The films of the 1980s are known for being big, bold, and creative in terms of performances, plots, and visual effect. So, there's a timeless quality to them. They continue to be a source of comfort to people who lived through the time period and capture the imagination of those who weren't yet born.
The only problem is that the '80s was a prolific time for cinema. So, there are a lot of iconic films, but there are still a multitude of hidden gems waiting to be discovered and rediscovered. To help with that, we've created three different lists of '80s cult classics from the library's collection of DVDs and the hoopla and Kanopy streaming services.
DVDs
Big Trouble in Little China – In this 1986 film from director John Carpenter, Kurt Russell plays a truck driver who becomes embroiled in a world of martial arts action, monsters, and magic when his truck gets stolen in San Francisco's Chinatown area. So, this is a movie with incredible action, but it's also hilarious. Much of the humor comes from the fact that Russell talks like he's the hero of the film, but he's very much the sidekick.
An American Werewolf in London – This 1981 horror-comedy from director John Landis is about the physical and emotional pain that comes from the titular curse. David Naughton plays the main character; a man who's bitten by a lycanthrope on the British moors. Griffin Dunne plays his sarcastic best friend, and Jenny Agutter is the nurse assigned to care for Naughton’s character. The real star of the movie, though, is Rick Baker's astounding makeup effects work on the werewolf transformation scenes. They won him the inaugural Academy Award for Best Make-Up.
Legend – Director Ridley Scott is known for his work on sci-fi films and historical epics, but this lesser-known movie from 1985, starring future box-office megastar Tom Cruise, shows the director had a real knack for fantasy films as well. In this movie, Cruise's character, Jack, must save the world and the last remaining unicorns from the monstrous schemes of an entity known as the Lord of Darkness. The great Tim Curry plays the Lord of Darkness and Rob Bottin's make-up effects for the character have to be seen to be believed. He's one of the most imposing and menacing villains to ever grace the silver screen.
Manhunter – Anthony Hopkins is known for playing Hannibal Lector, but he was not the first actor to portray the cannibalistic doctor. No, that honor belongs to actor Brian Cox (best known these days as Logan Roy, the scheming patriarch from the acclaimed HBO drama Succession), who plays a supporting role in this 1986 adaptation of Thomas Harris' novel, Red Dragon. Michael Mann directs it with his signature breathtaking visual style, and William Petersen plays FBI profiler Will Graham.
Midnight Run – The buddy action-comedy genre was wildly popular in the 1980s, and this 1988 film from director Martin Brest is one of the best examples of that genre. It stars Robert De Niro as a down on his luck, tough bounty hunter and Charles Grodin is the mob accountant he's trying to bring in. Together, the two embark on a hilarious and exciting, cross-country journey where they must learn to get along if they're to survive the mob assassins, FBI agents, and rival bounty hunters that are hot on their heels.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels – In director Frank Oz’s 1988 film about rival con men two actors at the height of their comedic and charismatic powers collide; Steve Martin and Michael Caine. Their characters are competing to be the first to swindle an American heiress out of $50,000. The stakes of their bet? the loser leaves the luxurious South of France town where they ply their deceptive trade.
hoopla
Heathers – Before it was a musical, Heathers was a 1988 pitch-black comedy about high school cliques from director Michael Lehmann and starring Winona Ryder and Christian Slater. In the film, Ryder plays a high schooler on the fringe of a popular clique whose world is violently and hilariously turned upside down when she meets a new kid. The film tackles dark subjects like murder and suicide but does so with honesty, heart, and humor. It also features some great line delivery.
Dragonslayer – As we mentioned earlier, the ‘80s was an incredible time for fantasy films, and this forgotten 1981 movie from director Matthew Robbins proves that. In it, a young sorcerer’s apprentice, played by Peter MacNicol, sets out to end the reign of terror of a fire-breathing dragon. Oscar winning Filmmaker, Guillermo del Toro, has said that Vermithrax, the name of this film’s villainous beast, is one of his favorite cinematic dragons.
Possession – Director Andrew Zulawski’s 1981 film starts off as a marital drama and a Cold War spy film as a young spy played by Sam Neil returns to Berlin and his estranged wife, portrayed by Isabelle Adjani, who reveals she’s having an affair and leaves him. It then quickly becomes a mind-bending, bizarre, psychological, and maybe supernatural horror movie that features some shocking scenes that have to be seen to be believed.
Black Rain – In this slick, international crime thriller Michael Douglas and Andy Garcia play two New York police detectives who accidentally extradite a Japanese criminal back to his home country and into the arms of Yakuza posing as police. To rectify their mistake and recover their prisoner, the rule breaking cops must team up with a by-the-book Japanese police detective played by Ken Takakura.
Kanopy
Crimewave – What happens when the director of Evil Dead teams up with the people behind films like Fargo and Raising Arizona? If you guessed a wild and crazy film that mixes elements of comedy, drama and horror you’d be right, and that’s exactly what this obscure 1985 film is. It’s a movie fans of Sam Raimi, Joel and Ethan Coen, and Evil Dead star Bruce Campbell will want to check out.
Earth Girls Are Easy – This 1988 film takes the simple romantic comedy set up of a woman looking for love in late ‘80s Los Angeles, and adds three colorful, furry, and flirty aliens into the mix. When combine those elements with a charismatic cast that includes Geena Davis, Jeff Goldblum, Damon Wayans, and Jim Carrey, and the punk-rock, colorful, visual style of director Julien Temple you have something truly unique and fun.
Escape from New York – This second collaboration between director John Carpenter and actor Kurt Russell was released in 1981 and is set in the, then, near future world of 1997. That time has long since passed, but the film, which drops Russell’s soldier turned folk hero-outlaw into a titular big apple that has been turned into a city-wide maximum-security prison, is still fun and exciting. That’s mainly because of Russell’s portrayal of Snake Plisskin, but the film’s production design and subtext about endless war and political corruption also add some punch.
The Fog – 1978’s Halloween isn’t the only collaboration between actor Jamie Lee Curtis and director John Carpenter. The duo reunited two years later for this eerie tale of a spectral fog and the angry ghosts hiding within. The cast is rounded out by a great group of underrated character actors that includes Adrienne Barbeau, Tom Atkins, and Curtis real life mother and legendary scream queen, Janet Leigh.
Chopping Mall – This 1986 film is both a silly, awesomely bad, horror flick and a sharp satire on the ‘80s cultural icon that was the shopping mall. In it, several teens trapped in a mall after hours are menaced by three (at the time) high-tech, robotic security guards. It was directed by Jim Wynorski and stars Kelli Maroney and Barbara Crampton. It was filmed at the iconic Sherman Oaks Galleria which also served as the mall in other ‘80s fare like 1982’s Fast Times at Ridgemont High and 1985’s Commando.
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