Films of 1980
These started out as lists of my favorite films of each particular year of my life, and turned into ranked lists of the films that I saw from each particular year. This is the list of films from the year that I was born. I suppose that the top 4 could be considered my favorites, and the rest are just a loose ranking of the others that I saw. In making all of these yearly lists, I have discovered that my favorite movies aren't always the the ones that I think are the best. In the case of this list, the top 2 are, in my opinion, the best on this list. Also, the older these lists get, the more the balance of how they are ranked shifts from what I think is great now, to what I liked and watched repeatedly back then.
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23 titles
- 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.
- 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.
- DirectorColin HigginsStarsJane FondaLily TomlinDolly PartonThree female employees of a sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot find a way to turn the tables on him.
- DirectorHal NeedhamStarsBurt ReynoldsJackie GleasonJerry ReedThe Bandit goes on another cross-country run, transporting an elephant from Florida to Texas. And, once again, Sheriff Buford T. Justice is on his tail.
- 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.
- 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.
- DirectorDon TaylorStarsKirk DouglasMartin SheenKatharine RossA modern aircraft carrier is thrown back in time to 1941 near Hawaii, just hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
- DirectorSidney PoitierStarsGene WilderRichard PryorGeorg Stanford BrownSet up and wrongfully accused, two best friends are sent to prison for a crime they didn't commit. However, no prison cell can keep them locked in a cage.
- DirectorGilbert CatesStarsGeorge BurnsSuzanne PleshetteDavid BirneyGod asks a young girl to help spread his word and influence with a slogan.
- 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.
- DirectorTommy ChongStarsCheech MarinTommy ChongEvelyn GuerreroCheech and Chong live in a decrepit old house and drive their neighbour crazy with their loud music, weed smoking and general anarchy and slacker view on life. Then Chong meets Cheech's Texan cousin Red and things kick up a notch.
- DirectorMax KlevenStarsDirk BenedictLinda BlairRichard FarnsworthA Vietnam veteran passing through a small town is harassed by local bullies but he fights back, using his wartime skills, and triggers a full-scale police manhunt.
- 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.
- DirectorRobert AltmanStarsRobin WilliamsShelley DuvallRay WalstonThe adventures of the famous sailor man and his friends in the seaside town of Sweethaven.
- 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.
- DirectorJames BridgesStarsJohn TravoltaDebra WingerScott GlennBud is a young man from the country who learns about life and love in a Houston bar.
- DirectorJulien TempleStarsMalcolm McLarenSid ViciousSteve JonesFilmmaker Julien Temple chronicles the Sex Pistols' tumultuous rise to fame, as told by their manager, Malcolm McLaren.
- DirectorMike HodgesStarsSam J. JonesMelody AndersonMax von SydowA football player and his friends travel to the planet Mongo and find themselves fighting the tyranny of Ming the Merciless to save Earth.
- 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 CarpenterStarsAdrienne BarbeauJamie Lee CurtisJanet LeighAn unearthly fog rolls into a small coastal town exactly 100 years after a ship mysteriously sank in its waters.
- DirectorPeter MedakStarsGeorge C. ScottTrish Van DevereMelvyn DouglasAfter experiencing tragic personal losses, a music professor rents a Seattle mansion, haunted by a slain boy.
- DirectorVincent McEveetyStarsCharles Martin SmithStephen W. BurnsCloris LeachmanThe adorable little VW helps its owners break up a counterfeiting ring in Mexico.
- DirectorWilliam Peter BlattyStarsStacy KeachScott WilsonJason MillerAn ex-marine psychiatrist attempts to rehabilitate his patients by indulging their fantasies, and seeks to prove the existence of a loving God to one especially troubled inmate.