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The Hit and Miss DecadeFeb 24 '01 Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line All 10 films below are equally worth the viewer's time. Just missing the cut: Sex Lies & Videotape, Less Than Zero, Malcolm X and Alan Rudolph's Choose Me The 80's had any number of memorable movies but for me there was a real inconsistency among actors, directors and studios-great one moment, mediocre the next. Here are my top 10 of the 80's, given a decade's perspective and a bit more knowledge of Foreign Films released at this time. 1. The Killing Fields-Director Roland Joffe will never be better than he was here. The Cambodian actor who carried the final half of the picture (Huang Nyor) was positively heroic and this film is a great cautionary tale. 2. Jean De Florette-The French Government gave Director Claude Berri money and told him to go create a French Heritage masterpiece from Marcel Pagnol's novel. With the help of a wonderful acting ensemble (Depardieu, Montand and Auteuil), he did just that. This film is harrowing and uncompromising in the best way possible and everyone should see it! 3. Amadeus-Milos Forman's second greatest film behind Cuckoo's Nest with an inspired and energetic performance by Tom Hulce driving things along. The detail of period recreation here is astonishing and wonderful to behold. 4. Unbearable Lightness of Being-Philip Kauffman's great film of Milan Kundera's landmark book on life in contemporary Eastern Europe. A wonderful ensemble of actors (Juliette Binoche, Lena Olin and Daniel Day Lewis) gives great life to a very human and touching story. 5. The Breakfast Club-This has actually gotten better with time. It's really a great little American film which is more allegorical than realistic, but it's the ultimate teen angst film and John Hughes's greatest work. 6. The Marriage of Maria Braun-Rainer Werner Fassbinder says goodbye with this film which gave the world Hanna Schygalla. It's a very controlled textured work of art. 7. Full Metal Jacket- America's mousketeers go to war in Vietnam. Kubrick has a way of taking war and making you face its brutality and impersonal aspects like no one else ever will. 8. Betty Blue /37.2 de Matin- This is an important film and one of several during the late 70's and early to mid 1980's that dealt with mental illness. Between this film, Frances and Blue Sky, I choose this one as we can clearly see how Betty's lack of control destroys her and everyone around her. 9. Can't Buy Me Love-Here's a real little gem that tells a remarkable story and sticks to its moral guns in the process starring Patrick Dempsey and Amanda Peterson. Filmed in Phoenix by a first time filmmaker, this is low budget filmmaking at its best. 10. Do The Right Thing-This should be higher, up there with the top five but I just remembered it at the last minute. This is Spike Lee's masterpiece on life one summer in Bed-Sty and the one film where I think he does everything right.  |
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by marksam91
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