In 1983 I was a one year old, so obviously my liking of any film’s from that year came from later viewing. Unless of course I did happen to see any of them as a one year old at the theater and without knowing it have been perversely altered in some way still to be revealed. You’ll understand my chances of that possibility once you see my personal top ten picks. First off is the movies that made the mot money that year:
Top Grossing Movies USA 1983:
1. Return Of the Jedi
2. Terms of Endearment
3. Flashdance
4. Trading Places
5. WarGames
6. Octopussy
7. Sudden Impact
8. Staying Alive
9. Mr. Mom
10. Risky Business
My top picks:
10. Sudden Impact: I was tempted to put Flashdance on here just because I like screenwriter Joe Eszterhaus’ books, but of course there is no way a musical about a welder is going to surpass the flick in which Dirty Harry aka Clint Eastwood uttered his famous phrase: “Go ahead, make my day.”
9. Christine: Possessed car movies were always a treat to watch at a young age.
8. Risky Business: Why Risky Business? Quite frankly I saw this movie with the perfect balance of raging hormones and its subject matter intrigued them. No I do not mean because of Tom Cruise, mean because of Rebecca De Mornay.
7. Twilight Zone: The Movie: A scene involving two dudes in a car scaring each other scared the crap out of me as a kid, when the one leans over and then comes back as: Ahhhh! If I have the wrong movie with that scene then of course the classic something is on the wing scene earns this flick its spot on the list.
6. Return of the Jedi: Star Wars movies bore me these days, but they played an intrical part in my movie loving childhood. I was a bigger fan of The Empire Strikes Back, but this one was rotated into my viewing schedule as well.
5. The Outsiders: We were made to read the book and watch the movie in school, which wasn’t a bad way to waste the time.
4. National Lampoon’s Vacation: Classic, fully entertaining comedy. One can watch it again and again and still enjoy.
3. Videodrome: This David Cronenberg directed and James Wood’s starring movie is one heck of a mind bending production. A must see for anyone who shares even the slightest similarity in taste for films as I do.
2. The King of Comedy: Robert De Niro is excellent in this movie and quite frankly I would say this is currently my favorite Martin Scorsese flick. Goodfellas comes close, but The King of Comedy is one of the gems of a movie many have missed out on seeing for some reason or another.
1. Scarface: Just an awesome movie.
