early 2000's but I still listen to the Spice Girls on occasion. Plus, like some of the other posters have pointed out, Jenna was supposed to be sort of a nerd, so being a little behind the times on what was "cool" to listen to and wear could be part of why she's a nerd.

Once upon a time there was a magical place where it never rained. The end.

[–] southerndude 7 years ago

You should know by now that you can't take movies too literally. Jenna's dress was a stereotypical 80s dress and that was just to show the audience "yeah it's the 80s". I'm a solid Generation Xer and I remember the whole 80s vividly, and I was also thinking about how behind she was considering it was 87, but I understood what the film was trying to do.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

I grew up in the 80's. It was different to what it is like now. Some songs remained popular throughout the period, songs like "Thriller" for example. Big hair remained popular as well and if anything peaked mid to late 80's as hard rock and metal reached it's peak.

Fashions remained pretty consistent as well. They probably could have picked songs from '87 but then you would lose the distinctive dance scenes that they obviously were really wanting to include.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

Jenna was never naturally "cool" or "popular". Everything she did was a desperate attempt to fit in with those girls.

She was considered a geek, and was unaware of what was cool at the time. She was seen practicing the choreography of Triller by MJ because she assumed that all cool kids were currently into it.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

She was uncool but regardless, back then songs remained popular for a lot longer than they do now. Off the top of my head I also can't think of any distinctive dances for songs from '87 so I think they just picked those two because most of the audience wouldn't know or care and because of the distinctive dances which also involve having an entourage.