I’ve been catching up on and rewatching some lately. Legend, Highlander, The Never ending Story. What are some others that are similar? And why do 80s movies seem to hit different than other decades?

    • jballs@sh.itjust.works
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      1 year ago

      To answer the second question, Willow hit different because in the 80s they were totally fine with making fantasy movies that were meant to be watched by families but also had no problem traumatizing children. Willow had those creepy rat dog things straight out of a nightmare. Same way The Neverending Story has the horse/swamp scene and Gremlins turned fluffy cute animals into scary wicked creatures. Honestly, it’s a miracle any of us millennials survived without a serious case of PTSD every time we went to Blockbuster.

      • jcit878@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        and not every good guy somehow had to survive. that blonde guy (Eric?) died pretty brutally, and even though off-screen the babies mum and the nanny clearly died brutal deaths (and it was heavily implied), I think you even hear the nanny being torn apart by wolves

      • Thelsim@sh.itjust.works
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        1 year ago

        Oh yes… I still remember the first time seeing that scene where everyone (almost) got turned into pigs in Willow. It really freaked me out at the time.
        *shudders*

        I think the heavy reliance on physical props, models and scenery. Combined with a certain darker style of story telling really made those movies stand out.

  • Lee Duna@lemmy.nz
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    1 year ago
    • Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
    • My Neighbor Totoro
    • Big Trouble in Little China
  • HoustonHenry@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Tie between Time Bandits and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen…well dammit, Robin Williams as King of the Moon wins, Munchausen re-watch time!

  • kambusha@feddit.ch
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    1 year ago

    The Goonies, The Golden Child, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, and The Monster Squad.

    Bonus: I think Bill & Ted’s movies were in the 80s too? The one with Death I always felt was sort of similar to Never Ending Story.

  • reddig33@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Excalibur is a gorgeous film with a talented cast.

    Dark Crystal is an amazing Jim Henson production.

    Beastmaster is a fun romp with 80s stalwart Mark Singer. And as someone else mentioned, Ladyhawke is another fun adventure in the same vein.

  • shapis@lemmy.ml
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    1 year ago

    Not sure if it quite counts as fantasy but…

    Everything about Blade Runner was perfect.

    The sequel somehow managed to not drop the ball as well.

      • Drunemeton@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        The key, I think, to the sequel is that it’s made to be watched again.

        I walked out if the theater and thought it was an eye-meltingly gorgeous film, but didn’t really get what happened.

        I recently re-watched 2049 and holy fucking shit…throughout the entire movie things just kept clicking into place.

        Now ima setup a double feature and watch both back-to-back for the full experience!

        • constantokra@lemmy.one
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          1 year ago

          That’s kind of how the book is too. Every time I read Philip k dick I feel like i’ve missed a lot, even though I love all his books. I suspect I haven’t taken nearly enough drugs to get what he’s slinging.