The 8 Best Movies of the 1980s, Ranked

Ranked by movie.guru score, critics and audiences combined. No Top Gun, no Breakfast Club. The decade was that stacked.

Number one beat Back to the Future, and its star has a glowing finger.

1. 8
   Cinema Paradiso (1988)9.3

   The director's cut is long. The childhood half is perfect.

   Made for $5 million, 80 on Metacritic. Philippe Noiret plays the projectionist every film nerd wishes had raised them, and little Toto is pure mischief.
2. 7
   Aliens (1986)9.3

   Better than Alien. Yes, I said it.

   Sigourney Weaver's Ripley goes from survivor to the toughest person in any room. An $18.5 million budget, $131.1 million worldwide. Bill Paxton's panic is the comic relief you need.
3. 6
   Raging Bull (1980)9.3

   The most beautiful movie ever made about a terrible temper.

   The fights are shot from inside the ropes, all flashbulbs and slow motion, and they still look brand new. An $18 million budget, CinemaScore A. Joe Pesci keeps up with De Niro every step.
4. 5
   Back to the Future (1985)9.4

   Doc Brown is the best mad scientist ever put on film.

   116 minutes, a $19 million budget, $391.5 million worldwide. Christopher Lloyd yells about gigawatts with his whole body, and Michael J. Fox reacts like any of us would.
5. 4
   Amadeus (1984)9.4

   The greatest movie ever made about professional jealousy.

   F. Murray Abraham's Salieri watches Tom Hulce's giggling Mozart get every gift he prayed for. 160 minutes, 87 on Metacritic, and the soundtrack is literally Mozart.
6. 3
   My Neighbor Totoro (1988)9.6

   The Catbus alone earns a top three spot.

   87 on Metacritic, $32.1 million worldwide, audiences above 98% of notable movies. Hayao Miyazaki's grinning, many-legged bus is the best public transit ever imagined.
7. 2
   Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)9.6

   The perfect B-movie, made by an A-list genius.

   $389.9 million worldwide on an $18 million budget. Harrison Ford's Indiana Jones makes running from things look like the best job on earth. Spielberg at full speed.
8. 1
   E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)9.2

   Spielberg owns the top two spots. This one's the best.

   A 9.7 movie.guru score, the best of the decade, and $797.3 million worldwide. Spielberg shoots it from kid height, so the grown-ups are mostly keys and flashlights.

$59.35 says you call someone Doc this week and refuse to explain why.

Share it: X | Facebook | Copy link

Current mood: ready to fight about it