6 Star Films

Released in 1980, The Sea Wolves is a stirring, old-fashioned wartime adventure directed by Andrew V. McLaglen. Starring an illustrious ensemble of veteran British actors—Gregory Peck, Roger Moore, David Niven, and Trevor Howard—it offers a nostalgic return to the style of the classic war films of the 1950s and 1960s, even as cinema was moving towards grittier, more cynical portrayals of conflict.

When George Lucas returned to the galaxy far, far away in 1999 with Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, it marked one of the most anticipated cinematic events in history. Sixteen years had passed since Return of the Jedi (1983), and the weight of expectation was immense. Fans hoped to see the origins of the saga’s mythic conflict, the rise of Darth Vader, and the early days of the Jedi Order.

Released in 1985 and directed by Joel Schumacher, St. Elmo’s Fire stands as one of the quintessential “Brat Pack” films of the 1980s. While critically divisive at the time, the movie has since become a cultural time capsule, capturing the anxieties, ambitions, and personal turbulence of young adulthood during the Reagan era.

Sleeping with the Enemy, directed by Joseph Ruben, is a tense psychological thriller that blends domestic drama with suspense, anchored by a powerful lead performance from Julia Roberts. Released in 1991, the film capitalized on Roberts’ post-Pretty Woman stardom, but it also showcased a darker, more dramatic side to her screen persona.

While William Powell and Myrna Loy are best remembered for their sparkling chemistry in comedies like The Thin Man series, Evelyn Prentice (1934) offers a fascinating early glimpse of the duo in a markedly different light.

Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977) is the third and final entry in the Columbia Pictures trilogy of fantasy-adventure films featuring the legendary sailor Sinbad, following The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973).

The Grass Is Greener (1960) is a genteel romantic comedy with a razor-sharp wit and a star-studded cast, wrapped in a quintessentially British setting. Directed by Stanley Donen, best known for musicals like Singin’ in the Rain and Funny Face, this film adapts a popular stage play by Hugh Williams and Margaret Vyner into a charming yet subtly subversive film that examines marriage, fidelity, and class with elegant humour.

Following the surprise success of Romancing the Stone (1984), a spirited action-romance adventure in the vein of Indiana Jones, it was inevitable that a sequel would follow. Enter The Jewel of the Nile (1985), which reunites the dynamic trio of Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, and Danny DeVito for another globetrotting escapade.

Turner & Hooch (1989) is a quintessential example of the buddy-cop comedy formula with an inspired twist: one half of the duo is a rambunctious, slobbering Dogue de Bordeaux. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode and starring Tom Hanks at the height of his comedic phase, the film merges crime-solving, slapstick humor, and unexpected emotional depth into a commercially successful and fondly remembered entry in the genre.

Released in 1989 and directed by Joe Dante, The 'Burbs is a pitch-black suburban satire wrapped in a slapstick horror-comedy cloak. With Tom Hanks leading a gifted ensemble cast, the film explores paranoia, boredom, and suburban conformity through the lens of middle-class America gone slightly mad. Blending Hitchcockian suspense with cartoony humour, The 'Burbs delivers a unique and highly entertaining take on neighbourhood neuroses and mob mentality.

The 1987 film Dragnet is a sharp, satirical update of the iconic police procedural television series created by Jack Webb in the 1950s. Directed by Tom Mankiewicz (a veteran writer of James Bond and Superman films), Dragnet reimagines the sober, no-nonsense law enforcement style of the original for a more ironic, comedic 1980s audience.

When Ocean’s 11 premiered in 1960, it was less a film and more a cultural event. Marketed as the ultimate Rat Pack vehicle, it brought together the most charismatic entertainers of the era—Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop—for a stylish caper set against the glittering backdrop of Las Vegas.

Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978) is the fifth and final Pink Panther film to be released during Peter Sellers' lifetime, and the last of the series made before his death in 1980. Directed once again by Blake Edwards, the film continues the comic misadventures of the eternally clumsy Inspector Jacques Clouseau, this time embroiled in a plot involving the French underworld, international intrigue, and mistaken death.

Released in 1983, The Man with Two Brains is a wildly inventive sci-fi comedy that serves as a hilarious satire of mad scientist tropes and classic horror conventions. Directed by veteran comedy filmmaker Carl Reiner, the film stars Steve Martin at the peak of his manic comic powers, paired with the sultry and dangerous Kathleen Turner.

The 1976 version of A Star Is Born marks the third cinematic iteration of a now-legendary Hollywood story—tracing the rise of a young performer as she eclipses the fading star who mentors her. Whereas the 1937 and 1954 versions (starring Janet Gaynor and Judy Garland, respectively) were set in the film industry, this update transposes the drama into the world of the 1970s rock music scene.

Popeye (1980) is one of the most curious cinematic endeavors to emerge from a major studio in the post-Star Wars era, when Hollywood was chasing family-friendly properties with franchise potential. Directed by auteur Robert Altman and starring the late Robin Williams in his first major film role, Popeye adapts the iconic comic strip and cartoon sailor into a live-action musical—a genre hybrid that baffled critics and audiences alike at the time of its release.

Every Which Way But Loose is a film that defied expectations and box office predictions. Starring Clint Eastwood—then best known for his stoic, hard-edged roles in Westerns and crime dramas—it marked a striking detour into the realm of redneck comedy, complete with bar brawls, honky-tonk ballads, and a scene-stealing orangutan named Clyde.

The Cockleshell Heroes is a compelling British war film based on the real-life Operation Frankton, a daring 1942 British Royal Marines raid on German shipping in the port of Bordeaux. Directed by and starring José Ferrer, the film was a rare attempt in the 1950s to dramatize British military heroism with an American-Hollywood sensibility while retaining a fundamentally British tone.

Released in 1986, Running Scared is a quintessential 1980s buddy-cop action-comedy that blends sharp dialogue, charismatic leads, and brisk pacing with an emotional core that's rare for the genre. Directed by Peter Hyams (Capricorn One, 2010), the film pairs Billy Crystal and Gregory Hines as two wisecracking Chicago cops on the brink of retirement who are forced back into action when a drug lord they've been chasing resurfaces.

Phillip Noyce’s Dead Calm is a taut, minimalist psychological thriller that wrings maximum tension from a deceptively simple setup. Set almost entirely on the open sea, the film traps its trio of characters—each battling their own past traumas and inner demons—within the isolating confines of a sailboat in the middle of nowhere.