80s Halloween Costumes for the Oughties

Everything old is new again, be it in literature, cinema, sports or, yes, parties. And there’s no bigger or better party to enjoy than Halloween, the one day a year that everyone can cut loose and have fun without having to inhabit your own skin.

In that spirit, then, it’s a good idea to take a look at the best 80s halloween costumes the world has to offer, since the 80s are the new oughties. The days of Reaganomics, Gordon Gecco and John Hughes (rest in peace!) are all back upon us, and if you want the best 80s halloween costumes, those are all good places to start.

Going as Gordon Gecco, for example, is a perfect idea for an 80s halloween costumes. Gecco, for those who don’t remember, was the antagonist in the 1987 hit film “Wall Street,” starring Charlie Sheen as an idealistic young stockbroker who is corrupted by both the process and Gecco himself, played brilliantly by Michael Douglass. Gecco cuts a stereotypical 80s figure: Slicked back hair, armani suit, martini clutched in one hand and brick-sized cellphone in the other. If you decide to go as Gecco for your costume, that’s where you start. But to differentiate it from other 80s halloween costumes of that ilk, you can go a step further.

Gecco’s famous line in the film, a line oft repeated facetiously in some circles and reverently in others, is “Greed is good.” Oliver Stone intended the line to encapsulate everything not only about Gecco himself and the financial community in general, but also the time and place that were the 1980s. So if you’re going as Gordon Gecco, you need to work “Greed is good” into your costume. My suggestion would be something as simple as taping a sign with that phrase to your back. If you come up with something even better, go for it.

Some 80s halloween costumes that my girlfriend and I have kicked around without actually doing over the years center on two other films from that decade that we both love. First is “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.” I would go as Indy, and she would go as Short Round. For those who don’t remember, Short Round was the 10 year old asian boy sidekick to Indy on that particular adventure. The idea works on a lot of levels if you think about it, many of them funny and wholly inappropriate.

Another of the 80s halloween costumes we’ve considered is getting a bunch of friends together and going as The Goonies. Coincidentally, the actor who plays Short Round also plays Data in The Goonies, so if you have an asian friend who’s willing to play the token role, get him or her aboard and go from there.

Two other great ensemble ideas from movies of that time are going as either the Ghostbusters or The Breakfast Club. Both are iconic 80s films that almost anyone would recognize off the bat, and can be a lot of fun to dress up as.

Adult Halloween Makeup

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