1976 was my HS graduation year.   DAZED AND CONFUSED, made in 1993,
was set in 1976 and contains the music that was popular in 1976 among typical middle
class American kids better than any other movie.  But for a perfect
encapsulation of the mood of 1976, you need to reach for a low-budget movie
actually made in 1976 called MASSACRE AT CENTRAL HIGH. It also features the
quintessential 1976-style woman in the character played by Kimberley Beck.
It's not a horror movie despite the title (though it has black humor, to be
sure.) As a modern parable worthy of George Orwell, it is one of my favorite
movies of all-time. And the plot was later ripped off in a less serious vein
as Revenge of the Nerds. Though done as a spoof, another great period-piece
for my era is a movie that actually has that venerable year in its title.
Made in 1990,  SPIRIT OF '76, stars 70s throwback band Redd Kross, actual
70s stars David Cassidy and Leif Garrett, and loads of others. I consider
myself lucky to have three videos to flip my kids later on and say, "Watch
these, then you'll know exactly what it was like in your Dad's day."

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