That leaves me with one last category, drama, which is truly a many-headed beast of a genre. I submit one choice for each of your suggested sub-categories:
Drama Coming of Age - The Breakfast Club Crime - Body Heat Detective - Who Framed Roger Rabbit? Epic - Jean de Florette / Manon des sources Gangster - Once Upon a Time in America Love Story - Overboard Social Commentary - Do the Right Thing
Puh... That was quite a journey through a selection of my favourite 80s movies from each genre. Now feel free to challenge my selections with your own suggestions.
Hm.... I just realised that "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" and "Overboard" can't really be called drama movies even though they fit the "detective" and "love story" labels. I guess I need to take some time to think about it and then I will get back to it.
Comedy
1. The Princess Bride
2. A Fish Called Wanda
3. The Naked Gun: From the Files of the Police Squad!
4. Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
5. Three Fugitives
Horror
1. Aliens
2. Re-Animator
3. The Shining
4. Nightmare on Elm Street
5. Poltergeist
OK - Interesting challenge. I have however tried twice to submit my choices but failed both times. Maybe the post became too long? I will try to submit my choices over several posts. I would also like to suggest War (any movie with a historical or current war as a major part of its plot) and Martial Arts (any movie that has hand to hand combat as a major part of its plot). Westerns should have been a seperate genre except that only one good western was made in the 80s as far as I know (Pale Rider). Let me know if there is another...
I guess you could call "martial arts" a sub-category of the action genre, but I do think it deserves special mention because the 80's was the golden age of Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao. It also was the starting point for action movie legends Jean-Claude Van Damme and Steven Seagal among others.
All good lists, and it's good to see the diversity in genre preference. Personally, the 80's for me was about fantasy...a lot of action and escape from reality...with a bit of humor. :)
Since we are talking about lists and genres, let's see what we can come up with as far as top films in different genres. I'll list the most popular, and you guys can suggest others I might have left out. I'll add my list after I see a couple of lists up so as not to influence your picks. Here are the genres: Action - Ass-kicking, explosions, and catch phrases Adventure/Fantasy - Discovering treasures, new worlds or dimensions Comedy - 10 Laugh Rule applies, funny and quotable (also, Black Comedies) Drama - Since this is the broadest genre, I'll break it down into sub-genres: Coming of Age - The struggle to find one's place in this world Crime - Catching the bad guy or getting away with it (also, Heist movies) Detective - Who done it? Epic - The long journey of discovery or change Gangster - The rise and fall of the bad guy Love Story - The struggle between two lovers...and in the end she just tears out your heart and stomps on it and leaves you alone. Sorry...:P Social Commentary - Fighting against the injustices of the world Horror - Not just a thriller, but blood and guts and demons and zombies and ghosts and psychos Thriller - Someone's out to get you, but not necessarily supernatural Sci-Fi - My favorite genre...Aliens, traveling to other worlds, dimensions, or times...usually by means of science and technology Musical - My least favorite genre, but there are good ones in the 80's...anything with music as a major part in the film or performed through song
A lot of these genres can be interchanged and combined, but try to pick your favorite that best represents that genre. This should be interesting...
I really like Hannah and Her Sisters too, but i love how Woody Allen and Alan Alda play of each other in Crimes and Misdemeanors. I do enjoy entertaining movies such as Die Hard and Aliens,but they never really become favourites, i guess thats just my preference.
1.Back to the Future
2.Raging Bull
3.This is Spinal Tap
4.Cinema Paradiso
5.The Blues Brothers
6.Crimes and Misdemeanors
7.Dead Ringers
8.Blue Velvet
9.Come and See
10.Ferris Bueller's Day Off
I totally agree that "Once Upon a Time in America", "Amadeus" and "This is Spinal Tap" are masterpieces of the 80s and they are potential candidates to my own list. "Back to the Future" is the only movie that everyone in this group so far have agreed on. That's interesting... "The Blues Brothers" deserves special mention because it is the only other movie that has more than one top three entry. Brazil deserves praise for great production design and interesting themes. I really wanted to like that movie, especially since I love "Blade Runner" so much, which is similar in dystopian atmosphere... but I didn't like it , I thought it was too long, too slow or too little invested in its characters. Though I know I am part of a minority there :-)
Good list CAD. I really like all of those filmes except Highlander which disappointed me when I gave it a new spin some time ago, but I loved it when I first saw it, back when I was a young teenager, and a movie with Christopher Lambert and Sean Connery about ancient warriors decapitating eachother in a modern day (80s) setting can't be all bad of course. I just rewatched The Empire Strikes Back and loved it more now than ever. I would have bumped it up to no. 5 on my list if I were to re-submit.
