
1980
Airplane!
A pilot who can’t fly, a plane full of nonsense — and the odd inflatable hero called Otto.
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Explore the genre
1980s comedy came in almost every form imaginable, from teen movies and broad slapstick to buddy comedies, romantic comedy, parody and wonderfully strange cult favourites.
The decade produced distinctive comic stars and characters while proving that a comedy could sit comfortably beside action, horror, science fiction or romance.
244 movies so far

1980
A pilot who can’t fly, a plane full of nonsense — and the odd inflatable hero called Otto.
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1980
Any Which Way You Can: courage and heroism, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
Slobs, snobs and one remarkably relaxed golfer.
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1980
Can't Stop the Music: love and friendship, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
Brash heroics, operatic spectacle and a Queen soundtrack — Flash Gordon wears its pulp heart on its sleeve.
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1980
Little Darlings: family and love, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
Melvin and Howard: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
Motel Hell: heroism and freedom, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
My Bodyguard: courage and friendship, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
Popeye: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
Private Benjamin: family and love, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
Seems Like Old Times: the safety of home and family, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
The Blues Brothers: authority and freedom, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
The Ninth Configuration: humanity and authority, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
The Stunt Man: authority and freedom, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
The Young Master: heroism and courage, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1980
Xanadu: love and family, and why this 1980 movie still matters.
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1981
A ghost, a bite and a man trying not to become a monster — and somehow all three stay interesting.
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1981
Continental Divide: love, and why this 1981 movie still matters.
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1981
Modern Problems: the safety of home and friendship, and why this 1981 movie still matters.
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1981
Neighbors: family and the safety of home, and why this 1981 movie still matters.
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1981
Roar: family and the safety of home, and why this 1981 movie still matters.
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1981
A ragged platoon, one endlessly inventive idiot, and the sort of male friendship that still makes you grin.
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1981
The Cannonball Run: authority and fear, and why this 1981 movie still matters.
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1981
A childhood friendship that learns the hard way what loyalty and duty actually cost.
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1981
The Great Muppet Caper: authority and the safety of home, and why this 1981 movie still matters.
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1981
The Incredible Shrinking Woman: freedom, and why this 1981 movie still matters.
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1981
A child's map, six small thieves and a very big imagination.
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1982
Two days, one cop who cuts corners, and the partner he absolutely didn't ask for.
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1982
Annie: family and freedom, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1982
Five nasty little tales, a comic-book wrapper and one perfectly awkward professor.
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1982
Deathtrap: the safety of home and fear, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1982
A wedding on the horizon, a diner as confessional — and one man's doubt that makes the rest of them stop pretending.
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1982
Teenage hormones, mall jobs and one surfer who won't be quiet about it.
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1982
My Favorite Year: family and courage, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1982
Night Shift: authority and love, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1982
Swamp Thing: freedom and fear, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1982
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas: love and our relationship with technology, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1982
The Last American Virgin: the safety of home and friendship, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1982
The Toy: family and friendship, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1982
An actor in drag discovers how the world really treats women.
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1982
A clever musical about disguise, showbiz and the friendships that make it bearable.
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1982
Zapped!: family and the safety of home, and why this 1982 movie still matters.
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1983
Nine years old, a single-minded wish, and a narrator who never lets you forget it.
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1983
De Lift: corporate power and our relationship with technology, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1983
Easy Money: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1983
A working‑class hairdresser, an exasperated tutor and a lesson that changes both of them.
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1983
Local Hero: corporate power and greed, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1983
A very British banquet of bodily comedy, institutional savaging and one famously explosive dinner.
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1983
Mr. Mom: family and consumerism, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1983
A disastrously planned holiday that somehow still makes you laugh — and wince.
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1983
A suburban teenager, a one‑night business and the day ambition learned to look dangerous.
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1983
Superman III: our relationship with technology and courage, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1983
A sharp, sentimental and sometimes infuriating love story — mostly between a mother and her impossible daughter.
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1983
The Man with Two Brains: love and authority, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1983
The Survivors: authority, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1983
To Be or Not to Be: family and the safety of home, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1983
A rigged bet, a culture-swap and Louis Winthorpe III — still very funny, still very sharp.
