Top Movies of the 1980s

This page offers lists of the top 25 movies of the decade as determined by two different metrics. The first list is based on box office and the second is based on critics’ picks.

Box Office: Top 25 of the 1980s These are the top 25 movies of the decade as determined by adjusted worldwide box office gross. The first number indicates dollars made in millions. See sources for box office figures here.

1) 3095.40: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) 2) 2274.00: Star Wars – Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) 3) 1723.70: Star Wars – Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983) 4) 1639.60: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 5) 1400.40: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) 6) 1258.10: Back to the Future (1985) 7) 1213.60: Batman (1989) 8) 1164.90: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) 9) 1120.60: Top Gun (1986) 10) 1102.80: Back to the Future II (1989) 11) 1078.70: Beverly Hills Cop (1984) 12) 1075.70: Rocky III (1982) 13) 1051.90: Superman II (1980) 14) 1028.70: Rain Man (1988) 15) 994.50: Rocky IV (1985) 16) 994.30: Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985) 17) 956.10: Fatal Attraction (1987) 18) 942.90: Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988) 19) 780.20: Ghostbusters (1984) 20) 617.94: Look Who’s Talking (1989) 21) 576.08: Crocodile Dundee (1986) 22) 526.84: Out of Africa (1985) 23) 520.58: Tootsie (1982) 24) 505.83: Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) 25) 505.56: Crocodile Dundee II (1988)

Critics’ Picks: Top 25 of the 1980s These are the top 25 movies of the decade as determined by a combination of the movies’ ratings points and awards points.

1) E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) 2) Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 3) Amadeus (1984) 4) Raging Bull (1980) 5) Star Wars – Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) 6) Do the Right Thing (1989) 7) Back to the Future (1985) 8) Star Wars – Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983) 9) Platoon (1986) 10) Terms of Endearment (1983) 11) Rain Man (1988) 12) Ordinary People (1980) 13) The Right Stuff (1983) 14) blade runner () 15) Gandhi (1982) 16) The Princess Bride (1987) 17) Driving Miss Daisy (1989) 18) The Last Emperor (1987) 19) When Harry Met Sally (1989) 20) This Is Spinal Tap (1984) 21) The Shining (1980) 22) Tootsie (1982) 23) Dead Poets Society (1989) 24) Brazil (1985) 25) Blue Velvet (1986)

Resources: Dave’s Movie Database: Eras Dave’s Movie Database: Movies of the Year Dave’s Movie Database: Box Office Dave’s Movie Database: Awards Page Dave’s Movie Database: Ratings Page Originally posted 3/8/2025.