Badmovies.org Forum

My wife and I have been revisiting 80s movies lately. At first, it was dance movies she hadn't seen in years, and I hadn't seen at all. Last weekend, I reciprocated by introducing her to a couple of the shocking WWIII scenarios of the early 80s, a double feature of Red Dawn and The Day After. I would have added War Games, to end on a lighter note, but it was getting late. Probably better to have separated the dead serious (albeit far-fetched) from the light and entertaining anyway. Maybe War Games can be part of a night dedicated to the first hacker movies.

Now I'm looking for titles with some other distinct themes. They should be fairly specific (ie ninjas or Indiana Jones clones, rather than simply action) and have a uniquely 80s feel. They could even be from very different genres, but deal with the same theme.

I can think of a few, but I'm hoping you guys will come up with some titles and groupings I wouldn't have considered. Surprise me.

If you want post apocalytpic movies, "Hell Comes to Frog Town" comes immediately to mind.  It's a fun movie.

"Hardware" with Dylan McDermott is an interesting look at a post apocalypse world, though it was made in 1990.

   Three recomendations that spring to mind are killer puppets, which were pretty big in the eighties such as Child's Play and the First Puppet Master, Conan Knock-Offs such as the Death Stalker series and possibly Red Sonja, and early teen sex comedies such as Porky's and the First Turn On.

These will get you through the next few weekends

1. Teen Sex Comedies With a Heart
          a.  The Last American Virgin
          b.  Valley Girl

2.  Teen Sex Comedies With NO Heart
          a.  HOTS
          b. Hardbodies
          c.  Beach Girls

3.  John Hughes Night
          a.  Pretty In Pink
          b.  The Breakfast Club

4.  John Cusack Night
           a.  One Crazy Summer
           b.  Better Off Dead

5.  Patrick Dempsey Night
           a.  Can't Buy Me Love
           b.  Loverboy

6.  "Hey, it's the guy from Animal House" Movies
           a.  Up The Creek
           b.  Drop Dead Fred

George,

Actually, Drop Dead Fred came out in 91, but I count it

How about all the RAMBO rip-offs like:

* STEELE JUSTICE (starring Martin Kove)

* DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR (starring Fred Dryer)

* P.O.W.: THE ESCAPE (starring David Carradine)

I am currently studying a musicals course at uni, and a few horrid musicals come to mind:

Breakdance and Breakdance II: Electric Bugaloo, Beat Street and Moonwalker.

Great if you want some really funny stuff [and by funny, I mean, it's sooo funny because it's soooo corny!]

Also I recently got the Transformers movie on DVD.  I really enjoyed it, though it's probably to do with my obsession with the soundtrack.  

Maybe a musicals night may be on the cards, or maybe even some 80's animations.

How about a Punk Rock Night.

The Decline Of Western Civilization: An amazing doc about the LA Punk scene. Real band, real punks, real raw.

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains: A great little unknown about a girl punk group called the Stains and their rise and fall from fame. They open up for a group with Steve Jones and Paul Cook from The Sex Pistols, Paul Simonon from The Clash and Fee Waybill from the Tubes. This is a really great on the road Punk Movie.

Breaking Glass: The story of a young punk girl's rise to fame, only to find out that fame sucks the big one.


You can even break out your old leather pants and torn t-shirts while watching them!!

Punk rock night? Let's not forget the one and only punk rocker Western: "Dudes."

I'm pretty sure that was from the 1980s.

If you're looking for 80's ninja films I recommend anything with Sho Kosugi in it. He pretty much helped bring Ninjitsu to the silver screen during the 70's & 80's.

or how about the Roger Corman produced Suburbia? it has 'flea' from the red hot chili peppers in it also. but be warned everyone, Suburbia is a rather depressing and skewed view of punk life (like all punk movies with the exception of SLC Punk).

How about a Big Brother night, featuring, of course, "1984" and "Brazil"?

Or possibly a nerd night with any of the "Revenge of the Nerds" movies and maybe "Dr. Alien"?

Or even a Christian Slater night with "Legend of Billie Jean," "Heathers" and "Gleaming the Cube"?

The Sho Kosugi night is a good idea.

A Chuck Norris theme could work: "Lone Wolf McQuade", "Code of SIlence", "An Eye for an Eye", "Silent Rage", etc. Although you could break those down into his cop films, his paramilitary films ("Missing In Action 1&2", "Invasion USA") and others.

