The Ultimate Eighties/Early Nineties DVD collection!

[AtomicHyperbole]

What would it include?

I got a triple box xet with The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles and Wierd Science today... Eightiesalicious! But what would be the defining 80's/early 90's brat-pack DVDathon?

Ferris Bueller!
The Lost Boys!
Pump Up The Volume!
The Breakfast Club!
The Sure Thing!
Heathers!

Soz if this has already been done! Point me to the thread if it has... hit me!

[bastard_robo]

Road House
Masters of the Universe
monster squad
Big Trouble in Little China
Teenage mutant ninja Turtles
HIghlander.

[Pacino86845]

A Fish Called Wanda
Terminator 1 & 2
Ghostbusters
Aliens
The Thing
Die Hard
Dazed and Confused

[Fried Gold]

Wayne's World
Return of the Jedi
Superman 4
Red Dwarf 1
Wrestlemania 3
Police Squad
Every episode of The Transformers.

[AtomicHyperbole]

Some of those titles aren't quite what I was thinking about... hence "brat pack" in my first post... that kinda thing... movies that could only be made in the eighties or early nineties because of the music, the fashions... not quite arguably timeless stuff like Ghostbusters, Star Wars or Police Squad... Great suggestions though, but not quite keyed up with my intention! Next time I'll make sure I make it clearer. Movies only or this could go on forever.

Stuff I nod thoroughly to -

Waynes World
Terminator (super eighties club scene, use of neon)
Big Trouble
Superman 4
A Fish Called Wanda
Masters Of The Universe (bonus Lundgren factor)
Road House
Highlander

Dunno why, but is Die Hard more a classic which has an indefinable quality to it? Been a while since I saw it. Ghostbusters has some true eighties music in it but it feels more like a timeless classic - it's aged well. Argue with me here.

[swadetheking]

Trains plains and automobiles
TOP GUN
RUNNING ON EMPTY (australian car movie but trully 80s)
the TERMINATOR
Predator 2??? (was it 80s??)
Lethal Weapon
revenge of the nerds
ET
The goonies

Just a few but i got more .. man i miss the 80s

[Fried Gold]

Some of those titles aren't quite what I was thinking about... hence "brat pack" in my first post... that kinda thing... movies that could only be made in the eighties or early nineties because of the music, the fashions... not quite arguably timeless stuff like Ghostbusters, Star Wars or Police Squad... Great suggestions though, but not quite keyed up with my intention! Next time I'll make sure I make it clearer. Movies only or this could go on forever.

I've got to admit, I read the thread title without properly reading the post.

[Pacino86845]

Dunno why, but is Die Hard more a classic which has an indefinable quality to it? Been a while since I saw it. Ghostbusters has some true eighties music in it but it feels more like a timeless classic - it's aged well. Argue with me here.

Yeah, I completely misunderstood... I thought it was a best of the 80s/early 90s deal... did not even see "bratpack" when I read your first post. Sorry!

I would agree with you about Die Hard and Ghostbusters, they don't scream 80s as much as some of the other choices so far. Flashdance, Dirty Dancing anyone?

[AtomicHyperbole]

THAT'S APPALLING! I'd never admit to replying to a thread without reading the original post.

...

... doesn't stop me doing it thought.

Flashdance - wasn't Jennifer Beals cast because, in the words of Don Simpson, she was "fuckable"? And that's it?

Dirty Dancing was aces.

[Fried Gold]

I would have the Matthew Broderick triple bill of Ferris Bueller, Wargames and ProjectX. I think that fits in a bit more with your concept.

[AtomicHyperbole]

Yeah, that's a brill selection. I really must buy Ferris as it's going so cheap these days here in the UK. Sorry about the concept being so nebulous but... some of these films fit, some don't!

Just finished watching the Breakfast Club... kinda... was working whilst it was on... but would it be cheesy if I punched the air at the same time at the end?



Funny how the teen movies of the eighties were, in the main, character studies. What happened?

