Ranking the Top 10 Films of the 1980s

Honorable Mention

Full Metal Jacket (1987), Gremlins (1984), A Christmas Story (1983), Rocky IV (1985)

10. Amadeus (1984)

Winning Best Picture at the 57th Academy Awards, Amadeus solidified itself as one of the best films of the 20th century. Highlighting the fictional rivalry between Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri, we see the struggle those go through when jealousy takes over and you grow envious of someone you deem an opponent. I’ve grown to love films about obsession and Amadeus is one of the best covering that topic. I mean, we literally see one of our main characters drink himself to death and the other live out his days in a mental asylum. The set pieces in Amadeus feel like you’re in a museum and the choreographed performances are just an insane concert that adds to the lore of this film.

4.5/5 Stars

9. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)

There’s a 20th century Holy Trinity of coming-of-age high school films. In the name of the Father (American Graffiti), Son (Fast Times at Ridgemont High), and Holy Spirit (Dazed and Confused) amen. These three films all came out in separate decades, but all vastly impacted the 21st centuries take on the coming-of-age drama. I love Fast Times at Ridgemont High because of how laid back it is. This is purely about friends having fun and the interweaving of different friend groups. The jocks somehow interacting with the stoners and then the academics is just a funny spectacle to see. Fast Times at Ridgemont High also delivers the audience a stoner version of Sean Penn. Pretty awesome.

4.5/5 Stars

8. The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

It’s been done to death already, but how great is The Empire Strikes Back? I personally think it’s the best film in the whole Star Wars franchise because there are so many monumental moments that impact that franchise. For example, the battle on Hoth is important because it forces the rebels to flee and we see the Millennium Falcon malfunction. Not only is that a vital moment in the franchise, it’s the best full-scale battle scene in the franchise. You then couple that with the “I am your father” line delivery to Luke from Darth Vader and we have a film that never leaves the mind of the audience. I remember seeing that as a kid and thinking that no plot twist could ever match that. I’m not sure any plot twist has matched it.

5/5 Stars

7. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

No film impacted me more as a child than Raiders of the Lost Ark. I mean, I fully believed I was going to be Indiana Jones when I grew up — snapping my whip at Nazis and finding artifacts around the world. With Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny having come out this summer, I revisited Raiders of the Lost Ark for fun and its aged beautifully. Yes, some of the fight scenes can be a little corny, but they’re still badass to me. I’m so glad my dad showed me the Indiana Jones films and they’re films that I look forward to one day showing my kids. I think that’s what they’re intended for — for generations to continue to pass down.

5/5 Stars

6. The Shining (1980)

Prior to last year, I’d never been a horror fan. I always stayed away from it because why would I want to feel scared? That was my logic for twenty years of my life. I finally got a real introduction into horror though watching the classics like Alien, The Thing, and The Shining — all of which are masterpieces that don’t rely on gore or jump scares to strike fear into the audience. For The Shining, it’s scary on two parts. It’s terrifying seeing Jack Torrence run around the Overlook Hotel wielding an axe, but it’s also terrifying when you see a man slip so far into madness that he’s trying to kill his wife and child.

5/5 Stars

5. Platoon (1986)

What makes a good war film great and sets the cream of the crop apart from the rest of the films in this genre is building strong characters that you grow emotions towards. In Platoon, there’s a lot of interesting individuals who you form opinions on and Charlie Sheen’s character is a vehicle for the audience to watch these men interact. Willem Dafoe’s character is one that I loved. He was kind, but also took no bullshit from his platoon which included war crimes. Then, there was Tom Berenger’s character who I feared. He was a monster with an intimidating stature and a thirst for blood. Outside of Apocalypse Now, Platoon is the best film about Vietnam, and I attribute that to the characters we see in this Oliver Stone classic.

5/5 Stars

4. Blow Out (1981)

When you discuss John Travolta’s filmography, you can argue that his best performance is Pulp Fiction or Grease, but I think it’s a runaway train with Blow Out being his best performance. He’s so believable in this role that you forget it’s him at times. You just think you’re watching a quick-witted and charming sound recordist trying to evade shadowy figures. It’s brilliant the way he disguises himself in this role. The mystery thriller plot line mixed with some horror elements make you feel uneasy the entire time you’re watching Blow Out, and I love that. We also hear one of the most chilling and masterful final lines of any film from Travolta when he’s listening to the scream from Nancy Allen’s character on repeat and he says, “It’s a good scream. It’s a good scream.“

5/5 Stars

3. Vision Quest (1985)

The genre of sports films is an interesting one because if you ask 100 people their favorite, you could get 90 different answers. But I’m not sure you’d hear someone’s favorite be Vision Quest, unless you’re talking to me. No film about wrestling has ever depicted wrestling in a realistic manner more than Vision Quest did and that’s where my initial love for this film stemmed from. Then, I realized that Louden Swain’s wrestling vision quest to beat Shute could be applied to something in real life. Whether your goal is to write a book or climb Mount Everest, you’re going to face adversity. It’s all about how you battle that adversity and keep going and that’s what we see in Vision Quest. Vision Quest also includes an UNREAL Lunatic Fringe needle drop that became my prematch pump up song in high school.

5/5 Stars

2. The King Of Comedy (1982)

“I’m gonna work 50 times harder, and I’m gonna be 50 times more famous than you.” Goodfellas this, Taxi Driver that. In my eyes, no film from the great Martin Scorsese holds a candle to his brilliant 1982 film, The King of Comedy. Scorsese finds humor in the dark corners of a lonely, fame-seeking stalker and his wiry accomplice, and while you should be repulsed by the two of them, you kind of feel charmed by their bumbling nature. It’s one of De Niro’s greatest performances because it’s not him playing a tough- talking mobster. He’s playing a social misfit who probably should be institutionalized and it’s brilliant. The final monologue De Niro gives on Jerry Langford’s show is funny because he’s a hack, but I always get captivated by it. It’s one of the clips I rewatch the most on YouTube.

5/5 Stars

1. Do The Right Thing (1989)

No film has aged quiet as well as Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing. Over 30 years after its release, Do The Right Thing remains poignant and important, whether you look at the riots in the summer of 2020, or Ferguson in 2014, Spike Lee’s social commentary on race still rings true. While that’s a huge reason as to why I think the film is great, it’s only a small reason as to why I adore it so much. My main reason for loving this film is ogling at the way Lee used a small neighborhood in New York as a microcosm for how the world thinks. I can’t stress how genius this is by Lee. Over his career, he has many films touching on race, but this is his magnum opus.

Outside of its importance, we see amazing dialogue and a great monologue from the main characters all involved where they throw disgusting slurs at the camera talking about the groups in their neighborhood that they hate so much. That paired with great performances from Spike Lee, Giancarlo Esposito, and Danny Aiello make this my favorite film from the 1980s.