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1983
Valley Girl: the safety of home and friendship, and why this 1983 movie still matters.
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1984
All of Me: authority and friendship, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
Bachelor Party: friendship and love, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
A fast-talking cop, a culture clash and a synth hook.
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1984
Breakin': friendship, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
Electric Dreams: love and our relationship with technology, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
A ragged band of scientists, a sardonic frontman and a city that refuses to behave — Ghostbusters still sells the joke.
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1984
A cuddly Christmas present, three simple rules — and a small town that learns what consequences look like.
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1984
Johnny Dangerously: loss and mortality, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
Moscow on the Hudson: family and love, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
Sisters, malls and a comet — Night of the Comet is a B-movie that learned how to be fun and oddly wise about survival.
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1984
Misfits, pratfalls and one bloke who’d rather dodge jail than grow up.
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1984
Protocol: authority and the safety of home, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
Revenge of the Nerds: the safety of home and our relationship with technology, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
A romance novelist, a smuggler, an emerald and a jungle: the adventure that taught Joan Wilder to stop waiting and start kicking.
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1984
Teenage longing, family oblivion and one very awkward bet — with Samantha Sam Baker keeping the whole thing human.
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1984
A mermaid arrives in New York, a sensible man gets sensible about love — and the rest is splashy business.
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1984
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension: freedom and courage, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
A trailer-park teenager, an arcade cabinet and a very old-school call to adventure.
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1984
The Muppets Take Manhattan: family and friendship, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
The Pope of Greenwich Village: greed and consumerism, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1984
The Woman in Red: friendship and freedom, and why this 1984 movie still matters.
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1985
A Chorus Line: love and memory, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
After Hours: our relationship with technology, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
A time machine, a restless teenager and a very particular set of family problems.
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1985
Better Off Dead: family, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
A man who daydreams his way out of paperwork—and into trouble.
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1985
Richard Pryor has thirty days to spend $30 million without keeping anything to show for it — and somehow spending a fortune turns out to be much harder than it sounds.
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1985
Cat's Eye: family and fear, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Old men, alien cocoons and a very convincing dip in the pool — friendship and second chances, with Ron Howard steering the canoe.
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1985
Desperately Seeking Susan: authority and loss, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Explorers: our relationship with technology and family, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Fletch: greed and authority, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
A suburban boy, a suave neighbour and a late‑night horror show — Fright Night makes vampire panic feel uncomfortably domestic.
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1985
Girls Just Want to Have Fun: family and friendship, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Gotcha!: freedom, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Just One of the Guys: growing up, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
King Solomon's Mines: freedom and courage, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
My Beautiful Laundrette: family and friendship, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
National Lampoon's European Vacation: family and loss, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Before Jim Carrey became one of the biggest comedy stars on the planet, he was being chased around Los Angeles by a centuries-old vampire looking for a very particular kind of blood.
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1985
Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment: freedom and courage, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Police Story: freedom and authority, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
A medical-school madman, a glowing green reagent and enough stage blood to cause moral indigestion.
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1985
Real Genius: the safety of home and family, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Spies Like Us: fear and freedom, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Summer Rental: family and the safety of home, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
A teenage werewolf, a basketball court and a lesson about who you really want cheering for you.
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1985
Five teenagers. One Saturday. A surprisingly savage, oddly tender interrogation of who we're told to be.
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1985
A scrappy band of kids, a busted attic map and Mikey’s stubborn heart — that’s The Goonies in a nutshell.
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1985
The Jewel of the Nile: parents protecting their children and heroism, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Revisiting The Man with One Red Shoe and the reasons it still deserves to be watched.
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1985
The Protector: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Brains, bad decisions and Burt — a punky, gory little time-bomb.
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1985
The Stuff: corporate power and mortality, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
The Sure Thing: friendship, and why this 1985 movie still matters.
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1985
Fast talk, bad luck and a very literal wish come true — with consequences.
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1986
About Last Night...: family and friendship, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Armed and Dangerous: parents protecting their children and loss, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Back to School: family and corporate power, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
A swaggering trucker, ancient sorcery and a Chinatown that hides a very odd basement — this is John Carpenter being playful and dangerous at the same time.
