A few curious examples being cited so far, a lot of films from the late 70s and early 80s seem to have slipped down the back of the sofa when it comes to television and so get forgotten -
a few big films that don't show up now and which I think have drifted out our collective
memory.
The Rescuers 1977
Oh, God! 1977
Coming Home 1978
Foul Play 1978 10 1979
Coal Miner's Daughter 1980 Private Benjamin 1980 9 to 5 1980
Reds 1981
Sharky's Machine 1981 Porky's 1982 (now relegated to Movies4Men)
Mr. Mom 1983 (Michael Keatons first above the title starring role) Terms of Endearment 1983
That's a very good list in the spirit of the thread.
Especially the ones I've highlighted which were very well known films indeed around the time they came out and for a decent amount of years after.
Nowadays they don't seem to be as well known.
It's those types of films I'm interested in seeing people post which are from the years preceding the year 2000.
That's true, when Patrick Swayze died most of the coverage focused on Dirty Dancing even though Ghost was a much bigger hit. The former though has come to be closely associated with 80s nostalgia, which is slightly odd as it's set in the early 60s.
Yes I thought that was weird at the time.
I knew of Dirty Dancing, but it seemed to be one of those films that were more well known as possible films to rent on video.
But Ghost was more of a major film which made a big impact at the time.
So I was a bit puzzled when Patrick Swayze died that they were going on about Dirty Dancing as his big hit rather than Ghost which was a massive film in its day.
Ghost even often gets referenced nowadays wherever a potter's wheel is involved.
Just from the first page:
ET, Basic Instinc, Ghost, Dances with Wolves and Crocodile Dundee have been mentioned.
They were all hge in their time and are still well-remembered films. Indeed, Basic Insinct was really derided when it came out but is now regarded as being a prett decent film,
They are all regularly still shown on TV. ET was on only last night and it has been on at least once more in the last six months. I can recall all the others having being shown at least once (and most of hem far more often than this) in the las year.
That's a very good list in the spirit of the thread.
Especially the ones I've highlighted which were very well known films indeed around the time they came out and for a decent amount of years after.
Nowadays they don't seem to be as well known.
It's those types of films I'm interested in seeing people post which are from the years preceding the year 2000.
I would sya that 9 to 5 and Private Benjmin are very well-remembered films
As for films I think fit the bill a bit here...
The Narnia film series seems to have continually get forgotten. The films are divisive at any rate (I'm personally not a fan, they're too preachy - so I guess in line with the text) but they're relatively successful at the box office - in fact The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe was Disney's biggest worldwide release at the time. I don't even know who has the rights to them now but they're pressing ahead with The Silver Chair next. I can't say I'm bothered.
A number of kids I know enjoyed TLTWATW, and mention it, but the other
Narnia films don't seem to have made the same impact.
And two of the Narnia books are somewhat problematic for adaptation
- "The Horse and His Boy" has a villainous nation based on Middle Eastern culture (hello controversy!) and "The Last Battle
It's trash, but I still find it ridiculously entertaining trash. Maybe it helps that I like Verhoeven's directing style.
When I saw the title of this thread The Lawnmower Man came to my mind. Due to its groundbreaking effects it was a moderate hit but got a lot more publicity due to a successful video game from the movie. Both the movie and the game are now mostly forgotten due the effects dating quickly.
It's trash, but I still find it ridiculously entertaining trash. Maybe it helps that I like Verhoeven's directing style.
When I saw the title of this thread The Lawnmower Man came to my mind. Due to its groundbreaking effects it was a moderate hit but got a lot more publicity due to a successful video game from the movie. Both the movie and the game are now mostly forgotten due the effects dating quickly.
Also, Stephen King fans remember it because the Maine Man sued the producers
for using his name on the title, saying it had almost no connection with his original story.
A number of kids I know enjoyed TLTWATW, and mention it, but the other
Narnia films don't seem to have made the same impact.
And two of the Narnia books are somewhat problematic for adaptation
- "The Horse and His Boy" has a villainous nation based on Middle Eastern culture (hello controversy!) and "The Last Battle
has everyone dying and going to
the afterlife.
The Last Battle is certainly where CS Lewis lets his devout Christianity run wild. The fate of Susan is particularly cack-handed.
Just to digress slightly anyone remember one of the big cult hits of the early 80s - Quest for Fire? or Diva (1981)? Everyone was raving about the latter when it was released now its just gone.
Just to digress slightly anyone remember one of the big cult hits of the early 80s - Quest for Fire? or Diva (1981)? Everyone was raving about the latter when it was released now its just gone.
I know about "Quest for Fire" - Anthony Burgess and Desmond Morris were involved
in its production. But I've never heard of "Diva".
Just to digress slightly anyone remember one of the big cult hits of the early 80s - Quest for Fire? or Diva (1981)? Everyone was raving about the latter when it was released now its just gone.
