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Your Favourite Performances from 1929 to present are...


Bogie56
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I am guessing you meant to say The Empire Strikes Back although Raiders was filmed in 1980. ;)

 

I am surprised that film isn't getting any attention yet, probably because it was more about the special effects than the acting.

 

You're right. It serves me right for typing my list up at 1:30 AM. I also left off Shelley Duvall from my Best Actress list, although she was on my written one. I added her to my post, as well.

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Oh I know you are one of the brainiest movie buffs here, so I was ONLY kidding with you a little... ha ha! Also I was trying to stir some interest in that movie. Are there any decent performances that we even remember apart from Frank Oz's voice work for Yoda?

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Oh I know you are one of the brainiest movie buffs here, so I was ONLY kidding with you a little... ha ha! Also I was trying to stir some interest in that movie. Are there any decent performances that we even remember apart from Frank Oz's voice work for Yoda?

 

Billy Dee Williams

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Actor

 

Robert De Niro, Raging Bull
Jack Nicholson, The Shining
Edward Woodward, Breaker Morant
John Hurt, The Elephant Man
Gerard Depardieu, Mon Oncle D'Amerique

Runner-ups: Tatsuya Nakadai (Kagemusha), Gunter Lamprecht (Berlin Alexanderplatz), Art Garfunkel (Bad Timing:  A Sensual Obsession), Kris Kristofferson (Heaven's Gate), Roger Pierre (Mon Oncle D'Amerique), Dan Aykroyd (The Blues Brothers), John Belushi (The Blues Brothers), Paul Le Mat (Melvin and Howard), Robert Atzorn (From the Life of the Marionettes), Donald Sutherland (Ordinary People), Woody Allen (Stardust Memories), Gerard Depardieu (The Last Metro), Bob Hoskins (The Long Good Friday), Jacques Dutronc (Every Man for Himself), Walter Matthau (Hopscotch), Timothy Hutton (Ordinary People), Lee Marvin (The Big Red One), Alan King (Just Tell me What you Want), Eusebio Poncella (Arrebato), Tommy Lee Jones (Coal Miner's Daughter),

Actress

Shelly Duvall, The Shining
Gena Rowlands, Gloria
Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner's Daughter
Catherine Deneuve, The Last Metro
Nicole Garcia, Mon Oncle D'Amerique

Runner-ups:  Hanna Schygulla (Berlin Alexandeplatz), Theresa Russell (Bad Timing:  A Sensual Obsession), Ali MacGraw (Just Tell me What you Want), Dyan Cannon (Honeysuckle Rose), Chistine Buchegger (From the Life of the Marionettes), Mary Tyler Moore (Ordinary People), Charlotte Rampling (Stardust Memories), Helen Mirren (The Long Good Friday), Glenda Jackson (Hopscotch), Nathalie Baye (Every Man for Himself)

Supporting Actor

Philip Stone, The Shining
Joe Pesci, Raging Bull
Harrison Ford, The Empire Strikes Back
Leslie Nielsen, Airplane!
Gottfried John, Berlin Alexanderplatz

Runner-ups:  Danny Lloyd (The Shining), Scatman Crothers (The Shining), Anthony Hopkins (The Elephant Man), Lloyd Bridges (Airplane!), Harvey Keitel (Bad Timing:  A Sensual Obsession), Takashi Shimura (Kagemusha), Bryan Brown (Breaker Morant), Jack Thompson (Breaker Morant), Peter O'Toole (The Stunt Man), Jason Robards (Melvin and Howard), Christopher Walken (Heaven's Gate), Robert Stack (Airplane!), John Hurt (Heaven's Gate), Henry Gibson (The Blues Brothers), Peter Graves (Airplane!), Joe Turkel (The Shining), David Mansfield (Heaven's Gate), Joseph Cotton (Heaven's Gate)

Supporting Actress

Barbara Sukowa, Berlin Alexanderplatz
Mary Steenburgen, Melvin and Howard
Cathy Moriarty, Raging Bull
Anne Bancroft, The Elephant Man
Isabelle Huppert, Every Man for Himself/Heaven's Gate

Runner-ups:  Myrna Loy (Just Tell me What you Want), Wendy Hiller (The Elephant Man), Barbara Bilingsley (Airplane!), Amy Irving (Honeysuckle Rose), Lorna Patterson (Airplane!), Carrie Fisher (The Blues Brothers), Sarah Holcomb (Caddyshack), Beverly D'Angelo (Coal Miner's Daughter)

Not seen:  Tribute, Resurrection, Private Benjamin, Inside Moves

 

-------Just to remind everyone, my actual best actress of 1980 is Natassja Kinski for Tess, while Peter Firth would be my second choice for best supporting actor.

