(For an explanation of this, read the Introduction. Other posts in this series can be found here.)
Movies We Still Care About
- Alien
- Life of Brian
Best Picture Nominees:
- Kramer vs. Kramer (Winner)
- All That Jazz
- Apocalypse Now
- Breaking Away
- Norma Rae
Top Grossing Films (US)
- Kramer vs. Kramer
- The Amityville Horror
- Rocky II
- Apocalypse Now
- Star Trek: The Motion Picture
- Alien
- The Muppet Movie
- 10
- The Jerk
- Moonraker
Other Notable Movies
- Apocalypse Now
- Kramer vs. Kramer
- The Muppet Movie
- Mad Max
- Meatballs
- Star Trek: The Motion Picture
There are lots of films people still remember from this year. I had some difficulty deciding which ones count as movies we still care about. I’m sure there will be lots of disagreement in the comments.
Movies We Still Care About
Alien
Alien is widely considered to be among the best horror films of all time. I can’t think of a better sci-fi/horror. It’s a masterpiece of slow-build suspense and terror.
The only flaw in this movie is that it loses a lot of its impact once you’ve seen the alien. So it doesn’t hold up quite as well on repeated viewings, or if you’ve already seen any of the sequels, or if you’ve seen any of the myriad references to the xenomorphs that have become mythology over the last 35 years.
But even if you won’t be able to replicate the experience of watching for the first time, this still holds up in every other way, and is worth revisiting.
Life of Brian
Life of Brian isn’t as funny as Monty Python and the Holy Grail, but then again, what is? But while Holy Grail was just silly fun, Life of Brian did an excellent job mixing humor with social commentary. For example, the brilliant “You’re all individuals” scene.
This was the Pythons’ only foray into telling a complete story, rather than a series of unrelated or quasi-related sketches. Or course it was riffing off the Gospels, but it works. And the audience knowing the story they were spoofing made us appreciated the choices they made when they deviated from that.
Other Notable Films
Apocalypse Now
This is considered an all-time classic. It’s discussed in film school. It’s full of famous quotes such as “I love the smell of napalm in the morning,” and “The horror, the horror.” Plus everyone knows the attack helicopters playing Ride of the Valkyries. It’s one of those movies that everyone is supposed to respect.
But I don’t include it in the list because I’m not convinced that anyone outside of film snobs actually likes it. It’s rather dull and plodding, with a barely coherent plot and characters that are intentionally designed to keep you from caring about them. It’s one of those movies that people only pretend to love because they think it makes them sound sophistimacated.
Kramer vs. Kramer
Another one of those movies that is considered great and discussed in film school, but that few people actually like. Plus it doesn’t have all the cultural touchstones that Apocalypse Now has.
The Muppet Movie
I grew up watching the late 70s/early 80s Muppet movies over and over in reruns. (The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper, and The Muppets Take Manhattan.) These movies and the Muppet Babies cartoon are where I formed my impression of the Muppets, and I thought they were great. The films did an excellent job of appealing to both kids and grown-ups. (I haven’t revisited Muppet Babies as an adult, so I’m not sure how that holds up.)
It was somewhat of a surprise to me a few years ago when I checked out the 70s Muppet Show, and found that it was quite lame. Just a lot of joke-free versions of the Muppets singing songs, and some variety show fare that had already been played out long before the 70s. I can’t offer an explanation as to why the movies were so much better than the show, but they were.
However while I have a personal fondness for The Muppet Movie, I don’t think it still has much widespread appeal, so I can’t quite count it as a movie we still care about.
Mad Max
References to Mad Max have risen to the level of mythology. Mad Max has become a synonym for post-apocalyptic civilization, barren wastelands, and a certain style of dress.
But the thing is, when you close your eyes and picture something out of Mad Max, you’re almost certainly picturing its sequels The Road Warrior or Beyond Thunderdome instead. The original Mad Max was a small budget revenge story that wasn’t set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland and doesn’t feature any of the iconography that people imagine when they hear the name. So while The Road Warrior is something people still care about, the original Mad Max is not. (Even if they erroneously think they do.)
Meatballs
This created the summer camp movie, which became its own genre in the 80s, and has been spoofed and referenced countless times. But on the other hand, when’s the last time you actually watched Meatballs? When’s the last time anyone you know watched it?
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
We still care about Star Trek. We still care about several Star Trek movies. But even hard-core Trekkers don’t care about the first movie, or consider it to be remotely worth watching.
– – – – –
Do you disagree with any of these choices, or think that I missed something? Leave a comment below.
Cinema Badger 