Topic: 80s movie draft - VOTING (Group A)

[Hazell]

dis_1

Das Boot (1981) - Action/War/Western, The Hitcher (1986) - Thriller/Crime, Gremlins (1984) - Adventure/Fantasy, Scrooged (1988) 4 - Drama/Romance, This is Spinal Tap (1984) - Comedy/ Musical, Little Shop of Horrors (1986) - Horror, Aliens (1986) 7 - Sci-Fi, Akira (1988) - Animation/Family, Evil Dead II (1987) - Wildcard

Das Boot (1981) 1:Action/War/Western
   




The Hitcher (1986) 2:Thriller/Crime
   

   


Gremlins (1984) 3:Adventure/Fantasy





Scrooged (1988) 4:Drama/Romance   
   




This is Spinal Tap (1984) 5:Comedy/ Musical





Little Shop of Horrors (1986) 6:Horror





Aliens (1986) 7:Sci-Fi





Akira (1988) 8:Animation/Family





Evil Dead II (1987) 9:Wildcard

Chakan

Highlander (1986) - Action, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988) - Crime, The Dark Crystal (1982) - Adventure, Good Morning Vietnam (1987) - Drama, Airplane! (1980) - Comedy, A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) - Horror, The Abyss (1989) - Sci-Fi, The Princess Bride (1987) - Family, Tron (1982) - Wildcard

      Highlander (1986) - Cat 1. Action              Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988) - Cat 2. Crime      The Dark Crystal (1982) - Cat. 3 - Adventure  Good Morning Vietnam (1987) - Cat. 4 - Drama



    Airplane! (1980) - Cat 5. Comedy                            A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)                                 The Abyss (1989)                              The Princess Bride (1987)
                                                                                         Cat. 6 - Horror                                                    Cat 7. Sci-Fi                                                   Cat. 8 Family


                            Tron
            (1982) - Cat. 8 - Wildcard

NICHOLLS1986

Die Hard (1988) - Action/War/Western, Blood Simple (1984) - Thriller/Crime, The Right Stuff (1983) -  Adventure/Fantasy, Dead Poets Society (1989) - Drama/Romance, Withnail & I (1987) - Comedy/Musical, The Thing (1982) - Horror, Videodrome (1983) - Sci-Fi, Grave of the Fireflies (1988) - Animation/Family, Platoon (1986) - Wildcard

Sheer Magnetism

The Killer (1989) - Action/War/Western, Blue Velvet (1986) - Thriller/Crime, Return of the Jedi (1983) - Adventure/Fantasy, Paris Texas (1984) -  Drama/Romance, Caddyshack (1980) - Comedy/ Musical, Manhunter (1986) - Horror, Robocop (1987) - Sci-Fi, My Neighbour Totoro (1988) - Animation/Family, Rumble Fish (1983) - Wildcard

Cat 1. Action/War/Western: The Killer (1989, John Woo)



Cat 2. Thriller/Crime: Blue Velvet (1986, David Lynch)



Cat 3. Adventure/Fantasy: Return of the Jedi (1983, Richard Marquand)



Cat 4. Drama/Romance: Paris Texas (1984, Wim Wenders)



Cat 5. Comedy/ Musical: Caddyshack (1980, Harold Ramis)



Cat 6. Horror: Manhunter (1986, Michael Mann)



Cat 7. Sci-Fi: Robocop (1987, Paul Verhoeven)



Cat 8. Animation/Family: My Neighbour Totoro (1988, Hayao Miyazaki)



Cat 9. Wildcard: Rumble Fish (1983, Francis Ford Coppola)



Speaking of Rumble Fish, I didn't get a chance to rave about it before. Coppola's big attempt at an art movie, Rumble Fish succeeded on pretty much every count (except, unfortunately, at the box office). It looks stunning, Stewart Copeland's score is exquisite and the cast (which includes Matt Dillon, Dennis Hopper, Diane Lane, Nic Cage, Lawrence Fishburne and Tom Waits) is terrific. Best of all is Mickey Rourke, showing why it didn't seem ridiculous for people to be labelling him a cross between Dean and De Niro at that point in time. It really works tonally too in a way most of Coppola's 80's stuff doesn't, feeling dramatic and moody without being silly, especially in its few bright bursts of colour. And the ending is great.

[Lastrador]

Insane quality on this group. All have several movies I love. Gonna have to sit on this one a bit.

[Chakan]

Myself and Dis.

[Sheer Magnetism]

Went for mine and Dis: Spinal Tap, Aliens, Akira and Das Boot are a terrific line up. But the comedy, action and family/animation categories are stacked in this heat.

