Special Report

Best '80s Movies That Will Never Get Old

American filmmaking in the 1980s was defined by the transition from the gritty experimentation of the 1960s and the beginnings of the blockbuster era in the 1970s to a more formulaic, readily accessible style of movie. Film franchises came to dominate the box office, low-brow entertainment found its footing with the proliferation of raunchy teen comedies, and a mysterious technology known as “CGI” was on the horizon. 

Producers committed themselves to (and found funding for) films considered “high concept,” which meant easy-to-describe, event-driven projects that relied on non-stop action and star power to engage their audience. Whatever their artistic merit may have been, they were meant to be fun. (Only six end up on our list of the 100 best movies of the last 100 years according to critics.)

Click here to see the best American movies you’ll remember from the ‘80s.

To identify the best movies you’ll remember from the 1980’s, 24/7 Tempo reviewed the 271 movies that had at least 50,000 reviews on IMDb, an online movie database owned by Amazon, or Rotten Tomatoes, an online movie and TV review aggregator. We calculated an index of each movie’s IMDb rating, Rotten Tomatoes audience score, and Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score. All ratings were weighted equally. Data on domestic box office came from The Numbers, an online movie database owned by consulting firm Nash Information Services, last updated in April 2021. Box office figures are not inflation adjusted. Casting and other supplemental data comes from IMDb.

American filmmakers in the ‘80s weren’t interested in examining the skeletons in the national closet —  not while there were still ghosts to be busted. As a result, some consider the decade to represent a low point in American movies, while others embrace the films of the era as “so bad they’re good”. 

Nevertheless, a number of movies of the 1980s were truly memorable, for one reason or another, and 24/7 Tempo has assembled a list of them here. (Speaking of which, these are the bad movies you’ll remember if you grew up in the 80s.)

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

26. The Shining (1980)
> Director: Stanley Kubrick
> Starring: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers
> Domestic box office gross: $44.6 million — #151 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

A writer serves as live-in caretaker at an isolated hotel with his wife and son, where a dark presence eats away at his sanity and provokes him to violence. Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall star in Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of the 1977 Stephen King novel.

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Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

25. Airplane! (1980)
> Director: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker
> Starring: Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
> Domestic box office gross: $83.5 million — #56 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

This slapstick comedy follows a failed WWII pilot with a new fear of flying as he boards a domestic flight to try and win back his old girlfriend, a flight attendant. Disaster follows and Ted Striker finds himself thrust back into the pilot’s seat, with lives on the line.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

24. Blade Runner (1982)
> Director: Ridley Scott
> Starring: Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos
> Domestic box office gross: $32.7 million — #206 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

This science fiction thriller based on the Philip K. Dick novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” takes place in a dystopic Los Angeles, where robots known as “replicants” are hunted by police officers called “blade runners”. Harrison Ford stars as a blade runner on the hunt for four extremely dangerous replicants on the run in his city.

Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

23. Ghostbusters (1984)
> Director: Ivan Reitman
> Starring: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis
> Domestic box office gross: $242.2 million — #5 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Three professors of parapsychology (Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis) are fired by their university, so they start their own business as paranormal exterminators in New York City. Calamity ensues when an ancient evil makes its way to Manhattan, and the Ghostbusters are the only ones able to stop it.

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Courtesy of Universal Pictures

22. Do the Right Thing (1989)
> Director: Spike Lee
> Starring: Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson
> Domestic box office gross: $26.0 million — #237 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Spike Lee’s comedy-drama takes place in Bedford-Stuyvesant, a formerly Italian New York neighborhood that is now largely African-American, on the hottest day of the year. A discussion in a pizza parlor turns into real violence as tensions boil over and pour into the city streets.

Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

21. Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989)
> Director: Hayao Miyazaki
> Starring: Kirsten Dunst, Minami Takayama, Rei Sakuma, Kappei Yamaguchi
> Domestic box office gross: No data available

This animated classic follows a young witch named Kiki as she spends her 13th year living among the residents of a quiet, seaside village. Disney purchased the distribution rights to the film in 1998, when it saw its first English release on video cassette.

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Courtesy of Warner Bros.

