BY ALEXIS HOSTETTER

When you talk about movies, what era do you talk about? Could you accurately name 5 movies from the 80s? What about the 90s? You might be surprised how many amazing movies are from the 80s. Which leads me to my point–I believe we should normalize watching 80s movies, which are honestly the best.

Sometimes I consider myself to be a film buff. I mean I wake up, go to school, watch movies during lunch, go home, and either watch more movies or play games. Either way, I end the night finishing at least 2 movies. It’s quite the addiction. And lately, I’ve found the movies I stumble upon are all from the 80s. 

I like to make a list of the movies I liked the most. To narrow it down, I will make a list of the top 15-10 movies. When looking over my list, I found most of the movies are from the 80s and 90s! This includes movies such as The Princess Bride, Outsiders, Secret Admirer, La Bamba, and more. 

What makes these movies the best? Part of it is the actors. Actors these days mainly act simply for money and fame, rather than them enjoying it. And the film industry mainly chooses actors by popularity. For example, Addison Rae is a terrible actor. No hate to her, but the girl simply cannot act. Yet she landed the main role in the Netflix adaptation of a personal favorite, She’s All That, titled He’s All That. Coincidentally, it’s not the only oldie with an adaptation. Cobra Kai is an adaptation of 1984 classic, The Karate Kid. As well as the Broadway hit Beetlejuice, is an adaptation of Tim Burton’s 1988 classic, Beetlejuice! 

“One of the 80s’ most iconic films, The Breakfast Club is a movie that sets the era apart from others.” The actors did an amazing job on the aspects of their characters that can be applied to many different groups of people. You have the good girl, the jock, the emo, the nerd, and the rebel. This movie iconically combined every clique of the 80’s and built a friendship between the characters; it told a story in a way so beautiful that teenagers these days are still affected by it. There are many more movies that fringe on the idea as well. 

Another movie would be The Outsiders. This movie is an iconic adaptation of the novel by S.E. Hilton that many teens read in their middle school English class. The film and book are based on an era where people tended to be separated by social class and were treated differently. The story is told in a beautiful way with the actors portraying their characters in a way so captivating that many people have found a home within the story. Personally, I find it hard to do that with many movies these days.

80’s movies are the staple of the term “classic oldies.” We shouldn’t be ashamed if we feel the need to turn on the TV and watch 80’s movies as soon as we get home. I personally could have an 80’s marathon and never be ashamed of it.