Films of the 1980s: 1981 (2025 Edition)

[BleuPanda]

You can post a list of anywhere between 5 and 20 films (or more, but only 20 will be counted) from the period we're covering. The deciding factor in terms of release dates is the IMDb list and the top 15 of each year will go on to the final top 150 (plus a few bonus films). New rounds will be posted on the 16th and first day of each month. The deadline for this poll is December 15th.

The points scheme is as follows:
1. 50
2. 45
3. 40
4. 36
5. 32
6. 28
7. 25
8. 22
9. 19
10. 16
11. 14
12. 13
13. 12
14. 11
15. 10
16. 9
17. 8
18. 7
19. 6
20. 5

However, these are the maximum amounts of points. If you want to put certain films on your list but don't want to give them too many points, you can choose to give these less points than in this scheme (but never more) to decrease the impact on the overall results. If you don't specifically state that you want to give (some of) your films fewer points, I will assume the standard scheme.

Previous 1981 results:
1. (1.) Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg) 323, points, 11 votes , 3 #1 votes
2. (2.) Das Boot (Wolfgang Petersen) (West Germany) 304, points, 10 votes , 2 #1 votes
3. (3.) Mad Max 2 [The Road Warrior] (George Miller) 239, points, 9 votes , 0 #1 votes
4. (41.) My Dinner with Andre (Louis Malle, USA, Comedy-Drama) 176, points, 6 votes , 2 #1 votes
5. (10.) Blow Out | Brian De Palma | U.S. 153, points, 7 votes , 0 #1 votes
6. (32.) Pixote, a lei do mais fraco [Pixote, the Law of the Weakest] (Hector Babenco, Brazil, Drama) 116, points, 4 votes , 1 #1 vote
7. (24.) Body Heat | Lawrence Kasdan | U.S. 114, points, 7 votes , 0 #1 votes
7. (37.) Mephisto (István Szabó, Hungary, Drama) 114, points, 4 votes , 1 #1 vote
9. (11.) Garde à vue [The Inquisitor] (Claude Miller) 110, points, 3 votes , 1 #1 vote
10. (17.) Gallipoli (Peter Weir) 109, points, 5 votes , 0 #1 votes
11. (23.) Lola | Rainer Werner Fassbinder | West Germany 100, points, 3 votes , 0 #1 votes
12. (4.) Diva | Jean-Jacques Beineix | France 91, points, 6 votes , 0 #1 votes
13. (27.) Chariots of Fire (Hugh Hudson, UK, Drama) 81, points, 6 votes , 0 #1 votes
14. (6.) Escape From New York | John Carpenter | U.S. 79, points, 4 votes , 1 #1 vote
15. (14.) The Evil Dead | Sam Raimi | U.S. 76, points, 4 votes , 0 #1 votes

Personal favorite suggestions:
BleuPanda: Possession (Andrzej Żuławski)
acroamor: Agatha and the Limitless Readings (Marguerite Duras)
The Humphreys: Die bleierne Zeit [Marianne and Juliane] (Margarethe von Trotta)
Michel: La guerre du feu [Quest for Fire] (Jean-Jacques Annaud)
Greg: Cutter's Way (Ivan Passer)
bonnielaurel: Absence of Malice (Sydney Pollack)
Petri: Pelle Svanslös [Peter-No-Tail] (Jan GIssberg and Stig Lasseby)

[acroamor]

It looks like IMDB may have changed their listing for Pixote - it was in the top 15 for 1981 but now seems to be listed as a 1980 film.

