Best Movies of 1980
Here are my selections for the best movies of 1980.
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- DirectorRobert RedfordStarsDonald SutherlandMary Tyler MooreJudd HirschThe accidental death of the older son of an affluent family deeply strains the relationships among the bitter mother, the good-natured father and the guilt-ridden younger son.
- DirectorBruce BeresfordStarsEdward WoodwardJack ThompsonJohn WatersThree Australian lieutenants are court martialed for executing prisoners as a way of deflecting attention from war crimes committed by their superior officers.
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsAnthony HopkinsJohn HurtAnne BancroftA Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man who is mistreated while scraping a living as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of kindness, intelligence and sophistication.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroCathy MoriartyJoe PesciThe life of boxer Jake LaMotta, whose violence and temper that led him to the top in the ring destroyed his life outside of it.
- DirectorRoman PolanskiStarsNastassja KinskiPeter FirthLeigh LawsonA strong-willed young peasant girl attracts the affection of two men.
- DirectorGillian ArmstrongStarsJudy DavisSam NeillWendy HughesA proud young woman in early 20th century Australia must choose between marriage and independence.
- DirectorIrvin KershnerStarsMark HamillHarrison FordCarrie FisherAfter the Rebel Alliance are overpowered by the Empire, Luke Skywalker begins his Jedi training with Yoda, while his friends are pursued across the galaxy by Darth Vader and bounty hunter Boba Fett.
- DirectorRichard RushStarsPeter O'TooleSteve RailsbackBarbara HersheyA fugitive stumbles onto a movie set just when they need a new stunt man, takes the job as a way to hide out and falls for the leading lady while facing off with his manipulative director.
- DirectorMichael AptedStarsSissy SpacekTommy Lee JonesLevon HelmThe fictionalized life of singer Loretta Lynn, a girl who rose from humble beginnings to become a country music star in the 1960s/70s.
- DirectorAlan ParkerStarsEddie BarthIrene CaraLee CurreriA chronicle of the lives of several teenagers who attend a New York high school for students gifted in the performing arts.
- DirectorLewis John CarlinoStarsRobert DuvallBlythe DannerMichael O'KeefeAs he approaches manhood, Ben Meechum struggles to win the approval of his demanding alpha male father, an aggressively competitive, but frustrated Marine pilot.
- DirectorStanley KubrickStarsJack NicholsonShelley DuvallDanny LloydA family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where a sinister presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from both past and future.
- DirectorJim AbrahamsDavid ZuckerJerry ZuckerStarsRobert HaysJulie HagertyLeslie NielsenAfter the crew becomes sick with food poisoning, a neurotic ex-fighter pilot must safely land a commercial airplane full of passengers.
- DirectorJonathan DemmeStarsPaul Le MatJason RobardsElizabeth CheshireThe story of hard-luck Melvin E. Dummar, who claimed to have received a will naming him an heir to the fortune of Howard Hughes.
- DirectorTony BillStarsChris MakepeaceAdam BaldwinMatt DillonWhen a boy comes to a new school and gets harassed by a bully, he acquires the services of the school's most feared kid as a bodyguard.
- DirectorJamie UysStarsN!xauMarius WeyersSandra PrinslooA comic allegory about a traveling Bushman who encounters modern civilization and its stranger aspects, including a clumsy scientist and a band of revolutionaries.
- DirectorColin HigginsStarsJane FondaLily TomlinDolly PartonThree female employees of a sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot find a way to turn the tables on him.
- DirectorHoward ZieffStarsGoldie HawnEileen BrennanArmand AssanteA sheltered young high-society woman joins the United States Army on a whim and finds herself in a trickier situation than she ever expected.
- DirectorJohn CassavetesStarsGena RowlandsBuck HenryJulie CarmenWhen a young boy's family is killed by the mob, their tough neighbor Gloria becomes his reluctant guardian. In possession of a book that the gangsters want, the pair go on the run in New York.
- DirectorSamuel FullerStarsLee MarvinMark HamillRobert CarradineA hardened sergeant and the four core members of his infantry unit try to survive World War II as they move from battle to battle throughout Europe.
- DirectorRichard DonnerStarsJohn SavageDavid MorseDiana ScarwidHandicapped after an unsuccessful suicide attempt, a man finds common ground in the troubled souls at a local dive bar.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsWilliam HurtBlair BrownBob BalabanA psycho-physiologist experiments with drugs and a sensory-deprivation tank and has visions he believes are genetic memories.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsMichael CaineAngie DickinsonNancy AllenA mysterious blonde woman kills one of a psychiatrist's patients, and then goes after the high-class call girl who witnessed the murder.
- DirectorPeter MedakStarsGeorge C. ScottTrish Van DevereMelvyn DouglasAfter the death of his wife and daughter in a car crash, a music professor staying at a long-vacant Seattle mansion is dragged into a decades-old mystery by an inexplicable presence in the mansion's attic.
- DirectorGeorge MillerStarsMel GibsonJoanne SamuelHugh Keays-ByrneIn a self-destructing world, a vengeful Australian policeman sets out to stop a violent motorcycle gang.