Of my personal top 50 of all time, 26 films are from the 80's. Of those 26, my top ten 80's films are as follows:
1. Ferris Bueller's Day Off
2. The Blues Brothers
3. Scarface
4. Star Wars: Ep. V - The Empire Strikes Back
5. Highlander
6. Aliens
7. Back to the Future
8. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial
9. Raiders of the Lost Ark
10. The Terminator
It would be nice with a little opinion exchange on the very best from the decade. I suggest a quick glance at our peronal top ten (however difficult that may be). Here is mine:
1. Back to the Future
2. Blade Runner
3. Mad Max 2
4. Die Hard
5. Manon of the Spring
6. The King of Comedy
7. Castle in the Sky
8. Aliens
9. The Princess Bride
10. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
As the first poster in this forum I would like to point in the direction of my lists from the decade which I think are all very good starting points for anyone wanting to dive into the massive material of this decade:
Add your comment
Comments 26 - 39 of 39
Zeltaebar
That leaves me with one last category, drama, which is truly a many-headed beast of a genre. I submit one choice for each of your suggested sub-categories:Drama
Coming of Age - The Breakfast Club
Crime - Body Heat
Detective - Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
Epic - Jean de Florette / Manon des sources
Gangster - Once Upon a Time in America
Love Story - Overboard
Social Commentary - Do the Right Thing
Puh... That was quite a journey through a selection of my favourite 80s movies from each genre. Now feel free to challenge my selections with your own suggestions.
Hm.... I just realised that "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" and "Overboard" can't really be called drama movies even though they fit the "detective" and "love story" labels. I guess I need to take some time to think about it and then I will get back to it.
Zeltaebar
Top five selections for three additional genres:Thriller
1. The Hitcher
2. The Terminator (Sci-Fi, but feels like a thriller)
3. Blow Out
4. Witness
5. Outland (Sci-Fi, but feels like a thriller)
Sci-Fi (my favourite genre as well)
1. Back to the Future
2. Blade Runner
3. Mad Max 2
4. Castle in the Sky
5. Aliens
Music & Dance (to broaden the genre a bit)
1. Amadeus (classical)
2. Footloose (dance)
3. Popeye (songs)
4. The Great Muppet Caper (songs)
5. Dirty Dancing (dance)
Zeltaebar
Another top five for two other genres:Comedy
1. The Princess Bride
2. A Fish Called Wanda
3. The Naked Gun: From the Files of the Police Squad!
4. Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
5. Three Fugitives
Horror
1. Aliens
2. Re-Animator
3. The Shining
4. Nightmare on Elm Street
5. Poltergeist
Zeltaebar
My top five selections for two additional genres:Action
1. Mad Max 2
2. Die Hard
3. Aliens
4. First Blood
5. Lethal Weapon
Adventure / Fantasy
1. Castle in the Sky
2. The Princess Bride
3. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
4. Field of Dreams
5. Raiders of the Lost Ark
Zeltaebar
My top five selections for the two extra categories that I would like to add:War
1. Barefoot Gen
2. Ran
3. Full Metal Jacket
4. Kagemusha
5. Gallipoli
Martial Arts
1. Dragons Forever
2. Rocky III
3. The Karate Kid
4. Road House
5. Kickboxer
Zeltaebar
OK - Interesting challenge. I have however tried twice to submit my choices but failed both times. Maybe the post became too long? I will try to submit my choices over several posts. I would also like to suggest War (any movie with a historical or current war as a major part of its plot) and Martial Arts (any movie that has hand to hand combat as a major part of its plot). Westerns should have been a seperate genre except that only one good western was made in the 80s as far as I know (Pale Rider). Let me know if there is another...I guess you could call "martial arts" a sub-category of the action genre, but I do think it deserves special mention because the 80's was the golden age of Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao. It also was the starting point for action movie legends Jean-Claude Van Damme and Steven Seagal among others.
