General Stuff in Life Poll: Best Decade for Movies

[MagicalBikeRide]

90’s all the way. Pulp Fiction is top for me. 

[westg]

On 5/21/2025 at 2:33 PM, LaoFan said:

Gimme the 90s.

Pulp Fiction, Fight Club, Goodfellas, The Shawshank Redemption, Schindler's List, Forrest Gump, The Silence of the Lambs, Se7en, The Big Lebowski, Casino, Truman Show, Goodwill Hunting.

The last decade before CGI overtook storytelling, when studios still gambled on vision.

70s is close 2nd but as its well before my time doesn't hit as close to home.

Ya man. Gotta say..the 90's as well. 

[westg]

12 hours ago, Cigar Surgeon said:

Releases for 1984 and 1986 alone sweep any other decade for me.  When you combine the totality of the 1980s...

Raging Bull, E.T., Raiders of the Lost Ark, Platoon, Blade Runner, Dune, Aliens, Empire Strikes Back, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, Airplane!, Das Boot, Terminator, Die Hard, Princess Bride, Fast Times At Ridgemont High, Scarface, Spinal Tap, Back To The Future, Color Purple, Chariots of Fire, Glory, Killing Fields, Witness, Return Of the Jedi, Nightmare on Elm Street, Top Gun, Bull Durham, Field of Dreams, Ghostbusters, Breakfast Club, Caddyshack, Ferris Bueller, Stand by Me, First Blood, Commando, Lethal Weapon, Tango & Cash,  The Secret of NIMH,  An American Tail, The Land Before Time,  Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Top Secret!, Beverly Hills Cop, Crocodile Dundee, Conan, Neverending Story, Legend, Labyrinth, The Thing, Bloodsport, Big Trouble Little China, Young Guns...

Then you have HK cinema Police Story, A Better Tomorrow, The Killer...

😳  Actually...probably should my decade.

[Chibearsv]

On 5/22/2025 at 2:46 PM, BoliDan said:

John, you're too sophisticated for us. I change my answer. I agree with Cigar Jesus. 

Really you changed your answer because of a guy that listed Dumb and Dumber? Come on now 😜

[Fuzz]

Gotta be the 1980s, the classic action movie era. In this deacde we saw the rise of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Chuck Norris, Jackie Chan, Chow Yun Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Jean Claude Van Damme, Kurt Russell, Rutger Hauer; Dolph Lundgren, Bruce Willis, Sammo Hung, Cynthia Rothrock and Mel Gibson.

We were given so many gems; Terminator, Robocop, Lethal Weapon, Predator, Rambo, Indiana Jones, Highlander, Die Hard, Big Trouble in Little China, Top Gun, Willow, Escape From New York, Aliens, Conan The Barbarian, The Hitcher, The Running Man, The Untouchables, Firefox, Batman, Police Story, Scarface, Armour of God, Project A, Dragons Forever, Yes Madam!, Excalibur, The Killer, 48 Hrs, A Better Tomorrow, F/X, Young Guns, Full Metal Jacket, Heartbreak Ridge, Iron Eagle, Das Boot and many many others.

Wanna talk about sci-fi/fantasy movies? Blade Runner, Tron, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, ET The Extraterrestrial, The Empire Strikes Back, The Fly, Heavy Metal, Dune, The Last Starfighter, Back to the Future, Akira, 1984, The Abyss, Ghostbusters, Clash of the Titans, Twilight Zone the Movie, Trancers, Wargames, Flight of the Navigator, Project A-ko, *batteries not included, Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise, Alien Nation, They Live, The Dark Crystal, The NeverEnding Story, Krull, Flash Gordon, Clash of the Titans, Time Bandits, DragonSlayer.

As for comedy films; The Gods Must Be Crazy, Flying High/Airplane!, The Naked Gun, Stripes, The Meaning of Life, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Trading Places, The Blues Brothers, Top Secret!, Police Academy, Beetlejuice, Weird Science, National Lampoon's Vacation, The Woman in Red, Little Shop of Horrors, Caddyshack, Bachelor Party, Coming to America, Three Amigos, Good Morning Vietnam, Planes Trains and Automobiles, Spies Like Us, Uncle Buck, Clue the Movie, Back to the Future, Fletch, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, The Goonies, A Christmas Story, Blind Date, Club Paradise, Stir Crazy, See No Evil Hear No Evil, Spaceballs, Amazon Women on the Moon.

What about romantic films? An Officer and a Gentleman, Dirty Dancing, Chances Are, When Harry Met Sally, Flashdance, Roxanne, Arthur, Always, Splash, Electric Dreams, Dangerous Liaisons, Ladyhawke, Romancing the Stone, The Blue Lagoon, Xanadu, Children of a Lesser God, and of course The Princess Bride.

Come on, it's obvious the 80s was the best movie era!

 

BTW, I know there is a genre that @El Presidente really wants me to list, but I'm not gonna do it!

[RSG]

Favorite? Maybe Apocalypse Now.

Others: Various Pink Panther movies, Animal House, Blazing Saddles, Mash, Monte Python and The Holy Grail, Patton ...

[loose_axle]

I agree with struggling to be able to pick a decade, great films everywhere. 

But I'll pick 2000s just cause lately I've been on a John Wick, Equalizer and Daniel Craig 007 bender... Then there's stuff like Black Hawk Down, There Will be Blood, No Country for Old Men, Legend, Snatch, The Gentlemen, etc. 

[Fuzz]

9 hours ago, loose_axle said:

I agree with struggling to be able to pick a decade, great films everywhere. 

But I'll pick 2000s just cause lately I've been on a John Wick, Equalizer and Daniel Craig 007 bender... Then there's stuff like Black Hawk Down, There Will be Blood, No Country for Old Men, Legend, Snatch, The Gentlemen, etc. 

