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Marcia's avatar

Beth R. - It was so good to hear your voice . . . and your great perspective on St. Elmo's Fire (both the movie and the soundtrack)! St Elmo's Fire gets my vote in that matchup. (So does Don't You Forget About Me.) These matchups were easy ones for me. Looking forward to the next two tomorrow.

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Rush's avatar

Sweet Marcia! Someone who appreciated my St. Elmo’s plea ♥️ Thank you! You and I voted identically. To answer Keith’s wonderings, no I didn’t exactly have the same experiences as Jules, Wendy, and Leslie…but most of us went through some similar experiences. And agreed, the guys did have some shitty traits, some unforgivable, some situational, some driven by love, lust, naïveté, and other “drugs”. We were ALL so “young” in those immediate post-undergrad days. I give some of it a pass in terms of the humanness of making mistakes. I know *I* am not the same person anymore, and I made some questionable choices, too. That said, I think Kirby and Kevin were endearing, nerdy, and harmless.

So to wrap up this diatribe, whatever I said about living through these things too, it was a more of a parallel “living alongside” these characters as they, too, were confused, embarking on a new and unknown part of life, and wondering what the hell was in store for them. I was truly right there in those feelings and found them to be so relatable.

And now, I need to get back to cleaning up all the shit that Joe cast upon my movie 😉

(JUST KIDDING JOE! I really, really loved this episode and smiled like a crazy person through all of the banter. Honored to have been a part of the pod!)

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The 80s-est's avatar

I am glad it wasn't as bad for you as it was for the ladies of St. Elmo's Fire! I am glad Joe didn't bring you down, he was watching with a 53-year-old-mind, not a 19-year-old one like you had when watching. I have to keep telling myself that when watching these 80s movies! --Keith

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Deni's avatar

Not wrong about no likeable guys in St. Elmo's Fire. But also true that if you saw it at age 14 or 15 the perspective is different. I love that movie, but also can see why people hate it.

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The 80s-est's avatar

This is the thing that is impossible to do--go back and watch it with 14-year-old eyes and brain. But I get it. "16 Candles" is problematic, and yet, I grandfather it in because I liked in back then. I have to account for this with the stuff I didn't see back then. Cinema and our brains have advanced so much in 40 years, it's impossible to recreate the conditions of 1985 again. --Keith

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Deni's avatar

I was too late to vote because of traveling, but I would be all about St Elmo's Fire. I love that song too, but feel shame about it

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The 80s-est's avatar

I agree with you on this one. This one came down REALLY close, and in fact, tied. Joe and I held a certified coin flip last night to break that tie. Stay tuned! --Keith

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John Booth's avatar

It's been decades since I've watched "St. Elmo's Fire," but the song is an undeniable '80s banger *because* it's so over-the-top ridiculous.

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The 80s-est's avatar

EXACTLY! --Keith

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Janet Gbur's avatar

Simple Minds makes the final 4. It was really close for me, but "Flashdance...What a Feeling" does feel a bit 80s-er and has the dramatic build through the song where St. Elmo's is a bit flat comparatively. Twirled to both, too, so both had experiential ties.

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Alejandro Saya's avatar

Well, before casting my vote, let me say that "For your eyes only" is a good ballad and an excellent Bond theme song, and "St Elmo's Fire" is an OK movie!

I'll go with Simple Minds and Irene Cara on this one, since they defintely have a special place in the soundtrack of my 80's experience!

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The 80s-est's avatar

I love hearing what your experiences were on the other side of the equator! --Keith

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Otter's avatar

Sounds like Joe snapped into to many Slim Jim's in that opening. 😄

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Joe Wack's avatar

My throat definitely felt like cured meat afterward.

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The 80s-est's avatar

Did it inspire you to watch some archival Macho Man? Ohhhhh YEAHHHHHHH! 🤼‍♂️

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