[Betty Blue]

Insane quality on this group. All have several movies I love. Gonna have to sit on this one a bit.

Definite group of death this. I could vote for any of the 4 easily.

[El Lobo]

Dis and Chakan, just think they nailed the 80s a bit more

[dis_1]

probably just wasted 5 minutes of my life doing this....but if anyone else finds it useful....

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/15Y2CbXwHzRR74BRwKveS0J5KjJef5LWofU5sLMmpRfc/edit?usp=sharing

probably need to be signed into google to make your own copy too

[Max_powers]

Went for Sheer and Nicholls. I think quality of films in the 80s was so good that there will many great line-ups.

I think it just comes down to personal preference. Paris, Texas is in my top 10 favourite films of all time. My Neighbor Totoro is also a class pick (can't wait for nephew to be old enough so I can watch it with him). Blue Velvet is a beautiful and weird film that I adore. The Killer is somewhat overlooked because of Hardboiled but I personally like it even more as its more gritty. 

I also love Die Hard, Grave of the Fireflies and Blood Simple.

[Betty Blue]

Into the draft raid shelter we go.

Still can't decide who to vote for here. Edging towards Sheer as my first pick since he has two of my favourite films ever in Blue Velvet and Paris, Texas. The second vote is trickier still. Chaks has Princess Bride and Dark Crystal, Nicholls has Die Hard and The Thing, and Dis has This is Spinal Tap and Aliens.

[Samie]

Like PTSD flashback huh Betts?  The good ol' days. 

[Hazell]

Like PTSD flashback huh Betts?  The good ol' days. 

Wanna start the 70's draft tomorrow?

[Betty Blue]

Like PTSD flashback huh Betts?  The good ol' days. 

I fear we'll be back to the days of starting the next draft before we've even finished the last one soon   

Edit:

Wanna start the 70's draft tomorrow?

Haha snap

[Max_powers]

Like PTSD flashback huh Betts?  The good ol' days. 

It's no wonder that the golden age of drafting occurred between 2010 and 2015.

[Lastrador]

It's no wonder that the golden age of drafting occurred between 2010 and 2015.

Yeah, football didn’t exist on those days.

[Lastrador]

It was extremely hard but finally went with Dis and Sheer, just. I had to take Nick's approach and make a spreadsheet to figure it out because it was too close to call. Can't believe I didn't vote for lists containing The Thing, Withnail and I, Die Hard or The Princess Bride, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Airplane, but so was the strength of the group.

[vivabobbygraham]

Dis and Chakan, just think they nailed the 80s a bit more

Fucking hell, agreeing with Lobo word for word. I need a lie down.

I voted yesterday but was in too much of a hurry to comment. All of the groups will be tight like this as the 80's were a golden era for movies particularly in the sci-fi, adventure/fantasy and action genres as budgets became bigger and sfx more innovating. Hence, I get where Lobo is coming from. However, there is only a gnat's chuff between all four and, not that it will be any consolation, but The Killer and Blood Simple are getting watched this week. Well played all.

[Chakan]

Wow nothing at all between us. So close.

Why am I always in the group of death lol

[tubby]

Wow nothing at all between us. So close.

Why am I always in the group of death lol

Think every group will be this tight.

[El Lobo]

Fucking hell, agreeing with Lobo word for word. I need a lie down.

I voted yesterday but was in too much of a hurry to comment. All of the groups will be tight like this as the 80's were a golden era for movies particularly in the sci-fi, adventure/fantasy and action genres as budgets became bigger and sfx more innovating. Hence, I get where Lobo is coming from. However, there is only a gnat's chuff between all four and, not that it will be any consolation, but The Killer and Blood Simple are getting watched this week. Well played all.

You often do

Yeah I'm not saying that they're particularly the 'best' movies (probably Sheer for that again, he's obviously got a good eye for a 'good' movie) but I'm going on what lists are more '80s iconic' and just think Chakan and Dis edge it.

[Chakan]

You often do

Yeah I'm not saying that they're particularly the 'best' movies (probably Sheer for that again, he's obviously got a good eye for a 'good' movie) but I'm going on what lists are more '80s iconic' and just think Chakan and Dis edge it.

Always liked you.

[Betty Blue]

Going to give my second vote to who I think has best fulfilled the categories. I'm not a fan of movies being shoehorned into genres they shouldn't really be in. I know Letterboxd is partially to blame for this, but I think it's also on us not to push it too much. Otherwise having categories starts not to matter.