Technically 2 decades..... 😜

[loose_axle]

1 hour ago, Fuzz said:

Technically 2 decades..... 😜

You'll have to take it up with @MoeFOH for the ambiguous and open ended obscurity that allowed the 4th choice to be any year or decade post 2000 🤷‍♂️

[Montezüma]

On 5/25/2025 at 7:43 AM, loose_axle said:

I agree with struggling to be able to pick a decade, great films everywhere. 

But I'll pick 2000s just cause lately I've been on a John Wick, Equalizer and Daniel Craig 007 bender... Then there's stuff like Black Hawk Down, There Will be Blood, No Country for Old Men, Legend, Snatch, The Gentlemen, etc. 

I think your list deserves to be followed by Layer Cake. Its evening in a hotel right now after a long workday, put on the tv and pleased to see Man on Fire. RIP Tony Scott.

[MrBirdman]

For blockbusters it was easily the 90s. For film overall though I think the 2000’s is probably better. It was the last full decade where really good movies were being made on an annual basis. 

Children of Men is one I’d add to the above, one of the most overlooked great movies of the 21st century. And There Will Be Blood is still this century’s greatest English language film - I can’t think of anything from the 90’s that tops it either. 70’s is way before my time and that might be why they resonate a bit less with me. 

[MrBirdman]

On 5/24/2025 at 2:25 PM, RSG said:

Patton

PSA: Please do not watch the made-for-TV sequel - it’s not abysmal but it is still a needless bastardization of the original.

[Chibearsv]

2 hours ago, MrBirdman said:

For blockbusters it was easily the 90s. For film overall though I think the 2000’s is probably better. It was the last full decade where really good movies were being made on an annual basis. 

Children of Men is one I’d add to the above, one of the most overlooked great movies of the 21st century. And There Will Be Blood is still this century’s greatest English language film - I can’t think of anything from the 90’s that tops it either. 70’s is way before my time and that might be why they resonate a bit less with me. 

There Will Be Blood is an all time great.  Absolutely captivating movie. 

[MoeFOH]

21 hours ago, Chibearsv said:

There Will Be Blood is an all time great.  Absolutely captivating movie. 

Outstanding film. 

[MoeFOH]

1990s with the win, eh...

I have to say, @Fuzz made a compelling argument with the 80s. And although my all-time favourites arrive in other decades, the 80s is the one I love the most. I mean, Big Trouble in Little China and Ghostbusters are enough on their own to lay claim to the title. 

[Fuzz]

And I didn't list horror/thrillers: Fatal Attraction, Nightmare on Elm Street, The Lost Boys, Evil Dead, Poltergeist, Hellraiser, Christine, The Shining, Children of the Corn, Day of the Dead, The Thing, The Fog, Tightrope, My Bloody Valentine, Videodrome, Altered States.

 

[Cigar Surgeon]

18 hours ago, MoeFOH said:

1990s with the win, eh...

I have to say, @Fuzz made a compelling argument with the 80s. And although my all-time favourites arrive in other decades, the 80s is the one I love the most. I mean, Big Trouble in Little China and Ghostbusters are enough on their own to lay claim to the title. 

I see how it is.

[MrBirdman]

On 5/27/2025 at 7:54 PM, Chibearsv said:

There Will Be Blood is an all time great.  Absolutely captivating movie. 

I remember seeing it in theaters, and I almost felt high walking out it was so riveting. The final scene is the most electrifying screen-acting you will ever see. 

[Chibearsv]

3 minutes ago, MrBirdman said:

I remember seeing it in theaters, and I almost felt high walking out it was so riveting. The final scene is the most electrifying screen-acting you will ever see. 

"I drink your milkshake!"

 

[MrBirdman]

4 hours ago, Chibearsv said:

"I drink your milkshake!"

One of the many things I love about that scene is that it's a comedy of pure malice, from the milkshake line to telling Eli he's the "afterbirth" (compared to twin brother Paul) who "slithered out of your mother's filth. They should've put you in a glass jar on the mantelpiece." 

But the line and delivery that gives me chills is the simple response to Eli's pleading about whether Daniel understands the Bandy offer: "Do you understand?" The physical delivery and vocal inflection are absolutely pitch perfect. 

Also on the 2000's list of great movies I would add The Pianist, Pan's Labyrinth (El Laberinto Del Fauno), Michael Clayton, and Downfall (Der Üntergang).

[Hammer Smokin']

I saw There Will Be Blood, in 35mm, recently at a local film house. It was even better than I remembered!!

[Hammer Smokin']

Decided to give Gangs of New York another go last night, as I do love me some DDL. Didn't hold up as well as There Will Be Blood, but man, Daniel Day Lewis is a powerhouse. 

[MrBirdman]

10 hours ago, Hammer Smokin' said:

Decided to give Gangs of New York another go last night, as I do love me some DDL. Didn't hold up as well as There Will Be Blood, but man, Daniel Day Lewis is a powerhouse. 

I think aside from his performance Gangs is mediocre; it’s probably my least favorite Scorsese picture. But DDL’s performance makes it worth watching.

I was thinking this morning - it’s funny how this Irish actor’s three most memorable roles are all playing different American archetypes: Bill the Butcher, Daniel Plainview, and Lincoln. 

[Hammer Smokin']

Been a few years since I last watched Lincoln. Might as well give it another go. 

[MrBirdman]

2 hours ago, Hammer Smokin' said:

Been a few years since I last watched Lincoln. Might as well give it another go. 

Lincoln was a strange experience for me: I am a total junkie for historical drama, but Lincoln left me cold. It’s fine, but it just didn’t resonate with me, which was really surprising since I expected to love it.