 

-------Anne Bancroft didn't get a nomination for her two most famous roles, but she has one now!

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ACTOR:

1. Anthony Hopkins - The Elephant Man
2. Gérard Depardieu - The Last Metro
3. Burt Lancaster - Atlantic City
4. John Hurt - The Elephant Man
5. Louis de Funès - The Miser
6. Gérard Depardieu - Loulou
7. Jack Nicholson - The Shining
8. Robert De Niro - Raging Bull
9. Michael Caine - Dressed to Kill

10. Robert Redford - Brubaker

 

ACTRESS:
1. Catherine Deneuve - The Last Metro
2. Susan Sarandon - Atlantic City
3. Irene Cara - Fame
4. Dolly Parton - 9 to 5
5. Goldie Hawn - Private Benjamin
6. Isabelle Huppert - Loulou
7. Shelley Duvall - The Shining
8. Sophie Marceau - La Boum
9. Angie Dickinson - Dressed to Kill 
10. Jodie Foster - Foxes
 
SUPPORTING ACTOR
1. Maurice Risch - The Last Metro
2. John Gielgud - The Elephant Man
3. Leslie Nielsen - Airplane!
4. Freddie Jones - The Elephant Man  
5. Yaphet Kotto - Brubaker
6. Gene Kelly - Xanadu
7. Morgan Freeman - Brubaker
8. Michel Galabru - The Miser

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
1. Nancy Allen - Dressed to Kill
2. Andréa Ferréol - The Last Metro
3. Hannah Gordon - The Elephant Man
4. Jane Alexander - Brubaker
5. Cherie Currie - Foxes
6. Charlotte Rampling - Stardust Memories
7. Donatella Damiani - City of Women
8. Kim Novak - The Mirror Crack'd
 
BEST JUVENILE PERFORMANCE: Brooke Shields - The Blue Lagoon
BEST EXTRA: David Lynch - The Elephant Man
BEST ANIMAL PERFORMANCE: Fiji crested iguana - The Blue Lagoon
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: Pino Donaggio - Dressed to Kill
BEST NON-ORIGINAL SONG: Think (Aretha Franklin in The Blues Brothers)
BEST ORIGINAL SONG: 
1. Out Here on My Own (Irene Cara in Fame)
2. 9 to 5 (Dolly Parton in 9 to 5
3. Xanadu (Olivia Newton John in Xanadu)
BEST QUOTE: 
1. "You should have seen the Atlantic Ocean back then!" (Atlantic City)
2. "Am I a good man or am I a bad man?" (The Elephant Man)
3. "Heeeeeeerrre's Johnny!!!" (The Shining)
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The New York Film Critics Circle Awards for 1980 were …

 

Best Actor

Robert De Niro, Raging Bull*

Robert Duvall, The Great Santini (79)

Peter O’Toole, The Stunt Man

 

Best Actress

Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner’s Daughter* 

Goldie Hawn, Private Benjamin

Mary Tyler Moore, Ordinary People

 

Best Supporting Actor

Joe Pesci, Raging Bull*

Jason Robards, Melvin and Howard

Timothy Hutton, Ordinary People

 

Best Supporting Actress

Mary Steenburgen, Melvin and Howard*

Debra Winger, Urban Cowboy

Mary Nell Santacrone, Wise Blood

Eva La Gallienne, Resurrection

 

—————————————————————————————————

 

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards for 1980 were …

 

Best Actor

Robert De Niro, Raging Bull*

 

Best Actress

Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner’s Daughter*

 

Best Supporting Actor

Timothy Hutton, Ordinary People*

 

Best Supporting Actress

Mary Steenburgen, Melvin and Howard*

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Here are my choices of the 106 films I've seen from 1980 for…

 

Best Actress of 1980

 

1.  SISSY SPACEK (Loretta Webb Lynn), Coal Miner's Daughter

2.  SHELLEY DUVALL (Winifred “Wendy” Torrance), The Shining

3.  GINA ROWLANDS (Gloria Swenson), Gloria

4.  ELLEN BURSTYN (Edna Mae Harper McCauley), Resurrection

5.  MARIE TIFO (Michelle), Les Bons Debarras

 

6.  ISABELLE HUPPERT (Nelly), Loulou

7.  CATHY MORIARTY (Vickie LaMotta), Raging Bull

8.  DEBRA WINGER (Sissy Davis), Urban Cowboy

9.  SUSAN SARANDON (Sally Matthews), Atlantic City

10. NICOLE GARCIA (Janine Garnier), Mon Oncle d’Amerique

 

and ...

