I recently watched a few movies that I was surprised to find originated in the same year: 1985.
Unlike 1974, 1999, and 2007, you won’t typically find 1985 mentioned in discussion of the all-time best movie years. That’s because rather than being top heavy with five-star classics, ‘85 is more balanced with good-to-great movies down the line.
There are kids movies, teen movies, splatter comedies, summer blockbusters, and full-throttle action. There are also movies from great directors like Martin Scorsese, William Friedkin, Terry Gilliam, Tim Burton, and John Hughes.
In a year with a deep roster of memorable and rewatchable movies, below are my picks for the best of the best…
Top 10 Movies of 1985
With so many options, it was tough to narrow it down. But here are my favorite flicks from this exceptional film year:
10. Cocoon
This blockbuster (it was the fifth highest grossing movie of the year) has been somewhat lost to time due to the simple fact it’s almost impossible to watch now. You can’t stream it anywhere (not even as a rental), supposedly because of rights issues with James Horner’s score. The best option is finding some way to watch it online.
All that is unfortunate because Cocoon is an original and compulsively watchable movie that somehow combines old people, extraterrestrials, and Steve Guttenberg into a rousing crowd pleaser. It also came in the middle of director Ron Howard’s superb 1980s run that included Night Shift, Splash, Gung Ho, Willow, and Parenthood.
9. The Breakfast Club
It feels like there was never a world where The Breakfast Club didn’t exist. That’s how ingrained writer-director John Hughes story of five very different teens—a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, and a criminal—stuck together at Saturday detention has become. It’s a timeless tale, relatable to young and old alike even as generations churn.
8. To Live and Die in L.A.
Time has finally caught up with director William Friedkin’s gritty story of a Secret Service agent (William Peterson) on a mission to catch the counterfeit artist (Willem Dafoe) who killed his partner. A disappointment in its day (it was the 51st highest grossing movie of 1985), cinephiles have rediscovered the movie and reclaimed it as one of Friedkin’s best.
This five-minute sequence tracking the creation of counterfeit money, featuring the kick-ass soundtrack by Wang Chung, is worth the price of admission alone:
7. Weird Science
As good as The Breakfast Club is, it’s not my favorite John Hughes movie of 1985. That title goes to Weird Science, a stranger, funnier, and more subversive movie. The story of two nerdy teen boys (Anthony Michael Hall and Ilan Mitchell-Smith) who use their computer to bring the perfect woman to life, Hughes’ screenplay takes this Frankenstein-Porky’s hybrid to wild and surprising places—including turning Bill Paxton into a fat, toad-like creature. And, of course, Kelly LeBrock is iconic.
6. Pee Wee’s Big Adventure
A loose remake of The Bicycle Thief starring a bowtied manchild who would go on to become a Saturday morning staple (with a talking couch and floating gypsy head in a box—only in the 80s, man!). Paul Reubens and Tim Burton are two one-of-a-kind geniuses, and pairing them together was an act of creative madness. This movie is packed to gills with memorable moments—from Pee Wee’s Tequila dance to the unforgettable, eye-popping appearance of Large Marge.
5. The Return of the Living Dead
Daring to invoke the 1967 classic Night of the Living Dead was a bold move, yet somehow The Return of the Living Dead makes it work, playing like a riff on George Romero’s work rather than a rip off. The humor and gore are both great in this movie, but it’s the punk rock ethos that takes it to another level. In a sea of zombie movies, this still stands as one of the best because of its middle-finger attitude—both to zombies and those in charge (which echoes the original).
4. The Goonies
Movies used to really get kids, showing them in their bored, reckless, dirty-minded natural state. The Goonies nails this, which is why the Spielberg-produced tale of a group of pre-teen misfits (with a few teens along for good measure) searching for lost treasure has held up so well. Having an extraordinary cast of child actors doesn’t hurt either—including Josh Brolin, Sean Astin, Corey Feldman, Martha Plimpton, Kerri Green, and Academy Award winner (!!) Ke Huy Quan.
3. Re-Animator
The 1980s was the heyday of both comedic horror and creative gore (see #5 on the list). Re-Animator delivers both better than any other movie of the decade. Gross, outrageous, and delightfully demented, the movie adapts a 1922 H.P. Lovecraft story about two medical students who develop a serum that brings the dead back to life (with dire consequences, of course). The definition of a cult hit, Re-Animator became a word-of-mouth video sensation (this is the kind of tape you showed people with a smirk if you were cool enough to be in the know).
2. After Hours
The mother of “all in one night” movies—spinning the simple tale of a New York word processor (Griffin Dunne, oozing quiet desperation), whose quest to get laid turns into a wild odyssey that twists, turns, flips, flops, and circles back on itself. Dunne is surrounded by a dream team of supporting players delivering note-perfect performances—including Rosanna Arquette, Linda Fiorentino, Teri Garr, Catherine O’Hara, John Heard, and Cheech and Chong. A film that grows in my estimation every time I watch it, After Hours ranks among my top Scorsese movies of all time.
1. Back to the Future
What’s there to be said about one of the most iconic blockbusters ever made, featuring wildly charismatic and interesting performances from Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, and Crispin Glover, and one of the greatest film scores in history? How about the fact that this is also a surprisingly kinky/subversive movie that dabbles in incest, peeping, and date rape? Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale crafted a layer cake of an original story that is one of the most fun, exciting, and satisfying movies to ever hit the big screen.
Oh yeah, and this trailer rips…
Honorable Mentions
But wait, there’s more! Here are another 10 movies that came close to cracking the list:
Purple Rose of Cairo — This movie is 82 minutes long and overflowing with ideas. And, goddam, that ending.
The Legend of Billie Jean — Helen Slater, Christian Slater, and an amazing Pat Benatar song in a tale of teen revolution. This movie rules.
Clue — Does any movie match this level of manic energy? “Flames. FLAMES… on the side of my face… breathing… breath… heaving breaths…”
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome — The earlier Mad Max movies may be “better”, but this one is more fun to watch and bonkers 80s.
Just One of the Guys — An underrated teen comedy and HBO rewatch classic with fantastic performances from Joyce Hyser and Billy Jayne.
Brazil — Terry Gilliam’s unique take on 1984 that barely eked out a release is like nothing else, with an ending that will stick in your head.
Teen Wolf — Need further proof that Michael J. Fox had more juice than anyone in 1985? He somehow makes this movie about a teenage basketball-playing werewolf work.
Commando — An early Arnold flick that follows a simple plot, looks like an A-Team episode, and includes an arsenal of one-liners.
Real Genius — Watch a young, loose, funny Val Kilmer for a reminder that this guy immediately had “it”.
The Stuff — I wrote recently about the 4K release of this movie. The corporate, consumer, and capitalist satire might be even more rich now than it was in ‘85.
And a couple honorable-honorables that must be mentioned…
Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo — Maybe not the best movie, but has to be included as the best titled sequel of all time.
Tampopo — I don’t love this movie like some people do, but it does contain this scene which is required viewing…
As someone that was born in 1985, I will forever defend anything released that year!!
Nice list. Really could be no other choice for number one than Back to the Future though. And I love that Clue got a shoutout.