With the start of a new year, there’s a whole new slate of movies to look forward to. Hollywood is hoping 2015 will be a better year at the movies than 2014 was. But how will the movies of the new year stack up against the movies from 30 years ago? 1985 gave us some classic movies and its share of forgettable ones as well. In this month’s bracket game we’re going back in time to 1985 to pick our favorites from 30 years ago!
Arnold Schwarzenegger doesn’t lose very often. But yesterday, Witness trumped Commando with nearly 78% of the vote. That makes Witness the last movie to advance to the second round where it will face The Breakfast Club.
The first match of the second round pits Steven Spielberg the producer vs. Steven Spielberg the director. Earlier, we talked about how Sylvester Stallone owned Hollywood in 1985. And that’s certainly true in the sense that he was the biggest movie star in the world. But 1985 was also a terrific year for Spielberg even if he was snubbed by the Oscars for Best Director for Best Picture nominee The Color Purple.
Not only did Spielberg take his first step to becoming a “serious” filmmaker by directing an Oscar-bait adaptation of a novel. He also flooded theaters with movies he produced. In 1985, Spielberg’s Amblin produced Fandango (which starred Kevin Costner and future WTHH subject Judd Nelson), Back to the Future, The Goonies, Young Sherlock Holmes and The Color Purple. This led Time Magazine to dub Spielberg the Magician of the Movies. I bet someone got a nice bonus for that alliteration. How about the Sultan of Cinema?
Anyway, Back to the Future was the biggest box office hit of the year. It was also well-received by critics and was nominated for Oscars in minor categories. It won for Best Sound Effects editing. But Huey Lewis and the News were ROBBED for Best Song which was won by Lionel Richie’s Say You, Say Me. Okay, Lionel’s cool. But Back to the Future lost Best Screenplay to Witness which just ain’t right.
The Color Purple was nominated in several major categories with the exception of Best Director leading many to openly question how a movie can be nominated for Best Picture without a Best Director nomination. The same thing happened to Selma director Ava DuVernay so hopefully she takes comfort in being in good company. It’s a kind of hazing the Academy likes to do. Come back with another Best Picture nominee and we’ll start to take you seriously!
Sorry, I may still be a bit hostile over the Academy’s Lego Movie snub yesterday.