Sequels and clones of "Meatballs": "Meatballs 2&3", "Ernest Goes to Camp", "Party Camp", and "State Park" (technically 1990, but made in the 80s and has the style), or that TV movie starring Michael J Fox "Poison Ivy". There must be others but I can only think of the recent spoof of the genre "Wet Hot American Summer".

Scifi roller skating films: "Roller Blade", "Roller Blade Warriors: Taken By Force", "Solar Babies", etc. Although this many awful movies films in one night may endanger your marriage.

Brat Packers try to act grown up night: "About Last Night", "St. Elmo's Fire", "Casual Sex?".

Trying to get laid on vacation or at resorts: "Blame It on Rio", "Fraternity Vaction", "Private Resort". "My Tutor" might count since the kid is on summer vacation.

haha! you got to love Chuck Norris paramilitary films. beating up drug lords and other evil-doers with Karate will surely make our streets safer and the world a better place.

Fraternity Vacation....I totally forgot about that one.

Tim Robbins as "Mother" Tucker.

"So, everyone calls you mother.  Is that because you kind of take care of everyone?"

HILLLLLLLLARIOUS

Im not sure if its 80's of not, but if your going to have a punk night, you should include Sid & Nancy.

I've never seen "Dudes" but I think I'll check it out sometime.

Unfortunate part of reading your post is that now I have "Mohawk Town" by The Vandals stuck in my head.

>Sequels and clones of "Meatballs":

One I used to like, but haven't seen in many years: Gorp

How about teen sex comedies based around a resort/hotel? Screwball Hotel, Private Resort, Hot Resort, The Rosebud Beach Hotel, Summer Job.

Whenever anyone mention "Private Resort" to Robb Morrow on talk shows, during one of those "let's look at a clip from a cheesy movie early in your career" moments, Morrow always claims that he and Johnny Depp want to buy the rights to the film and prevent it from being shown ever again, since he hates it so much.

Lucky for the viewing public, they either haven't succeed or he's joking since it turns up on Comedy Central usually during the morning movie about every three or four months.

And yeah, JohnL, I guess we should break the teen sex comedies into seperate categories of ones centered around resorts and those that aren't. You named several I missed.

Trials and Tribulations of High School (Serious and Not-So-Serious, Non John Hughes category) Night: "Fast Times at Ridgemont High", "Teachers", "Three O'Clock High", "Class of 1984", "Class of Nuke 'Em High", "Can't Buy Me Love".

for a night of torment....

Girls just Wanna have Fun

I hope Rob Morrow is joking too....especially since "Private Resort" is the only way he gets any exposure these days.  I mean, can "Quiz Show" and the unwatched "Northern Exposure" reruns really earn him much coin.  Perhaps Joel Fleishman should lead well enough alone.

Regarding Meatballs....didn't one of those feature Sally Kellerman as a porn star turned angel who had to redeem herself.  Am I thinking of something else?

>Trials and Tribulations of High School (Serious and Not-So-Serious, Non John
>Hughes category) Night: "Fast Times at Ridgemont High", "Teachers", "Three
>O'Clock High", "Class of 1984", "Class of Nuke 'Em High", "Can't Buy Me Love".

And of course Zapped!

>Regarding Meatballs....didn't one of those feature Sally Kellerman as a porn star
>turned angel who had to redeem herself. Am I thinking of something else?

Yes, she was in Meatballs III (http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0093516/).

Shame on me for forgetting "Zapped!", considering how many times I'd seen it during summers staying with my cousins who had the pay cable channels. Seemed like all we watched for at least one summer was "Zapped!" and "The Beastmaster". Between the long distance projectile vomiting, crooked gambling attempts, low grade pot jokes, and gratuitous nudity of "Zapped!" it's a wonder we didn't wind up hoodlums. At least that flick was an escape from hearing about my sister and my female cousins' having major crushes on Marc Singer. I never cared for "The Beastmaster" much anyway, but when they managed to turn it into a chick bonding/female drool session, that ruined the film for all time for me.

As for Rob Morrow, "Northern Exposure" is appearing on DVD now (first season already out anyway), and it enjoyed a lengthy run of reruns on A&E, and later turned up on the Hallmark Channel (don't know if it still airs there). So there must still  be an audience/cult following for it. Plus it is still well regarded by TV critics, judging by the mentions it still gets in the NY Times Arts section. But I agree Morrow hasn't made much of the film career he left the show for, he's already tried a TV series on Showtime called "Street Time". I'd guess he's probably a few years away from pulling a David Caruso and coming back to network TV.