(For an explanation of this, read the Introduction.  Other posts in this series can be found here.)

Movies We Still Care About

• Adventures in Babysitting
• Dirty Dancing
• Evil Dead 2
• (First half of) Full Metal Jacket
• Hellraiser
• Lethal Weapon
• The Lost Boys
• Moonstruck
• Predator
• The Princess Bride
• Raising Arizona
• Robocop
• Spaceballs
• The Untouchables
• Wall Street

Other Notable Movies

• Planes, Trains and Automobiles
• The Running Man

Best Picture Nominees:

• The Last Emperor (Winner)
• Broadcast News
• Fatal Attraction
• Hope and Glory
• Moonstruck

Top Grossing Films (US)

1. Three Men and a Baby
2. Fatal Attraction
3. Beverly Hills Cop II
4. Good Morning, Vietnam
5. Moonstruck
6. The Untouchables
7. The Secret of My Success
8. Stakeout
9. Lethal Weapon
10. The Witches of Eastwick

Rotten Tomatoes Top Movies

1. The Princess Bride (97%)
2. Evil Dead 2 (98%)
3. Wings of Desire (98%)
4. Broadcast News (98%)
5. Full Metal Jacket (94%)
6. Planes, Trains and Automobiles (94%)
7. Moonstruck (92%)
8. The Last Emperor (91%)
9. Raising Arizona (90%)

Movies We Still Care About

Lethal Weapon

This created the “Cop on the edge with nothing to lose” genre, which continues to be popular to this day.  (Note how 24 just returned to TV this week.)

I think that this is one of those movies that has been imitated so much that when you go back and watch it now, it feels very cliched.  Which is a compliment rather than a criticism.  But it does mean that it’s more popular in our memory than to actually watch.

In addition to being imitated by pretty much every cop movie or TV show from the last 27 years, it’s also frequently referenced.  There was an entire episode of How I Met Your Mother about how Ted kept a “Murtaugh list,” which was things he was too old to do anymore.

 

Predator

One of two over-the-top action movies to come out this year starring two future state governors. (Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jesse Ventura)  This spawned a long-running franchise, and the Predator has entered our mythology.

I think there are two reasons this movie endures.  The first is the visual design of the Predator itself.  Creature designer Stan Winston managed to create a monster that was unlike anything we had seen before.  Its mouth was the stuff of nightmares. (While its dreadlocks are frequently imitated by pro athletes.)

Some factoids about Predator you may not have known: There was a joke going around after Rocky IV that, since Rocky had run out of people to fight, Rocky V would have him fighting an alien.  Some screenwriters were inspired by this joke to create a real screenplay, which eventually developed into Predator.  Jean-Claude Van Damme was originally cast to play the Predator.  But Schwarzenegger and the rest of the cast are so much bigger than him that this just didn’t work.  So he was replaced by the guy who played Harry in Harry and the Henderson.

The Princess Bride

This is one of my all-time favorite movies.  It’s a rare film that is frequently among the favorites of both fans of stereotypically male movies and fans of stereotypically female movies.  (Note that I’m talking about stereotypes.  Obviously real men and women like all sorts of movies.)

It’s one of those movies where it’s hard to find any commentary to make about it, because everyone already loves it and knows it by heart.  (And if you don’t, what’s wrong with you?)  So in lieu of commentary, I’ll post some clips.

Here’s a collection of Vizzini saying “Inconceivable!”

Here’s just about as perfect and as pure of a straightforward battle of wits as you’ll ever see on film, made all the more entertaining by Vizzini’s zany leaps of logic.

And of course, “Hello.  My name is Inigo Montoya.  You killed my father.  Prepare to die.”

Other Fond Memories

(These are movies that fit the category of “Movies We Still Care About,” but for which I personally can’t think of anything interesting to say. Please don’t take a movie’s inclusion in this category as any sort of criticism.  You are encouraged to voice your thoughts on these films in the comments section.)

• The Lost Boys
• Moonstruck

Other Notable Films

Planes Trains and Automobiles

Not as popular today as when it first came out.  But worth noting for the “those aren’t pillows” scene.  (Though probably a comedy scene that’s based so much on homophobia wouldn’t fly today.)

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Do you disagree with any of these choices, or think that I missed something?  Leave a comment below.