 

THERESA RUSSELL (Milena Flaherty Vognic), Bad Timing: A Sensual Obsession

VERA ALENTOVA (Katerina Tikhomirova Aznikov/”Katya”), Moscow Does Not Believe In Tears

MARIE-CHRISTINE BARRAULT (Isobel), Stardust Memories

MARY TYLER MOORE (Beth Jarrett), Ordinary People

JODIE FOSTER (Jeanie), Foxes

GOLDIE HAWN (Private Judy Ellen Benjamin Goodman), Private Benjamin

LILY TOMLIN (Violet Newstead), 9 to 5

CATHERINE DENEUVE (Marion Steiner), The Last Metro

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Here are my choices of the 106 films I've seen from 1980 for…

 

Best Actor of 1980

 

1.  ROBERT DE NIRO (Jake LaMotta), Raging Bull

2.  BOB HOSKINS (Harold Shand), The Long Good Friday

3.  JACK NICHOLSON (Jack Torrance), The Shining

4.  JOHN HURT (John Merrick), The Elephant Man

5.  JACK THOMPSON (Major J.F. Thomas), Breaker Morant

 

6.  JOHN TRAVOLTA (Buford U. "Bud" Davis), Urban Cowboy

7.  THOMAS PEACOCKE (Father Athol Murray), The Hounds of Notre Dame

8.  BURT LANCASTER (Lou Pasco), Atlantic City

9.  TOMMY LEE JONES (Doolittle "Doo" Lynn/”Mooney”), Coal Miner's Daughter

10. EDWARD WOODWARD (Lt. Harry Harbord “Breaker” Morant), Breaker Morant

 

and ...

 

TIMOTHY HUTTON (Conrad Jarrett), Ordinary People

OLEG TABAKOV (Ilya Ilyich Oblomov), Oblomov

GERARD DEPARDIEU (Loulou), Loulou

MICHEL SERRAULT (Albert Mougeotte/”Albin”/”Zaza Napoli”), La Cage Aux Folles II

JACK LEMMON (Scottie Templeton), Tribute

DONALD SUTHERLAND (Calvin Jarrett), Ordinary People

PAUL LE MAT (Melvin E. Dummar), Melvin and Howard

TATSUYA NAKADAI (Shingen Takada/“the Thief”/Kagemusha/‘Shadow Warrior’), Kagemusha

ALEXEI BATALOV (Gosha), Moscow Does Not Believe In Tears

GERARD DEPARDIEU (Rene Ragueneau), Mon Oncle d’Amerique

NICK NOLTE (Neal Cassaday/”Dean Moriarity”), Heart Beat

MARIUS WEYERS (Andrew Steyn), The Gods Must Be Crazy

DAVID CARRADINE (Cole Younger), The Long Riders

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The Boston Society of Film Critics began in 1981.  Here are their acting choices for 1980:

 

Best Actor

Robert De Niro, Raging Bull

 

Best Actress

Gena Rowlands, Gloria

 

Best Supporting Actor

Jason Robards, Melvin and Howard

 

Best Supporting Actress

Mary Steenburgen, Melvin and Howard

 

——————————————————————————————

 
The National Board of Review Awards for 1980 were…

 

Best Actor

Robert De Niro, Raging Bull*

 

Best Actress

Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner’s Daughter*

 

Best Supporting Actor

Joe Pesci, Raging Bull*

 

Best Supporting Actress

Eva Le Gallienne, Resurrection*

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The National Society of Film Critics Awards for 1980 were …

 

Best Actor

Peter O’Toole, The Stunt Man*

Robert De Niro, Raging Bull

Robert Duvall, The Great Santini (79)

 

Best Actress

Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner’s Daughter*

Mary Tyler Moore, Ordinary People

Goldie Hawn, Private Benjamin

 

Best Supporting Actors

Joe Pesci, Raging Bull*

Timothy Hutton, Ordinary People

Jason Robards, Melvin and Howard

 

Best Supporting Actresses

Mary Steenburgen, Melvin and Howard*

Debra Winger, Urban Cowboy

Cathy Moriarty, Raging Bull

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The BAFTA winners for 1980 were ….

