OT: under-rated 80s movies
So my wife is an immigrant and (until recently) did not understand the concept of an "80's movie". Overall, she loves these types of movies, especially because a good amount of them were filmed/set right in our back yard in Chicago. With that, there is a certain "feel" about 80s movies that can make them very unique and time-stamped that cannot be duplicated. For example, Licorice Pizza and Stranger Things tries really hard to capture the 80s aesthetic, but I can see right through it.
So, what are your under-rated 80s movies we all should watch. Mine are:
- To Live and Die in LA
- 3 O'Clock High
- 52 Pick-up
- Class
- Black Rain
- The Return of the Living Dead
- UHF
- Legend
- Angel Heart
- Big Trouble in Little China
- My Bloody Valentine
- Repo Man
Anything to add MgoBlogeratti?
So, the film major in me listed the directors and years with the films. You'll notice some directors tend to repeat...
- Agree with OP on Big Trouble in Little China (John Carpenter, 1986), To Live and Die in LA (William Friedkin, 1985), and 3 O'Clock High (Phil Joanou, 1987)
- The Thing (John Carpenter, 1982)
- Blow Out (Brian DePalma, 1981)
- Jagged Edge (Richard Marquand, who directed Return of the Jedi, 1985)
- The Howling (Joe Dante, 1981). 1981 was a good year for great werewolf transformation scenes...An American Werewolf in London being the more famous one. Of course, Joe Dante directed Gremlins 3 years later, which he's very well known for. But the movie he directed next...
- Innerspace (Joe Dante, 1987) is very overlooked and a film I really liked as a kid.
- Poltergeist (Tobe Hooper [with Steven Spielberg producing/task mastering everything], 1982)
- Commando (Mark L. Lester, 1985)
- WarGames (John Badham, 1983)
- The Lost Boys (Joel Schumacher, 1987)
- Teen Wolf (Rod Daniel, 1985)
- Firestarter (Mark L. Lester, 1984)...not the greatest film, but it's pretty funny to watch a young Drew Barrymore psychically set people on fire. A remake is coming out this year.
- If we're going with underrated John Hughes-produced films, the film to watch would be Some Kind of Wonderful (Howard Deutch, 1987). Hughes did not like the studio's interference in changing the ending of Pretty in Pink the year before so he responded with Some Kind of Wonderful, which was really Pretty in Pink but the male/female roles reversed. Classic 80s vibes and characters.
- Twins (Ivan Reitman, 1988)
- Spies Like Us (John Landis, 1985)
Big Trouble in Little China is an all timer. I would add Tango and Cash. Uncle Buck was great too.
This thread just reiterates to me just how bad and unoriginal movies are today. Kinda sad.
Somewhere out there, the next Batman-Superman-Avengers-Spider-man reboot is already being written. How about another Terminator or Alien film? The answer is yes. Let's take a great South Korean film and remake it as a bland American film. THE BASTARDS COULDN'T LEAVE PERFECTION ALONE AND SHIT OUT A REMAKE OF ROBOCOP!! It's depressing.
Lifeforce, because why not enjoy a smoking hot vampire alien naked for a majority of the film. I also always enjoyed Prince of Darkness. Love John Carpenter. Big Trouble in Little China is one of my favorite movies of all time.
I'll raise you that and offer a smoking hot naked alien vampire woman made entirely out of blood. Someone else's blood--maybe yours. Because Life Force!
Lifeforce is awesome movie for more than just the smoked hot naked vampire (but *mostly* for the smoking hot naked vampire).
Adding a huge one for me... FLASH GORDON! Still one of my all-time favorite movies. The soundtrack by Queen is incredible. Maybe this doesn't 100% qualify as underrated but I rarely hear it mentioned, and it's kind of a cult classic masterpiece that still holds up and is super enjoyable to watch.
Streets of Fire
Escape from NY as mentioned is how I remember thinking of things
The lesser known Arnold movies like Running Man are aging well
Jackie Chan films like Police Story
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpXMJ3wo0kI
Raising Arizona
DIVA is pure French punk
Wings of Desire a masterpiece as is Paris Texas
the one I've recently rewatched is the British TV movie Threads about nuclear war. Reagan's 'we begin bombing in 5 minutes'. Good times from the 80s
Gymkata.
52 Pick Up and To Live and Die in LA were two of my all-time favorites.
Young Sherlock Holmes is a Spielberg film know one knows about, but it was a lot of fun.
I also thought Amazon Women on the Moon was hilarious. In the genre of Kentucky Fried Movie but the jokes were funnier.
Licorice pizza was set in 1973 not the 80s.
License to Kill.
Dream A Little Dream
How I got into college.
