What happened in your birth year? Well, it’s an incredible and unforgettable year for your family as they welcome a new angel to come to them. And just like today, people are interested in fashion, movies, and music as they are the amazing
Entertainment source that gave them more joy in life.
During that time, a gigantic number of blockbusters rocked the world. With massive investment, ultimate talent, and unbeatable attempts of producers as well as actors, they give the world many top-notch movies that leave many people in awe. That makes you wish you were born several years earlier to enjoy them.
But the best means just one. We can see only one film winning the rest of the awards ceremony. In this post, we’ve curated the best movies of each year, from 1980 to 2000. Scroll down to find out what was the best movie in the year you were born.
#1 'Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back' (1980)
Source: Youtube
Amongst many blockbusters this year, 'Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back is the cherry on top. The highly anticipated sequel to George Lucas' space-opera mega-hit mastered box office records, even though many critics and fans consider The Empire Strikes Back to be superior to A New Hope in many ways. This installment of the saga is particularly notable for concluding on a low note, with the Galactic Empire triumphant, which was utterly against the grain for formulaic blockbusters at the time. Lucas' blockbuster grossed approximately $550 million on a $23 million budget.
#2 Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981)
Source: PHOTOFEST
The Indochina Franchise was at the forefront of the cinema industry this time. This is the great talent combination of Steven Spielberg, who was at the pinnacle of his ability to create high-caliber, emotionally resonant, and super-fun blockbusters, and George Lucas. He was in the middle of producing the Star Wars trilogy. Raiders of the Lost Ark was created as a parody of the Saturday afternoon matinee serials that Lucas and Spielberg grew up watching. It follows the exploits of a hip archaeology professor from the 1930s as he searches for the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis can find it.
However, Raiders leaves those in the past and the dust because they were cheesy and cheap. It's a brilliantly inventive adrenaline trip, with iconic scenes like giant rolling boulders and a whip vs. pistol combat riding on Harrison Ford's assured shoulders at the height of his acting career. The highest-grossing movie of 1981, Raiders of the Lost Ark, made an amazing $248.1 million.
#3 E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Source: IMDb
E.T. was the most financially successful movie of the 1980s and was regarded as one of Steven Spielberg's best films (in a career full of excellent movies, mind you). On a very meager $10 million budget, it made an astounding $792 million. It's interesting to note that Spielberg built one of the most iconic movies of all time, E.T., on an imaginary companion he made up as a young boy to cope with his parent's divorce.
#4 Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi (1983)
Source: IMDb
This time, Lucas and crew made $475 million on a $32 million budget, and it received overwhelmingly positive reviews from both reviewers and fans. Richard Marquand (Jagged Edge) was the film's director, although George Lucas asked David Kronenberg and David Lynch to serve as the film's first directors. Jedi wrapped up the trilogy with a far more uplifting plot and paid homage to its blockbuster beginnings.
#5 Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom (1984)
Source: IMDb
In comparison to the original, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom received mixed reviews from critics who criticized the violence and the film's lack of respect for Hinduism and Indian culture. Although Spielberg believes Temple of Doom to be the "worst" Indiana Jones film, the crowd adored watching it repeatedly in theaters. Even though it earned more than $330 million at the box office, not everyone enjoyed its follow-up. It was even described as "an equal, not so much a sequel" by renowned critic Roger Ebert.
#6 Back To The Future (1985)
Source: Gone With The Twins
To preserve his family's future—and change history—before it's too late, Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) is sent back to 1955 by his friend, an old mad scientist named Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd). Marty just wanted to rock out with his band, the Pinheads, but he gets distracted. Once he returns to the glamorous 1950s, it goes without saying that his future mother (Lea Thompson) will want to jump his bones and that his father (Crispin Glover) is a pervy nerd. Back to the Future, a masterful and seemingly impossible mash-up of comedy, science fiction, nostalgia, and discomfort, was a smash, surpassing all other 1985 films with a $210.6 million take.
#7 Top Gun (1986)
Source: The Movie Database
Americans were very interested in driving down a highway into danger in 1986. Tom Cruise portrayed Maverick, an appropriately arrogant ace Navy aviator, in what is still arguably his most well-known character. Along with the life-threatening aerial stunts are other pilots Iceman (Val Kilmer) and Goose (Anthony Edwards), as well as their boss Viper (Tom Skerritt) and the melodies of Berlin's popular song "Take My Breath Away." Top Gun, still your dad's favorite movie, earned $179.8 million, just a little more than "Crocodile" Dundee, another movie from the same decade.
#8 Fatal Attraction (1987)
Source: IMDb
You wouldn't expect a vengeance thriller to dominate the movie office, but Fatal Attraction did just that when the film came out in 1987. In addition to receiving positive reviews from viewers, Fatal Attraction was nominated for three Oscars: Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Picture.
#9 Rain Man (1988)
Source: IMDb
Tom Cruise's dramatic performance in Rain Man was a significant risk that paid off. Cruise played Charlie Babbit in Rain Man, a luxury vehicle hustler looking to profit from his deceased father's fortune, long before he demanded the truth from Jack Nicholson. The money was given to Charlie's older brother Raymond, who was portrayed by Oscar-winning actor Dustin Hoffman, and as a result, Charlie embarks on a cross-country road trip with his estranged sibling. Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Actor Oscars went to Rain Man. Additionally, $354 million was earned.
