Bad Taste, 1987
By James Porter When you think of Peter Jackson, which of his movies immediately comes to mind? Of course, it’s the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the King Kong remake. However, while they may be his most famous works, and what made him the big media name he is today, they weren’t his first ever films. What you may not know is that Peter Jackson got his start in films in 1976, and made his cinematic debut in 1987 with a...
The Land Before Time, 1988
By James Porter Don Bluth. The name alone brings to mind many an animated classic, especially in the 80s, when he made some of his most memorable works of art. Of course, when thinking of his work, both All Dogs Go to Heaven and An American Tale spring immediately to mind. Both are timeless classics of course and worthy of their positions in cinematic history. However, for me, it’s different. For me, there is only one Bluth...
1982’s Class of 1984 Movie Review
By: James Porter When you watch an 80s high school movie, you know right away what to expect — blonde valley girl cheerleaders, Alex Winter surfer dudes, muscle-brain jocks, honest “nerds,” and teachers just trying to get them all to learn SOMETHING today. That’s all well and good, but have you ever thought to yourself “I’m getting tired of all this teen fluff. I wish somebody’d make a high school movie a...
Top 5 Summer Movies of the 80s
By Ryan Zimmerman With summer coming up, what better way to celebrate than to crank out a top 5 of 80s Summer Themed Movies? So oil up baby, this is gonna burn you up! 5. Dirty Dancing Okay, so I’m a dude, and am putting my manhood on the line here, but the “Double D” was an 80s staple, and the summer vacation that Baby took up to Kellerman’s was indeed memorable. It’s the same old story of “Boy Meets Girl,”...
Hey Good Lookin’, 1982
By: James Porter It occurs to me that the 50s were to the 80s what the 80s are today, a 10-year time frame that a certain generation of people will always see as the best 10 years of all time. It makes sense. How else can you explain Back To The Future’s plot being going back to 1955? Well, it seems this occurred to Ralph Bakshi as well in the 80s, and may have been what lead to his making the movie Hey Good Lookin’ in...
Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 1982
The lasting impact of this movie can be summed up in two words. C’mon, say it with me—Jeff Spicoli. Sean Penn’s class-clown stoner dude has become something of an icon, a pre-curser to everyone from Bart Simpson to the Big Lebowski. (It seems funny to think that such a light-hearted character as Spicoli was portrayed by such an acting heavy-weight as two-time Academy-Award winner Sean Penn. Until one remembers what an acting...
The Terminator, 1984
By James Porter With which 1980s movie character do you best associate Arnold Schwarzenegger? Conan The Barbarian? Major Alan “Dutch” Schaefer? Ben Richards? Kalidor? Julius Benedict? All indeed roles that he played in his 1980s movie career, but there is only one character that is truly synonymous with the man who is currently the Governor of California. That is, of course, the cyborg from the 1984 James Cameron classic, The...
River’s Edge, 1986
River’s Edge captures the world of mid-eighties kids as well as any John Hughes film, but the world these kids inhabit is entirely different. It’s the flipside, or better still, the underbelly of the John Hughes’ 80s. A group of high-school friends learns that one of their own has murdered his girlfriend. The murderer, Samson (known as John, played by Daniel Roebuck) shows them Jamie’s nude body, which he has left at the river’s edge....
Square Pegs, 1982-1983
It lasted only one season, but what a season it was for CBS’s woefully underrated sitcom Square Pegs. Sarah Jessica Parker and Amy Linker are completely believable as vulnerable, sweet Patty Greene and Lauren Hutchinson, freshmen at Weemawee High School. Tracy Nelson, who later played a nun on Father Dowling Mysteries, pulls out all the stops as Valley Girl Jennifer DiNuccio. Jami Gertz (later on Still Standing) perfectly nails...
Yor, The Hunter From The Future, 1983
By James Porter Arnold Schwartzeneggar, Sylvester Stallone, Harrison Ford—these are the names we think of when we think 80s action stars. However, there is one name that, despite being known for starring in some pretty gag-me-with-a-spoon-worthy schlock movies, is still worthy of mentioning for at least a few awful yet awesome acting jobs as the main star in some so-bad-it’s-good movies. That name is Reb Brown. And, one of the...
Meet The Feebles, 1989
By James Porter You wouldn’t think Peter Jackson and The Muppets would have any sort of relation, would you? After all, the Muppets were created by Jim Henson about as far back as 1955. Peter Jackson didn’t even START in film until 1976. Well, believe it or not, they do. A minute relation, but a relation nonetheless. That relation is the raunchy, gory, foul-mouthed looks-like-the-Muppets-but-DEFINITELY-isn’t film by...
Some Kind of Wonderful, 1987
A John Hughes film without the regular John Hughes cast, which may be why this 1987 gem is often overlooked. But Some Kind of Wonderful’s somewhat quirky cast is also one of the things that sets it apart. Keith (Eric Stoltz) is an artist from the wrong side of town who works at a gas station. His only friend is the tomboy Watts (Mary Stuart Masterson). Watts is teased at school for her butch look and has only her drums and Keith to...
The Goonies, 1985
By Ryan Zimmerman I sat down the other day with my 2 toddler daughters and found myself lucky enough to stumble upon The Goonies on Encore. We were fresh off an appreciated viewing of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (thanks to Lego Indiana Jones on Wii), and knowing that Short Round was such a huge hit in Temple of Doom, I knew the same actor who stars as Data in The Goonies was enough to lure them into another 80s classic. Sure...
Top 5 Holiday Movies of the 80s
By Ryan Zimmerman Ryan here! Back again with my Top 5 Countdown. This time, I am counting down the Top 5 holiday movies of the 80s. So, hop on your sled, it’s time to go! 5. Gremlins Yeah, it’s a Christmas movie! Come on. . . . It’s snowing. . . . Billy gets the loveable Mogwai as a gift from his pops. . . . Phoebe Cates is smoking hot (which has nothing to do with Christmas, but still, come on, she is!). All Billy has to do is...
Return To Oz (1985)
Sometimes, going back to your childhood can be a scary experience. That is something that the makers of Return To Oz, in most respects a sequel to the celebrated classic The Wizard Of Oz, didn’t seem to take into account when writing the script to what ultimately turned out to be a much darker look at everyone’s favorite Kansas girl, Dorothy. Released in 1985, the movie was loosely based on the Oz series of books written by L. Frank...
