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Avatar List added by The Mighty Celestial on 11 January 2009 08:18

1983: My Top Ten Favorite Movies By Year

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People who added this item 1899  Average listal rating (1368 ratings) 7.8  IMDB Rating 8.3 
1. Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)


It's father vs. son vs. the Emperor as the first franchise to go under the simple term of "The Trilogy" by it's fans reaches it's long awaited climax. Luke has become a full Jedi, Han has become decarbonized & Princess Leia is completely ignoring the fact that she made out with her brother in the first episode, A Brave New Hope.
Yeah, I know that this is considered the weakest of the original series, but at the time of it's initial release, for me, there was was nothing more important than the Force Fever that was sweeping all of society back then.
I don't care that the Ewoks were corny, stupid & had a hit song at the time (if anyone out there has the 12-inch extended dance mix to this, contact me & you will have a new very best friend ... ),
for my sci-fi geeked-out @ss, this sh#t wuz fo sho', yo.
And besides, no matter how much ROTJ gets the stigma as the lesser of the groundbreaking blockbuster franchise trio , it still kicks the butt of any of the prequels (yeah, that's right.... I sed it).
Plus, let's not forget, this was the chapter in which Princess Leia wore the famous outfit that influenced many a Star Wars nerd to engage in bouts of the self-member role-playing game mockingly known as "Hands Solo".




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People who added this item 267  Average listal rating (185 ratings) 7  IMDB Rating
2. WarGames (1983)
Shall.
We.
Play.
A.
Game?

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People who added this item 283  Average listal rating (198 ratings) 7.6  IMDB Rating
3. A Christmas Story (1983)


Lemme tell you guys something, if Santa were to leave an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model air rifle/BB gun under my tree this year, even at my current age, I'd still end up beating my chest & proclaiming to the whole world that it's a wonderful life.
And before anyone says anything,
lemme just say
"F#ck* my eye. I don't care."



*( ...and when I said that, it didn't come out as "fudge".)
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People who added this item 17  Average listal rating (8 ratings) 7  IMDB Rating
4. Bad Boys (1983)


One of the major reasons this is one is on my list is because I had a friend who played one of the gang-members in this flick. And on that whole six degrees of separation thing, that puts me only one degree away from that one dude from La Bamba.
Hell, we practically know each other.
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People who added this item 100  Average listal rating (64 ratings) 7.3  IMDB Rating 7.9 
5. The Right Stuff (1983)

Years ago, at a sci-fi convention in Kansas City, some friends & I not only got to meet Gordon Cooper, but also got to have dinner with him & share a limo ride to the airport. And on that whole six degrees of separation thing, that puts me only one degree away from outer space.



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People who added this item 196  Average listal rating (134 ratings) 6.9  IMDB Rating 7.3 
6. The Dead Zone (1983)


Christopher Walken with a superpower other than his mad acting skillz, yo.
Or his dancing skillz.

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People who added this item 220  Average listal rating (160 ratings) 6.9  IMDB Rating 7.3 
7. Vacation (1983)
And speaking of vacation,
I'm long due for one.
The last time I took one,
John Candy was still alive, Beverly D'Angelo was thin & Chevy Chase was actually funny.



Back in the day,
there was no one who didn't think this movie was just some funny ass sh#t.
The Mighty Celestial's rating:

People who added this item 1092  Average listal rating (671 ratings) 7.8  IMDB Rating 8.2 
8. Scarface (1983)
Okay, let's get this part out of the way;
"Say 'ello tu my lil-oh frenn!"
Now, with that most over-used movie-line over & done with,
Scarface is the in-your-face, over-the-top character that will always iconically follow the career of Al Pacino.
The rise & fall of drug kingpin who literally started out nothing & pyrrhically ends up with everything the drug-world has to offer.
One of those rare times for an actor where upon it's over-the-top performance is considered so perfect for the role, that's its almost impossible to imagine it done in any other fashion.
Pacino is brutal, heartless & violent not just the way he handles the character of, but also with the way he handles the Cuban accent (something he does again, but this time with a Puerto rican accent & not with as much of an iconic effect, in 1997's Carlito's Way).
As the movie tagline says: "He loved the American Dream. With a Vengeance."

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People who added this item 23  Average listal rating (12 ratings) 7.4  IMDB Rating 7.4 
9. Tender Mercies (1983)
A quiet simple story of how learning to deal with one's past mistakes can begin the process of turning one's life around. And how that is usually not followed up a big bang of instant life-change, but more a subtle re-evaluation of one's circumstances.

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People who added this item 200  Average listal rating (123 ratings) 5.7  IMDB Rating 5.6 
10. Flashdance (1983)
Yeah, I know, I know....
a bad early 80's dance flick.
But, boy,
that Jennifer Beals......


what a feeling.



She's definitely what you'd call a guilty pleasure.
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Description

One of my favorite summers as a kid in the final Star Wars season that I would get to experience as a kid.
And as I stated in its entry, even though Return Of The Jedi wasn't as good as its successors, it was able to provide the summer-time viewing thrill that used to be common back in the day (nowadays, everyone has a much more indifferentiated "okay, show me what you got attitude" when it comes to these types of films).
Not to mention the season was also occupied with the hilarious lampoon "Vacation",
the nigh-apocalyptic ( & a personal favorite) "War Games",
& finally, rounding out the year with the holiday neo-classic "A Christmas Story".


List cont.

11. The King Of Comedy - This film may belong in the top ten, but it's been years since I saw it, so I would need to give it a rewatch before determining where it would actually rank.

12. Trading Places

13. The Big Chill

14. The Keep

15. Terms Of Endearment


Film from this year that I have not seen but am interested in seeing

- Risky Business (yeah, a film that has become such a cultural icon, & yet, I still have seen it.)


Other lists by The Mighty Celestial:

My Top 20 Female Movie Bad-Asses http://www.listal.com/list/my-top-10-female

10 Movies That Feature A Dancin' Travolta In 'Em http://www.listal.com/list/my-list-9158

Yep. When It Comes To Comicbook Movies .... http://www.listal.com/list/yep-am-huge-comicbook

WAATAAAH!! My Top 10 Favorite Martial Arts Flix! http://www.listal.com/list/my-list-thecelestial

The Final Frontier Of Space... & Time. My Top 50 Favorite Sci-Fi Flix Ever http://www.listal.com/list/final-frontier-space-time

Can't We Be Dysfunctional Like A Normal Family?
http://www.listal.com/list/dysfunctional-family-movies/edit

My Other Top Ten Favorite Movies By Year Lists: http://www.listal.com/list/19551959-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1976-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1982-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1984-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1992-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1993-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1995-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1997-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1998-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/1999-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/2003-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/2004-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/2005-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/2007-my-top-ten-favorite

http://www.listal.com/list/2008-my-top-ten-favorite

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