[acroamor]

1. Possession (Andrzej Zulawski)
2. Blow Out (Brian De Palma)
3. My Dinner with Andre (Louis Malle)
4. Thief (Michael Mann)
5. Tango (Zbigniew Rybczynski)
6. Agatha and the Limitless Readings (Marguerite Duras)
7. Southern Comfort (Walter Hill)
8. Model (Frederick Wiseman)
9. The Aviator's Wife (Eric Rohmer)
10. L'homme atlantique (Marguerite Duras)
11. The Decline of Western Civilization (Penelope Spheeris)
12. The Evil Dead (Sam Raimi)
13. Ms. 45 (Abel Ferrara)
14. Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg)
15. Das Boot (Wolfgang Petersen)
16. Time for Revenge (Adolfo Aristarain)
17. They Don't Wear Black Tie (Leon Hirszman)
18. Love Massacre (Patrick Tam)
19. Escape from New York (John Carpenter)
20. Scanners (David Cronenberg)

[BleuPanda]

5 stars (top 250):
1. Possession
2. Blow Out

4.5 stars (top 1000):
3. Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior
4. Son of the White Mare
5. Raiders of the Lost Ark
6. Tango
7. Time Bandits
8. Thief
9. Polyester
10. An American Werewolf in London

4 stars (great):
11. Reds
12. Escape from New York
13. My Dinner With Andre
14. The Evil Dead
15. The Woman Next Door
16. Das Boot
17. Ms .45
18. Body Heat
19. Mephisto

3.5 stars (good):
20. Scanners
21. Lola
22. Agatha and the Limitless Readings

3 stars (above average):
23. Mommie Dearest
24. The Beyond
25. Zoot Suit
26. Too Early/Too Late

2.5 stars (average):
27. Shock Treatment
28. My Bloody Valentine
29. The Fox and the Hound

[Humphrey13]

All the 1981 films we've seen. Count the top 15:

Awesome

1. Die bleierne Zeit [Marianne and Juliane] - Margarethe von Trotta

Very good

2. An American Werewolf in London - John Landis
3. Das Boot - Wolfgang Petersen
4. Mephisto - István Szabó
5. Lili Marleen - Rainer Werner Fasssbinder
6. Coup de torchon [Clean Slate] - Bertrand Tavernier
7. The Garden of Earthly Delights - Stan Brakhage
8. Le pont du nord [The North Bridge] - Jacques Rivette

Good

9. Time Bandits - Terry Gilliam
10. Thief - Michael Mann
11. Garde à vue [The Inquisitor] - Claude Miller

OK

12. Raiders of the Lost Ark - Steven Spielberg
13. Unconscious London Strata - Stan Brakhage
14. For Your Eyes Only - John Glen
15. The Postman Always Rings Twice - Bob Rafelson

Meh

16. Excalibur - John Boorman
17. La soupe aux choux - Jean Girault

Bad

18. History of the World: Part I - Mel Brooks

[bonnielaurel]

1. Mephisto
2. Blow Out
3. Absence of Malice
4. Body Heat
5. Lola
6. The Aviator's Wife [La femme de l'aviateur]
7. My Dinner with Andre
8. Thief
9. Arthur
10. Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo
11. Het meisje met het rode haar
12. Garde à vue
13. Raiders of the Lost Ark
14. Chariots of Fire
15. La soupe aux choux
16. Killing Heat
17. Lili Marleen
18. Das Boot
19. For Your Eyes Only
20. Reds

[Petri]

1. Das Boot
2. Pelle Svanslös [Peter-No-Tail]
3. Storie di ordinaria follia [Tales of Ordinary Madness]
4. Diva
5. Christiane F.: Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo [We Children From Bahnhof Zoo]
6. My Dinner With André
7. Scanners
8. Reds
9. The Evil Dead
10. Raiders of the Lost Ark
11. Stripes
12. Fehérlófia [Son of the White Mare]
13. The Fox and the Hound
14. Mephisto
15. Lola
16. An American Werewolf in London
17. Mad Max 2 [The Road Warrior]
18. Gallipoli
19. Thief
20. La guerre du feu [Quest for Fire]

Edit. Pixote out. Thief in.
Re edit: Berlin Alexandeplatz out. La guerre du feu [Quest for Fire] in.

