I'm a fan of 80's movies and think about this a lot: apart from the style of clothes and makeup...doesn't some aspects of how people looked back then seem unobtainable now? For instance if they tried to recreate a movie and the newer versus older character were standing side by side you would definitely be able to tell which is which. I don't know if it's the changes in diet or the changes in beauty products, etc. What do you think contributes to that?

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LeeF1179 t1_iubwjji wrote on October 30, 2022 at 3:38 AM

In this hypothetical, would the "newer" 80's person be filmed utilizing the same type of camera equipment that was used to film the "original " 80's person? I think that would be key.

I have noticed looking at high school yearbooks from the 1980's that the kids looked to be in their mid to late 20's compared to today's kids.

FattyCorpuscle t1_iubztvt wrote on October 30, 2022 at 4:10 AM

Good example of people looking older in the past: Wilford Brimley was only in his mid 40s in The China Syndrome (1979).

Brad Pitt is 15 years older than he was in that movie.

david-saint-hubbins t1_iuc7gey wrote on October 30, 2022 at 5:36 AM

>I have noticed looking at high school yearbooks from the 1980's that the kids looked to be in their mid to late 20's compared to today's kids.

Interesting video on that phenomenon:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjqt8T3tJIE

No-Distribution-1866 OP t1_iubxke0 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 3:48 AM

Yeah that's another good point about the camera used.

SoulsbourneDiesTwice t1_iuddjhz wrote on October 30, 2022 at 2:07 PM

For men in movies:

Sean Connery was 31 in Dr No. Leonardo DiCaprio is now 47 and STILL looks younger than him.

I think health and beauty standards have definitely played a big part but I think the biggest part is just the nature of casting.

The traditional leading man was a tall, dark, distinguished and classically handsome gentleman.

During the 80s, casting started to shift towards 'fit, healthy, young and angel faced boys'.

Besides character actors, this trend of casting has become more and more prevalent.

Same-Reason-8397 t1_iuc5xkb wrote on October 30, 2022 at 5:17 AM

Faces wouldn’t be full of Botox.

CantKillthatWontDie t1_iud0qj6 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 12:11 PM

smoking / fashion styles / makeup . I noticed this type of thing with Models . I have friends who are professional models. its wild how drastically different they can look from shoot to shoot.

CandyAssedJabroni t1_iuc466o wrote on October 30, 2022 at 4:57 AM

HFCS.

GoldStarGranny t1_iue4l3n wrote on October 30, 2022 at 5:17 PM

Modern dentistry definitely contributes. I mean, people had braces to correct alignment in the 80s but that was about it. You didn’t see the widespread bleaching and veneers that everyone has now.

Volcano_Tequila t1_iuex851 wrote on October 30, 2022 at 8:25 PM

Part of it has to do with what I would call "types". Every era has its favored "types" that define it, and you would find a slew of performers conforming to that type for awhile. Then another "type" would come along to replace it. Hairstyles and clothing suited the "types" at the time, but trying to duplicate that with someone from today looks incongruous.

I can't remember the source, but a casting director was trying to cast for a large Civil War epic or something some years ago, and complained that everyone had abs now, and this was just not historically accurate. It made me laugh at the time.