1980's

The Lost Boys is a stylish, energetic blend of horror and teen comedy that helped redefine the vampire genre for a new generation. Released in 1987 and directed by Joel Schumacher, the film merges punk aesthetics, MTV-era sensibilities, and mythic horror into a uniquely vibrant cinematic cocktail. It took the classic vampire lore and injected it with ‘80s cool, complete with leather jackets, saxophones, motorcycles, and sun-drenched California boardwalks.

Gremlins is one of the most iconic and genre-bending films of the 1980s, blending horror, comedy, fantasy, and satire in a unique package that feels both nostalgic and subversive. Directed by Joe Dante and produced by Steven Spielberg, this holiday-set creature feature explores small-town Americana under siege by mischievous monsters born of consumer irresponsibility and magical folklore.

Beetlejuice is a madcap gothic comedy that marked a defining moment in the early career of director Tim Burton. Surreal, anarchic, and bursting with visual invention, it’s both a darkly comedic tale of the afterlife and a clever satire of suburban life and modernity.

9 to 5 is a landmark feminist workplace comedy that remains surprisingly relevant more than four decades after its release. Directed by Colin Higgins and starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton (in her first film role), the movie is a sharp, funny, and ultimately empowering satire of corporate America, gender inequality, and female solidarity.

Aliens (1986) is not merely a sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1979 horror-sci-fi classic Alien—it is a genre-transcending powerhouse that redefined what a sequel could be. Written and directed by James Cameron, hot off the success of The Terminator (1984), Aliens shifted the franchise from atmospheric horror into adrenaline-fueled, character-driven action without losing the dread and terror of the original. The result is one of the most revered and influential science fiction films

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) is the second instalment in the legendary Indiana Jones series, though chronologically a prequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).

When RoboCop was released in 1987, it was marketed as a straightforward action movie about a robot policeman in a dystopian future. What audiences got instead was a brutal, hyper-stylized, and scathingly satirical masterpiece that remains one of the most intellectually subversive and culturally resonant science fiction films ever made.

Released in 1987, Lethal Weapon didn’t just energize the buddy cop genre—it redefined it. Directed by Richard Donner and written by Shane Black, the film fuses intense action, razor-sharp banter, and surprising emotional depth, all anchored by the now-iconic chemistry between Mel Gibson and Danny Glover. It walks a deft line between gritty cop drama and stylized action spectacle, with undertones of noir, post-Vietnam disillusionment, and dark comedy.

Escape from New York (1981) is a gritty, atmospheric, and wholly original dystopian action film that helped define the punk-tinged aesthetic of early 1980s science fiction. Directed by genre master John Carpenter and led by an iconic performance from Kurt Russell, the film blends B-movie sensibilities with post-Vietnam/post-Watergate cynicism, imagining a future where the U.S. has responded to its societal collapse not with reform, but with barbed wire and fascism.

In a world ravaged by economic collapse and warfare, Max Rockatansky (Mel Gibson), a former police officer, roams the deserts of Australia in his supercharged V8 Interceptor. Traumatized by the death of his family (as depicted in the first film), Max has become a solitary scavenger—“a burnt-out shell of a man,” as the opening narration describes him.

The Cannonball Run is a film that thrives on energy, absurdity, and pure unadulterated fun. Directed by former stuntman Hal Needham, the movie is an ensemble comedy inspired by the real-life Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash—an illegal cross-country car race conceived by automotive writer Brock Yates.

Following the enormous success of Halloween (1978), director John Carpenter and producer/co-writer Debra Hill returned with a more atmospheric and stylistic horror tale: The Fog. This 1980 film, drenched in gothic imagery and old-fashioned ghost story sensibilities, marked a shift from slasher horror to supernatural suspense. Though modestly received upon its release, The Fog has since garnered cult status and is now appreciated for its mood, music, and craftsmanship.

Back to the Future Part II doesn’t just attempt that—it leaps headlong into it, delivering a twisty, layered time-travel adventure filled with visual innovation, narrative complexity, and a darker thematic undercurrent that sets it apart from its predecessor.

Return of the Jedi is the third film in George Lucas’s original Star Wars trilogy and serves as both a narrative and emotional culmination of the saga that began in 1977.

Raising Arizona, directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, is a madcap, irreverent, and deeply original crime-comedy that helped define the Coen Brothers’ reputation for blending quirky humour, visual inventiveness, and offbeat Americana.

Directed by Wolfgang Petersen and based on the semi-autobiographical novel by Lothar-Günther Buchheim, Das Boot ("The Boat") is widely regarded as one of the greatest war films ever made. Set aboard a German U-boat during World War II, it is a harrowing, claustrophobic, and deeply human depiction of submarine warfare, offering a rare and complex look at the war from the perspective of ordinary German soldiers.

The Elephant Man, directed by David Lynch, is a haunting and profoundly moving biographical drama that explores the life of Joseph Merrick (referred to as John Merrick in the film), a severely deformed man living in 19th-century London.

"The Empire Strikes Back" (1980), directed by Irvin Kershner and written by Lawrence Kasdan, is not only a milestone in the Star Wars franchise but also a cinematic achievement that stands as one of the greatest sequels ever made.

Review of the Ron Shelton sports romantic comedy "Bull Durham". Starring Kevon Costner, Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins.

Review of the James L. Brooks romantic comedy capturing the shifting landscape of broadcast journalism in the late 1980s while also dissecting human vulnerability, ambition, and moral compromise.