[Greg]

Top 25 (Ranked)

1 | Lola | Rainer Werner Fassbinder (Germany)
2 | Silvestre | João César Monteiro (Portugal)
3 | Agatha et les lectures illimitées (Agatha and the Limitless Readings) | Marguerite Duras (France)
4 | Escape from New York | John Carpenter (U.S.)
5 | Thief | Michael Mann (U.S.)
6 | Mad Max 2 (The Road Warrior) | George Miller (Australia)
7 | One From the Heart | Francis Ford Coppola (U.S.)
8 | Modern Romance | Albert Brooks (U.S.)
9 | Cutter's Way | Ivan Passer (U.S.)
10 | The Evil Dead | Sam Raimi (U.S.)
11 | ...E tu vivrai nel terrore! L'aldilà (The Beyond) | Lucio Fulci (Italy)
12 | Body Heat | Lawrence Kasdan (U.S.)
13 | 만다라 (Mandala) | 임권택 (Im Kwon-taek) (South Korea)
14 | Blow Out | Brian De Palma (U.S.)
15 | La femme de l'aviateur (The Aviator's Wife) | Éric Rohmer (France)
16 | The Decline of Western Civilization | Penelope Spheeris (U.S.)
17 | Diva | Jean-Jacques Beineix (France)
18 | Sjećaš li se Dolly Bell? (Do You Remember Dolly Bell?) | Emir Kusturica (Serbia)
19 | Fehérlófia (Son of the White Mare) | Marcell Jankovics (Hungary)
20 | Ms .45 | Abel Ferrara (U.S.)

21 | ねらわれた学園 (School in the Crosshairs) | 大林宣彦 (Nobuhiko Obayashi) (Japan)
22 | Scanners | David Cronenberg (Canada)
23 | An American Werewolf in London | John Landis (U.S.)
24 | Raiders of the Lost Ark | Steven Spielberg (U.S.)
25 | The Postman Always Rings Twice | Bob Rafelson (U.S.)

Honorable Mentions (Alphabetical)

1 | Агония (Agony) | Элем Климов (Elem Klimov) (Russia)
2 | American Pop | Ralph Bakshi (U.S.)
3 | Das Boot | Wolfgang Petersen (Germany)
4 | Buddy Buddy | Billy Wilder (U.S.)
5 | Excalibur | John Boorman (U.K.)
6 | Francisca | Manoel de Oliveira (Portugal)
7 | The Great Muppet Caper | Jim Henson (U.S.)
8 | The Hand | Oliver Stone (U.S.)
9 | Heavy Metal | Gerald Potterton (Canada)
10 | The Howling | Joe Dante (U.S.)
11 | Lili Marleen | Rainer Werner Fassbinder (Germany)
12 | Człowiek z żelaza (Man of Iron) | Andrzej Wajda (Poland)
13 | Polyester | John Waters (U.S.)
14 | Possession | Andrzej Żuławski (Poland)
15 | Reds | Warren Beatty (U.S.)
16 | The Second Journey (To Uluru) | Arthur & Corinne Cantrill (Australia)
17 | Альтовая соната. Дмитрий Шостакович (Sonata for Viola. Dmitri Shostakovitch) | Семен Аранович (Semyon Aranovich) & Александр Сокуров (Alexander Sokurov) (Russia)
18 | Southern Comfort | Walter Hill (U.S.)
19 | The Territory | Raúl Ruiz (Chile)
20 | They All Laughed | Peter Bogdanovich (U.S.)
21 | Time Bandits | Terry Gilliam (U.K.)
22 | Trop tôt, trop tard (Too Early, Too Late) | Danièle Huillet & Jean-Marie Straub (France)
23 | Wojna światów - następne stulecie (The War of the Worlds: Next Century) | Piotr Szulkin (Poland)
24 | Wolfen | Michael Wadleigh (U.S.)
25 | La femme d'à côté (The Woman Next Door) | François Truffaut (France)

Shorts

Short (1-10 mins.): Junkopia | Chris Marker / John Chapman / Frank Simeone (France)
Medium (11-30 mins.): New York Portrait, Chapter II | Peter Hutton (U.S.)
Long (31-60 mins.): Vernon, Florida | Errol Morris (U.S.)