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1986
Club Paradise: corporate power, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Critters: freedom and family, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
A bushman's grin in Manhattan — watch Crocodile Dundee and you remember why that mismatch still makes you laugh.
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1986
A tramp in a pool, a wealthy family with holes in their living room — and satire that still has teeth.
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1986
Ferris Bueller's Day Off: family and the safety of home, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Hannah and Her Sisters: love and greed, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Howard the Duck: courage and heroism, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Jumpin' Jack Flash: our relationship with technology and freedom, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Legal Eagles: loss and family, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
A doo‑wop musical about bad decisions, worse plants and one man’s awkward climb out of obscurity.
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1986
Lucas: friendship and family, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Maximum Overdrive: humanity and freedom, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Night of the Creeps: the safety of home and mortality, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Peggy Sue Got Married: family and growing up, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Police Academy 3: Back in Training: authority, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
A working‑class girl, a prom dress and a triangle that still stirs up arguments.
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1986
Running Scared: heroism and freedom, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Ruthless People: authority and family, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Nola Darling: not needy, just complicated — and still brilliant company.
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1986
A lightning-struck robot, a handful of humans who care, and an argument about what counts as being alive.
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1986
Something Wild: authority and love, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
Humpback whales, a stranded starship crew and Admiral Kirk’s habit of ignoring the rulebook — in other words, proper Star Trek business.
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1986
The Golden Child: parents protecting their children and mortality, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
The Money Pit: the safety of home and love, and why this 1986 movie still matters.
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1986
A chainsaw, a grieving ex‑ranger and a very loud 1986 satire — bloody ridiculous and oddly stubborn.
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1986
A vaudeville-sized comedy about showmen who must learn to be something more than a good performance.
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1987
A one-night odyssey that turns babysitting into a crash course in grown-up choices.
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1987
Batteries Not Included: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Beverly Hills Cop II: authority and family, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
A newsroom rom‑com that prefers arguments to punchlines — and Tom Grunick makes those arguments pay.
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1987
Can't Buy Me Love: friendship and peer pressure, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Creepshow 2: freedom and family, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Dragnet: authority and exploitation, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
A one-man brawl with the Book of the Dead: nasty, daft and brilliantly alive.
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1987
A loud, furious hello from a man who thinks radio can fight censorship and loneliness at once.
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1987
Harry and the Hendersons: love, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Hope and Glory: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
House II: The Second Story: family and the safety of home, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Innerspace: our relationship with technology and freedom, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Mannequin: love and corporate power, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Moonstruck: family and love, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
The Lost Boys made them cool. Fright Night made them frightening again. Once Bitten turned vampirism into a dating problem. And then there was My Best Friend Is A Vampire.
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1987
Overboard: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
A road trip comedy that keeps its feet — and its heart — firmly on the tarmac.
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1987
Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol: authority and the safety of home, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Radio Days: family and the safety of home, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
A robber who wants a nursery more than a life of crime — and it’s the contradiction that keeps the laughs coming.
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1987
Roxanne: family and love, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
A madcap space spoof where a reluctant hero, a man-dog and a merchandising gag steal the show.
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1987
Stakeout: the safety of home and love, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Summer School: family and authority, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
A seaside teen vampire movie about belonging, bad choices and the family that refuses to let you go.
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1987
A band of kids, Van Helsing’s diary and a rooftop full of monsters — Sean Crenshaw leads the charge.
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1987
A swashbuckling love story told like a bedtime tale — and still disarmingly good company.
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1987
The Principal: authority and courage, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
The Secret of My Success: corporate power and family, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Seduction, sisterhood and a very inconvenient devil — and yes, it's still worth the trouble.
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1987
Three Men and a Baby: family and the safety of home, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Throw Momma from the Train: family and friendship, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1987
Withnail and I: the safety of home and friendship, and why this 1987 movie still matters.
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1988
Manners, mendacity and a key hidden in fish food — a very English heist with teeth.
