middle-class teenagers is also memorable for its
use of one of the most popular songs of the
1980’s, Phil Collins’s “In the Air Tonight,” in an
unusual romantic scene.
Scarface(Universal; dir. Brian De Palma) Director
Howard Hawks’s groundbreaking 1932 gangster
drama is updated for the 1980’s by screenwriter
Oliver Stone as the tale of a ruthless Cuban immi-
grant (Al Pacino) who becomes a Miami crime
lord. Featuring graphic violence, including a fa-
mous buzz saw scene, the film has become one of
the most quoted of all time for such lines as “Say
hello to my little friend.” Its reputation has in-
creased since its release, and the film has become
a particular favorite in the hip-hop culture.
Silkwood(ABC/Twentieth Century-Fox; dir. Mike
Nichols) An Oklahoma factory worker (Meryl
Streep) becomes outraged at her employer’s in-
difference to radiation contamination. She dies
in a mysterious accident en route to give evidence
to aNew York Timesreporter.
Terms of Endearment(Paramount; dir. James L.
Brooks) This look at the relationship between a
mother (Shirley MacLaine) and daughter (Debra
Winger) won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Direc-
tor, Best Actress (MacLaine), and Best Supporting
Actor (Jack Nicholson as one of MacLaine’s suit-
ors) and for Brooks’s adaptation of the 1975
Larry McMurtry novel.See alsomain entry.
1984
Amadeus(Saul Zaentz Company/Orion; dir. Milos
Forman) Based on Peter Shaffer’s play,Amadeus
examines the jealousy of composer Antonio Salieri
(F. Murray Abraham) over the success of the
young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Tom Hulce).
It won eight Oscars, including Best Film, Best Di-
rector, and Best Actor (Abraham).
Beverly Hills Cop(Paramount; dir. Martin Brest)
Eddie Murphy became a superstar as a Detroit
cop on the trail of a gangster (Steven Berkoff) in
Beverly Hills. Murphy is at his most self-assured in
one of the decade’s biggest commercial hits.
Blood Simple(River Road Productions/Circle Re-
leasing; dir. Joel Coen) Joel and Ethan Coen
launched their careers with this black comedy.
An unfaithful wife (Frances McDormand) and
her lover (John Getz) plot to murder her bar-
owner husband (Dan Hedaya), who has hired a
private eye (M. Emmett Walsh) to kill her in this
affectionate send-up of film noir conventions.
Ghostbusters(Black Rhino/Delphi Productions/
Columbia; dir. Ivan Reitman) Bill Murray and
Dan Ackroyd look for spirits in Manhattan. This
special-effects-laden hit was the most expensive
comedy made to this point.See alsomain entry.
A Nightmare on Elm Street(Smart Egg Pictures/
Media Home Entertainment/New Line Cinema;
dir. Wes Craven) A horror franchise was launched
as murder victim Freddy Krueger (Robert En-
glund) seeks revenge through dreams.
Once upon a Time in America(Ladd Company/
PSO International/Warner Bros.; dir. Sergio Le-
one) Leone’s epic gangster yarn was drastically
reedited by its producers, yet the story of betrayal
starring Robert De Niro and James Woods still re-
tained considerable power in its truncated form.
Places in the Heart(TriStar; dir. Robert Benton) A
Texas woman (Sally Field) struggles to maintain
her family farm during the Depression. It won Os-
cars for Best Actress and Benton’s original screen-
play and introduced actor John Malkovich.
Stranger than Paradise(Samuel Goldwyn; dir. Jim
Jarmusch) In this deadpan comedy, one of the de-
cade’s most significant independent films, three
aimless friends (John Lurie, Richard Edson, and
Eszter Balint) drift from New York to Cleveland to
Miami. A comic highlight is Lurie’s explanation
of the significance of TV dinners.
The Terminator(Hemdale/Pacific Western/Orion;
dir. James Cameron) Cameron established him-
self as a major director and made Arnold Schwarze-
negger a superstar in this science-fiction thriller.
See alsomain entry.
This Is Spin ̈al Tap(Embassy; dir. Rob Reiner) The
mockumentary genre began with this account of
the American tour of a has-been hard-rock group
(Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry
Shearer).See alsomain entry.1985
Back to the Future(Amblin Entertainment/Univer-
sal; dir. Robert Zemeckis) A high school student
(Michael J. Fox) is accidentally transported, in
the time machine of an eccentric scientist (Chris-
topher Lloyd), back to the 1950’s and into the ro-
mance of his parents (Lea Thompson and Cris-
pin Glover).See alsomain entry.
The Breakfast Club(A&M Films/Universal; dir. John
Hughes) The most enduringly popular of the de-1078 Entertainment: Major Films of the 1980’s The Eighties in America