In the 1980s course, students are responsible for writing a paper comparing the way race, gender, and class are portrayed in two films from any one genre below. My thanks to my friends and colleagues of Facebook who helped me form this list of over 305 films. Enjoy!
Romance || Comedy || Documentary || Strong African-American Leads || War/Espionage ||
Drama || Action/Adventure || Teen || Strong Female Leads || Disney || Horror
ROMANCE
Can’t Buy Me Love
Officer and a Gentleman
When Harry Met Sally
Moonstruck
Roxanne
Dangerous Liaisons
The Fabulous Baker Boys
Grease 2
Mannequin
Splash
Mannequin
Bull Durham
Romancing the Stone
Jewel of the Nile
Chances Are
Overboard
Mystic Pizza
Murphy’s Romance
Micki and Maude
Legal Eagles
Peggy Sue Got Married
Kiss Me Goodbye
Cocktail
Shag
Valley Girl
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
One Crazy Summer
My Tutor
Two of a Kind
The Secret of My Success
DRAMA
Eating Raoul
Paris Texas
Wall Street
The Crying Game
Less than Zero
Fame
Amadeus
The Accused
Raging Bull
Rocky III
Drugstore Cowboy
Chariots of Fire
Scarface
Dead Poets Society
Children of a Lesser God
The Color Purple
War Games
E.T.
Field of Dreams
Dangerous Liasons
Witness
Rain Man
84 Charing Cross Road
A Room with a View
Terms of Endearment
Silkwood
Sophie’s Choice
On Golden Pond
The Big Chill
Flashdance
Urban Cowboy
Cocoon
An Officer and a Gentleman
Dirty Dancing
Stand by Me
Dessert Hearts
Star 80
Victor Victoria
Risky Business
Beaches
The Legend of Billie Jean
My Life as a Dog
Yentl
Purple Rain
The Natural
Five Corners
Stealing Home
Steel Magnolias
Personal Best
St. Elmo’s Fire
My Dinner with Andre
Over the Top
Beat Street
Return of the Secaucus Seven
Hannah and Her Sisters
Crimes and Misdemeanors
The Purple Rose of Cairo
Radio Days
DOCUMENTARY
Style Wars
Koyaanisqatsi
For All Mankind
Heavy Petting
Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt
Burden of Dreams
The Decline of Western Civilization
Down and Out in America
He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin’
The Atomic Café
Before Stonewall
The Life & Times of Harvey Milk
Roger & Me
The Thin Blue Line
Imagine: John Lennon
El Salavdor: Another Vietnam
The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter
Wild Style
STRONG AFRICAN-AMERICAN LEADS
School Daze
The Color Purple
Glory
Trading Places
Coming to America
Disorderlies
Jumpin’ Jack Flash
She’s Gotta Have It
Brewster’s Millions
The Toy
Beverly Hills Cop
Beverly Hills Cop II
Harlem Nights
Born in Flames
Purple Rain
Breakin’
Breakin’ II: Electric Boogaloo
Beat Street
Brother from Another Planet
Wild Style
WAR / ESPIONAGE
Full Metal Jacket
Platoon
Born on the Fourth of July
Good Morning, Vietnam
Red Dawn
Hunt for Red October
The Falcon and the Snowman
License to Kill
The Living Daylights
Octopussy
For Your Eyes Only
A View to Kill
Rambo: First Blood Part II
Empire of the Sun
Rambo III
Commando
First Blood
War Games
Heartbreak Ridge
Ishtar
ACTION/ADVENTURE
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Lethal Weapon
RoboCop
The Terminator
Mad Max 2: Beyond Thunderdome
Die Hard
Big Trouble in Little China
Scarface
The Witches of Eastwick
Tequila Sunrise
Top Gun
Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars IV: Return of the Jedi
Police Story
Ladyhawke
48 Hrs.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
The Running Man
Cobra
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Lethal Weapon 2
The Blues Brothers
Batman
Blade Runner
Ninja III: The Dominaation
TEEN
Teen Wolf
Some Kind of Wonderful
Breakfast Club
Sixteen Candles
Say Anything
Young Sherlock Homes
Landhawke
Dirty Dancing
Pretty in Pink
Beetlejuice
Heathers
Better Off Dead
Just One of the Guys
Footloose
Dream a Little Dream
Pump Up the Volume
Gleaming the Cube
Listen to Me
She’s Out of Control
She’s Having a Baby
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
SCIFI
Brazil
Blade Runner
E.T.