Wishlist (Alphabetical)

1 | Cada ver es... | Ángel García del Val (Spain)
2 | Grendel Grendel Grendel | Alexander Stitt (Australia)
3 | In der Dämmerstunde Berlin | Annik Leroy (Belgium)
4 | Conversa acabada (The Other One) | João Botelho (Portugal)
5 | Reisender Krieger (Traveling Warrior) | Christian Shocher (Switzerland)
6 | Saimaa-ilmiö (The Saimaa Gesture) | Mika & Aki Kaurismäki (Finland)
7 | Лісова пісня. Мавка (A Story of the Forest: Mavka) | Юрій Іллєнко (Yuri Illienko) (Ukraine)
8 | Sogni d'oro (Sweet Dreams) | Nanni Moretti (Italy)
9 | De weg naar het zuiden (The Way South) | Johan van der Keuken (Netherlands)
10 | ヨコハマBJブルース (Yokohama BJ Blues) | 工藤栄一 (Eiichi Kudo) (Japan)

NB: edited to include One From the Heart

[Michel]

1. Garde à vue [The Inquisitor] (Claude Miller)
2. La guerre du feu [Quest for Fire] (Jean-Jacques Annaud)
3. Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg)
4. Coup de torchon [Clean Slate] (Bertrand Tavernier)
5. Czlowiek z zelaza [Man of Iron] (Andrzej Wajda)
6. Cutter's Way (Ivan Passer)
7. Blow Out (Brian De Palma)
8. Body Heat (Lawrence Kasdan)
9. Une étrange affaire [Strange Affair] (Pierre Granier-Deferre)
10. Diva (Jean-Jacques Beineix)
11. Eaux profondes [Deep Water] (Michel Deville)
12. Das Boot (Wolfgang Petersen)
13. Mad Max 2 [The Road Warrior] (George Miller)
14. The Postman Always Rings Twice (Bob Rafelson)
15. The French Lieutenant's Woman (Karel Reisz)
16. Excalibur (John Boorman)
17. Il marchese del Grillo [The Marquis of Grillo] (Mario Monicelli)
18. Beau-père [Stepfather] (Bertrand Blier)
19. La chèvre [The Goat] (Francis Veber)
20. Le pont du nord [The North Bridge] (Jacques Rivette)

I'll try to watch Thief.

[BleuPanda]

4. Berlin Alexandeplatz


Edit. Pixote out. Thief in.

Berlin Alexanderplatz is also 1980

[The_Claw]

1. Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg)
2. Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (George Miller)
3. Possession (Andrzej Zulawski)
4. Blow Out (Brian De Palma)
5. An American Werewolf in London (John Landis)
6. Das Boot (Wolfgang Petersen)
7. Reds (Warren Beatty)
8. La femme d`à côté [The Woman Next Door] (François Truffaut)
9. Gallipoli (Peter Weir)
10. Mephisto (István Szabó)
11. The Evil Dead (Sam Raimi)
12. Excalibur (John Boorman)
13. Escape from New York (John Carpenter)
14. ...E tu vivrai nel terrore! L'aldilà [The Beyond] (Lucio Fulci)
15. My Dinner With Andre (Louis Malle)
16. Lola (Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
17. Chariots of Fire (Hugh Hudson)
18. Body Heat (Lawrence Kasdan)
19. Diva (Jean-Jacques Beineix)
20. On Golden Pond (Mark Rydell)

[Petri]

4. Berlin Alexandeplatz


Edit. Pixote out. Thief in.

Berlin Alexanderplatz is also 1980

I edited my list again.