Image by Gaëtan GUINÉ from Pixabay “Blockbusters run the mainstream industry. We may never again have a decade like the 1970s, when directors were able to find such freedom.” – Roger Ebert Two weeks ago, I wrote about four films that laid the foundation for the “blockbuster” film not only for their financial success but also for their contemporary acclaim and cultural legacy. I continue that journey today by examining several of the most successful and impactful “blockbusters” of the 1980s. The decade was dominated by a back-and-forth between George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, two titans of “blockbuster” filmmaking. For many people today, it also has become the “nostalgic decade” to be glamorized and mythologized for its impact on popular culture to this day.
So, without further ado…LET’S GET STARTED!! The Empire Strikes Back (1980) In spite of the inevitability of a sequel to his immensely successful 1977 film Star Wars, George Lucas was not eager to make another film set in a galaxy far, far away right away. The incredible stress of making the first film, in addition to sequels being generally frowned upon at that time, discouraged him from the prospect of a follow-up to Star Wars right away. And yet, the prospect of expanding his space opera into a true fictional universe for the silver screen in order to make an even better film convinced him to change his tune fairly quickly. While looking back on the financial success of Star Wars may indicate that Lucas would breeze through financing the sequel, that was not the case at all. By establishing several subsidiaries to ensure less financial risk on his part, Lucas financed the sequel himself via loans and his earnings on the first film. By doing so, Lucas’s studio, Lucasfilm, maintained complete creative control over the film and would end up raking the overwhelming majority of the profits if the film made over 100 million dollars at the box office. As he moved into more of a producer/special effects supervisor capacity, Lucas hired his former USC (University of Southern California) professor Irvin Kershner to direct the film and science fiction author Leigh Brackett to write the first draft of the screenplay. Brackett and Lucas collaborated on several ideas, from introducing the Emperor to having Han encounter a gambler/friend from his past. They also developed some subplots for the film, including a love triangle between Luke, Leia and Han, the use of Obi-Wan Kenobi as a ghost, an arctic planet, and Luke’s new Jedi mentor in the form of an elderly, froglike alien creature. Brackett turned in her treatment in February of 1978, but Lucas was unable to express his issues with it before she died. Now burdened with writing the second draft himself, Lucas concocted the major plot twist [SPOILERS] of Darth Vader actually being Luke’s father. It was during the writing of this draft that Lucas fleshed out the backstory of Anakin Skywalker’s turn to the dark side and concluded that this sequel would not be “Chapter II,” as originally planned, but instead the middle of one trilogy referred to as “Episode V.” With this fleshed-out second draft done, Lucas hired screenwriter and Miami native Lawrence Kasdan (Raiders of the Lost Ark, Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens) to complete a third draft to show to producers Gary Kurtz, both of whom felt the sequel would be a more serious, mature film than its predecessor. Filming lasted from March to September of 1979, and the sequel to Star Wars took three times the money to make with a budget of $33 million dollars (one of the most expensive films ever made at the time). The Empire Strikes Back received its wide theatrical release on May 21, 1980 and ended up grossing approximately 550 million dollars. While today the film is viewed as one of the best sequels ever made, critics at the time were somewhat divided: some viewed it as silly, laborious, and repetitive of the first film, while others lauded it as a cinematic achievement in scope and a more impactful follow-up to the original Star Wars film. While the film was nominated for three Academy Awards, it won only for Best Sound (excluding its Special Achievement Oscar). Today, The Empire Strikes Back is seen by many as the best of the Star Wars franchise and one of the greatest films ever made. While the first Star Wars film is my personal favorite, I cannot argue in good faith that its sequel is better and thus the best film in the franchise. The Empire Strikes Back does so much so well that I will only focus on some of my personal favorite aspects of the movie. Thematically, it does a great job subverting audience expectations by taking the fun-loving, space-adventure vibe of its predecessor and injecting a subdued maturity and existential fear into the story of Luke, Leia, and Han. Furthermore, the story fleshes out the story of the Jedi and the nature of the Force in a way