 

Best Actor

John Hurt, The Elephant Man

Roy Scheider, All That Jazz (79)

Peter Sellers, Being There (79)

Dustin Hoffman, Kramer vs. Kramer (79)

 

Best Actress

Judy Davis, My Brilliant Career (79)

Shirley MacLaine, Being There (79)

Meryl Streep, Kramer vs. Kramer (79)

Bette Midler, The Rose (79)

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Best Actress of 1980

 

5.  MARIE TIFO (Michelle), Les Bons Debarras

 

Bons_Debarras_Les.jpg

Les Bons Debarras (1980) won 8 Canadian Genie Awards.  Marie Tifo plays a single mother living in rural Quebec.  Her daughter played by Charlotte Laurier is overly possessive and prevents her from having other relationships.  This is a film I have suggested to TCM a few times as it was directed by the late Frances Mankiewicz (1944-1993) who according to the imdb was a distant relative of Herman and Joseph Mankiewicz.  This then would make him a relative of Ben's too.  I wonder if Ben knows that?

This is one of the rare French Canadian films that does exist on dvd with English subtitles.  But according to one Amazon reviewer the dvd distributor did not contribute to the film's restoration so the digital copy for sale is from an inferior source.  Canada really is third world when it comes to its own film heritage. 

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Despite the fact that I have seen more films over all from this period than any of the previous decades that we have covered, from the mid-70's through the 1980's I have seen less foreign and arthouse films than from the other eras before or after. Most of my choices will be from more mainstream films, heavy on the genre titles (SF, horror, action, etc).

 

Also regardless of the fact that this was the era of home video emergence, these films are harder to locate now than older films. Very few cable stations air unedited, commercial free movies from the 1970's and 1980's, other than the handful of box-office hits. Also the DVD/Blu-Ray market doesn't help, as many of these titles are lost in rights issues limbo, or were early releases that are now a decade or more out of print.

 

When I hear complaints about this era of films being shown on TCM, I find it ironic that these movies are harder to see now than those of the 1940's and 1950's. If the market was better, I would be 110% behind the notion of a TCM2 channel that focused only on post-studio era movies from here and abroad.

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Here are Danny Peary’s Alternate Oscar choices for 1980.  Winners in bold.  

 

Best Actor

Robert De Niro, Raging Bull*

Bob Hoskins, The Long Good Friday

Peter O’Toole, The Stunt Man

 

Best Actress

Ellen Burstyn, Resurrection*

Judy Davis, My Brilliant Career (79)

Shelley Duvall, The Shining

Jodie Foster, Foxes

Goldie Hawn, Private Benjamin

Helen Mirren, The Long Good Friday

Gena Rowlands, Gloria

Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner’s Daughter

 

 

And here are Michael Gerbert’s Golden Armchair choices for 1980:

 

Best Actor

Gerard Depardieu, Loulou*

 

Best Actress

Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner’s Daughter*

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The Golden Globe Awards for 1980 were …

 

Best Actor in a Drama

Robert De Niro, Raging Bull*

John Hurt, The Elephant Man

Jack Lemmon, Tribute

Peter O’Toole, The Stunt Man

Donald Sutherland, Ordinary People

 

Best Actress in a Drama

Mary Tyler Moore, Ordinary People* 

Ellen Burstyn, Resurrection

Natassja Kinski, Tess (79)

Deborah Raffin, Touched by Love

Gena Rowlands, Gloria

 

Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical

Ray Sharkey, The Idolmaker*

Neil Diamond, The Jazz Singer

Tommy Lee Jones, Coal Miner’s Daughter

Paul Le Mat, Melvin and Howard

Walter Matthau, Hopscotch

 

Best Actresses in a Comedy or Musical

Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner’s Daughter*

Irene Cara, Fame

Goldie Hawn, Private Benjamin

Bette Midler, Divine Madness

Dolly Parton, Nine to Five

 

Best Supporting Actor

Timothy Hutton, Ordinary People*

Judd Hirsch, Ordinary People

Joe Pesci, Raging Bull

Jason Robards, Melvin and howard

Scott Wilson, The Ninth Configuration

 

