Of the past decades, the 1980s have had the most lasting cultural impact, or is, more accurately, the decade that has the most nostalgia expressed about it. We’re now as close to 2070 as we are to 1980, but the nostalgia for the ’80s has only grown over the past years, despite acknowledgment that it wasn’t a universally better time.
For better or worse, the movies of the ’80s have left such a mark on pop culture that we can’t imagine what our references would look like without them. Many movies from that decade have turned into cultural phenomena over the years, from the most memorable 1980s movies ᴀssociated with one song to R-rated 1980s movies we can rewatch forever.
New fans of film must see some 1980s movies that are either incredible showcases of filmmaking talent or have become icons and are either constantly referenced or seen as definitive ’80s movies. While various kinds of movies were made in the 1980s, there’s a certain aesthetic we ᴀssociate with the decade, especially found in the movies that changed the world.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Steven Spielberg gave us the perfect non-animated action movie for kids to watch when he introduced us to the whip-wielding history professor with such a pᴀssion for archeology that he was willing to risk his life and fight criminal gangs, including a group of Nazis, to protect artifacts that he believes belong in a museum or away from greedy humans.
Harrison Ford is a wisecracking and ingenious adventurer as Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark, where he goes globetrotting to try and prevent the Nazis from weaponizing a powerful relic they’ve discovered. The iconic theme song, his getup with the cowboy hat and the whip on his belt, and his unforgettable one-liners still inspire pop culture references today.
Airplane! (1980)
Comedy wouldn’t be the same without Leslie Nielsen and the trio of Zucker, Abraham, and Zucker, who gave us some of the most referenced jokes of all time in Airplane!, which has more punchlines than a good stand-up special. “Don’t call me Shirley” and other purely genius movie quotes are still quoted today, even by those who haven’t watched Airplane!
The structure of joke-writing within a movie, the limits of silliness that are permissible in gags, and the kind of performance that makes audiences laugh with a movie instead of at it, can still be learned from Airplane! and some classic comedies from the 2000s clearly did. Barring a few jokes that have aged poorly, the 1980s film is still a classic.
Back to the Future (1985)
The balance between heady time-travel rules, cheesy ’80s melodrama with a touch of questionable humor, and a heartfelt coming-of-age story driven by a wholesome mentorship dynamic makes Back to the Future one of the best feel-good movies of the 1980s that you can just put on any day you’re not feeling great to get lost in the uniquely ’80s shenanigans.
Back to the Future has inspired a highly successful Broadway musical that will likely be adapted into a movie sometime in the future.
The time-travelling DeLorean is one of the most recognizable relics of 1980s cinema, and the rules of time-travel in Back to the Future are so ideal for drama and thrills that most time-travel movies made in the future, including Avengers: Endgame, inadvertently refer to Back to the Future, although a few point out flaws in the rules as a joke.
The Terminator (1984)
Among the most genius sci-fi movie quotes of all time is the short and scary declaration by Arnold Schwarzenegger in and as The Terminator, which has still not left the collective imagination of the public, four decades later. “I’ll be back” is so iconic that it’s a reference commonly made by those who don’t even know it’s from The Terminator.
Arnold Schwarzenegger became an icon through his role as The Terminator and continued being a steady leading action man in Hollywood through the ’90s. The Terminator‘s themes have inspired many sci-fi writers over the years, and despite the poorly reviewed later entries, it’s still a major movie franchise today, with a seventh film rumored to be currently in the works.
Top Gun (1986)
Few movie soundtracks are as good as Top Gun‘s, whose featured single, Berlin’s Take My Breath Away, became a top song in 1986. The soundtrack still lives on as one of the greatest of all time. The Top Gun anthem is among the biggest relics of the 1980s, which gave us some of the best musical moments in cinema history.
Top Gun even inspired a rare action movie sequel that’s better than the original, aka Joseph Kosinski’s Top Gun: Maverick, which updates Tom Cruise’s role, while still showcasing the actor’s incredible ability to perform death-defying stunts. Quotes like “I feel the need… the need for speed” is another common movie reference today, that many don’t know is from Top Gun.
Akira (1988)
Katsuhiro Otomo’s 1988 anime movie Akira has inspired so many classic sci-fi movies that we already spiritually have a few live-action Akira movie adaptations. The dystopian sci-fi genre’s modern look, especially in animation, is still heavily influenced by Akira, whose themes are given life through the visual grammar of the fight scenes and the futuristic design of Neo Tokyo itself.
That bike slide stunt in Akira has been copied so many times that one can’t deny the movie’s cultural impact, which also extends to redefining the kind of stories dystopian sci-fi can tell and the visual style that suits a dystopian futuristic setting the most. Akira‘s metallic, slick, and stylish appearance is regularly recreated by animators who appreciate its merits.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Popularizing the blend of animation and live-action, which has never really taken off as a medium of storytelling, may seem like Who Framed Roger Rabbit‘s foremost contribution to pop culture, but it’s actually the constantly cosplayed costume and design of Jessica Rabbit, the hyperSєxualized animated character in the film, who has never once left the center of attention since ’88.
It is rare for characters to become more famous than their corresponding movies, especially without any context, but Jessica Rabbit lives rent-free in the collective memory of the world, almost separate from Who Framed Roger Rabbit as one of the most popular cosplays of all time. Social media is regularly flooded, even today, with pictures of models wearing the costume.
Die Hard (1988)
Few movies can boast of creating an entire genre, but John McTiernan’s Die Hard did exactly that. Many movies have tried to become the new Die Hard every year since the iconic action movie’s release. Bruce Willis had made an impression on TV with Moonlighting, but Die Hard catapulted him to movie stardom, defining a new archetype of action hero.
Die Hard on/in a… is a genre itself, which is identified by the journey of a daring character in a single location, taking down a dangerous villain against a ticking clock. The formula’s popularity might ensure that Die Hard remains forever in the pop-cultural zeitgeist, even after the debate over its status as a Christmas movie has finally died down.
Batman (1989)
Michael Keaton’s most famous movie line will always be “I’m Batman.” It permanently changed how the character is written, and every iteration of Batman now says it or a very similar version of it. Tim Burton’s turn helming the movie adaptation of the world’s most famous superhero also gave us an unforgettable Gotham, which is as campy as it’s scary.
Michael Keaton, who improvised his famous line in Batman, recently reprised the role in 2023’s The Flash.
Burton’s Gotham is so ideal for his interpretation of the character that Batman Returns is one of the best Gothic movies of all time, featuring some of the most iconic Batman villains doing their evil deeds in the campy world. However, it’s Keaton’s turn as the Caped Crusader and his unforgettable delivery of the aforementioned line that is Batman‘s legacy.
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
It might be a classic movie quote that everyone gets wrong, but unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve encountered the line “Luke, I’m your father.” The cultural impact of this single movie quote has transcended the boundaries of fandom, as many know of it through references, who don’t know what Star Wars is or who Darth Vader is.
From Han Solo saying “I know” to Leia confessing her feelings, to Yoda’s incredible training arc, The Empire Strikes Back has such iconic sequences in it that it’s often considered the greatest sci-fi movie ever made. The memes have immortalized it for even those who have never seen it, and it has won over the hearts of everyone who has.
