The 100 Project: Top 10 Movies of 1985

Last time out, The 100 Project took on one of cinema's most universally lauded years, 1984. We follow that up with one that was just plain fun. For me, 1985 was the year of zany movies. The concepts were pretty out there and the films built upon them followed suit. I didn't fully understand it at the time I saw many of these for the first time because I was 14. As I got older, I realized just how nuts some of these movies are. You know what? I still love them. Let's talk about them.

My Top 10 Movies of 1985

• My Letterboxd account tells me I've watched 59 movies that were released during this year.
• I made 10 trips to the theater in '85. 5 of those movies made this list. 2 more are honorable mentions.
• I watched 2 of the 5 Best Picture nominees. Only 1 made my list.

10. Rocky IV

Yeah, it's a giant ball of full-blown 80s cheese, right down to Mr. Balboa single-handedly tearing down the iron curtain and practically ending the Cold War. However, it's also insanely fun. It might also be the most quotable movie in the Rocky franchise. I mean..."Throw the damn towel!"

9. Re-Animator

I first saw this a year or so after it came out, when it hit cable, and immediately fell in love. Frankenstein-inspired nuttiness oozes from the film's pores. We get a head in a pan giving orders to re-animated corpses, all powered by a neon green serum.

8. Fright Night

This is one of those movies I saw in theaters. I think it's important to mention that because that night was the exact moment that vampires became cool. Before this, every vampire I came across was merely a variation on Bela Lugosi's iconic portrayal. They all wore a cape and a tux, spoke with an accent, and acted all sophisticated. From this point on, vampires could literally be the person next door. (Full Review)

7. Commando

This movie doesn't really tick many of the boxes on the checklist of things that make a film legitimately good. One of the ones it does, however, is the one marked "rewatchability." There's something magnetic about watching Arnie mow down dozens of bad guys all by his lonesome and drop corny one-liners on nearly all of them. Seriously, ever since then I've eaten green berets for breakfast.

6. The Last Dragon

Some of you know that I'm a huge Bruce Lee fan. So is the main character of this movie. That's a point in this movie's favor. He's not just a fan, though. He really is a kung fu master. Point number two. The girl he falls in love with is played none other than 80s Prince babe Vanity. Yup, point three. Finally, it has one of my all-time favorite villains, Sho'Nuff the Shogun of Harlem. (Movies I Grew Up: The Last Dragon)

5. Teen Wolf

When you think about it, this might be one of the strangest coming-of-age movies ever made. So much about it shouldn't work, but somehow it does. For starters, no one in this movie about a basketball playing werewolf can play a lick of basketball with the exception of the dude in the wolf suit. And trust me, I ain't talking about Michael J. Fox. But at the end of the day, it is Fox's movie. He, along with some colorful characters make this one also ticks the rewatchability box with emphasis.

4. The Breakfast Club

I'm fully aware that this is the first movie that many of will actually think is good. And it's here anyway. Oh well. I'm also aware that after all these years, the ending has revealed itself to be a bit problematic. Still, it captures teen angst as well as just about any other film ever made. For that reason, it might be the best of all John Hughes movies.

3. Krush Groove

This is a highly fictionalized version of the creation of the iconic Def Jam Records. The acting is mostly terrible as the cast is filled with music artists playing themselves. The story is pretty predictable. However, the movie soundtrack doubles as the one of my youth and is performed all the way through the movie. And dammit, The Fat Boys are hilarious. Once again, rewatchability.

2. The Color Purple

Sometimes, a movie is wildly divergent from its source material. That's the case here, as Steven Spielberg used the framework of Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize winning novel of the same name, but told the story in a very different fashion. The result is a one of the famed director's masterpieces.

1. Back to the Future

If you think about it for even one second, you realize some icky things are going in this movie. And none of it stops it from being one of the most fun movies to ever grace the silver screen. To this day, it's still a phenomenal watch. Make no bones about it, this is THE time travel movie.

Honorable Mentions (alphabetically): Better Off Dead..., Brewster's Millions, Desperately Seeking Susan, Fletch, The Goonies, The Jewel of the Nile, National Lampoon's European Vacation, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Weird Science

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