- DirectorRonald NeameStarsWalter MatthauGlenda JacksonSam WaterstonGrounded with a desk job by incompetent superiors, a clever CIA agent retires and writes a tell all memoir that will embarrass his bosses, prompting him to go on the run and elude them.
- DirectorDerek JarmanStarsPeter BullDavid MeyerNeil CunninghamBanished to a forsaken island, the Right Duke of Milan and Sorcerer Prospero gets the chance to take his revenge on the King of Naples with the assistance of his airy spirit-servant, Ariel.
- DirectorMarcus ReichertStarsDennis LipscombDebbie HarrySam McMurrayA man is so obsessed with finding the person responsible for stealing his milk bottles that he ignores his beautiful young wife, who has other ideas on her mind.
- DirectorWoody AllenStarsWoody AllenCharlotte RamplingJessica HarperWhile attending a retrospective of his work, a filmmaker recalls his life and his loves: the inspirations for his films.
- DirectorRobert KaylorStarsGary BuseyJodie FosterRobbie RobertsonTired of her dull job as a waitress, Donna decides to join two carnival hustlers and see what life in their field is like.
- DirectorJames BridgesStarsJohn TravoltaDebra WingerScott GlennBud is a young man from the country who learns about life and love in a Houston bar.
- DirectorTaylor HackfordStarsRay SharkeyTovah FeldshuhPeter GallagherBased on the life of rock promoter/producer Bob Marcucci, who discovered, among others, Frankie Avalon and Fabian.
- DirectorPaul SchraderStarsRichard GereLauren HuttonHector ElizondoA Los Angeles escort is accused of a murder which he did not commit.
- DirectorDaniel PetrieStarsEllen BurstynSam ShepardRichard FarnsworthA woman enters the afterlife briefly after a car crash that kills her husband. But she survives - and finds herself possessing strange powers.
- DirectorMichael RitchieStarsBette MidlerJocelyn BrownUla HedwigMovie comedy queen Bette Midler reigns supreme in this rocking, rolling concert movie bash. The Divine Miss M at her trashiest, flashiest, heavenly best!
- DirectorJoel OlianskyStarsRichard DreyfussAmy IrvingLee RemickPaul Dietrich, at almost 30 years old, is a fading piano prodigy. Heidi Schoonover is a talented young pianist with a promising future. When Paul hears of an upcoming competition that could make his career, he dedicates himself to winning.
- DirectorRob CohenStarsBrad DavisKaren AllenJameson ParkerHarvard in the 60's: a time of social upheaval and student unrest. Three students bond together, challenge the system, and begin to lose their ideals.
- DirectorRobert ScheererStarsSusan Saint JamesJane CurtinJessica LangeA caper comedy about three suburban housewives who, in order to beat inflation and subsidize their alimony checks, plot to steal $1 million from a large plastic ball which is displayed in a local shopping center.
- DirectorJeannot SzwarcStarsChristopher ReeveJane SeymourChristopher PlummerA Chicago playwright uses self-hypnosis to travel back in time and meet the actress whose vintage portrait hangs in a grand hotel.
- DirectorGuy HamiltonStarsAngela LansburyTony CurtisRock HudsonMiss Jane Marple comes to solve the mystery when a local woman is poisoned and a visiting movie star seems to have been the intended victim.
- DirectorRobert GreenwaldStarsOlivia Newton-JohnGene KellyMichael BeckA struggling artist living in Los Angeles meets a girl who may hold the key to his happiness.
- DirectorCarlos DieguesStarsJosé WilkerBetty FariaFábio Jr.The Caravana Rolidei rolls into town with the Gypsy Lord at the mike: he does magic tricks, the erotic Salomé dances, and the mute Swallow performs feats of strength. A young accordion player is completely enamored of Salomé, and he begs to come along. The Gypsy Lord shrugs, and the accordionist and his pregnant wife, Dasdô, join the troupe. Television is their enemy as they go from the coast deep into the Amazon. Salomé lets the accordion player sleep with her once, with Dasdô's knowledge. He's moon-struck. Then, after Dasdô's baby is born and financial disaster hits the troupe, and the accordionist must choose between seeing his wife a prostitute and leaving the caravan.
- DirectorVernon ZimmermanStarsDennis ChristopherTim ThomersonGwynne GilfordA shy, lonely film buff embarks on a killing spree against those who browbeat and betray him, all the while stalking his idol, a Marilyn Monroe lookalike.
- DirectorJohn HoughVincent McEveetyStarsBette DavisLynn-Holly JohnsonKyle RichardsWhen a family moves to a country home, the young girls experience strange happenings that have a link to an occult event years past.
- DirectorHarold RamisStarsChevy ChaseRodney DangerfieldBill MurrayAn exclusive golf course has to deal with a flatulent new member and a destructive dancing gopher.
- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsAdrienne BarbeauJamie Lee CurtisJanet LeighAn unearthly fog rolls into a small coastal town exactly 100 years after a ship mysteriously sank in its waters.
- DirectorSean S. CunninghamStarsBetsy PalmerAdrienne KingJeannine TaylorA group of teenage camp counselors attempt to re-open an abandoned summer camp with a tragic past, but they are stalked by a mysterious, relentless killer.