50 Totally ’80s Movies We All Need Right Now
Nostalgic classics from John Hughes, Steven Spielberg, Amy Heckerling, and more.
By DeAnna Janes
We often find ourselves looking for comfort in simpler, more favorable times. You know, like when the synthesizer was considered awesome. When the cordless phone was cutting edge. And when conflict could be solved with a dance-off. Oh, yes, we’re writing about the ’80s. The New Coke, leg-warmer, shoulder-pad, badass ’80s.
The decade is a wealth of feel-good, top-tier cinematic fare, be it a humorous dissection of the adolescent experience from John Hughes, a cultural touchstone that leaves a massive lump in your throat, or a rhythmic celebration of dance and music from a sub-genre that was peaking. Here, we’ve culled a robust selection of ’80s movies for your viewing pleasure. Some you know and love, and some you might be experiencing for the first time. Either way, our list is perfect for escaping reality with the epochal characters of a beloved decade—Chunk, Ferris, Indy, Baby, Loretta—because looking back at life in a time capsule is a is always worth it. Trust us.
Moonstruck
Say what you will about Nicolas Cage, but the actor gives good performance. Especially as Ronny Cammareri, the Brooklyn baker with a wooden hand who sweeps his brother’s bride-to-be off her feet. That woman is Loretta Castorini, a role that won Cher an Oscar, and rightfully so. With fantastic supporting performances by Olympia Dukakis and others, this gloriously off-genre romantic comedy is enchanting from the second the moon strikes your eye.
Working Girl
Melanie Griffith rocks a totally ’80s wardrobe in this genius Mike Nichols throwback about an underestimated secretary from Staten Island who gets swindled out of a promotion by her male boss. Technically a romantic comedy, it also puts the disparaging inequalities of man vs. woman in the workplace on full display and elevates the genre with an all-star cast including Harrison Ford, Joan Cusack, and Sigourney Weaver.
Big
If we had one wish for the carnival Zoltar machine in Penny Marshall’s near-perfect Big, it probably would have nothing to do with size, or roller coasters, or aging overnight. But to each their own. Young Josh Baskin, played by David Moscow, wishes he were big, and thus, his wish is granted, causing big Josh Baskin, played by a brilliant Tom Hanks, to move to New York City, get a job, and find that damned Zoltar to fix this mess.
Beverly Hills Cop
Eddie Murphy’s at the top of his funny game in this cop-com laugh riot as Officer Axel Foley, a Detroit native who gets involved in investigating a murder in Beverly Hills. In true Murphy form, no identity is off-limits, as the comedian tries on every personality for size, keeping us in stitches from beginning to end as he does so. There’s slapstick, there’s vintage car chases, there’s Eddie cruising down Rodeo Drive to throwback Patti LaBelle.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Tired of looking out the same old windows, we could all use a day trip through the Windy City courtesy of a twentysomething Matthew Broderick in this John Hughes classic right about now. Broderick, who stars as the cavalier title character (or should we say Abe Froman, the Sausage King of Chicago?), is joined by some of the decade’s most notable players—Alan Ruck, Mia Sara, Jennifer Grey, Jeffrey Jones—and if you’ve survived quarantine without a Day Off, well, we can fix that now.
Beetlejuice
Tim Burton, a visionary maestro of the strange and unusual, was only getting started when he unleashed his bombastic bio-exorcist on the masses in 1988, with Beetlejuice solidifying a solid sophomore effort—and instant cult classic—for the director. Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin star as a dead married couple who summon Michael Keaton’s poltergeist to scare an eccentric family away from their home. Plot holes or not, we have only one question: Where is the sequel?!
Say Anything…
Nothing says ’80s love like a dude in a trench and high-tops, heaving a boom box over his head, blaring Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes” under his ex-girlfriend’s open window. If Lloyd Dobbler was looking for a dare-to-be-great situation, he just found it. Cameron Crowe, a director whose skill for fusing story, music, and emotion into one feel-good package, may have Jerry Maguire and Almost Famous at the height of his oeuvre, but for us, nothing beats John Cusack and Ione Skye in Say Anything.
Back to the Future
A double-dose time capsule from Robert Zemeckis, this time-traveling classic hops from the ’80s to the ’50s—from an era of malls, Jordache, and Huey Lewis and the News to soda shops, poodle skirts, and Etta James. A skateboarding, bubble vest-wearing Michael J. Fox stars as our DeLorean-steering hero, Marty McFly, with Christopher Lloyd his wacky science guy sidekick, Doc Brown—the two on a mission to get back to a future that looks like it did when they left it.
Ghostbusters
Ivan Reitman’s take on the supernatural realm—a kid-friendly dimension possessed by floating orbs full of green slime and demigods that manifest as demented Stay Puft marshmallows—may not necessarily reflect that of other specter storytellers, but that doesn’t make Ghostbusters, starring a troupe of charismatic comedians including Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Bill Murray, and Annie Potts, any less of a favorite. Keep an eye on the details for the Afterlife reboot here.