Sorry to Nicholls first of all. He's just unlucky that I never much liked Withnail and I (although I saw it under very strange circumstances, so I should give it another watch one of these days) and I'll be honest I've not seen Blood Simple (will add it to my watchlist). So it's down to Chakan and Dis.

Going 1 vs 1 -

Das Boot > Highlander (Highlander is good fun, but Das Boot is an all timer)

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels > The Hitcher (Love Rutger in everything he does, but DRS is a marginally better film IMO)

Gremlins = The Dark Crystal (Impossible to pick between these. Both iconic 80s adventure/fantasy films. Love them both for different reasons)

Good Morning Vietnam > Scrooged (This is a tricky one, because I love Scrooged but I don't think it's in its best category. I'd say it's more fantasy or comedy. GMV is also an incredible drama film and one of my favourite Robin Williams performances)

This is Spinal Tap > Airplane (This just comes down to personal preference. I 'm a huge music fan and Spinal Tap hits all the right chords for me)

A Nightmare on Elm Street > Little Shop of Horrors (Another toughie, since these are both such different examples in the genre. Nightmare is probably the most iconic horror of the 80s and better at being a horror movie though, so that steals it)

Aliens > The Abyss (Aliens is an all-timer, enough said)

The Princess Bride > Akira (Akira is fantastic, but nothing beats The Princess Bride)

Evil Dead II = Tron (I'm not a fan of gory horror, so it's hard for me to judge this one. I know that Evil Dead is objectively the better film, but I would always rather watch Tron. So I'm calling this a draw)

Chakan wins 4-3! Sorry dis. Could've easily gone either way.

[dis_1]

Going to give my second vote to who I think has best fulfilled the categories. I'm not a fan of movies being shoehorned into genres they shouldn't really be in. I know Letterboxd is partially to blame for this, but I think it's also on us not to push it too much. Otherwise having categories starts not to matter.

Sorry to Nicholls first of all. He's just unlucky that I never much liked Withnail and I (although I saw it under very strange circumstances, so I should give it another watch one of these days) and I'll be honest I've not seen Blood Simple (will add it to my watchlist). So it's down to Chakan and Dis.

Going 1 vs 1 -

Das Boot > Highlander (Highlander is good fun, but Das Boot is an all timer)

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels > The Hitcher (Love Rutger in everything he does, but DRS is a marginally better film IMO)

Gremlins = The Dark Crystal (Impossible to pick between these. Both iconic 80s adventure/fantasy films. Love them both for different reasons)

Good Morning Vietnam > Scrooged (This is a tricky one, because I love Scrooged but I don't think it's in its best category. I'd say it's more fantasy or comedy. GMV is also an incredible drama film and one of my favourite Robin Williams performances)

This is Spinal Tap > Airplane (This just comes down to personal preference. I 'm a huge music fan and Spinal Tap hits all the right chords for me)

A Nightmare on Elm Street > Little Shop of Horrors (Another toughie, since these are both such different examples in the genre. Nightmare is probably the most iconic horror of the 80s and better at being a horror movie though, so that steals it)

Aliens > The Abyss (Aliens is an all-timer, enough said)

The Princess Bride > Akira (Akira is fantastic, but nothing beats The Princess Bride)

Evil Dead II = Tron (I'm not a fan of gory horror, so it's hard for me to judge this one. I know that Evil Dead is objectively the better film, but I would always rather watch Tron. So I'm calling this a draw)

Chakan wins 4-3! Sorry dis. Could've easily gone either way.

that makes great reading - even if i came down on the wrong side of the score!

[Chakan]

Good concise explanation Betty

[Lastrador]

Sorry to Nicholls first of all. He's just unlucky that I never much liked Withnail and I (although I saw it under very strange circumstances, so I should give it another watch one of these days) and I'll be honest I've not seen Blood Simple (will add it to my watchlist). So it's down to Chakan and Dis.

I adored that film. I found it incredibly funny, but also really smart, poignant and sad. It has so much going on that's easy to miss if you're not in the right frame of mind. Richard E. Grant is incredible in it. His grandiose delusion contrasted with his miserable existence is fascinating. He's a pathetic figure but in a very charming kind of way. Paul McGann is also great, and his paranoid but most grounded performance is a great counterpoint to the Withnail character. Uncle Monty though steals the show. When he arrives at the cottage I couldn't stop laughing the whole way through. So uncomfortably hilarious. Danny the drug dealer was another great character.

