1980s in film

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Years in film
19th century
1870s
1880s 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889
1890s 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899
1900s 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909
1910s 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919
1920s 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929
1930s 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
1940s 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
1950s 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
1960s 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970s 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980s 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990s 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000s 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010s 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020s 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 …
v t e

The decade of the 1980s in Western cinema saw the return of studio-driven pictures, coming from the filmmaker-driven New Hollywood era of the 1970s.^[1] The period was when the "high concept" picture was created by producer Don Simpson,^[2] where films were expected to be easily marketable and understandable. Therefore, they had short cinematic plots that could be summarized in one or two sentences. Since its implementation, this method has become the most popular formula for modern Hollywood blockbusters. At the same time in Eastern cinema, the Hong Kong film industry entered a boom period that significantly elevated its prominence in the international market.

Trends

The films of the 1980s covered many subgenres, with hybrids crossing between multiple genres. The trend strengthened towards creating ever-larger blockbuster films, which earned more in their opening weeks than any previous film, due in part to staging releases when there were less competition for audience interest.

• Los Angeles office building. Meanwhile, Hong Kong action cinema was being revolutionized by filmmakers Jackie Chan, Tsui Hark, and John Woo; garnering increased attention all over the world with the likes of Project A (1983), Police Story (1985), A Better Tomorrow (1986), and The Killer (1989). Which featured increasingly complex martial arts and gunfight choreography with generally unsafe and most often uninsured stunt work. Blazing the trail for newer types of action movies like the heroic bloodshed subgenre. Tango & Cash, starring Stallone and Kurt Russell, was one of the two last Hollywood films to be released in the 1980s.^[3]
• Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise (1987), Akira (1988) and Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989). Additionally, the first-ever theatrical animated franchise: the Doraemon film series (based on the anime and manga series of the same name) began in 1980 with the release of Doraemon: Nobita's Dinosaur
  (1980).
• Blockbusters: The decade started by continuing the blockbuster boom of the mid-1970s. The sequel to 1977's Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, opened in May 1980 becoming the highest-grossing film of the year. It is considered among the greatest films of all time (being the highest rated 1980s film on IMDb). It was followed by Return of the Jedi (1983) finishing the Star Wars original trilogy. Superman II was released in Europe and Australia in late 1980, but not distributed in the United States until June 1981. Though now seen as campier over the original 1978 Superman, Superman II was received with a positive reaction. From the success of The Empire Strikes Back, creator George Lucas teamed up with director Steven Spielberg to create one of the most iconic characters in the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark starring Harrison Ford, who had also co-starred in The Empire Strikes Back. The story about an archaeologist and adventurer, Indiana Jones (Ford), hired by the U.S. government to go on a quest for the mystical lost Ark of the Covenant, created waves of interest in old 1930s style cliffhanger serials as well as treasure hunting adventures like 1984's Romancing the Stone. It became the highest-grossing film of 1981, leading to sequels all in the top-10 films of the decade. In 1982, Spielberg directed his fairy-tale, sci-fi family blockbuster E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, which shattered all records, earning 40% more than any Star-Wars film, and double or triple the revenue of 46 of the top 50 films.
• Police Academy
  series of broad comedies, produced between 1984 and 1993.
• Dance: Many movies during the 80s were centered around dancing. 1983's Flashdance, 1984's Footloose, and 1987's Dirty Dancing were all extremely successful as well as their soundtracks.
• Drama: Among the historical, romantic, and dramatic films, several were well received at the box office, including Rain Man (1988), On Golden Pond (1981), Terms of Endearment (1983), The Color Purple (1985) and Out of Africa (1985). Also notable in critical success were Gandhi (1982), Sophie's Choice (also 1982) and A Passage to India (1984). Steven Spielberg's Always was one of the two last Hollywood films to be released in the 1980s.^[4]
• The Wizard of Oz, was a major flop, yet became a major success on home video. Jim Henson's Labyrinth
  (1986) was not an initial success but has since become a major cult classic.
• killer doll franchise starring Brad Dourif as the infamous killer doll Chucky
  .
• The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. as Bond-like character "JB". A View to a Kill (1985) was the last for Roger Moore before Timothy Dalton was chosen as the new Bond in 1987's The Living Daylights and lastly in 1989's Licence to Kill
  .
• The Seven Little Fortunes troupe as children. Though the likes of Jet Li and Yuen Woo-ping were more known for being in front of or behind the camera respectively. Not to be left out, female action stars such as Michelle Yeoh, Cynthia Rothrock, Yukari Oshima, Moon Lee, and Cynthia Khan established the girls with guns trend during the latter half of the decade, which also heavily showcased hand-to-hand combat sequences. Meanwhile, Hollywood found its footing in the martial arts subgenre with the likes of Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Steven Seagal. All across-the-board, notable films include Shaolin Temple, Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain, Wheels on Meals, Big Trouble in Little China, Dragons Forever, Bloodsport, and Miracles
  .
• The Karate Kid and its sequels (1986, 1989), and 1985's The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire featuring the Brat Pack, older people with troubled lives were the subjects of Top Gun (1986) or An Officer and a Gentleman in trying to become a fighter pilot, a female welder in Flashdance transforming into a ballet dancer, and Cocoon's (1985) elderly set overcoming old age. Even The Big Chill (1983) reunion was a rite-of-passage that challenged old classmates to redirect their lives after the suicide of a friend. The Goonies in 1985 and Stand by Me
  in 1986 were both successful at the box office and went on to be considered classics of the decade. They also both featured a number young actors that would see future success both on the big screen and the small screen.
• Back to the Future trilogy and Steven Spielberg's E.T.. The Star Trek
  series became a big screen success with four movies being released during the 1980s.
• Porky's Revenge
  .
• Sports: Baseball was especially popular on the big screen as evidenced by the releases of The Natural, Bull Durham, Major League, and Field of Dreams. As well as boxing with Raging Bull, Rocky III, and Rocky IV. Though other competitions were represented by the likes of Caddyshack, Chariots of Fire, The Color of Money, Hoosiers, and Over the Top.
• cult classic Blue Velvet (1986), which dealt with the underworld of a seemingly idyllic U.S. suburbia, a subject which has spawned many imitations well into the first decade of the 21st century and Stanley Kubrick's horror/thriller The Shining
  (1980).
• Western: A stylish form of western was evolving, with films such as Pale Rider, Silverado (both 1985) and Young Guns (1988).