I remember Diva very well. Wish it was on TV again to see it, but as you say, it doesn't seem to get played. Still, as it's a cult film, it's not too surprising that it's been "forgotten". I don't recall "everyone" talking about it, hence why it's a cult film.
One popular movie that seems to have vanished is the 1974 cop buddy movie Freebie and The Bean (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071521/?ref_=nv_sr_3) with James Caan and Alan Arkin. I remember seeing it in a packed cinema and it seemed really popular at the time.
Lol. I'm sure you weren't alone in that. My main memory of that films was a lot of us thinking there's no way Nicole Kidman could have learnt to do all those tricks in such a short amount of time.
Just to digress slightly anyone remember one of the big cult hits of the early 80s - Quest for Fire? or Diva (1981)? Everyone was raving about the latter when it was released now its just gone.
Diva's still credited and/or remembered in film-geekdom for starting a French cinema wave during the 1980s. Quite a few people do confuse Diva with Subway and Divine, though. So yes, I suppose it's largely forgotten now.
"Have you seen Diva yet?"
"The one with Christopher Lambert as a blond?"
"No, that's Subway."
"Oh, right. The one where a fat woman ate dog shit?"
"No, that's Divine. From John Waters's Pink Flamingos."
Inspired by the Avatar thread I thought about other recent films which were box office hits at the time of release but have largely faded from public consciousness.
As we can see from the replies, 'fading' is of an incremental nature due to the differing knowledge and experience we have with the medium. A subjective thing, even. It would be difficult to draw up a general consensus on what's faded and to what degree.
Saying that, if you turn it around and say what hasn't faded in some way, the true eternals and evergreens, then you're dealing with a much more limited pool.
I think some films are just iconic for either the Actors in it or quotes from it. Think of the most iconic films: Godfather, Apocalypse Now, Star Wars, Jaws, Indiana Jones etc.
A mere ten years from first to last ('72 - '81), all from perhaps the most collosal era for cinematic giants. Oh, how things have changed...:(
There is much more to the iconic status of all of these than just performances and quotes. They do play a part, but when a film hits true iconic status - when it really clicks with the masses in a lasting way and passes into the collective awareness - it does so for reasons more complex than you might think. Sometimes it's to do with the initial impact - the contemporary audience relating to it or seeing something relevant about it that transcends the medium (there's been absolute acres of theory concerning Star Wars success). But there are many reasons why a film can click the way they do.
Just to digress slightly anyone remember one of the big cult hits of the early 80s - Quest for Fire? or Diva (1981)? Everyone was raving about the latter when it was released now its just gone.
I remember Diva - more specifically the wierd crash helmet VHS sleeve.
To digress further, this reminds me of how semi-arthouse cinema become quite the thing in the 80s for certain crowds. The video boom was instumental here, with labels like Palace Pictures introducing many to the wonders of something a bit different.
Some have stood the test, (Betty Blue, Kiss of the Spider Woman), while some have drifted off the map a bit (My Beautiful Laundrette, Under the Volcano). Meanwhile, further down the scale, Merchant Ivory made a name for themselves with their painfully tasteful, deeply boring literary adaptations (A Room with a View, Maurice etc). It looked like cinema for the posh to me.
Being the 80s of course, some have dated more than anything. Sex, Lies & Videotape for instance, begins with Andie Macdowell sitting cross-legged on her therapists couch. That alone is probably a switch-off point for the dedicated 80s hater.
There's also films that get remembered because they are so terrible they
become bywords for bad cinema.
Some of these films are so bad that they become cult hits that people enjoy laughing at -think "Reefer Madness", "Plan 9 From Outer Space" or "The Room" by Tommy Wiseau.
I admit to quite enjoying "Plan 9" even though I know it's a completely dreadful
piece of cinema by any standards.
Others just get remembered because they are just extremely, extremely unpleasant or
irritating to watch and thus stick in the minds of viewers as a negative experience (the Tinto Brass "Caligula" is an example, as are "Inchon" and many of Michael Winner's films).
Comments
That's a very good list in the spirit of the thread.
Especially the ones I've highlighted which were very well known films indeed around the time they came out and for a decent amount of years after.
Nowadays they don't seem to be as well known.
It's those types of films I'm interested in seeing people post which are from the years preceding the year 2000.
Yes I thought that was weird at the time.
I knew of Dirty Dancing, but it seemed to be one of those films that were more well known as possible films to rent on video.
But Ghost was more of a major film which made a big impact at the time.
So I was a bit puzzled when Patrick Swayze died that they were going on about Dirty Dancing as his big hit rather than Ghost which was a massive film in its day.
Ghost even often gets referenced nowadays wherever a potter's wheel is involved.
Just from the first page:
ET, Basic Instinc, Ghost, Dances with Wolves and Crocodile Dundee have been mentioned.