that makes the payoff of Luke’s emotional journey during his battle with Darth Vader all the more worth it. Of course, I cannot keep going without discussing my favorite character in all of Star Wars: the little green Jedi master himself, Yoda. From a big-picture standpoint, he embodies all the best of this franchise as an example of how special effects can be used to not only create characters but such incredibly memorable ones. In addition, Yoda’s entire approach to teaching and mentoring Luke on Dagobah is funny, smart, and fulfilling to see from beginning to end. And of course, arguably the best moment in all of Star Wars has Yoda front and center lifting Luke’s X-Wing out of the swamp to show him the capabilities of the Force. And what does he say when Luke admits disbelief at such knowledge of the Force? “That is why you fail.” Needless to say, The Empire Strikes Back packs an emotional punch as both the second film in the franchise and the middle entry in the original Star Wars trilogy. It not only deserves the money that it earned, but the accolades it received and the cultural weight that it still carries for millions of the people around the world to this day. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) The initial idea for an adrenaline-junkie archaeologist came from George Lucas (American Graffiti, Star Wars), who was inspired by serial films from his childhood. He named his adventure hero “Indiana” after the Alaskan Malamute dog that he had in his youth. For a while, he shelved this concept in favor of developing his idea for a space opera that would become Star Wars. In 1975, two years later after he first conceived of the character, Lucas spent two weeks with his friend and screenwriter Philip Kaufman (The Outlaw Josey Wales, The Right Stuff) who discouraged Lucas from making “Indiana” a womanizer and nightclub patron and suggested the Ark of the Covenant as the focus of the adventure due to the Nazis’ (specifically Adolf Hitler’s) fascination with the Occult. Unfortunately, Kaufman was unable to direct the film and Lucas was unable to find someone until 1977. Awaiting the box-office flop that Lucas feared Star Wars would be, he invited friend and fellow filmmaker Steven Spielberg (Jaws, The Color Purple, Saving Private Ryan) to join him and his wife on vacation in Hawaii. While Spielberg was more interested in directing a James Bond film, he became interested in Lucas’s concept after hearing the pitch and, eventually, was asked by Lucas to direct. In January of 1978, Lucas hired screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan (The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi) to write another draft with him and Spielberg. During hours-long meetings with them, Kasdan quickly became the person to string together all of the disparate set pieces of the film that Lucas and Spielberg were brainstorming together. It was also during these meetings that the protagonist’s last name was changed from “Smith” to “Jones” and refined his character to being a true, honest professor of archaeology who could be comedic and serious equally capably. Five months later, Kasdan had his first draft which Lucas and Spielberg worked together to trim down by cutting out several ideas and settings that would end up being used in the sequels (a minecart chase and a trip to Shanghai, to name a few). The final screenplay was done in December of 1979, but Lucas struggled finding a studio to fund to 20-million-dollar project because of Lucas’s desire to have complete creative control and licensing for sequels while the studio put up all the money for the project. Eventually, Lucas managed a compromise with Paramount Pictures, who imposed a strict 85-day shooting schedule. However, in an effort to avoid criticism for another film of his going overschedule á la Jaws, Spielberg self-imposed an even shorter 73-day shooting schedule. Filming lasted from June to September of 1980 on location in France, Tunisia, and Hawaii, with some on-set principal photography in England. By the time that Raiders of the Lost Ark was released on June 12, 1981, the film industry was struggling as most studios were failing to produce the next successful “blockbuster” but still putting up stiff competition that summer. Additionally, predictions showed little audience interest in Raiders of the Lost Ark until right before its release with Superman II being expected to dominate the moviegoing that season. Filmed on a budget of 20 million dollars, Raiders of the Lost Ark ended up grossing nearly 390 million dollars and was generally acclaimed by critics with many characterizing the film as being akin to an instant classic. Furthermore, the film was nominated for nine Academy Awards (including Best Director and Best Picture), winning five for editing, art direction, sound, and visual effects. It was tied for the most nominations that year, along with Miloŝ Forman’s drama Ragtime. This