CAD
All good lists, and it's good to see the diversity in genre preference. Personally, the 80's for me was about fantasy...a lot of action and escape from reality...with a bit of humor. :)Since we are talking about lists and genres, let's see what we can come up with as far as top films in different genres. I'll list the most popular, and you guys can suggest others I might have left out. I'll add my list after I see a couple of lists up so as not to influence your picks. Here are the genres:
Action - Ass-kicking, explosions, and catch phrases
Adventure/Fantasy - Discovering treasures, new worlds or dimensions
Comedy - 10 Laugh Rule applies, funny and quotable (also, Black Comedies)
Drama - Since this is the broadest genre, I'll break it down into sub-genres:
Coming of Age - The struggle to find one's place in this world
Crime - Catching the bad guy or getting away with it (also, Heist movies)
Detective - Who done it?
Epic - The long journey of discovery or change
Gangster - The rise and fall of the bad guy
Love Story - The struggle between two lovers...and in the end she just tears out your heart and stomps on it and leaves you alone. Sorry...:P
Social Commentary - Fighting against the injustices of the world
Horror - Not just a thriller, but blood and guts and demons and zombies and ghosts and psychos
Thriller - Someone's out to get you, but not necessarily supernatural
Sci-Fi - My favorite genre...Aliens, traveling to other worlds, dimensions, or times...usually by means of science and technology
Musical - My least favorite genre, but there are good ones in the 80's...anything with music as a major part in the film or performed through song
A lot of these genres can be interchanged and combined, but try to pick your favorite that best represents that genre. This should be interesting...
shydee
I really like Hannah and Her Sisters too, but i love how Woody Allen and Alan Alda play of each other in Crimes and Misdemeanors. I do enjoy entertaining movies such as Die Hard and Aliens,but they never really become favourites, i guess thats just my preference.shydee
1.Back to the Future2.Raging Bull
3.This is Spinal Tap
4.Cinema Paradiso
5.The Blues Brothers
6.Crimes and Misdemeanors
7.Dead Ringers
8.Blue Velvet
9.Come and See
10.Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Zeltaebar
I totally agree that "Once Upon a Time in America", "Amadeus" and "This is Spinal Tap" are masterpieces of the 80s and they are potential candidates to my own list. "Back to the Future" is the only movie that everyone in this group so far have agreed on. That's interesting... "The Blues Brothers" deserves special mention because it is the only other movie that has more than one top three entry. Brazil deserves praise for great production design and interesting themes. I really wanted to like that movie, especially since I love "Blade Runner" so much, which is similar in dystopian atmosphere... but I didn't like it , I thought it was too long, too slow or too little invested in its characters. Though I know I am part of a minority there :-)Zeltaebar
Good list CAD. I really like all of those filmes except Highlander which disappointed me when I gave it a new spin some time ago, but I loved it when I first saw it, back when I was a young teenager, and a movie with Christopher Lambert and Sean Connery about ancient warriors decapitating eachother in a modern day (80s) setting can't be all bad of course. I just rewatched The Empire Strikes Back and loved it more now than ever. I would have bumped it up to no. 5 on my list if I were to re-submit.CAD
Of my personal top 50 of all time, 26 films are from the 80's. Of those 26, my top ten 80's films are as follows:1. Ferris Bueller's Day Off
2. The Blues Brothers
3. Scarface
4. Star Wars: Ep. V - The Empire Strikes Back
5. Highlander
6. Aliens
7. Back to the Future
8. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial
9. Raiders of the Lost Ark
10. The Terminator
Zeltaebar
It would be nice with a little opinion exchange on the very best from the decade. I suggest a quick glance at our peronal top ten (however difficult that may be). Here is mine:1. Back to the Future
2. Blade Runner
3. Mad Max 2
4. Die Hard
5. Manon of the Spring
6. The King of Comedy
7. Castle in the Sky
8. Aliens
9. The Princess Bride
10. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
Zeltaebar
As the first poster in this forum I would like to point in the direction of my lists from the decade which I think are all very good starting points for anyone wanting to dive into the massive material of this decade:The Most Popular Movies From the 80s
Total Film's Best Movies of the 80s
The 100 Best Movies of the 80's
Showing items 26 – 39 of 39