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1988
Action Jackson: heroism and courage, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
A haunted house, a rules-bound afterlife and one gloriously unhelpful bio‑exorcist.
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1988
Big: our relationship with technology and friendship, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Mentorship, rites of passage and a catcher called Crash — Bull Durham still teaches a lesson.
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1988
Cocktail: family and greed, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
A prince in disguise, a fast-food job and a fairy-tale that prefers laughs to pomp.
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1988
Critters 2: The Main Course: fear and mortality, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Crocodile Dundee II: friendship and parents protecting their children, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels: greed and consumerism, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Fright Night Part 2: friendship and fear, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Funny Farm: family and the safety of home, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Hairspray: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Heathers: peer pressure and the safety of home, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Teenagers spot a circus in the woods, everyone else shrugs — then the popcorn guns start firing.
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1988
License to Drive: family and the safety of home, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
A cross-country manhunt that’s really about two very different men learning how to care — and how to argue for money.
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1988
Mystic Pizza: family and love, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Night of the Demons: the safety of home and freedom, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Oliver & Company: family and greed, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach: authority and mortality and lifespan, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
A road trip about brothers, cash and an extraordinary memory.
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1988
Return of the Living Dead Part II: freedom and family, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Scrooged: fear and belief in the supernatural, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
The Adventures of Baron Munchausen: loss and mortality, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
The Great Outdoors: family and greed, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
Is it a vampire movie? Folk horror? Monster movie? Black comedy? A wildly sexual Gothic nightmare involving an ancient snake g
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1988
A straight-faced detective, a ridiculous assassination plot and enough sight gags to make you snort tea through your nose.
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1988
Sunglasses, slogans and a man who will not let you look away.
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1988
A mismatched pair, a lab experiment and a very 1980s idea of family.
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1988
Waxwork: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1988 movie still matters.
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1988
A private eye, a jittery rabbit and a very British fondness for messing about with genre.
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1988
One woman's Staten Island ferry commute to the boardroom.
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1988
Young men, a murdered mentor and a young Billy the Kid riding herd on revenge and loyalty.
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1989
Hoverboards, alternate 1985s and one man trying to stop his whole family from unravelling—again.
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1989
A daft time‑travel comedy where being mates saves the world — and yes, Ted matters more than you remember.
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1989
A genteel New York morality play where privilege meets decision — and conscience is the loudest character.
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1989
A day on one Brooklyn block that still asks the same uncomfortable question: what does 'doing the right thing' actually look like?
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1989
Driving Miss Daisy: mortality and lifespan and the safety of home, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
A heist movie where the loot is medicine and the real score is survival.
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1989
Fletch Lives: family and the safety of home, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
A sequel that doubles down on goo, grumpiness and grown-up responsibilities — and still depends on Venkman to keep it human.
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1989
Harlem Nights: friendship and greed, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
A shrinking accident, a towering backyard and one very distracted inventor.
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1989
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: freedom and parents protecting their children, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
K-9: fear and authority, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Look Who's Talking: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Major League: power and freedom, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Mystery Train: friendship and authority, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
One man's quest for the perfect Christmas turns suburban order into glorious, very tangled chaos.
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1989
Parenthood: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Police Academy 6: City Under Siege: authority, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Lloyd Dobler: underachieving, hopelessly sincere and still the film's heartbeat.
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1989
See No Evil, Hear No Evil: authority and friendship, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Shocker: our relationship with technology and family, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Suburban suspicion, small-time vigilantes — and one man who would rather spy than sunbathe.
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1989
The Dream Team: parents protecting their children and family, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
The Toxic Avenger Part II: family and the safety of home, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
The War of the Roses: family and the safety of home, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Three Fugitives: family and parents protecting their children, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Troop Beverly Hills: family and mortality and lifespan, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
Turner & Hooch: authority and friendship, and why this 1989 movie still matters.
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1989
A slob of an uncle, a grumpy teen and a very messy lesson in family responsibility.
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1989
A corpse, two clueless juniors and a weekend full of pretending — and Larry Wilson is the motor that makes the joke run.
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1989
Cynicism, chemistry and a very public argument about friendship — still funny, still persuasive.
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