might be a hot take, but as a kid Raiders of the Lost Ark was always my least favorite film in the original Indiana Jones trilogy. I still always enjoyed it, but I tended to like the darker story of Temple of Doom and the father-son dynamic of The Last Crusade more than anything in the first film. After doing my research, I completely agree that Indy lacks any character development (minor or major) in the first film that is engrossing enough to make me really side with the character. Apart from his romantic past with Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) I never feel like I know who Indy is as a person. For many people, that’s the point of the character and that works for them. But for me, I prefer the films where Indy transforms from an enigma to someone with flaws and vulnerability that has an arc. Overall, though, every time I watch any of the Indiana Jones films, I fall in love with their adventurous spirit and how they absorb me into whatever crazy antics Indy is trying to pull off to either survive or save some treasure. Thus, it seems to me that Raiders of the Lost Ark deserves its place in blockbuster history even if it is not the masterpiece that some people think it is. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) The inspiration for one of Spielberg’s most signature films is his imaginary alien friend from his childhood. The inception for this figment of imagination came as a result of Spielberg’s parents divorcing in 1960, and the childhood memories resurfaced while Spielberg was thousands of miles away from his family and friends filming Raiders of the Lost Ark. Within eight weeks, he wrote a script entitled E.T. and Me about a friendly alien named Buddy befriending a human child. Initially turned down by Columbia Pictures, who were working with the director to develop a sequel to his 1977 science-fiction film Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Spielberg was more warmly received by Universal Studios who bought Spielberg’s script from Columbia Pictures for one million dollars. (If only Columbia knew at the time the mistake they had made 😊). During pre-production, much attention was paid by Italian special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Alien) and producer Kathleen Kennedy (Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park, The Force Awakens) to design an animatronic alien that could engage the audience on a deeper emotional level. Filming in California began in September of 1981 under a misleading production title because Spielberg feared the film’s true story being discovered and plagiarized. By the end of the November, the film was shot on a budget of less than eleven million dollars. Released on June 11, 1982, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial surpassed Star Wars as the highest-grossing film at that time by raking in 619 million dollars worldwide during its initial theatrical run (two re-releases in 1985 and 2002 have brought the film’s unadjusted box office gross to 792 million dollars). Critics at the time universally praised the film as an engrossing exploration of childhood with great attention paid to technical prowess from Spielberg. Similar to Raiders of the Lost Ark, the film also won four Academy Awards out of nine nominations for original score, sound, editing, and visual effects. Richard Attenborough, the director of that year’s winner for Best Picture (Gandhi), was quoted as believing that E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial should have won the Oscar instead (talk about an upset). Admittedly, I was skeptical when I first sat down to watch E.T. I figured it would be too geared towards children and thus unable to hold my interest. Of course, I underestimated the storytelling talents of Steven Spielberg and found myself rather impressed by this film. It managed to balance two seemingly polar opposite tones without compromising on delivering either effectively nor losing the audience in the process. On the one hand, E.T. is a laid-back, happy-go-lucky adventure film about a bunch of kids who get caught up in caring for a gentle creature from outer space. On the other hand, though, it is a dramatic examination of losing innocence when faced with severe moral conundrums as a child and realizing that the world is not always a matter of “black-and-white” decision making. By never allowing the lighter, more humorous visage of the story get in the way of its darker undertone (or vice-versa), Spielberg manages to deliver a thoroughly engaging and entertaining story with more than enough heart to be viewed (in a certain light) as capturing the spirit of an art film (despite having the budget of a blockbuster). In short, E.T. is not my favorite Spielberg film. But it is undoubtedly one of the most unexpectedly great films from his early catalog. Return of the Jedi (1983) In line with the second film in the Star Wars saga, Lucas’s