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.

 

Return of the Jedi concludes the original Star Wars trilogy

Star Wars – Episode VI: Return of the Jedi Released: May 25, 1983 Studio: 20th Century Fox Genre: sci-fi Box Office (numbers in millions): Domestic: 309.30 Worldwide: 573.00 Adjusted for Inflation: Domestic: 930.07 Worldwide: 1315.90

Directing: Richard Marquand Screenwriting: Lawrence Kasdan, George Lucas Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, Frank Oz Review: The conclusion to the original Star Wars trilogy capped the most successful movie juggernaut in history. The world had fallen in love with rebels Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia and their efforts to defeat the villainous Darth Vader and his Empire. Jedi added even more iconic characters to the mix, including “the evil Jabba the Hutt, who is a cross between a toad and the Cheshire Cat,” RE and “the lovable, cuddly Ewoks, the furry inhabitants of the forest moon of Endor.” RE The movie is “magnificent fun…complete entertainment, a feast for the eyes and a delight for the fancy.” RE There are twice as many visual effects here as there were in the original Star Wars. The movie is populated with “weird creatures, some of them only half-glimpsed…that would provide the centerpiece for lesser movies.” RE There are “more of the amazing battles in outer space” RE and “a breakneck chase through a forest, aboard airborne motorcycles.” RE There’s also that “marvelously edited three-way climactic battle that dexterously flipped us between lightsabers, spaceships and a ferocious (albeit fuzzy) forest conflict.” E18 One can’t point to just one thing that made these movies “more than just space operas. Other movies might approach the special effects. Other action pictures might approximate the sense of swashbuckling adventure. But in Return of the Jedi, as in Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back there’s such a wonderful density to the canvas.” RE Sources: E18 Empire (3/20/2018). “The 100 Greatest Movies”

Awards/Honors/Lists: Dave’s Movie Database Lists: Dave’s Movie Database Genre Lists: Box Office: Oscars: Wins: 1 – Special Achievement Academy Award Nominations: 4 – Best Art Direction, Best Original Score, Best Sound Effects Editing, Best Sound Awards: Other Lists/Honors: Critics’ Picks: Leslie Halliwell/John Walker First posted 5/29/2023.