The Manhattan Project
Fat Man and Little Boy
So, I've read through all of this post a half a day later and it's likely the board has spun itself out. I also don't have nearly the excitement of this topic for 80's movies that I would 70's or 90's. That same "80's aesthetic" that she/you like.
I think a lot of the 80's just comes through poorly on film. It's a decade famous for studios trying to cut corners and reduce production costs. Plus there's some really great writing on the technology. The lenses/cameras/lighting were all technical innovations in the 70's and by the end of the 80's it was just old tech. A lot of the work just ended up looking "cheap."
But don't get me wrong, there's iconic work throughout the decade and some absolutely gorgeous and stunning movies. It's just Big Trouble in Little China would be a little bit better had it been made 10 years earlier or 10 years later, in my opinion (from a purely visual aesthetic standpoint).
The exception I will take is your lumping Licorice Pizza and Stranger Things into the same boat. I'm surprised after 250 replies I'm the only person out on this island. lol First Licorice Pizza was 1973. Second, what PTA did in that movie is WAY more soft handed and an homage to the area of LA and the time that he grew up in. The Duffer Brothers and Stranger Things is ham handed. It's kitcsh. Everyone loves Ghostbusters, right? Let's step all on top of that. It's 1985, let's build a mall! These two things ain't the same fucking ball park. It aint the same league. It ain't even the same fucking sport. (Or something like that lol)
Anywho, silly soapbox aside. Great lists. Fun exercise. Not sure I have much else to contribute but here's a try at a couple... I'm going to try to lean hard into the 80s aesthetic part of the challenge, as opposed to movies that were released in the 80's but could be somewhat timeless otherwise.
I noticed a couple comedies in there, Mannequin is classic 80's comedy. I think it did gangbusters at the theater, but I'm not sure that people even think about it now. Giant shoulder pads. Nerd gets girl of his fantasies. Such a classic 80's trope.
Is Valley Girl underrated? All the vibes of Heckerling or Hughes, but less mainstream appeal. The song is iconic though, so maybe that's not underrated either. That said, it's ALL the 80's teen aesthetic, without being a John Hughes.
Has anyone mentioned Turk 182 yet? Also one that I think had notoreity in its time, it helped launch Timothy Hutton, but I don't think it shows up on too many 80's must see lists. It has that young white guy taking on the world and/or sticking it to the man, that was so very "80's" in films like Ferris Bueller and Pump Up the Jam.
Oh and lastly. How about Megaforce, for my early 80's action movie. It's heavily influenced by Star Wars (which every scifi action movie in 1982 was). It's also a shoutout to Flash Gordon, but not nearly the big success. Flowing hair. Flying motorcycles. Barry effing Bostwick.
Either way, great post! Enjoyable read this morning. Wish I would have saw it yesterday!
I stand corrected on Licorice Pizza. My intent was to show that those programs like that (and Stranger Things) tries to capture the aesthetic of their respective era, but failed.
With that, you said:
It's a decade famous for studios trying to cut corners and reduce production costs
Amen! Because you are absolutely correct. The advancement of practical effects in the 80s enabled so many film houses to pump (i.e. grind) out more movies at reduced costs, especially for horror movies. All this looks cheap by today's standards, but they looked great then.
Movies are also as much about casting as it is about special/practical effects or film technology. For example, Big Trouble in Little China would probably suck ass if they tried to make it in the 70s (practical effects were bad then and casting would likely be sub-par) or in the 90s (overuse of early incarnations of CGI and an aged Kurt Russel). You already acknowledged much of this, so I'm not arguing.
But to address your list of movies. Valley Girl is not underrated. Its a great movie.
All good points.
As for Valley Girl not being underrated... you're not saying it's not underrated because it's a great movie right? I assume that's just a bit of a sequential mistype.
I'll fully admit that I'm not up on what the current culture has it's collective eye on, with the exception of the obvious. I added it because it seems to fit that heavy 80's "vibe" i interpreted you were looking for. But I don't know if I ever see it on people's "lists" of must see 80's, or even "slept on 80's" lists. Does it make "must see lists"? I hope I"m wrong and more people regard this movie than I thought. It's so good.
Big Trouble in Little China-I have the DVD. Simply a great movie, never tire of watching.
Real Genius. Dialogue is some of the best ever written.
Weekend at Bernies, probably not underrated, epitome of 80's party scene, hair cigs and booze
Weird Science....the hair, the hair, the hourglass.....brother Chet....
Sixteen Candles, yeah we partied like that. Seriously. All the shit you can't do now and you'll never know what you lost.
An Officer and a Gentleman. When men were men and not ashamed of it. Plus, NAVY!
Flashdance, I mean, the music!
Urban Cowboy...nah, terrible movie. But there was a cultural period in which every city of size had a bar that tried to be Gilleys with the mechanical bull. And Deborah Winger, I mean, yeah.