[tapehead]

Fast Times at Ridgemont High -Sean Penn as Jeff Spicoli and Stoltz as his stoner bud, Phoebe Cates and Judge Reinhold in 'that' scene where she comes out of the poll and he com.... well, I've said too much.

16 Candles -Molly Ringwald, the ultimate 80's icon (I've heard she still lives there) Cusack and Michael Hall, the unpected semi nude shower scene, Long Duk Dong.

two essential to this collection

... and Say Anything, but no other Cameron Crowe movies.

[Cpt Kirks 2pay]

THAT'S APPALLING! I'd never admit to replying to a thread without reading the original post.

...

... doesn't stop me doing it thought.

Flashdance - wasn't Jennifer Beals cast because, in the words of Don Simpson, she was "fuckable"? And that's it?

Dirty Dancing was aces.

Oh, and also that most of the dancing she could not do. That's important that point, that's important.

(Check it. So many cuts from her face to C/U parts of her body, or long shots of her double, or any shot where you can't see her face when she's supposed to be doing the moves). Argue with me as much as you like on that point, but being able to dance in a movie where you're playing a dancer MATTERS!!!!!!!!!!!

[tapehead]

... is that why Swayze just ends up picking Jennifer Grey and carrying her around?

[Cpt Kirks 2pay]

Atomic, I don't get you. You're saying that you only want stuff taht relates to the time, fashion, music etc.

But then you go ahead and put stuff like

Highlander
The Terminator
Big Trouble In Little China
Masters of the Universe
A Fish Called Wanda

Surely these movies don't fall into 'movies that could only be made in the eighties or early nineties because of the music, the fashions'.

These movies could be made at any time in history, and don't seem to have anything to do with the fashions, or even social climate. In fact you said that you don't want timeless stuff, but isn't Masters of The Universe, and especially the Terminator nad Highlander the very example of 'Timeless'ness, seeing as they deal with travelling through time?

I don't mean to have a go at you, it's just that I want to do a cool list of the 80s but I just can't figure out what it is that you actually want, or should have in this list.

Jeeezh, it's worse than the Future Generations thread. Have we really become this pedantic in our age of the Zone?

[Cpt Kirks 2pay]

... is that why Swayze just ends up picking Jennifer Grey and carrying her around?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!!!!!!!

[tapehead]

Crowe wrote Say Anything but I think Amy Heckerling directed it - yeah maybe you'd have to have Singles for the early nineties part - I just hate myself for liking his later movies sometimes, and that 'Dyslexic Heart' song in Singles.


sorry, I'm up here now

[AtomicHyperbole]

Fast Times at Ridgemont High -Sean Penn as Jeff Spicoli and Stoltz as his stoner bud, Phoebe Cates and Judge Reinhold in 'that' scene where she comes out of the poll and he com.... well, I've said too much.

16 Candles -Molly Ringwald, the ultimate 80's icon (I've heard she still lives there) Cusack and Michael Hall, the unpected semi nude shower scene, Long Duk Dong.

two essential to this collection

... and Say Anything, but no other Cameron Crowe movies.

Aren't both Say Anything and Fast Times CC movies? What about (early nineties) Singles?

On that kind of note, would people say Reality Bites is pushing it a bit? Probably best to stick to pre Gen X...

[Cpt Kirks 2pay]

Wall Street
Bright Lights Big City
Rocky IV
No Way Out
Red Dawn
Red Heat
Commando
Rambo
Beat Street
1984


You know what, I give up. For the life of me I can only think of movies that are 80s related in terms of socio-economic-political moods. You say 'movies that could only be made in the eighties or early nineties because of the music, the fashions'. Well the only movie that I can think of RIGHT NOW that had anything to do with music is Beat Street or it's kind.

That is the only film that was made specifically because of the music, and the fashion, dance, trends, social behaviour that went with it. When you say things like the Brat Pack, well, they weren't made only because of the music or fashions that are included in the film, they were made because of the stories - which had nothing to do with the music or fashion, wether it be the New Romantics brand of music, or Miami Vice fashions etc. These are only incidental to the films, the films aren't born because of this music, or made because this music existed am I right? These films could be made at any time as long as their relevant TO the time as far as I'm aware.

