Movies You objectively cannot pick a better ten year period for films than 1977 - 1987.

650lb Sumo

650lb Sumo

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There have been lots of threads about the best year or decade for films. Many of them narrow down to 70s vs 80s. If you look at the Top 50 grossing films ever there are only three in the 20th Century - Titanic (1997), Jurassic Park (1993) and Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999). However if you look at '77 to '87 so many classics of their genres were released, look at this:

Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 1 - 3 (1984 - 1987)
Back to the Future (1985)
Friday the 13th 1-6 (1980 - 1986)
Ghostbusters (1984)
Halloween 1 - 3 (1978 - 1982)
Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
Predator (1987)
Rambo: First Blood (1982) and Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985)
Robocop (1987)
Rocky 2 - 4 (1979 - 1985)
Star Wars original trilogy (1977 - 1983)
The Goonies (1985)
The Lost Boys (1987)
The Shining (1980)
The Terminator (1984)
Top Gun (1986)

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone's best period. Foundational films in the horror/sci fi/adventure/action genres.

I don't think it's fair to include Vietnam War films because obviously the years shortly after the war have an advantage.

Near Misses:

Jaws (1975)
Rocky (1976)
Die Hard (1988)
 
1976 is a hell of a year to leave out. Rocky, Taxi Driver, Marathon Man, Carrie, Network, All the President's Men... We really should do eleven year periods because 1987 is a murderers' row as well.

650lb Sumo said:
I don't think it's fair to include Vietnam War films because obviously the years shortly after the war have an advantage.
Click to expand...

The definitive movies about Vietnam were mainly made in the mid-late 80s, which was a fair bit of time for the dust to settle. There were some good ones in the 70s like Coming Home but not much that was Platoon level and it was the 80s where Platoon, Full Metal Jacket and Rambo started the whole wave of Vietnam stuff.

I have found it rare that truly great movies are made contemporaneous with or very shortly after real world events. Anything about the Middle East, George W., Cheney, 9/11 etc...I can't name one really great movie offhand that was made without the benefit of time intervening.
 
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Depends on what you consider great movies. Those you list are great entertainment, but I'd argue that 50-59 smokes your list in terms of overall quality and greatness:

50'ies movies:
Seven Samurai
The Searchers
Rear Window
Some Like it Hot
Singin' in the Rain
Bridge on the River Kwai
Sunset Boulevard
Touch of Evil
Wild Strawberries
To Catch a Thief
High Noon
North by Northwest
Streetcar named Desire
Vertigo

That's a list of straight masterpieces in the history of cinema (I've only included movies I've actually seen and I've skewed American - there are a lot more that could go on this list.)
 
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Vergilius said:
Depends on what you consider great movies. Those you list are great entertainment, but I'd argue that 50-59 smokes your list in terms of overall quality and greatness:

50'ies movies:
Seven Samurai
The Searchers
Rear Window
Some Like it Hot
Singin' in the Rain
Bridge on the River Kwai
Sunset Boulevard
Touch of Evil
Wild Strawberries
To Catch a Thief
High Noon
North by Northwest
Streetcar named Desire
Vertigo

That's a list of straight masterpieces in the history of cinema (I've only included movies I've actually seen and I've skewed American - there are a lot more that could go on this list.
Click to expand...
on the waterfront, a face in the crowd, 12 angry men
 
i probably could, especially when there’s 50s era cinema, which is not to be fucked w/
 
BisexualMMA said:
1976 is a hell of a year to leave out. Rocky, Taxi Driver, Marathon Man, Carrie, Network, All the President's Men... We really should do eleven year periods because 1987 is a murderers' row as well.



The definitive movies about Vietnam were mainly made in the mid-late 80s, which was a fair bit of time for the dust to settle. There were some good ones in the 70s like Coming Home but not much that was Platoon level and it was the 80s where Platoon, Full Metal Jacket and Rambo started the whole wave of Vietnam stuff.

I have found it rare that truly great movies are made contemporaneous with or very shortly after real world events. Anything about the Middle East, George W., Cheney, 9/11 etc...I can't name one really great movie offhand that was made without the benefit of time intervening.
Click to expand...
Vice was great but it was 20 years later so you’re onto something.
 
BisexualMMA said:
The definitive movies about Vietnam were mainly made in the mid-late 80s, which was a fair bit of time for the dust to settle. There were some good ones in the 70s like Coming Home but not much that was Platoon level and it was the 80s where Platoon, Full Metal Jacket and Rambo started the whole wave of Vietnam stuff.

I have found it rare that truly great movies are made contemporaneous with or very shortly after real world events. Anything about the Middle East, George W., Cheney, 9/11 etc...I can't name one really great movie offhand that was made without the benefit of time intervening.
Click to expand...
I'm saying 1977 - 1987 had an advantage over say, 2000 - 2010 in terms of making Vietnam War films because by the time 2000 came there had already been 25 years to make films after the war ended. I'm not saying I expect the best films about the VW to be made immediately after it ended. So I could have included VW films in my list but didn't, because 1977-1987 had an unfair advantage over later ten year periods, regarding films about the VW.

In fact of the Top Ten VW films

Apocalypse Now (1979)
The Deer Hunter (1978)
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
Platoon (1986)
Hamburger Hill (1987)
Good Morning Vietnam (1987)
Coming Home (1978)

seven were made from 1977 - 1987, reinforcing my point. (The others are Casualties of War (1989), Born on the Fourth of July (1989) and We Were Soldiers (2002).)
 
HenryFlower said:
i probably could, especially when there’s 50s era cinema, which is not to be fucked w/
Click to expand...
Maybe something like 52-62 catching the best of the Japanese and French new waves.

I do feel like 80's cinema, especially early 80's gets a bit written off as "only" entertainment, its an era of great entertainment blockbusters but there was I think still some of the feel of ambitious 70's cinema as well. Honestly I almost find myself preffering the style of that era over earlier more talked up New Hollywood. Those films tended to be very writer/actor focused films but the late 70's and early 80's I think morphed more into films which also sold themselves strongly on atmosphere, Deer Hunter, Alien, Apoc Now, The Shining, Elephant Man, Blade Runner, Rumblefish, Once Upon A Time In America, Blue Velvet etc and I think maybe Angel Heart could be viewed as the real last gasp of that style in 87. That felt like the period were mainstream Hollywood had the tools AND the ambition to use them still were as afterwards it was only a handful of directors like Lynch who carried that on and found themselves increasingly on the outs with Hollywood.
 
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