[Betty Blue]

I adored that film. I found it incredibly funny, but also really smart, poignant and sad. It has so much going on that's easy to miss if you're not in the right frame of mind. Richard E. Grant is incredible in it. His grandiose delusion contrasted with his miserable existence is fascinating. He's a pathetic figure but in a very charming kind of way. Paul McGann is also great, and his paranoid but most grounded performance is a great counterpoint to the Withnail character. Uncle Monty though steals the show. When he arrives at the cottage I couldn't stop laughing the whole way through. So uncomfortably hilarious. Danny the drug dealer was another great character.

I should watch it again, as it has all the pieces for something I would like. Richard E Grant is a huge favourite actor of mine. Which reminds me of How to Get Ahead in Advertising. Forgot that even existed until now. Totally mental film. But as for Withnail unfortunately I have weird memory attached to watching it the first time round, and sometimes it's not possible to ever separate the two.

In any case, Chakan and Dis had more favourite movies of mine. So it wouldn't have changed much in this vote.

[NICHOLLS]

Voted myself () and Sheer Magnetism.

What a group! 


My quick notes:

dis_1 - Aliens is an all-time favourite of mine, dis' strongest film here. His selection is supported by solid cult favourites I enjoyed as a kid and teenager like Akira/Gremlins/Little Shop of Horrors (Evil Dead II as a wildcard pick is inspired).
Grade A-

Chakan - no 'elite' films in his roster but an entertaining selection. The Princess Bridge remains a timeless classic whatever age I am.
Grade B

Sheer Magnetism - Sheer has one of my favourite rosters in this tourney (I thought was a genuine contender for winner). Blue Velvet is one of the top 10 films of the decade, genius from Lynch, and the scariest villain of the 80s, forget about Darth Vader, Freddie Kreuger, aliens and the Terminator. Return of the Jedi is weaker than Empire/A New Hope but it has my favourite Star Wars scene of all time: Vader vs Luke on the DeathStar... "NEVERRR!" Paris/Texas is art. I'm a big Mann fan, and Manhunter is my second favourite film of his after Heat. Robocop is another of my all-time favourite sci-fis (Verhoeven all over: ultra-violent, satirical, politically aware). My Neighbour Totoro is a great entry into the works of Ghibli, if not the most simple. Sheer Magnetism undoubtedly has a similar taste of films as me.
Grade A*
 

[red mongoose]

Holy fuckballs, what a battle.

[Sheer Magnetism]

Don't think Chakan's films are really to my taste this time but the group as a whole is nails: Withnail, Spinal Tap, Airplane and Caddyshack were probably my first four comedy choices (though not necessarily in that order). I was a whisker away from making Die Hard my first overall pick too. Really good job all round.

[Crosby Nick]

Voted without seeing names.

Nicholls on top for me. Die Hard a classic, strong all the way through of the ones I’ve seen.

Chakan and Dis were neck and neck. Just went for Chakan by virtue of him having a higher share of first place picks by category. Love Airplane, Good Morning Vietnam and Nightmare on Elm St. Dis had some classics too to be fair with Gremlins, Spinal Tap and Aliens.

Sheer had plenty of 8/10s for me but not enough category toppers (in my shite opinion). Robocop just edged out by Aliens, Blue Velvet and Caddyshack getting him some share of the spoils.

Comedy sec ruin was very strong in this group. Airplane probably my favourite (certainly my most watched), but all the others right up there too.

[Crosby Nick]

I’m fucked when Betty judges mine by the way as half of my picks would be better served in other categories but I just went off letterboxd and tried to keep my options open.

[Betty Blue]

I’m fucked when Betty judges mine by the way as half of my picks would be better served in other categories but I just went off letterboxd and tried to keep my options open.

I'm sure I'm the only one paying any attention to categories anyway 

[Hazell]

Now what, penalties?

[Chakan]

Bloody hell that was close.

Ummmm I guess a run off between nich and myself? Maybe a 3-4hr poll? I dunno

[Hazell]

Yeah, I'll set it up shortly. A couple of hours should be OK I think?

[Lastrador]

Now what, penalties?

I did a quick 1:30 hour poll last time. You can make it 1 hour though, as most of the votes came in pretty early. Be sure to PM all participants though.

[Hazell]

I did a quick 1:30 hour poll last time. You can make it 1 hour though, as most of the votes came in pretty early. Be sure to PM all participants though.

Thanks mate, I'll get that set up.

[dis_1]

i've only just been able to feel able to post.
i was 3-0 up at half-time and was certain it was in the bag!!! and i bottled the second half
nah, well done - i nearly didn't vote for myself as all the choices were fabulous