The only film of the 80s that I can remember right now that was made only because of the music was Pretty In Pink which was inspired by a EDIT. Psychedelic Furs song, of the same name I think.

[John-Locke]

Who's That Girl (Madonna & Griffin Dunne)
Desperately Seeking Susan (Madonna & Rosanna Arquette) or After Hours (Griffin Dunne & Rosanna Arquette)
The Big Blue (Rosanna Arquette & Jean Reno)
Subway (Jean Reno & Chris Lambert)

Each film has someone in it to link it to the next and has a pure 80's vibe to it.

[AtomicHyperbole]

No need to get your thong in a bunch - I never stated that the films need to revolve or base themselves on a particular era or musical style at all, it's you who's making assumptions. If I was to do that, then I'd go to referential movies like Wedding Singer or Donnie Darko which do it knowingly.

There are particular films, like The Breakfast Club, that beyond their content contain a lot of stuff which means it could only be a product of that era. True, the stereotypes are universal, but I'm not talking about that. The clothes they wear, the overly serious crazy dance sequences that make you cringe... it's an eighties film. You couldn't do that now without making a comment. Just like Kevin Bacon dancing Footloose. The theme of the film could be covered now, but you sure as hell couldn't pull off that dance sequence without it looking ironic now.

[tapehead]

Pretty in Pink was a Tangerine Dream Song - So Psychelic Furs did a cover?
EDIT: ah yes I see

[Fried Gold]

Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo

[Kilgore]

Better Off Dead, or, in general, all of Cusack's ;ate teen/early twenties roles...

[bamf]

Besides the obvious winners above, my all time favorite has to be My Science Project. Alien crash site, airplane junkyards and blowing up the school gym. What doesnt this movie have?

[tapehead]

Besides the obvious winners above, my all time favorite has to be My Science Project. Alien crash site, airplane junkyards and blowing up the school gym. What doesnt this movie have?

I forgot about this one! - it's got Dennis Hopper as the hippy science teacher in his 'Easyrider' costume telling all the kids to smoke banana skins

[wonkabar]

The ultimate six degrees of brat-pack...

EDIT:

Sixteen Candles
The Breakfast Club
Pretty in Pink
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Young Guns 1 and 2
Some Kind of Wonderful
Weird Science
Top Gun
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Footloose
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Friday the 13th The Final Chapter
St. Elmo's Fire
Heather
The River's Edge
The Sure Thing
Lucus
The Goonies
Real Genius
Dirty Dancing
Better off Dead
Risky Business
Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
Valley Girl
Point Break
The Lost Boys
Roadhose
Hot Pursuit
Wargames
E.T.

[AtomicHyperbole]

Some of those aren't eighties/early nineties classics in the style we're on about, foolio! Nice list all the same...

[RockyDennis]

Just one of the Guys
Meatballs
Midnight Madness
Hamburger the Motion Picture
My Science Project
DC Cab
Volunteers

[Theta]

Man oh man, you had to love pain to love Hollywood in the '80s...

[AtomicHyperbole]

Snob.

You can't totally diss a decade offhand, surely?

[Theta]

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying there weren't great movies in the '80s. People have mentioned a long list of them and I own a good chunk of the titles mentioned above (I've seen "Commando" more times than I've seen "Citizen Kane".) I even like "Ghostbusters II" (and yes, I know it's not great, but I grew up with it.)

Here's some more for the list:

The Indiana Jones series
Return of the Jedi
Street Trash
The Stuff
The Fly
Videodrome
Star Treks II, III, and IV (IV especially was an "only in the '80s")

But on the other hand, nothing can make me watch those damn Brat Pack movies ever again. Once was MORE than enough. In fact, mostly it's the unfunny comedies that annoy the living hell out of me. Over on Collider.com, Mr. Beaks has a semi-regular column "The 80s: The Decade that Hated Cinema", and I notice it's mostly the comedies he's sinking his teeth into. With the success of both John Hughes and "Caddyshack", Hollywood went apeshit on the comedy and most came up with crap. Remember "Just One of the Guys", "Can't Buy Me Love", ad infinitum, ad nauseam? What drives me insane is that all those shitty movies are being REMADE!!! Jesus Christ people, they were artistically bankrupt to begin with, what makes you think you can make a withdrawal?!