Best Supporting Actress

Mary Steenburgen, Melvin and Howard*

Luci Arnaz, The Jazz Singer

Beverly D’Angelo, Coal Miner’s Daughter

Cathy Moriarty, Raging Bull

Debra Winger, Urban Cowboy

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Best Actor

John Belushi, The Blues Brothers

Robert DeNiro, Raging Bull

Robert Hayes, Airplane

John Hurt, The Elephant Man

Timothy Hutton, Ordinary People

Tommy Lee Jones, Coal Miner's Daughter

Burt Lancaster, Atlantic City

Jack Nicholson, The Shining

Jason Robards, Melvin and Howard

Gene Wilder Stir Crazy

 

Best Actress

Goldie Hawn, Private Benjamin

Angela Lansbury, The Mirror Crack'd

Mary Tyler Moore, Ordinary People

Gena Rowlands, Gloria

Susan Sarandon, Atlantic City

Sissy Spacek, Coal Miner's Daughter

Lily Tomlin, 9 to 5

 

Best Supporting Actor

John Candy, The Blues Brothers

Scatman Crothers, The Shining

Rodney Dangerfield, Caddyshack

Murphy Dunne, The Blues Brothers

Levon Helm, Coal Miner's Daughter

Ted Knight, Caddyshack

Bill Murray, Caddyshack

Leslie Nielsen, Airplane

Joe Pesci, Raging Bull

Billy Dee Williams, Star Wars Episode V

 

Best Supporting Actress

Eileen Brennan, Private Benjamin

Beverly D'Angelo, Coal Miner's Daughter

Ruth Gordon, My Bodyguard

Cathy Moriarty, Raging Bull

Kate Reid, Atlantic City

Mary Steenburgen, Melvin and Howard

Elizabeth Wilson, 9 to 5

 

Best Juvenile Performance

John Adames, Gloria

Danny Lloyd, The Shining

Chris Makepeace, My Bodyguard

 

Best Performance by an Inanimate Object

Otto as Otto, Airplane

 

Best Performance by an Athlete

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Airplane

 

Best Performance by a Former Sitcom Mother

Barbara Billingsley, Airplane

Mary Tyler Moore, Ordinary People

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Despite the fact that I have seen more films over all from this period than any of the previous decades that we have covered, from the mid-70's through the 1980's I have seen less foreign and arthouse films than from the other eras before or after. Most of my choices will be from more mainstream films, heavy on the genre titles (SF, horror, action, etc).

Funny, I was thinking the opposite, that I've seen more foreign films from places like Germany, Australia, Eastern Europe, and other countries, which were really coming into their own around that time. Many American films of that period were not my cup of tea. In 1980, I had a particular aversion to Melvin and Howard; and I've never been a big fan of movies like Ordinary People, which I felt were decent but would be better on television. Lots of good horror films around that time, though.

 

There was one particular 1980 movie that I liked a lot -- Robert Altman's weird, mysterious Popeye. Shelly Duvall was born to play Olive Oyl.

 

popeye-1980-shelley-duvall-bkc19d.jpg

 

Also loved Fade to Black -- like The Day of the Locust, it needs to be seen on TCM. A sort of horror film about a young man who LOVES movies.

 

fade-to-black-ii.jpg

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I was speaking more of Foreign Language films. I've seen a lot of Australian films from the era, as well as British films, and many, many European genre films, mainly from Italy and Spain, dubbed in English. The films I haven't seen are the more "respectable" award-winning types.

 

The first time I saw Fade to Black, I hated it. I saw it again about 15 years later and enjoyed it more. Dennis Christopher really got to chew into the role. I enjoyed seeing a young Mickey Rourke in a minor role, too. 

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The 1980 Berlin International Film Festival winners were…

 

Best Actor

Andrzej Seweryn, The Conductor/Dyrygent

 

Best Actress

Renate Krossner, Solo Sunny

 

——————————————————————————————

 

The 1980 Cannes Film Festival winners were…

 

Best Actor

Michel Piccoli, Leap Into the Void

 

Best Actress

Anouk Aimee, Leap Into the Void

 

Best Supporting Actor

Jack Thompson, Breaker Morant

 

Best Supporting Actresses

Caria Gravina, The Terrace/La Terrazza

Milena Dravic, Special Therapy

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Best Actor of 1980

 

1.  ROBERT DE NIRO (Jake LaMotta), Raging Bull

2.  BOB HOSKINS (Harold Shand), The Long Good Friday

 

long-good-friday.jpg?w=1180

In any other year, against most competition Bob Hoskins (1942-2014) would probably have walked away with my leading actor choice.   Hoskins had been making his mark primarily on the stage and in television prior to 1980.  Dennis Potter's Pennies From Heaven mini-series may have been his breakthrough.  But The Long Good Friday took Hoskins to a whole new level.  His east-end gangster, Harold Shand was both ruthless and charismatic.  Harold has a dream of becoming a legitimate real estate tycoon with plans to develop Canary Wharf just when Britain is becoming part of a new Europe.  But for that, he will need American money.  Things get complicated when a series of bombs begin to destroy his properties and the Americans may back out.  Is it his competition or the IRA?  Shand is determined to find out.