third outing in a galaxy far, far away was self-funded and not directed by him. While desiring Steven Spielberg to direct, this was impossible due to Lucas’s feud with the Directors Guild of America (DGA). Lucas then approached David Lynch (The Elephant Man, Blue Velvet), but he had virtually no interest in the project. Next, Lucas asked David Cronenberg (The Fly, Dead Ringers, A History of Violence), but Cronenberg declined as he preferred to make Videodrome and The Dead Zone. Eventually, Lucas hired Richard Marquand (Eye of the Needle, Jagged Edge) who frequently dealt with hands-on supervision by Lucas during principal photography since Lucas felt Marquand was too inexperienced working with special effects. Lawrence Kasdan returned to collaborate with Lucas on the screenplay, but a shooting script was not done before pre-production began so the crew relied only on story treatments and rough drafts to begin the production design for the film. One of the other headaches of pre-production was the uncertainty of Harrison Ford returning for another sequel, but Lucasfilm producer Howard Kazanjian managed to secure Ford’s return after negotiating a deal with the son of agent Phil Gersh over the phone (without Gersh’s knowledge). Finally, Ford, Marquand, and Kasdan all suggested that Han Solo be killed off at the start of the third act. However, feeling that such a move would hurt merchandise sales, Lucas vehemently rejected the idea. Filming went from January to May of 1982 with the project using the working title “Blue Harvest” to avoid the press and information-hungry fans learning the true nature of the production as well as prevent price gouging while securing locations for filming. In addition to shooting on-set in England, the project conducted principal photography on location in the Yuma Desert of Arizona, Death Valley, and the redwood forests of Northern California. Return of the Jedi, the end of George Lucas’s original space opera trilogy, was released on May 25, 1983 and grossed about 475 million dollars on a budget of roughly 36 million dollars. The film was considered by many critics to be a fulfilling end to the story of Star Wars, although some viewed it as a disappointing finale and the lowest quality of the three original Star Wars films. Also, it won none of the four Academy Awards that it was nominated for (score, art direction, sound editing, and sound), but was once again given a Special Achievement Award. Return of the Jedi was my favorite film in the Star Wars saga as a child, understandably so. It has fun war action with the underdog Ewoks taking on the Galactic Empire, an emotionally charged final showdown between Luke, Darth Vader, and the Emperor, and a truly epic space battle that remains (in my humble opinion) unmatched by anything like it to this day. And while I still believe all of this, it is no longer my favorite film in the saga. To keep it brief, when re-watching the film in 2019 in preparation for the release of The Rise of Skywalker the cracks in the narrative structure definitely became clear. Specifically, the outstretched second act (approximately lasting from Luke’s goodbye to Yoda on Dagobah to the Rebel fleet’s departure for Death Star II) lacks the punch that the film’s first and third acts have. I don’t want to solely blame the Ewoks for the second act’s snail’s pace. But…it’s mostly their fault. The film’s focus on the major characters being sidetracked by them lacks any forward momentum until well after Luke has surrendered himself to Vader and left the planet. My other disappointment upon a re-watch was the lack of character development for Han Solo. After getting rescued from Jabba and regaining his eyesight, he lacks the same satisfying arc that Luke and (to a lesser extent) Leia have by the end credits. And Harrison Ford seems to have sucked out much of the likeable charm from the character in exchange for a goofier version of Solo that fits well in this film but does not vibe as much with his previous performances. However, these are my only major complaint about Return of the Jedi. The first act is a solid re-entry into the story of the original trilogy with the rescuing of Han from Jabba’s Palace serving as a great, character-focused action set piece. Furthermore, the third act overall (but particularly the destruction of Death Star II and Luke/Vader’s defeat of the Emperor) is a nothing-but-astounding finale to the story that Lucas started back in the 1970s. Thus, Return of the Jedi is more than deserving of its status as a prime example of the 1980s blockbuster. Back to the Future (1985) Since 1980, Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale had wanted to make a movie about time travel. However, coming off of the box-office flop I Wanna Hold Your Hand in 1978 and the financial wash Used Cars in 1980, they both recognized the importance of developing a coherent and satisfying narrative that would