20. The Right Stuff (1983)
> Director: Philip Kaufman
> Starring: Sam Shepard, Scott Glenn, Ed Harris, Dennis Quaid
> Domestic box office gross: $21.5 million — #255 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Based on Tom Wolfe’s history of the U.S. Space Program published in 1979, Philip Kaufman’s adaptation follows the civilian and military test pilots who risked life and limb to make the first U.S. human spaceflight program a success. The film won four Oscars.

Courtesy of TriStar Pictures

19. Glory (1989)
> Director: Edward Zwick
> Starring: Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes, Morgan Freeman
> Domestic box office gross: $26.8 million — #233 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Matthew Broderick plays Robert Gould Shaw, the Union Army officer who led the first company of black soldiers in the American Civil War. The film won three Oscars, including Best Supporting Actor for Denzel Washington’s portrayal of Private Trip.

Courtesy of Orion Pictures

18. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)
> Director: Woody Allen
> Starring: Martin Landau, Woody Allen, Bill Bernstein, Claire Bloom
> Domestic box office gross: $18.3 million — #275 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Woody Allen wrote, directed, and acted in this comedy-drama about a doctor whose mistress threatens to expose their affair. Martin Landau stars alongside Allen as a filmmaker in a failing marriage who falls for someone new.

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Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

17. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
> Director: Steven Spielberg
> Starring: Harrison Ford, Sean Connery, Alison Doody, Denholm Elliott
> Domestic box office gross: $197.2 million — #9 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

The third installment of the Indiana Jones franchise brings Sean Connery into the fray as Indiana’s father, a famous scholar who has spent most of his career studying medieval history. Indiana must rescue his father from Nazis, who have taken him in an effort to finish their search for the Holy Grail.

Courtesy of The Ladd Company

16. Once Upon a Time in America (1984)
> Director: Sergio Leone
> Starring: Robert De Niro, James Woods, Elizabeth McGovern, Treat Williams
> Domestic box office gross: $5.3 million — #340 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Based on the 1952 novel “The Hoods,” this movie sees Robert De Niro playing a mobster — broke, and haunted by the memories of his past — returning to the Lower East Side after 35 years in hiding.

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Courtesy of Embassy Pictures

15. This Is Spinal Tap (1984)
> Director: Rob Reiner
> Starring: Rob Reiner, Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, Kimberly Stringer
> Domestic box office gross: $190 thousand — #359 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Rob Reiner’s definitive “mockumentary” follows English heavy metal band Spinal Tap as they mount an ill-fated comeback tour across the U.S. Viewers get a behind the scenes look into the men that made the music, for better or worse.

Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

14. The Elephant Man (1980)
> Director: David Lynch
> Starring: Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud
> Domestic box office gross: $26.0 million — #236 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

David Lynch’s biographical drama tells the story of a severely disfigured young man who lived in Victorian England. Forced into a life of meager subsistence as a side-show freak, Merrick sees his life changed by a doctor from the London Hospital.

Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

13. Stand by Me (1986)
> Director: Rob Reiner
> Starring: Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O’Connell
> Domestic box office gross: $52.3 million — #120 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

This star-studded coming-of-age story is based on the Stephen King novella “The Body” (1982), in which a group of friends travel into the woods to see the dead body of a young boy who had recently gone missing.

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Courtesy of Universal Pictures

12. Brazil (1985)
> Director: Terry Gilliam
> Starring: Jonathan Pryce, Kim Greist, Robert De Niro, Katherine Helmond
> Domestic box office gross: $9.9 million — #321 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Sam Lowry is a disconnected bureaucrat in a future burdened by inefficiencies, whose only relief is regular escape into his subconscious. Mistakenly identified as the perpetrator of a rash of terrorist attacks, Sam must set the record straight before it’s too late.

Courtesy of Fathom Events

11. Castle in the Sky (1986)
> Director: Hayao Miyazaki
> Starring: Mayumi Tanaka, Keiko Yokozawa, Kotoe Hatsui, Minori Terada
> Domestic box office gross: No data available

This animated feature follows a young girl with a magical amulet as she is chased by government officials, pirates, and an army on her way to find a hidden floating castle.