They were all hge in their time and are still well-remembered films. Indeed, Basic Insinct was really derided when it came out but is now regarded as being a prett decent film,
They are all regularly still shown on TV. ET was on only last night and it has been on at least once more in the last six months. I can recall all the others having being shown at least once (and most of hem far more often than this) in the las year.
I would sya that 9 to 5 and Private Benjmin are very well-remembered films
By who? I till think it's risible.
A number of kids I know enjoyed TLTWATW, and mention it, but the other
Narnia films don't seem to have made the same impact.
And two of the Narnia books are somewhat problematic for adaptation
- "The Horse and His Boy" has a villainous nation based on Middle Eastern culture (hello controversy!) and "The Last Battle
the afterlife.
It's trash, but I still find it ridiculously entertaining trash. Maybe it helps that I like Verhoeven's directing style.
When I saw the title of this thread The Lawnmower Man came to my mind. Due to its groundbreaking effects it was a moderate hit but got a lot more publicity due to a successful video game from the movie. Both the movie and the game are now mostly forgotten due the effects dating quickly.
Also, Stephen King fans remember it because the Maine Man sued the producers
for using his name on the title, saying it had almost no connection with his original story.
The Last Battle is certainly where CS Lewis lets his devout Christianity run wild. The fate of Susan is particularly cack-handed.
Yeah...even a child that bothered me. Isn't the Neil Gaiman story, "The Problem
of Susan" about that?
I know about "Quest for Fire" - Anthony Burgess and Desmond Morris were involved
in its production. But I've never heard of "Diva".
I remember Diva very well. Wish it was on TV again to see it, but as you say, it doesn't seem to get played. Still, as it's a cult film, it's not too surprising that it's been "forgotten". I don't recall "everyone" talking about it, hence why it's a cult film.
Henson is probably best remembered for The Muppet Films around about this period.So i think The Dark Crystal gets overlooked.
Lol. I'm sure you weren't alone in that. My main memory of that films was a lot of us thinking there's no way Nicole Kidman could have learnt to do all those tricks in such a short amount of time.
Diva's still credited and/or remembered in film-geekdom for starting a French cinema wave during the 1980s. Quite a few people do confuse Diva with Subway and Divine, though. So yes, I suppose it's largely forgotten now.
"Have you seen Diva yet?"
"The one with Christopher Lambert as a blond?"
"No, that's Subway."
"Oh, right. The one where a fat woman ate dog shit?"
"No, that's Divine. From John Waters's Pink Flamingos."
and
Jewel of the Nile 1985
1980's set Indiana Jones homages, I haven't seen them pop up on TV in years
Parenthood 1989 was also a big hit that seems to have disappeared without trace.
Look Whos Talking 1990 (Im actually quite glad this ones forgotten about)
Red Heat - Pretty much forgotten Arnie/Belushi buddy cop movie?
Saying that, if you turn it around and say what hasn't faded in some way, the true eternals and evergreens, then you're dealing with a much more limited pool.
A mere ten years from first to last ('72 - '81), all from perhaps the most collosal era for cinematic giants. Oh, how things have changed...:(
There is much more to the iconic status of all of these than just performances and quotes. They do play a part, but when a film hits true iconic status - when it really clicks with the masses in a lasting way and passes into the collective awareness - it does so for reasons more complex than you might think. Sometimes it's to do with the initial impact - the contemporary audience relating to it or seeing something relevant about it that transcends the medium (there's been absolute acres of theory concerning Star Wars success). But there are many reasons why a film can click the way they do.
To digress further, this reminds me of how semi-arthouse cinema become quite the thing in the 80s for certain crowds. The video boom was instumental here, with labels like Palace Pictures introducing many to the wonders of something a bit different.
Some have stood the test, (Betty Blue, Kiss of the Spider Woman), while some have drifted off the map a bit (My Beautiful Laundrette, Under the Volcano). Meanwhile, further down the scale, Merchant Ivory made a name for themselves with their painfully tasteful, deeply boring literary adaptations (A Room with a View, Maurice etc). It looked like cinema for the posh to me.
Being the 80s of course, some have dated more than anything. Sex, Lies & Videotape for instance, begins with Andie Macdowell sitting cross-legged on her therapists couch. That alone is probably a switch-off point for the dedicated 80s hater.
become bywords for bad cinema.
Some of these films are so bad that they become cult hits that people enjoy laughing at -think "Reefer Madness", "Plan 9 From Outer Space" or "The Room" by Tommy Wiseau.
I admit to quite enjoying "Plan 9" even though I know it's a completely dreadful
piece of cinema by any standards.
Others just get remembered because they are just extremely, extremely unpleasant or
irritating to watch and thus stick in the minds of viewers as a negative experience (the Tinto Brass "Caligula" is an example, as are "Inchon" and many of Michael Winner's films).