The Big Chill-probably not underrated either. Great flick, written by Michigan Alum Lawrence Kasdan.
The Wraith-Charlie Sheen at his best, nice science fiction, entertaining film
Short Circuit-Funny stuff
The Last Starfighter-dorky but fun
The Night of the Comet-definitely memorable.
Finally-Earth Girls are Easy. Definitely underrated and hysterical.
I love to time travel, thank you!
I'm not sure if these are underrated but:
She's having a Baby
After Hours
Videodrome
Come Back to the 5 & Dime Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean
Radio Days
Mississippi Burning
Blood Simple
Brazil
That'll do for now.
Blood Simple is one of the very best Cohen Bros movies -- and seems very underknown to me.
Bright Lights Big City 1988
Am a fan of James Bridges films. Like the realism of work life, student life.
Great pick. 80's excess turns to drugs. More iconic 80's tropes. Plus Michael J Fox. And a really good soundtrack.
So many great movies already mentioned. The one that comes to mind that I didn't see on any posts is Career Opportunities. A young Jennifer Connelly...all that needs to be said.
One other is Weekend at Bernies. Just watched that with my 16 year old daughter and she found it funny. Hard to amuse kids these days so nice to see some of the silly movies still hold up.
I wish I had time to aggregate all of these posts to come up with one awesome list. For sure I will have to bookmark this thread.
You guys have pretty much captured them all here, the only other one that comes to mind that really isn't underrated but is complete shit, is Firewalker with Chuck Norris and Lou Gossett Jr. Sonny Landham (Predator) was in it too. Watched it so many times as a kid. So bad but so good.
Odd you have an 80s movies post that doesn't mention the definitive 80s movies -- John Hughes movies and Brat Pack movies.
Underrated movies is the key here.
Blue velvet and rumblefish
……throw tango & cash in there too
Not really under the radar, but The Great Outdoors, Little Shop of Horrors, and Clue were masterpieces.
Say Anything
I don't think I saw it on anywhere on these comments. It is easily my favorite from the 80's and to me, very underrated! Lloyd Dobler is the coolest dude ever in movies....
I didn't read through the whole list but I'll add At Close Range and Witness, in case no one's listed them yet.
I watched Witness last week. Great younger Harrison Ford. Some SERIOUS continuity issues in that movie. Peter Weir has some absolutely drop dead gorgeous shots in there. And then at other times he takes some serious short cuts to build drama and tension with the kid, almost unforgivable at times.
That said, good watch. I hadn't seen it in probably 30 years.
Love them both. Great call.
One more: Turner & Hooch, anyone?
Have you rewatched this movie since the late 80s? I hadn't. So I forgot... THEY KILLED THE FUCKING DOG! That's right, in the late 80's Disney/Touchstone had a cute movie with the darling of Big, comedic cutie Tom Hanks, and a lovable dog as a crime fighting duo. And they kill the goddam dog! lol 80's man.
Windy. Next movie list topic suggestion. Movies I won't watch because they kill the dog.
Highlights to include:
I am Legend
Some new movie with Nicolai Coster Waldau on Netflix right now
And Turner and Hooch
I'm just gonna post this other guy's list. Though I highly recommend the first film on his list - Earth Girls are Easy.
https://www.whathifi.com/us/features/25-of-the-best-80s-movies-youve-never-seen
Beverly Hills Cop. One of my favorite Eddie Murphy performances (not too much overacting, just very cool), and a fire soundtrack.
Better off dead
2$$$$$
Meet the Feebles
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (not sure if mentioned yet)
The Dead Zone
The Hidden
Did Caddyshack get mentioned yet? Probably not underrated, though.
TRON
Grave of the Fireflies (awesome, but one of the saddest movies you will ever see; not underrated, but not many people have seen it.)
1984
Many people keep posting movies that were ‘hits’ or became cult ‘hits’. Need to think deep - underrated.
Deep underrated -
- How I got into College
- One Cray Summer
- Just One of the Guys
- The Legend of Billie Jean
- The Funhouse
- Killer Klowns from Outer Space
- The Serpent and the Rainbow
- Hot Pursuit
80s Additions
Transformers the Movie (1986)
This was my most watched movie in the 80s. Watched it until the VHS tape shown signs of wear.
Labyrinth (1986)
Early 90s Additions (feel like 80s movies)
Riki-oh (1991)
Dead Alive (1992)
Used Cars. Just saw it yesterday. So funny. (Lenny and Squiggy were straight up hilarious. Jack Warden too)
Also Running Scared (Gregory Hines and Billy Crystal, with a good Joey Pants cameo, and a theme song I love) and White Nights (more Gregory Hines, gone too soon, and total babe Helen Mirren).