the-long-good-friday1.jpg

I won't give away the ending, but it is a brilliant piece of acting.

the-long-good-friday-bob-hoskins.jpg

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Despite the fact that I have seen more films over all from this period than any of the previous decades that we have covered, from the mid-70's through the 1980's I have seen less foreign and arthouse films than from the other eras before or after. Most of my choices will be from more mainstream films, heavy on the genre titles (SF, horror, action, etc).

 

Also regardless of the fact that this was the era of home video emergence, these films are harder to locate now than older films. Very few cable stations air unedited, commercial free movies from the 1970's and 1980's, other than the handful of box-office hits. Also the DVD/Blu-Ray market doesn't help, as many of these titles are lost in rights issues limbo, or were early releases that are now a decade or more out of print.

 

When I hear complaints about this era of films being shown on TCM, I find it ironic that these movies are harder to see now than those of the 1940's and 1950's. If the market was better, I would be 110% behind the notion of a TCM2 channel that focused only on post-studio era movies from here and abroad.

 

Something like a Criterion/TCM channel would be nice. You are correct that the market needs to be better. Most Americans purchase TV sets for the sports. Nothing against sports, but only posters on a forum like this are seeking academic and artistic stimulation. We are, after all, the country that put Trump into power. Most Americans don't have much patience with subtitles on screen. They want things simple and straight forward, with lots of shouting involved. The attention span is too short.

 

1980 definitely was an international barrel of riches: Kontrakt (Poland), Kagemusha (Japan), Le Dernier Metro (France), the animated cartoon feature Le Roi Et L’Oiseau (also France), Loulou (Switzerland/France); Bizalom (Hungary); Neskolko Dnei Iz Zhizn I.I. Oblomova (USSR); Berlin Alexanderplatz (although technically a TV mini-series in Germany)... just to name a few. It is highly unlikely you will see any on American TV.

 

Funny, I was thinking the opposite, that I've seen more foreign films from places like Germany, Australia, Eastern Europe, and other countries, which were really coming into their own around that time. Many American films of that period were not my cup of tea. In 1980, I had a particular aversion to Melvin and Howard; and I've never been a big fan of movies like Ordinary People, which I felt were decent but would be better on television. Lots of good horror films around that time, though.

 

Even though Melvin And Howard has nothing in common with Robert Altman's seventies successes, it is obviously a byproduct. The premise is great, but too many Little Incidents occur on screen that don't push the story forward and it runs too long. I saw it once on VHS in the eighties and kinda-sorta liked it. Just not enough to re-watch it. This sums up most 1980s films for me that I kinda-sorta liked.

 

Ordinary People is basically a Learning Corporation of America production made for ABC's Afternoon Specials with a teen audience in mind. Key difference is that it is rated R for its language and has Mary Tyler Moore as the ultimate b*tchy Mommy. Thanks to her success, we got Shirley MacLaine in Terms Of Endearment later, also by the same studio (Paramount) which was becoming rather predictable at this time with all of their post-John Travolta musicals and post-Airplane! comedies. This was before Eddie Murphy made that company as distinctive in the eighties as it was with Bing Crosby in the thirties and forties. I must admit that Mary "makes" the movie better than it is.

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Ordinary People is basically a Learning Corporation of America production made for ABC's Afternoon Specials with a teen audience in mind. Key difference is that it is rated R for its language and has Mary Tyler Moore as the ultimate b*tchy Mommy. Thanks to her success, we got Shirley MacLaine in Terms Of Endearment later, also by the same studio (Paramount) which was becoming rather predictable at this time with all of their post-John Travolta musicals and post-Airplane! comedies. This was before Eddie Murphy made that company as distinctive in the eighties as it was with Bing Crosby in the thirties and forties. I must admit that Mary "makes" the movie better than it is.

 

When I wrote the post to which you responded, I was thinking of Terms of Endearment as another one of those sorts of movies that don't appeal to me. Sort of American Neo-Realism creeping in, which led, in my opinion, to some of the soap-operaish films about "real people" that came later.  

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