The Legend of Zelda: the 80s teen movie

Truly, words can not justify what you are about to witness, but I'll give it a whack anyway: A brilliant mashup trailer of 80s teen movie moments all smoothly tied together into a video game character love story. You're going to nostalgia so hard, you have no idea.

The details make it. And it's weighted down with them. Enjoy!

[Video link] Thanks for making me cry tears of joy, Dannel!

• [Camp Freddie]

  Brilliant. Love the New Order chiptune.

• [hbl]

  It’s funny that even though I haven’t seen 16 Candles, Pretty in Pink or Say Anything, I know all the cultural touchstones from those movies. I will watch them one day, I have them queued up!

• [technogeek]

  twitch… twitch…

• [frankieboy]

  They nailed it. Great work people!

• [Anonymous]

  I nostalgia’d so hard I forgot I was born in the 90′s.

• [Anonymous]

  Legend of Neil is hilarious

• [elektrobank]

  This made my day

• [unit_1421]

  It is his baby.. It is his life.. It’s his fault he left the keys to the Pro Tools editing bay…

• [Itsumishi]

  This is fucking amazing. There was at least one movie in there I’d never seen, but still every moment of that video was just pure gold.

• [dilinger]

  It’s dangerous to go alone! Take this.

• [Anonymous]

  16 Candles
  Pretty in Pink
  Say Anything
  Ferris Bueller’s day off
  Breakfast Club

  Did I miss any.

• [Methusedalot]

  The only thing they got wrong is the year. 1987 is too late, this has 1984 written all over it.

• [imapacifist]

  Pfft. Not even one annoying “Hey! Listen!” out of that poor excuse for Navi.

• [codekiln]

  This really traps the 80′s [male?] zeitgeist. I wonder how many references per minute this little clip averages. Principal Ganondorf casually constructs a triforce out of pencils on his desk at 0:30. Princess Zelda’s costume at 2:21 has a winged ♀ symbol topped by a triforce. Princess Zelda’s words “it’s dangerous to go alone … take this” at 1:40 are from when the old man gives Link the sword in Zelda I.

  I’ve created a little google spreadsheet to help us figure out how many references are contained in the video – it’s editable by everyone, so help out!

  http://is.gd/zelda_1987_references

  By the way, you can see a great comparison video done by the authors at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtVLfoAQc7E

• [DeMarko]

  Hey everybody, Chipocrite just posted the full version of his cover of Bizarre Love Triangle on his website. http://www.chipocrite.com/

• [janniz]

  Just like heaven … guess this sunday can’t get any better. Thanks a lot.

• [cubby96]

  That was really well done. Thanks for the link.

• [WakingSleep]

  Wow. This gives new meaning to Epic Win. Between the Playmobil/Joy Division video, and now this, the level of awesomeness-on-the-Internet has quintupled.

  There’s even a reference to that horrid Zelda cartoon that was on the Super Mario Bros Super Show on Fridays. Pure brilliance.

  You know, I used to give the Baby Boomers a hard time for not being able to get outside of their generation’s pop culture. However, I’m beginning to think that we X’ers have it way, way worse.

• [Suburbancowboy]

  I think I would’ve enjoyed this much more if they weren’t straight up using lines from 80′s movies, and instead tried to make it their own 80′s movie.

  • [publanski]

    Uhhhhh, “straight up” using lines from 80′s movies was the whole point of this exercise. That’s the genius of it.

    • [Jason Rizos]

      You must love Family Guy.

• [egoVirus]

  Meh. Gen-X has come to embody nostalgic masturbation. The lack of accomplishment, ambition, relevance has been completely replaced by consumption, whining, bitter disappointment, and an unhealthy fascination with our childhoods. This video, and all the supportive comments only serve to prove my point. Gen-X = fail.

  • [endymion]

    egoV:

    Who is more of a fail: the generation that indulges in nostalgia, or the generation that sits at home writing lame comments on boingboing about them? Using lame expressions like “meh”? A-a-and complaining that their “lack of relevance” has been replaced by “consumption”, which doesn’t even make sense?

    Might as well ask, Who is more foolish: the fool, or the fool who follows him? :)

    • [Antinous / Moderator]

      Who is more foolish: the fool, or the fool who follows him?

      Mr. T pities them equally.

• [Anonymous]

  Watching this, I felt a mixture of pride and embarrassment that I could easily —nay, instantly—recognize every single movie, every single character and scene reference. It’s funny, too, because I didn’t especially love these movies as an 80′s teen: I never felt they really reflected my life or experiences at all. And yet now I feel this intense nostalgia for all of ‘em!

• [travtastic]

  If anyone’s interested in the chiptune music here, it’s available at http://www.chipocrite.com.

  A little ways down the page they have an album for download with one of those ‘pay-what-you-want’ things going on.

  • [Anonymous]

    You can’t get an mp3 of it yet, but the 8bit rendition of Bizarre Love Triangle at the end is my new favorite song. Thanks for the link to http://www.chipocrite.com. Above their youtube embed for the video it says, “triangle, get it?” which I hadn’t, lol.