The Thing
Terminator
The Fly
Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars IV: Return of the Jedi
Repo Man
Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan
Star Trek III: Search for Spock
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
Escape from New York
Mad Max 2: Beyond Thunderdome
Born in Flames
Liquid Sky
Videodrome
Brother from Another Planet
STRONG FEMALE LEADS
Tootsie
Working Girl
Mr. Mom
Jumpin’ Jack Flash
She’s Gotta Have It
The Color Purple
Peggy Sue Got Married
Desperately Seeking Susan
Beetlejuice
Heathers
Dessert Hearts
Victor Victoria
School Daze
The Accused
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
Fatal Attraction
Steel Magnolias
Sophie’s Choice
Evil Angels
Out of Africa
Silkwood
Ironweed
Still of the Night
She-Devil
The French Lieutenant’s Wife
Alice at the Palace
Heartburn
Hairspray
Serial Mom
Polyester
The Incredible Shrinking Woman
Big Business
All of Me
The Secret of My Success
DISNEY
Little Mermaid
The Fox and the Hound
Tron
The Black Cauldron
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
Benji the Hunted
The Devil and Max Devlin
Popeye
The Watcher in the Woods
Return to Oz
KIDS
The Princess Bride
E.T.
Karate Kid
Karate Kid II
Karate Kid III
The Little Mermaid
Goonies
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Flight of the Navigator
The NeverEnding Story
Little Monsters
The Dark Crystal
The Last Starfighter
Dead Poets Society
Labyrinth
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Big
Annie
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Lucas
Last Unicorn
Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars IV: Return of the Jedi
Time Bandits
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
An American Tail
Willow
The Secret of NIMH
Adventures in Babysitting
Pee-wee’s Big Adventure
Return to Oz
War Games
SpaceCamp
Batteries Not Included
Harry and the Hendersons
The Outsiders
The Transformers: The Movie
The Land before Time
The Recuers
The Great Muppet Caper
The Muppets Take Manhattan
Teen Witch
Troop Beverly Hills
COMEDY
Spies Like Us
Stir Crazy
The Woman in Red
See No Eveil, Hear No Evil
Better Off Dead
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Married to the Mob
This is Spinal Tap
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
National Lampoon’s Vacation
Beetlejuice
Police Academy I
Police Academy II
Police Academy III
Spaceballs
Real Genius
Crocodile Dundee
The ‘Burbs
Weird Science
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure
Uncle Buck
Clue
Airplane!
Tootsie
Smoky and the Bandit
Cannonball Run
Arthur
Trading Places
Coming to America
Jumpin’ Jack Flash
Brewster’s Millions
The Toy
Beverly Hills Cop
Beverly Hills Cop II
Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters II
Major League
Raising Arizona
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Good Morning, Vietnam
Last American Virgin
Weekend at Bernie’s
Earth Girls Are Easy
A Fish Called Wanda
The Money Pit
Short Circuit
Scrooged
Porky’s
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Three Amigos!
A Christmas Story
Stripes
Caddyshack
UHF
The Jerk
Disorderlies
HORROR
Aliens
Gremlins
The Shining
An American Werewolf in London
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Poltergeist
The Changeling
The Howling
The Fly
Return of the Living Dead
The Lost Boys
Pet Sematary
Predator
Halloween II
The Hunger
Dead Ringers
Fatal Attraction
The Dead Zone