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Courtesy of United Artists

10. Raging Bull (1980)
> Director: Martin Scorsese
> Starring: Robert De Niro, Cathy Moriarty, Joe Pesci, Frank Vincent
> Domestic box office gross: $23.4 million — #248 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Robert De Niro stars as Jake LaMotta, a champion boxer who can’t control himself outside of the ring. Violence and jealousy push his family away, no matter how badly he wants their love. The film was awarded two Oscars.

Courtesy of Orion Pictures

9. The Terminator (1984)
> Director: James Cameron
> Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn, Paul Winfield
> Domestic box office gross: $38.0 million — #188 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Arnold Schwarzenegger stars with Linda Hamilton in this science-fiction blowout, in which both a soldier and a killer robot time travel into the past. One has come to kill Sarah Connor, the other to stop him before humanity’s last hope is gone.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

8. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
> Director: Stanley Kubrick
> Starring: Matthew Modine, R. Lee Ermey, Vincent D’Onofrio, Adam Baldwin
> Domestic box office gross: $45.0 million — #147 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Based on the 1979 novel “The Short-Timers,” Stanley Kubrick’s depiction of the Vietnam War lays bare the dehumanizing nature of combat. From the indignities of boot camp to the violence inflicted upon the Vietnamese during the Tet offensive, Kubrick doesn’t pull any punches.

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Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

7. Die Hard (1988)
> Director: John McTiernan
> Starring: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson
> Domestic box office gross: $81.7 million — #57 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

This action-adventure classic tells the story of John McClane, an NYPD cop who travels to Los Angeles to visit his wife just as her office is seized by German terrorists. With no sign of help from the LAPD, John takes it upon himself to rescue his wife and the other hostages before it’s too late.

Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

6. The Princess Bride (1987)
> Director: Rob Reiner
> Starring: Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Robin Wright, Chris Sarandon
> Domestic box office gross: $30.9 million — #212 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

A young boy is read a story by his grandfather while sick in bed. The story is one of triumphs, tragedies, and most of all true love, as the protagonist goes to any lengths to rescue the eponymous princess bride from an evil prince.

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Courtesy of Orion Pictures

5. Amadeus (1984)
> Director: Milos Forman
> Starring: F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Elizabeth Berridge, Roy Dotrice
> Domestic box office gross: $52.0 million — #122 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

The story of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, this film adaptation of the 1979 play is told through the eyes of Antonio Salieri, a fellow composer in the Austrian court, who is plagued by his insufficiency in light of Mozart’s genius. The film won eight Oscars, including Best Picture.

Courtesy of 20th Century Fox

4. Aliens (1986)
> Director: James Cameron
> Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Carrie Henn, Paul Reiser
> Domestic box office gross: $85.2 million — #54 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Ellen Ripley is brought out of stasis more than a half-century after she survived her fight aboard the Nostromo to discover that she is needed once more to help colonial forces repel an onslaught of aliens. The film won two Oscars.

Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

3. Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
> Director: Steven Spielberg
> Starring: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, John Rhys-Davies
> Domestic box office gross: $225.7 million — #7 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

The first Indiana Jones film follows the intrepid archeologist on his pursuit of the Ark of the Covenant, a biblical artifact thought to contain great power. It’s 1936, and Dr. Jones must find the relic before it falls into the hands of the Nazis. The film won four Oscars and a Special Achievement Award.

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Courtesy of Universal Pictures

2. Back to the Future (1985)
> Director: Robert Zemeckis
> Starring: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover
> Domestic box office gross: $212.3 million — #8 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

This action-adventure classic follows high-schooler Marty McFly and his friend, the eccentric scientist Doc Brown, as they are accidently brought 30 years into the past by Doc’s time machine. Stranded, Marty now must intervene to make sure that his parents fall in love or else he’ll disappear forever.

Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

1. Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
> Director: Irvin Kershner
> Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams
> Domestic box office gross: $291.7 million — #3 out of 359 movies released in the 1980’s

Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia must continue their fight against Darth Vader and the Galactic Empire after the destruction of the Death Star. Luke begins his Jedi training on the remote planet of Dagobah, with the help of Jedi Master Yoda. This sequel took home an Oscar and a Special Achievement Award .

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