[AtomicHyperbole]

I can't say much original Hollywood comedy nowadays is any better than the stuff in the eighties. Having to crawl through half the spew that is Jeniffer Lopez, Ben Affleck, Kate Hudson's and Matthew MaConaughy's careers dredges up arguably far worse films than many of those listed above. At least the ones you hate are in the past, we can look at the totality of the eighties and pick and choose the cream on this thread!

[Theta]

I can't say much original Hollywood comedy nowadays is any better than the stuff in the eighties. Having to crawl through half the spew that is Jeniffer Lopez, Ben Affleck, Kate Hudson's and Matthew MaConaughy's careers dredges up arguably far worse films than many of those listed above. At least the ones you hate are in the past, we can look at the totality of the eighties and pick and choose the cream on this thread!

"Original" Hollywood comedy? Such a beast exists?

To be totally honest, I can't differeniate. There's nothing more excruciating than comedy that isn't funny, and my tolerance for such is very, VERY low. As far as I'm concerned, the only difference between "Private School" and "Raising Helen" is nudity.

[AtomicHyperbole]

OK, now that's off your chest, want to say something positive about an eighties movie that retains the feel of the decade you love?

[wonkabar]

Some of those aren't eighties/early nineties classics in the style we're on about, foolio! Nice list all the same...

What are you talking about? They're all pre-1995 movies that have brat-packers/80's teen stars in them....

But what would be the defining 80's/early 90's brat-pack DVDathon?

foolio

[AtomicHyperbole]

Maybe, but you know after we got talkin' that wasn't what I was talking about. Or don't you read entire threads?

Heheheh.

[wonkabar]

EDIT:

Sixteen Candles
The Breakfast Club
Pretty in Pink
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Young Guns 1 and 2
Some Kind of Wonderful
Weird Science
Top Gun
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Footloose
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Friday the 13th The Final Chapter
St. Elmo's Fire
Heathers
The River's Edge
The Sure Thing
Lucus
The Goonies
Real Genius
Dirty Dancing
Better off Dead
Risky Business
Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
Valley Girl
Point Break
The Lost Boys
Roadhouse
Hot Pursuit
Wargames
The Wild Life

Don't even...all those movies are dated as hell.

[AtomicHyperbole]

That's more like it.

You're no foolio. There's many in there I've not seen, let alone HEARD of.

[Theta]

OK, now that's off your chest, want to say something positive about an eighties movie that retains the feel of the decade you love?

Sure!

"Commando" is undeniably a stupid movie. It basically exists to exploit Arnold Schwartzenegger and blow shit up.

However, it does so highly entertainingly and is helped along by the intentional humor of Steven DeSouza (who'd later write "Die Hard" as a sequel to "Commando") and the unintentional humor of Dan Hedaya playing a deposed military dictator from Nicaragua or something. There's little bits of perversity to the whole thing, too, what with the somewhat disturbingly close relationship between Arnold and his daughter (played by Alyssa Milano as a sort of surrogate wife) and the main villain obviously getting an erotic charge out of killing people (the climax of the movie has Schwartznegger basically seducing him into trying to kill him with a knife, accompanied by some truly hilarious over-acting of the Ed Wood school.)

And it celebrates the military unconditionally. "America, Fuck Yeah!" was written for this movie; sadly, it was written two decades too late.

[Cpt Kirks 2pay]

What's with you Atomicwithoutthekitten? No mention of how that villain was Dumbledore as you like for wearing a fishnet vest throughout the film, sporting a dodgy Freddie Mercury lookalike Blue Oyster bar moustache, and wanting to shoot one up Ahrnult's balls!!!???

I think you're in denial mate.

