In some ways 1981 may represent the last gasp of iconoclastic 1970s filmmaking, the Reagan era -- for better or worse -- ushered in a golden age of blockbuster filmmaking and a more hit or miss period for the auteurs of the previous decade,
Still, '81 is a really strong year -- at least for me -- with at least three of my all time favorite films and several other greats opening wide (and some even being solid hits).
So here we go my personal faves from the year before I was born.
10) Scanners - One of David Cronenberg's coolest and most visceral early creations -- it's most famous for its still shocking head explosion effect -- but it also features the great Michael Ironside giving a terrific performance as the villain and just lots of engaging creepy energy that's made me revisit this one again and again. A nice bridge between his pure horror films and more intellectual genre films that would come later.
9) Prince of the City - Director Sidney Lumet expands on the police corruption themes of his earlier film Serpico with an even more epic film about a cop (played wonderfully by Treat Williams) who becomes a cooperating collaborator in an investigation into dirty cops and sees his whole life unravel in the process. A very unjustly unsung classic of the gritty detective genre.
8) Cutter's Way - Cult classic sleeper gem features Jeff Bridges as his laconic best and John Heard of all people in a role/performance that should have made him a star about a group of people on the fringes who find themselves embroiled in a murder by chance which ends up having ties to seedy members of the upper class. A '70s style cynical film that somehow ended up coming out in the '80s.
7) Atlantic City - Technically a 1980 release, but it wasn't seen widely in the U.S. until '81, is one of Louis Malle's most accessible films (he had another triumph the same year with his more experimental My Dinner with Andre). Burt Lancaster gives a tremendous performance as a wannabe gangster opposite a luminous Susan Sarandon in this surprisingly poignant character study
6) Reds - Warren Beatty's extremely ambitious and detailed biopic of American journalist turned Russian revolutionary John Reed should have taken home Best Picture at the Oscars (it did win Best Director). It's never boring -- despite its considerable length -- and it works as both a romance and as pointed political drama. It's a shame Beatty didn't direct more films -- this may go down as his masterpiece.
5) The Road Warrior - Also know as a Mad Max 2, this nearly perfect sequel builds on the first film and is even more eye-popping when it comes to its action and dynamic visual storytelling. In many ways, director George Miller's Mad Max Fury Road is a remake of this earlier film which is mostly one long chase scene punctuated by a few moments of apocalyptic downtime. The high point of the original Mad Max trilogy.
4) Blow Out - One of director Brian DePalma's best and a wonderful, underrated performance from John Travolta (his work here in part inspired Tarantino's decision to cast him in Pulp Fiction) as a terrific movie sound man who accidentally records a political murder. A dark, twisted film with a scene stealing turn from John Lithgow and a sweet one from Nancy Allen. Some of the director's best, Hitchcockian camera work and a gut punch of an ending.
3) Escape from New York - Quite possibly my favorite John Carpenter film and one of the best distillations of his unique aesthetic. He single handedly turned Kurt Russell into a movie star AND an action star with this film, which has one of the most stacked casts the decade in one of the most irresistible premises -- New York City becoming strictly a penal colony, and it also has one of the best synth-y soundtracks of all time. I love this movie!
2) Raiders of the Lost Ark - The perfect blockbuster and hands down the best Indiana Jones film. The blending of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg's sensibilities works beautifully here, with the ideal leading man in Harrison Ford. Fast paced, funny and frequently inventive, this movie is iconic for all the right reasons. It's been oft-imitated but never topped.
1) Thief - Director Michael Mann's first film is still his best. A masterpiece of mood and substance -- as James Caan delivers a career-best performance as a genius safe cracker who is trying to go straight and start a family but he gets into business with men who won't let him. Gorgeous looking, incredible sounding and surprisingly emotionally resonant film is a personal favorite of mine.
PAST TOP 10 FAVORITE LISTS
1970 #1 movie - M*A*S*H
1974 #1 movie - The Godfather Part II
1975 #1 movie - Nashville
1976 #1 movie - Taxi Driver
1977 #1 movie - Star Wars
1978 #1 movie - The Deer Hunter
1979 #1 movie - The Jerk
1980 #1 movie - The Shining
1984 #1 movie - Ghostbusters
1985 #1 movie - Fletch
1986 #1 movie - Blue Velvet
1987 #1 movie - The Untouchables
1988 #1 movie - Coming to America
1989 #1 movie - Batman
1990 #1 movie - The Grifters
1991 #1 movie - Cape Fear
1994 #1 movie - Pulp Fiction
1995 #1 movie - Heat
1996 #1 movie - Fargo
1997 #1 movie - Boogie Nights
1998 #1 movie - The Big Lebowski
1999 #1 movie - Eyes Wide Shut
2000 #1 movie - Nurse Betty
2001 #1 movie - The Royal Tenenbaums
2004 #1 movie - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2005 #1 movie - A History of Violence
2006 #1 movie - Casino Royale
2007 #1 movie - There Will Be Blood
2008 #1 movie - The Wrestler
2009 #1 movie - Inglourious Basterds
2010 #1 movie - The Social Network
2011 #1 movie - Drive
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