IMDb's 1980s Top 50

IMDb's 1980s Top 50's icon

An official iCheckMovies list.

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The decade of the 1980s tended to consolidate the gains made in the seventies rather than to initiate any new trends. Designed and packaged for mass audience appeal, few 80s films became what could be called 'classics'. The era was characterized by the introduction of 'high-concept' films - with cinematic plots that could be easily characterized by one or two sentences (25 words or less) - and therefore easily marketable and understandable. The 80s also were the decade in which the sequel-mania really took off, which often resulted in hastily-made, inferior knockoffs made by lesser film-makers.

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  1. 1 -

    Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back

    1980, in 25 top lists Check
  2. 2 -

    Back to the Future

    1985, in 25 top lists Check
  3. 3 -

    Hotaru no haka

    1988 — a.k.a. Grave of the Fireflies, in 21 top lists Check
  4. 4 -

    Nuovo Cinema Paradiso

    1988 — a.k.a. Cinema Paradiso, in 20 top lists Check
  5. 5 -

    Aliens

    1986, in 24 top lists Check
  6. 6 -

    The Shining

    1980, in 28 top lists Check
  7. 7 -

    Raiders of the Lost Ark

    1981 — a.k.a. Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, in 29 top lists Check
  8. 8 -

    Amadeus

    1984, in 23 top lists Check
  9. 9 -

    Das Boot

    1981 — a.k.a. The Boat, in 15 top lists Check
  10. 10 -

    Scarface

    1983, in 19 top lists Check
  11. 11 -

    Once Upon a Time in America

    1984, in 19 top lists Check
  12. 12 -

    Idi i smotri

    1985 — a.k.a. Come and See, in 26 top lists Check
  13. 13 -

    Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi

    1983, in 18 top lists Check
  14. 14 -

    Die Hard

    1988, in 21 top lists Check
  15. 15 -

    The Thing

    1982, in 20 top lists Check
  16. 16 -

    Full Metal Jacket

    1987, in 18 top lists Check
  17. 17 -

    Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

    1989, in 16 top lists Check
  18. 18 -

    The Elephant Man

    1980, in 16 top lists Check
  19. 19 -

    Ran

    1985, in 25 top lists Check
  20. 20 -

    Stand by Me

    1986, in 11 top lists Check
  21. 21 -

    Dead Poets Society

    1989, in 12 top lists Check
  22. 22 -

    Blade Runner

    1982, in 36 top lists Check
  23. 23 -

    The Terminator

    1984, in 23 top lists Check
  24. 24 -

    Paris, Texas

    1984, in 21 top lists Check
  25. 25 -

    Raging Bull

    1980, in 34 top lists Check
  26. 26 -

    Platoon

    1986, in 21 top lists Check
  27. 27 -

    Tonari no Totoro

    1988 — a.k.a. My Neighbor Totoro, in 23 top lists Check
  28. 28 -

    Fanny och Alexander

    1982 — a.k.a. Fanny and Alexander, in 25 top lists Check
  29. 29 -

    Krótki film o milosci

    1988 — a.k.a. A Short Film About Love, in 6 top lists Check
  30. 30 -

    Khane-ye doust kodjast?

    1987 — a.k.a. Where Is the Friend's House?, in 15 top lists Check
  31. 31 -

    Dom za vesanje

    1988 — a.k.a. Time of the Gypsies, in 8 top lists Check
  32. 32 -

    Jean de Florette

    1986, in 7 top lists Check
  33. 33 -

    The Princess Bride

    1987, in 19 top lists Check
  34. 34 -

    Rain Man

    1988, in 15 top lists Check
  35. 35 -

    Akira

    1988, in 22 top lists Check
  36. 36 -

    Kaze no Tani no Nausicaä

    1984 — a.k.a. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, in 9 top lists Check
  37. 37 -

    Tenkû no shiro Rapyuta

    1986 — a.k.a. Castle in the Sky, in 10 top lists Check
  38. 38 -

    Gandhi

    1982, in 15 top lists Check
  39. 39 -

    Fitzcarraldo

    1982, in 14 top lists Check
  40. 40 -

    Pink Floyd: The Wall

    1982, in 8 top lists Check
  41. 41 -

    Au revoir les enfants

    1987 — a.k.a. Au Revoir les Enfants, in 13 top lists Check
  42. 42 -

    Manon des sources

    1986 — a.k.a. Manon of the Spring, in 7 top lists Check
  43. 43 -

    Krótki film o zabijaniu

    1988 — a.k.a. A Short Film About Killing, in 12 top lists Check
  44. 44 -

    Yol

    1982 — a.k.a. The Road, in 11 top lists Check
  45. 45 -

    A Christmas Story

    1983, in 6 top lists Check
  46. 46 -

    E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

    1982, in 29 top lists Check
  47. 47 -

    The Blues Brothers

    1980, in 11 top lists Check
  48. 48 -

    This Is Spinal Tap

    1984, in 22 top lists Check
  49. 49 -

    Do the Right Thing

    1989, in 24 top lists Check
  50. 50 -

    Der Himmel über Berlin

    1987 — a.k.a. Wings of Desire, in 21 top lists Check
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Last updated on Dec 9, 2024; source