#10 Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade (1989)
Source: Rotten Tomatoes
Even though Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade is regarded by many fans of the franchise as the weakest entry (until Crystal Skull, that is), it nevertheless brought in a ton of money at the box office. Sean Connery appeared as Harrison Ford's professor/absent father and revealed to the public that Indiana was named after the family dog. Spielberg, who directed this smash hit, later said that Indiana Jones was inspired by his rejection to make a James Bond movie.
#11 Ghost (1990)
Source: IMDb
A romantic, supernatural fantasy thriller (yeah, it exists) was the highest-grossing movie of 1990. Patrick Swayze plays a banker in the movie Ghost who is murdered during a robbery outside the apartment he shares with his potter lover, Demi Moore. He quickly discovers that he can connect with Whoopi Goldberg's portrayal of the medium/huckster, who then speaks with
Demi Moore and tries to assist her in solving the murder. Even if the premise seems a little absurd when said aloud, the movie grossed $500 million worldwide and won two Academy Awards.
#12 Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Source: IMDb
The opening scene of Terminator 2: Judgment Day was one of the biggest switcheroos in movie history. In the sequel to the 1984 smash film The Terminator, where Arnold Schwarzenegger's T-800 Terminator played the major adversary, the "Governator" portrays the good guy. Even better, T2 took up the Best Visual Effects Oscar.
#13 Aladdin (1992)
Source: IMDb
Aladdin may have marked the zenith of the
Disney animation revival that began in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In addition to iconic music and characters, this exquisitely animated rendition of well-known folktales featured a brilliant performance from Robin Williams as the voice of the Genie. As he produced impression after impression after impression, his frenzied energy erupted off the screen. 1992's biggest hit, Aladdin, grossed $217.3 million.
#14 Jurassic Park (1993)
Source: IMDb
The film that permanently altered special effects is Jurassic Park. The famed Phil Tippett's stop motion effects were originally going to be used by filmmaker Steven Spielberg to reproduce Michael Crichton's science fiction epic, but a few staff members pushed the concept of employing CGI to Spielberg and produced a test reel that impressed the creative visionary. Although the film's budget was substantial—approximately $63 million—it ultimately paid off because it brought in more than $1 billion at the box office. It continues to this day to be Spielberg's most successful film.
#15 The Lion King (1994)
Source: IMDb
Disney really experienced a significant rebirth in the 1990s, releasing some of the studio's best films. Many people consider The Lion King to be the decade's crown gem, and the $970 million box office receipts back that up. The tale, like most Disney films, is sincere, with plenty of emotional moments for the entire family. The soundtrack is extremely popular, and some consider it to be the best in the entire Disney canon.
#16 Toy Story (1995)
Source: Youtube
Pixar's feature debut was the first totally computer-animated film, and it was an instant game changer. It depicts a collection of anthropomorphic toys that come to life and compete for the attention of their owners. The film's box office triumph paved the way for Pixar's legacy as well as computer animation in general.
#17 Independence Day (1996)
Source: IMDb
In the 1990s, disaster films made a lot of money. Before pitching the alien invasion film Independence Day to Fox, director Roland Emmerich had a few hits under his belt (Stargate, Universal Soldier).
Independence Day was popular since it was released to a limited audience a few days before the public Friday release, which is now standard practice for major studio blockbusters. The U.S military was initially involved in the project but withdrew when the studio refused to delete the references to Area 51.
#18 Titanic (1997)
Source: Portable Press
Many people might think that Titanic was not only the biggest movie of 1997 but also the biggest of all time. Cameron skillfully straddled the line between a tragic romance and a disaster film, and the film catapulted Leonardo DiCaprio to global stardom.
Lucky Leo was paid $2.5 million for his services on Titanic, followed by a $20 million payoff for The Beach. Titanic was a great box office success, but it also won a slew of awards. Titanic received 14 Academy Award nominations and won a record-breaking 11 Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography.
#19 Armageddon (1998)
Source: ActionAGoGo
Nothing says Michael Bay more than launching a rocket full of oil drillers into an asteroid hurtling toward Earth. Armageddon was one of the last huge breaths of the '90s disaster movie boom, yet we still had to put up with Ben Affleck, Bruce Willis, and Liv Tyler pretending to be actors.
The budget of the movie was estimated at a whopping $140 million, yet it grossed more than $550 million at the box office. Interestingly, Bruce Joel Rubin, the author of Deep Impact (a comparable notable blockbuster that came out just a few months before), claims that Disney stole his idea and developed Armageddon after he offered his asteroid disaster movie to a studio executive.
#20 'Star Wars: The Phantom Menace' (1999)
Source: ProProfs
Even non-Star Wars fans love to watch The Phantom Menace after a 16-year gap between Return Of The Jedi and The Phantom Menace. Unfortunately, it fell short of expectations. Despite this, the prequel became one of the highest-grossing films of all time.
#21 'Mission: Impossible II' (2000)
Source: IMDb
While the original Tom Cruise-led Mission: Impossible was mainly regarded as far superior to its sequel, MI:2 ended the year on top of the box office charts. Box office receipts surpassed $545 million despite a $125 million budget. The sequel's approach echoed filmmaker John Woo's action-filled tastes, in stark contrast to the paranoia presented by Brian DePalma in the 1996 summer blockbuster.
Although the franchise gave rise to a few sequels, most of them followed the action-focused formula and attempted to exceed the previous entry with ever-more-dangerous exploits, most of which were carried out by Cruise himself.