[Lady Sheridan]

"Real Genius" is one of my all-time favorites. What makes it so very 80's is that it celebrates the technology geeks before geeks took over the world and made it their own. They were still outsiders, freaks you could make a silly movie about.

Could you make a movie about MIT students now? I don't think so. Those guys and girls have become too mainstream. The fact the Real Genius classmates of Val Kilmer probably went on to cash in on the dot.com craze, or are working on Homeland Security means they're successful and cool by society's standards.

It also has that total 80's facination with technology. Lasers, computers, all that stuff was new and exciting. Space was still a giant possibility rather than a limitation. Schools like MIT were mysterious places.

Movies that followed a similar theme that should be on the list--Short Circuit and Space Camp.

[Cpt Kirks 2pay]

Don't forget Wargames sweety.

I did, before you mentioned those films.

That film is about the age of computer geeks AND the Reaganite fear of nuclear war.

Anyhoo, it's good to see that this thread has expanded itslef to 80s culture in total and not just the music or other smaller trends.

Cor, you Amercians always had it better than us UKers. When you all had Hippies and Free Love, or New Age Rockers, what did we have...?



No wonder I wanted to run away to America.

[Theta]

What's with you Atomicwithoutthekitten? No mention of how that villain was my lover as you like for wearing a fishnet vest throughout the film, sporting a dodgy Freddie Mercury lookalike Blue Oyster bar moustache, and wanting to shoot one up Ahrnult's balls!!!???

I think you're in denial mate.

You know how I know you're Dumbledore? You care that much about the villain in "Commando."

[RogueScribner]

Maybe I'm looking back on the late '80s with rose-colored glasses on, but it doesn't seem like the movies made today for teens and pre-teens are anywhere near as good.

I mean, I grew up on flms like:

The Neverending Story
Labyrinth
Little Shop of Horrors
The Goonies
The Last Starfighter
Flight of the Navigator
*batteries not included
Explorers
Gremlins
The Karate Kid
Sixteen Candles
The Breakfast Club
Pretty in Pink
The Princess Bride
Spaceballs
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Back to the Future
Beetlejuice
Pee Wee's Big Adventure
Heathers
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
The Lost Boys
Footloose
Stand By Me
Say Anything . . .
St. Elmo's Fire
Young Guns
Lucas
Risky Business
Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
Short Circuit
Summer School
Teen Wolf
Adventures in Babysitting
Better Off Dead
Red Dawn
WarGames
Weird Science

Not to mention the various Star Wars, Star Trek, Muppets, Indiana Jones, Superman, and young-kids-switching-bodies-with-older-guys films. Plus all the teen horror and sex flicks that they never carded us for.

The likes of Spy Kids, Spongebob, and She's the Man just doesn't seem to compare.

[Lady Sheridan]

Oooh, batteries not included!! Wow, it's been forever since I saw that one!!

I rented Flight of the Navigator not too long ago, wow, did that bring back some memories! It was one of those films I almost thought I made up in my head because it has almost vanished from pop culture. (Unlike Goonies, or Labyrinth, staple of the Hot Topic stores.) That movie used to me so much as a kid--coming home to find ten years had passed.

We definitely had some great films in the 80's. I think we were the last generation of kids that Hollywood credited as having a brain. They gave us movies with space ships and time travel, real stakes of life and death...not just stupid hijinks, "oh wow, our parents are so lame" eye rolling and an obnoxious soundtrack.

And is it any wonder we all grew up fearing our government? E.T., Flight of the Naviator--they will chase you, lock you up and take your alien friend!!

[Nachokoolaid]

Looking over everyone's choices, I'd like to add THE CUTTING EDGE. Anyone remember that one?

[MadCapsule]

I'd like to add The Wizard to this list.

[AtomicHyperbole]

*wipes a tear away* Rogue just listed off most of my childhood faves. Flight of The Navigator! Compliance! Great effects work too on that movie. I remember seeing Batteries Not Included at Milton Keynes' The Point, with the trailer for Willow before it.

Ah, brings back the memories.

[swadetheking]

How bout the Ninja turtles movies. .... *******Sniff****
I .. miss those days....