Best significant 80's films

[Zippykins1]

The chick verdict is Say Anything, The Breakfast Club, 16 Candles and St Elmos Fire.

[jaykays hat]

Originally Posted by Jonesy

That's something I would keep quiet about, if I was you, jaykay.

It was the fashion. Bastard to do of a morning though

[Jeffbiscuits]

Anyhing with Schwarzenegger or Van Damme. And Robocop.

[whitezombie]

Originally Posted by Porkchopexpress

You can't go wrong with 'Mannequin'!

I fell in love with Kim Cattrall after watching Mannequin!

As for films that were very much of the decade!?

As was said previously, anything with Arnie, Sly and possibly Van Damme.

I loved Robocop. Flight of the Navigator was great, as a child.

Beverley Hills Cop 1 & 2.

No one has mentioned Back to the Future.

Not that I've actually seen it, but surely Wall Street would be the quintessential 80's film, along with say Robocop (Corporate nightmares, big hair, the rich get richer, the poor poorer. The only thing missing is Commies!)

[jaykays hat]

I fancied Kim Cattrall in Porkys, another 80's film.

[JordyVerrill]

Yes, Porkies, but Masquerade was the one, but didn't actually watch it for the plot though! can't forgive her for the sex in the city dross though...

Anyway, I digress, I've read Total Film for years, but this is the first time I've contributed on the forum.

I've always had a soft spot for Topgun, very dated now, but a great film non the less and I think was very significant in the 80's and spawned loads of copycats, if not ironically cruises other outing days of thunder.

I'm predominantally a horror fan myself, so my twopennies worth are the thing, day of the dead and evil dead 2, which bought quality gore alongside a decent plot, yet - in my opinon - to be bettered by contemporary horror. Shoddy cgi and Pandering to a 15 cert has put pay to that.

[doller99]

Caddyshack
Little Mermaid
Police Academy
Wall St
Coccoon
St Elmo's Fire
An American Werewolf in London
Friday the 13th
An Officer and a Gentleman
Mad Max
Plattoon
Scrooged
Mystic Pizza
The Goonies
The Lost Boys
Jumpin Jack Flash
Lethal Weapon
Karate Kid
A Fish Called Wanda
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Beetlejuice
This is Spinal Tap
Dirty Dancing
Batman
Cocktail
Big Trouble in Little China
Amadaus
Die Hard
Annie
The Burbs

[Jonesy]

Out of all those films you've listed, only about five of them are worthy of mentioning. Mad Max was the Seventies, unless you're referring to the Road Warrior, in which case, yes that's a classic film. Amadeus is by far the superior movie in the list, and is way above any of the others in quality.

The problem with the Eighties, is that everyone views it with rose tinted spectacles for some unknown reason. Let's be honest, films like St Elmos Fire and The Breakfast Club were shockingly bad, as was Top Gun. How they have garnered fans over the years, is completely beyond me. Time to remove those specs, I think.

[JordyVerrill]

Jonesy I take it you are either trying to play devils advocate or just plain cynical ?

Reagardless, the 80's cinema on whole represented the economic and social climate of the time and OBVIOULSY doesn't represent (as does any era) more contemporary times. As for rose tinted spectacles, sounds like an 80's buzz word to me!

Anyway, i like your list doller (annie, mystic pizza and anything with whoopie goldburg apart) here are my addtions, purely off the top of my head and dvd collection!:

the meaning of life
day of the dead
return of the living dead
creepshow
the thing
christmas vacation
poltergeist
highlander
labyrinth
once upon a time in america
untouchables
terminator
predator
das boot
lost boys
young guns
real genious
real science

I can probably go on and if you don't like most of these, and if they are 'beyond you', then you are probably dead inside...ish

BTW i'm 34, so the early 90's was my era, so don't get me started on that...

[Jonesy]

Originally Posted by JordyVerrill

Jonesy I take it you are either trying to play devils advocate or just plain cynical ?

Bit of both.

Originally Posted by JordyVerrill

BTW i'm 34, so the early 90's was my era, so don't get me started on that...

Exactly, so the Eighties wasn't your era, and that's my point. It's mainly people who didn't spend their teens and twenties in the Eighties, but later, who believe it was great for cinema, and it's something I've never understood. It was a decade that politically and culturally was a disaster.