E.T.: the Extra-Terrestrial
A tear-jerker from Steven Spielberg, E.T. is a film whose little alien companion was reportedly inspired by an imaginary friend Spielberg created after his parents’ divorce. And if that factoid isn’t enough to pull at your heartstrings, how about this one: The actor who plays E.T.’s best friend, Elliott, Henry Thomas, channeled the emotion of his dog dying to land the part. Gah. Just let those tidbits weigh on your conscience the next time you watch the film’s farewell scene.
The Goonies
Is it silly of us to truly believe that an adventure with lost treasure, secret caves, and treacherous bad guys is still out there waiting for us? Until we find that map, we’ll have to live vicariously through Josh Brolin, Sean Astin, Kerri Green, and the rest of the Goonies in the Spielberg favorite that taught us three things: 1) Never say die, 2) avoid pianos with bone keys, and 3) Baby Ruths are ultimate friendship food.
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Before Amy Heckerling was etching her name into the annals of best female friendship movies with her seminal ‘90s-era Jane Austen adaptation, Clueless, she was adding her 1982 Southern California campus saga to the list of best teen movies ever. Starring a bleach-blond Sean Penn and a super-cherub Jennifer Jason Leigh, Fast Times follows a group of high school students dealing with issues both light (dating, dope) and heavy (abortion, their futures).
Top Gun
It’s dated: the bomber jackets, the aviators, the Berlin soundtrack—there’s nothing from Tony Scott’s warp-speed aerial action drama that even remotely resembles present day. But that’s exactly why you’re here, isn’t it? Tom Cruise stars as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a cocksure fighter pilot who’s as smooth in the air as he is between the sheets. Kelly McGillis stars opposite Cruise as Charlie, his sassy, fluffy-haired astrophysics instructor and love interest. Long live the blue-screen love scene.
Stand by Me
The Stephen King universe isn’t all spooky sewer clowns and forces of evil. Sometimes, the legendary novelist lends his pen to lighter fare, like the coming-of-age novella Rob Reiner adapted for the screen in 1986. About a group of friends (played by teen versions of Corey Feldman, River Phoenix, and Jerry O’Connell, and Wil Wheaton) who set out to look for a dead body—okay, of course, there’s a dead body—it’s the film that put Reiner on the cinematic map and King on every kid’s bookshelf.
Dirty Dancing
No one will judge you if getting freaky in the Bible Belt with Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey is just what the movie binge ordered. A celebration of soul, romance, and liberation, Dirty Dancing is a film that will always remind us of Mom telling us to hide our eyes as Baby and Johnny bump and grind to Solomon Burke’s “Cry to Me.” But more importantly, it will reign as the most popular dance film of a decade obsessed with dance films.
Coming to America
While we wait for Prince Akeem to return to America this December, get reacquainted with the 1988 rom-com that stars Eddie Murphy, Eddie Murphy, and Eddie Murphy. As Murphy does in a considerable hunk of his resume, he brilliantly plays multiple character roles, from the lead royal looking for a bride to the side-splitting Clarence the barber. Though, Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones, and Garcelle Beauvais are on hand also.
Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure
Textbooks, documentaries, two of the most endearing yet imbecilic rockers known to historians—there is no singular route to brushing up on history’s defining events and historical figures. But if given the choice, well, we’re not going to pass up a lesson via Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter who jet-set through the decades on a time-hopping phone booth as the ditzy high schoolers. Totally awesome reboot details here.
The Princess Bride
The Princess Bride is based on William Goldman’s same-name novel, which in the movie is read aloud by Peter Falk to Fred Savage. The story within the story stars Cary Elwes and Robin Wright as Westley and Buttercup, estranged lovers who reunite despite obstacles that are the work of an evil prince. A highly quotable saga full of thrilling adventure, profound characters, and, of course, true love, it’s one of our favorite favorites. So if you want to go ahead and watch it on repeat, well, as you wish.
Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark
The first in a franchise of map-following, artifact-seeking adventures led by the world’s greatest archeologist armed with a whip, Raiders of the Lost Ark introduces Indiana Jones as a professor tasked with finding a Covenant doodad before the Nazis get their mitts on it. Though Indy is mostly and gloriously static on Spielberg’s character arc, this wartime dirt-digger is still a face-melting good time.
The Breakfast Club
John Hughes dominated the ’80s with his fondly remembered comedies that canoodle with the adolescent experience. So, we’d be remiss to curate a roundup dedicated to the decade without including his work. Arguably Hughes’s most prolific film, The Breakfast Club threw a group of disparate teens in detention, gave them real-life issues to argue over, and let the camera roll. We recommend a triple-feature watch with other Hughes gems Sixteen Candles and Pretty in Pink.
DeAnna Janes is a freelance writer and editor for a number of sites, including Harper’s BAZAAR, Tasting Table, Fast Company and Brit + Co, and is a passionate supporter of animal causes, copy savant, movie dork and reckless connoisseur of all holidays. A native Texan living in NYC since 2005, Janes has a degree in journalism from Texas A&M and got her start in media at US Weekly before moving on to O Magazine, and eventually becoming the entertainment editor of the once-loved, now-shuttered DailyCandy. She’s based on the Upper West Side.
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