I have been hooked on movies for as long as I can remember. So how does one become addicted to movies? In my case I will blame my grandmother and my father. My grandmother was the first bad influence on me. She would take me to nearly every Disney release. As a pre-teen I was under the impression that Gus (the football kicking mule movie) and The Apple Dumpling Gang movies were the pinnacle of movie making.
My Disney bubble started to burst in the mid 1970s. All my friends stopped talking about the latest Disney re-release. Instead movies like Jaws, Rocky and Saturday Night Fever were the talk of my school. Talking animals got replaced by naked women swimming in the ocean, bloody boxing matches, and sex dancing. I only heard about the new movies as my parents would not take me to these new blockbusters as I was not old enough to understand them. My parents did allow me to see some of the blockbusters in the late 1970s. Star Wars, Grease and Close Encounters of the Third Kind were now my new classics.
On June 12th 1981 my young eyes were really opened. On that Friday morning, my father told me we were going to see a movie that was opening that I had never heard of before. My father could tell that I was not really interested. So he tried to get me excited about the movie. He said “I know you have not heard of this movie, but the guy that made Star Wars and the guy that made Close Encounters got together and made this movie, it is supposed to be pretty good.” So we got ready and headed to an early afternoon showing of this movie. When Raiders of the Lost Ark ended, I was convinced I had just seen the greatest movie ever made. I went back that night to watch the movie a second time with some of my friends. Watching it the second time I really paid attention to the opening credits. Starring Harrison Ford (hey that’s Han Solo), story by George Lucas, and directed by Steven Spielberg. I went to bed that night thinking, there is lots to learn about movies.
Shortly after Raiders of the Lost Ark opened, I started keeping a notebook of every movie I watched. I would rank the movies on a 0 to 4 scale, just like Roger Ebert did with his reviews. At the end of each year I would count the movies that I watched during the year. My peak movie watching years were 1986 (201 movies), 1987 (210 movies) and 1988 (275 movies). At the end of 1988, I felt I was a movie expert and needed to have my very own Top 50 of all-time. So I went through my notebook and found my 50 highest rated movies. I then listed them out on a piece of paper and put them in front of my movie notebook. By 1991 the notebook went into storage as I got married and started having children and watching movies became much more difficult to do. The notebook has come out of storage since I started writing movie hubs on HubPages. Recently I was checking out my 1988 Top 50 Movies of All-Time….and the first question I came up with was….what drugs was I taking when I came up with the movies for this list? So here you go…a Top 50 Film list from a very confused young man 26 years ago.
My 1988 Top 50 Movies Of All-Time
1. All The President’s Men (1976)…we are off to a good start as this Robert Redford/Dustin Hoffman film is indeed a classic movie. This story of Washington Post reporters breaking the Watergate case is a thrilling movie even if we know how it ends.
2. Amazing Grace and Chuck (1987)…ouch what was I thinking? This movie is about a little league baseball player who refuses to play baseball until all nuclear arms are dismantled. I rewatched it a few years ago and could not believe how bad it was….although I did like Gregory Peck as the President.
3. American Flyers (1985)….a bike racing movie starring Kevin Costner….in the movie two brothers are in a bicycle race….throw in a deadly disease and Rae Dawn Chong and you get a decent movie but certainly not a Top 50 movie of all time.
4. The Breakfast Club (1985)….I was a senior in high school when this movie came out….a classic from 1985….now 35 years old The Breakfast Club is still a movie that people talk about on a regular basis. Still has a special place in my heart.
5. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid (1969)…this is one of the greatest westerns ever made….Paul Newman and Robert Redford made a great screen team….I have seen this movie probably close to 100 times…yet I can not seem to bring myself to watch it since Newman passed away.
6. Back to the Future (1985)….one of the biggest blockbuster of all-time…this movie can still entertain the younger generation….as my teenagers also enjoy this movie.
7. Close Encounter of the Third Kind (1977)…Steven Spielberg’s first movie dealing with aliens from outer space. Richard Dreyfuss is outstanding as the family man who gives up everything to find out the truth. There is an excellent Blu-Ray version out there..highly recommend it.
8. Color of Money (1986)….ok another one that would not make my Top 200 now….but at the time I thought it was a classic…Paul Newman won an Oscar® for the movie…plus you get a Martin Scorsese directed movie.
9. Cool Hand Luke (1967)….Paul Newman in another classic movie….no explanation required for this movie….although do I admit I missed all the Jesus imagery for years and years.
10. Die Hard (1988)….considered the best action film of all-time…..when it first came out the story was so new and exciting…now 32 years later it has been copied so many times…people are forgetting where it came from originally.
11. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)…this comedy starring Steve Martin and Sir Micheal Caine is one of my favorite comedies….a great story and Caine and Martin make a great team….although I will admit I had it ranked too high in 1988.
12. E.T. The Extra Terrestial (1982)…another blockbuster movie from Steven Spielberg…it is a great movie…but not one I watch on a regular basis…..would not make my current Top 50 list.
13. Excalibur (1981)….one of the best movies about the King Arthur legend….you have to watch this movie on Blu-Ray…..all the DVDs of this movie are horrible quality…I still think this is a great movie but now think the final third of the movie seems to drag….but the first 2/3 of the movie are still great.
14. Fail Safe (1964)….I know everybody thinks Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove is the best “humans will blow the world up movie” but I like this one more….this movie has very little humor… but the scenes with Henry Fonda as the President are awesome.
15. A Fistful of Dollars (1964)…the movie that made Clint Eastwood a star….I think it is still a good movie…but my opinion of this movie has fallen over the years…a solid but not great movie. It has been replaced with Clint’s third spaghetti western…The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
16. 48 Hours (1982)….I must have watched this movie at least 50 times when I was high school…the movie had action and comedy…another good movie that would not make my new Top 50 list.
17. From the Hip (1987)…..ok I admit I was a huge Judd Nelson fan back then….I saw this movie at the theater a few times and the audience reaction was awesome….some of the biggest laughs I have ever heard in a theater.
18. The Getaway (1972)….this is the great Steve McQueen/Ali McGraw version and not the Alec Baldwin/Kim Basinger version…..McQueen is awesome as master criminal dealing with guilt issues about how he got out of jail……a good but not great movie.
19. Ghostbusters (1984)….another blockbuster from the 1980s….hard to believe that it was over 35 years ago that this blockbuster made it to theaters. Still a quality movie and currently one of my 5 year olds favorite movies.
20. The Great Escape (1963)….another movie that would make it on my new list of greatest films ever…..I love this movie…..what a cast….what great scenes…..and based on a true story….everything you want in a movie.
21. High Plains Drifter (1973)….in case you can not tell….I was and am a huge fan of Clint Eastwood….when John Wayne saw this movie he was amazed how different western heroes had become….a solid but not great western.
22. House of Games (1987)….the first time I saw this twisting and turning movie I was blown away…so it earned a spot on the list back in 1988…..after a second viewing many years later I did not even like the movie. The power of David Mamet.
23. It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)….one of the few classic movies to make the list….but I thought and still do think this is one of the best movies ever made…..James Stewart in one of his better roles….and look…. it is almost time to watch the movie again.
24. Loophole (1980)….a bank robbery movie starring Albert Finney and Martin Sheen…this small budget film from England never even got released in the United States….but it is a solid little movie…but not worthy of a spot on an All-Time best list.
25. The Maltese Falcon (1941)…. the only movie from the 1940 decade to make the list….this was and still is a great movie…Humphrey Bogart creates a great screen character…the supporting cast of Sydney Greenstreet, Mary Astor and Peter Lorre gets better every year.
26. Mister Roberts (1955)….truly a great movie….what a cast….James Cagney, Henry Fonda, William Powell and Jack Lemmon….and directed by the great John Ford…..Lemmon won a much deserved Oscar® for playing Ensign Pulver.
27. Nothing In Common (1986)…..the first great dramatic performance from Tom Hanks…before this movie Hanks was only known as a comedic actor….this movie opened the door to more serious roles in the near future….Jackie Gleason is excellent ….a good movie that is no longer the pinnacle of Tom Hanks’ career.
28. No Way Out (1987)…..wow I really am not a huge fan of Kevin Costner…and yet here is his second movie on the list…..a great story with a twist ending….a very entertaining movie with strong help from Sean Young, Gene Hackman and Will Patton.
29. An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)…the movie that made Richard Gere a superstar, got Debra Winger noticed and won Louis Gossett Jr. an Oscar®. Great soundtrack does not hide the fact that this movie has not aged very well.
30. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) ….one of the few films to win the big 5 Oscars®…..Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Screenplay….Jack Nicholson is very memorable in the lead role…one of the best movies ever made.
31. Only Angels Have Wings (1939)….my one movie from the entire 1930s to make the list…..and considering I was watching tons of Cary Grant movies during this time frame…it is surprising this is his only movie in the Top 50….now it still makes my Top Ten for Cary Grant but it would not break my Top 100 of greatest films ever.
32. Platoon (1985)…this is a great movie….I saw this in a packed theater….and it was a very intense movie…..I had thoughts of joining the military….this movie convinced me that was not the path I should take. Won Oscar® for Best Picture.
33. Porky’s (1981)…I know what you are thinking…”Porky’s are you crazy?”…I have seen hundreds of movies at the theater….and I have never ever heard laughter as loud as I heard for Porky’s…..the theater seemed to shake……that makes a lasting impression on a young man…Porky’s still has a special place in my heart…but would not make a new list of Top Movies.
34. The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)…one of Woody Allen’s better comedies…in this one a character walks off a movie screen into real life….lots of subtle comedy….Michael Keaton was supposed to play the lead role…but Woody fired him and replaced him with Jeff Daniels.
35. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)….the movie that turned me into a movie junkie…..and still a great movie.
36. Rear Window (1954)….one of Alfred Hitchcock’s greatest films and the only Hitchcock movie on the list….one of my favorites back in 1988 and still one of my favorites in 2011. Although I think my next list of great movies will also include North by Northwest.
37. Ruthless People (1986)…another movie that benefited from the fact that I had just recently seen the movie…..a solid comedy that was a big hit back in the 1980s….I watched it again a few years ago….and for some reason it does not seem as funny now.
38. Sleuth (1972)….this was and is a great movie to watch….Sir Michael Caine and Sir Laurence Olivier go head to head ….lots of twists and turns…and two great performances by two great actors….just please avoid the remake which also stars Caine.
39. Star Wars (1977)….the original and best Star Wars movie ever made…and now we can see the movie on Blu-Ray….my 5 year old watched Star Wars with me a couple weeks ago and it sucked her in as well. ..the sign of a great movie.
40. The Sting (1973)…the second teaming of Paul Newman and Robert Redford….this one won the Oscar® for Best Picture…too bad Newman and Redford could never find a third movie to make together.
41. Sixteen Candles (1984)….the second John Hughes movie to make the list…this one stars Molly Ringwald…remember when she was a huge star? one of the first movies for John and Joan Cusack. I would probably have to do a Top 1000 movies before I would choose this movie again.
42. Silverado (1985)….wow Kevin Costner’s third movie to make the list…maybe I am a Kevin Costner fan….this is a very good western with lots of great supporting roles for many great actors…another movie that would not make the new list.
43. The Terminator (1984) ….one of the greatest science fiction movies ever…..a story so good that almost 30 years later it is still producing television series and more sequels….Arnold was great as The Terminator….but I really liked Micheal Biehn as Kyle Reese.
44. The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)….one of the greatest endings….Steve McQueen gets his third movie on the list….Faye Dunaway is stunning in the movie…..the remake with Pierce Brosnan is good but the original is better.
45. Tin Men (1987)….Richard Dreyfuss and Danny DeVito star in this great comedy about dualing aluminum side salesmen….a wonderful movie that I love but probably not worthy of a Top 50 spot.
46. Wall Street (1987)…the movie that gave us “Greed is good”…as well as an Oscar® win for Michael Douglas….and you have to give the Sheens credit too….as Charlie and Martin do a great job playing father and son….I know not much of stretch for them.
47. Whose Life Is It Anyway? (1981)…a drama about a painter that gets into a horrible car accident….paralyzed for life he no longer wants to live…sounds like a fun movie….Richard Dreyfuss is excellent as the painter.
48. Willow (1988)….I was such a big fan of Ron Howard that I was willing to overlook some of the weaker parts of the movie…as time has gone by my opinion of Willow has gone from a great movie to a fun but almost average movie.
49. The World According To Garp (1982)…one of Robin Williams early films….based on a novel by John Irving ….Williams plays T.S. Garp in a very unusual movie….the downer of an ending has lowered it’s greatness factor.
50. The Year of the Dragon (1985)….Mickey Rourke stars as a police captain stuck in the middle of a Chinese mafia war….Rourke is outstanding in his role…I actually have only seen this movie one time.
Looking at my list I can see that I did not have the ability to really consider older movies. 32 of the 50 I picked where from the 1980’s…and the1980s were not even over yet. 8 came from the 1970s, 5 came from the 1960s, meaning only 5 movies came before 1959. Two were from the the 1950s and the 1940s…while the entire decade of the 1930s only got one movie. Since my first Top 50 list is now 23 years old…. I now feel motivated to do an updated list. So you can look forward to hopefully a better Top 50 Films of All-Time list in the not so distant future.
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Hi Cogerson, yes, what were you thinking, as some of those movies were crapola. But there were also some classics too, which is what we would expect from our movie guru.
Paul Newman and Robert Redford probably priced themselves out of the market as a duo and maybe those two great classic movies would have been diluted if they had done a string of them together. The sting is still in my top three all time movie list as it had such a massive impact when I first watched it. Die hard was a brilliant movie and didn’t we all wish that we could be as tough as John McClane?
I watched an old English comedy starring Charlie Drake many years ago and laughed my head off. I saw it recently and it was only mildly amusing. Maybe the problem is ours rather than the movie. Your note book was a great idea and it was interesting delving into the immature Cogerson, ‘what was he thinking’ mind. Cheers
Hey attempted humour….thanks for stopping by…and thanks for noticing how awful some of the movies are on the list….I think I have gotten a little bit more wise since those early days…lol.
I think you might be correct about more Redford/Newman movies….it really falls into the leave them wanting more category…which they really did.
And finally…yep we change….but the movie never does…I always find it amazing that movies I saw in the 1980s I associated myself with the young actors in the movie…now with the same movie …I associate myself with the parents in the movie….thanks for checking out a movie list from immature Cogerson….lol.
Hi Cogerson, most of my favourites are in your top 10, Cool hand Luke, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are 2 fantastic films, and one of my all time favourites, Raiders of the lost ark.
Terrific movie page, Love the way you have put this together.
Best wishes MM
Thanks for stopping by Movie Master….I am glad you found three good movies on the list…lol….I appreciate the compliment as this was a fun hub to do. Congrats on your interview on the weekly newsletter.
Hey Cogerson, great list. It’s like you dusted off the Delorean and took a trip back in time. I love lists and at times I feel like I’m stuck in the 80’s as far as my taste for movies. Unknown fact: I’ve watched Ruthless People countless times in my youth. Keep up the great work.
Hey Shaney33….yep I dusted off the DeLorean and took it for a spin….it was a great ride back then and now looking back on that time frame. Music wise I am still stuck in the 1980s….I can not figure out why Hall and Oates are not still big…lol. As for Ruthless People…the first time I saw that movie…I laughed so hard that I was actually in pain…I love Bill Pullman in that movie…thanks for visiting my movie page.
Isn’t it amazing how much our tastes in films change over time? Trust me, I know how you feel, as i know a lot of films that would’ve been on my top 50 list back then wouldn’t be on my list now if I had to conjure up a new one today. Then again, I used to have fairly low standards for films when I was younger; whereas these days that’s definitely not the case.
From reading your hub, it sounds like you and me had one thing in common which was that we were both introduced to movies at a very young age. I know when I was a child, my mother would always encourage me to watch mostly disney films, and other various kid friendly yet non-offensive movies. Although, she didn’t mind that I used to love watching any of the superman movies back then, but again, Superman is technically a more kid friendly superhero when you stop to think about it. However, whenever my father would get home from one of his TTY assignments in the Air Force, he would often have me watch films like “Terminator”, “Heavy Metal”, “Predator” and etc….when I was still deemed way too young to watch them. Seriously, I was still in elementary school when I saw those movies that i just mentioned. lol. Needless to say, my parents did argue over that a lot, but in a strange way, I think it kind of helped me down the road when reviewing films, as it helped me develop more of a varied taste of movies in general…if that makes sense.
However, I do appreciate you sharing this with us, as this really is a great hub, and an interesting list that you have compiled here. All I can say is that I can’t wait to read your updated top 50 list soon. 🙂
Hey Stevennix2001….thanks for the excellent comment….I think my dad was the opposite of yours…I remember he took me to Clint Eastwood’s the Gauntlet….and there was an attempted rape scene and a little nudity before Clint saved the day and the girl….after the movie he told my mom….I would never see another R rated movie ever again….and he kept his word…I did not see another R rated movie until 5 or 6 years later when I would go to the movies with friends versus my dad.
Another interesting thing about changing tastes…I used to work at a video store….and making recommendations was part of the job….I am sure some of the movies I recommend to older customers back then were quickly dismissed as horrible movies and that I was a confused video store worker….I was such a big fan of Judd Nelson…I must have recommend Blue City to thousands of paying customers…I now agree Blue City is a horrible movie…and one of the reviews that I used to hate back then because it was so negative…I now agree with…it said it looks like Blue City was edited with a chainsaw…lol….thanks for stopping by.
Great list. My personal preferences would have been a little different, and would have included High Noon, Casa Blanca, and The Godfather.
Hey WillStarr all three of the movies you listed are classics…..look at my 1988 movie notebook…both Casablanca and The Godfather just missed the list….and I had not seen High Noon yet….my new list will have Casablanca and The Godfather…back in 1988 I did not respect the classics as much as I should have…I appreciate your comments.