bring people into the theaters. But when Gale visited his parents and sifted through his father’s high school yearbook, he considered the potential of being friends with his father’s younger self and knew that such a thought experiment could be testable if only he could travel back in time. Later that year, he shared the idea with Zemeckis and they began their first draft. By early 1981, Gale and Zemeckis presented their first draft to Frank Price, then the president of Columbia Pictures, who wanted to work with the pair but felt that their screenplay required significant revisions. Over the next few months, they completed a second draft that honed in on the humor inherent to the time-travel concept (i.e. taking 1985 conveniences for granted when living in 1955) as well as refined the teenage protagonist’s burgeoning love triangle with his teenage father and mother from the past. After finishing the second draft in April that year, Zemeckis and Gale were denied funding by Price because he felt that, compared to other successful comedies of the era (i.e. Animal House, Fast Times at Ridgemont High), their script lacked enough edgy humor. Their second draft ended up being rejected a total of 40 times, and it was not until Zemeckis’s next film, Romancing the Stone released in 1984, that he regained the necessary confidence to begin pitching his time-travel screenplay once again. With a grudge against most of the major studios who had rejected in years earlier, Zemeckis gained the financial backing of Amblin Entertainment, the production company of Zemeckis’s friend and frequent collaborator Steven Spielberg (who was one of the only people in Hollywood at the time who liked Gale and Zemeckis’s script). Some issues over the rights to the concept caused the film to enter a lengthy pre-production process, which ultimately worked in its favor as it allowed Gale and Zemeckis to write a third draft (completed in July of 1984) that refined the narrative structure and update the humor. Perhaps the most notable aspect of the film’s early days of principal photography was that filming went on for over a month with Eric Stoltz (Mask, Some Kind of Wonderful, Pulp Fiction), who Zemeckis was eager to replace prior to the start of filming. With Spielberg’s help, the script for the film eventually got into the hands of Michael J. Fox (Casualties of War, The American President, The Frighteners), who agreed to play the role of Marty McFly without even reading the script. With scheduling issues resolved allowing Fox to play the character while accommodating his shooting for the sitcom Family Ties, Zemeckis met Stoltz on set on January 10, 1985 and fired him. Many of the scenes shot with Stoltz previously were reshot with Fox separately to keep production costs from going even more overbudget than they already had. Additionally, sets had to be adjusted and scenes needed to be reconceived to tailor them more to Fox’s performance and away from Stoltz’s. Filming finally on April 26, 1985, after 107 days of principal photography. Similar to when Raiders of the Lost Ark was released, this film’s producers were concerned about the recent dip in summer movie profits and thus the film was moved around several times before securing a release date of July 3, 1985 so as to avoid the stereotype associated with films released later in the summer at the time. Back to the Future ended up grossing over 380 million dollars worldwide from its initial release, becoming the highest-grossing film of the year beating out Rocky IV and Rambo: First Blood Part II. At the time of its release, critics mostly praised the film as a thoroughly entertaining flick with an exposition-heavy first act that paid off by the end. Some detractors, however, found Back to the Future to be overly zany and ultimately unfulfilling due to the inevitability of Marty’s successful return to 1985. The main cast, from Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd as the two leads to Lea Thompson and Crispin Glover as Marty’s parents, were well received. Furthermore, the film won Best Sound Effects Editing at the Academy Awards, losing nominations for Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound, and Best Original Song. Undoubtedly, Back to the Future cemented itself as an instant classic and cultural phenomenon. Not only is it a touchstone of 1980s filmmaking and popular culture, but it is viewed by many film critics, cinephiles, and general moviegoers today as one of the most well-written films of the last half-century. As I have written more deeply about this film before, I shall condense my thoughts on it here for the sake of brevity. My lack of nostalgia for Back to the Future makes it hard to love this movie, but I greatly respect its place in the cultural zeitgeist and in the history of blockbuster filmmaking. First and foremost, the writing is top-notch with no second of screen time wasted to either develop character dynamics or setup plot for the future. Furthermore, the main performances are all super fun for what they are. While I enjoy Marty and Doc’s back and forth, as well as Marty’s dynamic with the younger versions of his parents, the standout performance for me is Thomas F. Wilson as Biff Tannen who might just be the best zany, campy villain in all of 1980s film. Overall, I lack the diehard adoration for Back to the Future that others have but I enjoy it every time I watch it. Thus, it deserves its place as the more moderately successful 1980s blockbuster in today’s blog. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) To follow up Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, the first sequel to Spielberg’s original film, he intended to cap off the trilogy with a film that recaptured the spirit and tone of Raiders of the Lost Ark. However, Lucas and Spielberg struggled to agree on a story for a third film. Early on, Lucas suggested that the Holy Grail be the focus, but Spielberg initially lacked interest in the idea. Lucas then shifted focus to a ghost story, entitled Indiana Jones and the Monkey King, which screenwriter and director Chris Columbus (Adventures in Babysitting, Home Alone, Mrs. Doubtfire) completed a draft of in May of 1985. Spielberg eventually warmed up to the Holy Grail idea, and suggested including Indiana’s father as a character to serve as a metaphor for the swashbuckling archaeologist’s search for the Holy Grail, but Lucas wanted to focus almost exclusively on the Grail itself. Spielberg hired Dutch screenwriter Menno Meyjes (The Color Purple) to write a second draft. Completed in January of 1986, it ended up being very different from Columbus’s script. Finally, Jeffrey Boam (The Dead Zone, Lethal Weapon 2) was hired to develop a treatment with Lucas that became the basis for the final film. Unlike the previous writers, including Lucas and Spielberg, Boam made the father-son relationship between Indiana and Henry Jones, Sr. the emotional core of the story and de-emphasized finding the Grail at the end. These changes came from Boam’s perception of a lack of character development in the first two films. Principal photography kicked off in Spain in May of 1988, with shooting in England, West Germany, Italy, Colorado, Utah, and Texas over the next several months. Completed on a budget of nearly 50 million dollars, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade was released on May 24, 1989 and ended up grossing 474 million dollars (the highest-grossing entry in the franchise until Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull in 2008). While the film was mostly praised by critics, some viewed it as emotionally falling on deaf ears and unable to meet the dramatic depth that Indiana’s relationship with his father was calling for. Today, the film is lauded as one of the best conclusions to a film trilogy ever made and remains one of the most successful blockbusters of the 1980s. This remains my favorite film of the Indiana Jones franchise, largely because of its demythologization of the eponymous protagonist. As I said in my writing about Raiders of the Lost Ark, I tend to enjoy heroes being demystified and broken down in an effort to reveal more about their characters and, therefore, become more relatable. By exploring his less-than-ideal relationship with his father, the film makes Indy human in a way that he never was in the first two entries. On top of that, simply bringing in Sean Connery to play Henry Jones, Sr. and seeing his chemistry with Harrison Ford is utterly delightful to watch. Besides the characters, I thoroughly enjoy the set pieces in The Last Crusade. From the boat chase on the canals of Venice and Indy rescuing his father in Austria to Indy defeating a German tank in the deserts of Turkey, this movie never lets up with the adventure. If the characters do not suit you, the action almost certainly will. So, those are some of the best blockbusters of the 1980s. Of course, there are others like the criminal-killing Beverly Hills Cop, the high-flying Top Gun, and the caped-crusading Batman. Needless to say, one could argue that this decade is unmatched in terms of its blockbuster prestige. Or is it…? I guess you’ll have to wait and see with future blogs when I explore the best blockbusters of the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s! 😊 Which of these 1980s blockbuster films is your favorite? What other 1980s blockbusters that I did not mention here do you think are important? What opinions of mine do you find absolutely ridiculous? Let me know in the comments below. Until next time, this has been… Yours Truly, Amateur Analyst
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Austin McManusI have no academic or professional background in film production or criticism; I simply love watching and talking about movies. Archives
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