1980s Best Movies

When you think of the 1980s, a few images come to mind: shoulder pads, big hair, and all-cheesy-everything. However, the decade had more to contribute to pop culture than being known as the New Jersey of the 20th century. The 1980s were also an era for incredible classic movies, ones that shifted the film industry as we know it. From John Hughes’ The Breakfast Club to Steven Spielberg’s E.T., the best movies of the 1980s not only shaped its generation but inspired subsequent generations in every way imaginable.

The Evil Dead (1981)

This week on Shat the Movies, we’re heading into the woods with The Evil Dead (1981), where five friends discover that renting an isolated cabin is apparently the fastest route to demonic possession. Gene and Big D break down Bruce Campbell’s early Ash, Sam Raimi’s inventive camera work, buckets of...

Street Trash (1987)

The 10th Annual Shat Spooktacular kicks off with a bang. People are melting. A penis is flying through the air. And somebody brought a woodwind. Commissioner John kicks off our first-ever full month of horror by taking us back to 1987 for Street Trash, the cult splatter comedy where a...

Licence to Kill (1989)

This week on Shat the Movies, we’re going rogue with Licence to Kill (1989), the Bond movie where 007 forgets about saving the world and makes things very personal. Timothy Dalton’s Bond quits MI6 and goes after drug lord Franz Sanchez, giving us revenge, exploding tankers, questionable undercover decisions, and...

Tuff Turf (1985)

We’re going back to 1985 for the teen action drama Tuff Turf—starring James Spader, Robert Downey Jr., and Kim Richards. What starts as a goofy ’80s teen comedy about a new kid who falls for the wrong girl spirals into a bloodbath with switchblades, fire axes, and rottweilers. It’s Grease...

Born In East L.A. (1987)

Cheech Marin steps out from Tommy Chong’s shadow for his directorial debut, and Gene and Big D dig into whether this immigration comedy still holds up 40 years later. The Shat Crew breaks down the film’s boldest gamble — leaving huge chunks of dialogue untranslated — plus the sight gags...

Good Morning, Vietnam (1987)

This week on Shat the Movies, we’re signing on with Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), the war comedy that promised nonstop laughs and delivered something stranger, sadder, and more complicated. Robin Williams turns in one of his most electric performances as Armed Forces Radio DJ Adrian Cronauer, bringing chaos to the...

The Hitcher (1986)

Shat The Movies hits the open road with The Hitcher, the 1986 horror-thriller that transformed an ordinary highway drive into pure nightmare fuel. Starring Rutger Hauer as the terrifying and impossibly calm John Ryder, the film follows a young traveler who makes the mistake of picking up a hitchhiker—and spends the...

They Live (1988)

This week, Shat The Movies puts on the sunglasses and uncovers John Carpenter’s They Live, the cult classic that turns Reagan-era paranoia into a full-blown alien conspiracy. Starring “Rowdy” Roddy Piper as a drifter who discovers the world is secretly controlled by skull-faced elites, this 1988 sci-fi satire pulls no...