1980s

This is when I get to talk about the movies I remember from my childhood. In the 1980s the film industry had a lot of material to work with. This was a time when a lot of movies were made with a “stick it to the Communists” mentality. This was captured in movies like Red Dawn, Reds, and The Killing Fields.

We fell in love with the underdog with movies like Footloose, and Glory. This was also a decade that started great franchises with movies like The Terminator, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Die Hard.

This was the decade where teen movies found a new home at the hands of directors like the legendary John Hughes. Among those great movies are Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Breakfast Club, and Sixteen Candles.

It’s also important to remember the classic movies and great stars that came from the era. The 80s gave us movies like Raging Bull, Full Metal Jacket, The Shining, and Amadeus among many other timeless films. We got to know names like Tom Cruise, Oliver Stone, Michelle Pfieffer, and Penny Marshall.

I love the movies of the 80s. I guess growing up with these films makes me a bit biased, but it’s my right to be sentimental once in a while. Here are reviews I’ve done on some of the movies from this era:

Stir Crazy (1980)
The Blues Brothers (1980)
The Elephant Man (1980) – Nominated for 8 Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor
Ordinary People (1980) – Nominated for 6 Oscars, winning 4 including Best Picture and Best Director
Urban Cowboy (1980)
Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980) – Nominated for 3 Oscars, winning once for Best Sound
Somewhere in Time (1980) – Nominated for Best Costume Design
Heaven’s Gate (1980) – Nominated for Best Art Direction – Set Decoration
On Golden Pond (1981) – Nominated for 10 Oscars, winning 3 including Best Actor and Best Actress
Chariots of Fire (1981) – Nominated for 7 Oscars, winning 4 including Best Picture and Best Original Score
Reds (1981) – Nominated for 12 Academy Awards, winning 3 including Best Director
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) – Nominated for 8 Oscars, winning 4 including Best Sound and Best Visual Effects
Ken Burns’ America: Brooklyn Bridge (1981) – Nominated for Best Documentary, Feature
Blow Out (1981)
First Blood (1982)
Author! Author! (1982)
The Thing (1982)
Tootsie (1982) – Nominated for 10 Academy Awards, winning for Best Supporting Actress
48 Hours (1982)
Rocky III (1982) – Nominated for Best Original Song
Blade Runner (1982)
An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) – Nominated for 6 Oscars, winning for Best Original Song and Best Supporting Actor
Gandhi (1982) – Nominated for 11 Oscars, winning 8 including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) – Nominated for 9 Academy Awards, winning 4 including Best Original Score
Queen – We Will Rock You (1982)
A Christmas Story (1983)
The Hunger (1983)
Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983) – Nominated for 4 Academy Awards including Best Original Score
Staying Alive (1983)
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983)
Terms of Endearment (1983) – Nominated for 11 Oscars, winning 5 including Best Picture and Best Director
The Outsiders (1983)
The Big Chill (1983) – Nominated for 3 Academy Awards including Best Picture
WarGames (1983) – Nominated for 3 Oscars including Best Original Screenplay
L’Argent (1983)
The Adventures of Bob and Doug McKenzie: Strange Brew (1983)
Ghostbusters (1984) – Nominated for 2 Oscars including Best Original Song
Blood Simple (1984)
The Bounty (1984)
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) – Nominated for 2 Oscars, winning once for Best Visual Effects
Sixteen Candles (1984)
Ken Burns’ American Stories: The Shakers (1984)
Ken Burns’ America: Huey Long (1985)
Ken Burns’ America: The Statue of Liberty (1985) – Nominated for Best Documentary, Feature
Witness (1985) – Won 2 Oscars for Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing
Amadeus (1985) – Nominated for 11 Oscars, winning 8 including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director
One Magic Christmas (1985)
Back to the Future (1985) – Nominated for 4 Academy Awards, winning for Best Sound Effects Editing
A Room with a View (1985) – Nominated for 8 Oscars, winning 3 including Best Adapted Screenplay
Silverado (1985) – Nominated for Best Sound and Best Original Score
Pale Rider (1985)
A Zed & Two Naughts (1985)
Out of Africa (1985)– Nominated for 11 Oscars, winning 7 including Best Picture and Best Director
Brazil (1985) – Nominated for Best Original Screenplay and Best Set Decoration
Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985)
The Fly (1986) – Won Best Makeup
Aliens (1986) – Nominated for 7 Oscars, winning for Best Visual Effects and Best Sound Effects Editing
Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) – Nominated for 7 Oscars, winning 3 including Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
Mauvais sang (1986)
Three Amigos (1986)
At Close Range (1986)
The Mission (1986) – Nominated for 7 Academy Awards, winning for Best Cinematography
Platoon (1986) – Nominated for 8 Oscars, winning 4 including Best Director and Best Picture
Lethal Weapon (1987) – Nominated for Best Sound
Wall Street (1987) – Won Best Actor
Broadcast News (1987) – Nominated for 7 Oscars including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Actress
The Running Man (1987)
Moonstruck (1987) – Nominated for 6 Oscars, winning Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Original Screenplay
The Last Emperor (1987) – Won 9 Oscars including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Score
No Way Out (1987)
Can’t Buy Me Love (1987)
Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) – Nominated for Best Actor
Mannequin (1987) – Nominated for Best Original Song
Rain Man (1988) – Nominated for 8 Oscars, winning 4 including Best Picture and Best Actor
Cinema Paradiso (1988) – Won Best Foreign Language Film
The Accused (1988) – Won the Academy Award for Best Actress
Funny Farm (1988)
Young Guns (1988)
Big (1988) – Nominated for Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay
Bull Durham (1988) – Nominated for Best Original Screenplay
Mississippi Burning (1988) – Nominated for 7 Academy Awards, winning for Best Cinematography
Scrooged (1988) – Nominated for Best Makeup
Eight Men Out (1988)
Die Hard (1988) – Nominated for 4 Oscars, including Best Sound and Best Visual Effects
Driving Miss Daisy (1989) – Nominated for 9 Oscars, winning 4 including Best Picture and Best Actress
The Dream Team (1989)
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) – Nominated for 3 Oscars, winning for Best Sound Effects Editing
Sea of Love (1989)
Field of Dreams (1989) – Nominated for Best Picture, Best Original Score, and Best Adapted Screenplay
Major League (1989)
When Harry Met Sally (1989) – Nominated for Best Original Screenplay
Lean On Me (1989)
Fat Man and Little Boy (1989)
My Left Foot (1989) – Nominated for 5 Oscars, winning Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress