Don't You (Forget About Me)

I'm a child of the 80's.  I owned Thriller and Purple Rain on vinyl. I watched Family Ties, Silver Spoons, and The A Team religously. I was known to "pop" my collar, I patterned my laugh after Eddie Murphy's, and I even squeezed my fat ass into a pair of parachute pants to impress Michelle DiNardo--my 6th grade girlfriend.

In my opinion, the 1980's gave us some great cinema and launched more than a few mega-star's careers.  John Hughes was the godfather of the 80's flick and rightfully so with such classics as Vacation, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Sixteen Candles, Uncle Buck, and Weird Science, just to name a few.  Although I love those movies, as well as, a ton of other very popular 80's flicks, I wanted to pay homage to a few other great flicks that remain severely underrated to this day. There are thousands of examples, but here are a few of my personal favorites.

The Flamingo Kid (1984)
Great 80's fun here, kids. We have a solid cast of Matt Dillon as Jeffery Willis, a young kid from the Bronx who falls into a summer job at the el Flamingo beach club, a hilariously sacrastic Hector Elizondo as Jeffery's father, the yummy Janet Jones (Mrs. Wayne Gretsky), and the late great Richard Crenna as Phil Brody "The King"--a fast talking, slick card playing, mentor of Jeffery's.  The movie is set in the '60's with a great soundtrack, pretty girls in bikinis, and plenty of 80's movie hijinks! Check out the movie trailer.  If you're in the mood for pure 80's entertainment, rent it, or Netflix it--you won't regret it. Quotability factor: 8  Rewatchability factor: 8

Just One of The Guys (1985)
As the trailer illustrates, the premise is simple and plausible; Terry, an attractive girl gets pissed off because her term paper isn't chosen for an award, so she dresses up as guy (she's convinced that her paper is dismissed b/c she is a pretty girl), transfers to a different school, and tries to get her paper the accolades it so richly deserves.  OK, the plot is neither simple nor plausible, but it does have an unbelieveable performance turned in by Billy Jacoby as Terry's horny brother Buddy, the 80's B-movie & TV fixture Leigh McCloskey, the greatest 80's bully ever in William Zabka (Johnny Lawrence from The Karate Kid), and the gorgeous Joyce Hyser as Terry.  For the guys out there who have seen this, how great is the shot in the movie where Terry flashes her lovely breasts to Rick at the prom?  That, my friends, was the moment in 1985 when I became a man.  Quotability: 9  Rewatchability: 9

Johnny Dangerously (1984)
I actually saw this one at the theater.  It was one of those watershed moments of my young male life.  My friend Boz and I were sitting there in the theater waiting for the previews to begin, when all of a sudden a very attractive 12 year-old girl and her equally attractive friend sat in the two seats next to me.  I turned to Boz and gave him a wink as to re-assure him that I'd take control of the situation and bag these two babes for us. As I sat there thinking of the perfect line, I realized an unfortunate truth--I had zero game.  So, in desperation, I offered her a Sno-Cap, which she politely declined, as did her lovely friend. (Man, I was smooth in '84). And then, during the previews the two got up and moved to different seats.  And thus began my long and painful journey down the dating highway.  Anyway, I digress.  We have Michael Keaton in his prime (why did he ever stop making comedies?) as a good hearted ganster just trying to pay for his ailing mother's constant surgeries, all the while keeping his life of crime a secret from his D.A. brother.  The movie itself is a tongue in cheek look at the underworld of thugs and street gangs of the1930's.  It is cut from the same cloth as Airplane, but not as literal.  My favorite parts are whenever Johnny's rival mobster boss Roman Moronie has one of his signature foul-mouthed rants.  Truly an underrated gem!  Quotability: 8  Rewatchability: 8

Can't Buy Me Love (1987)
I know, it is kind of popular, but it should be a lot more popular than it is. This one has it all--a great cast, a funny script, and Cindy Mancini (Amanda Peterson).  Where else could you get a young, and fantastic, Seth Green, a pre-Rico Suave Gerardo, the talented Patrick Dempsey, and the hotness of both Amanda Peterson and Darcy DeMoss?  Not that CBML doesn't have a fault or two--Cindy's ex-boyfriend's hair and acting ability are completely ridiculous, but the strength of the storyline pushes the viewer past any of these potential pitfalls.  The movie also gives us a great "I couldn't do that again if you gave me a 1,000 tries" moment when an absolutely tanked Cindy Mancini throws a perfect strike (from 15 feet away) at the record player with her vodka-soda interrupting Billy Idol's classic, "Dancing With Myself."  But, for me and my money, the young Seth Green steals every scene he's in. The movie is a classic in every sense of the word.  Quotability: 10  Rewatchability: 10

Night Shift (1982)
I realize that that the coupling of Arthur Fonzarelli and Bruce Wayne seems, shall we say, a tad eskew.  And when you toss in Shelly Long as a prostitute, it may seem like you are headed for cinematic, if not comedic, disaster.  But I'm here to tell you movie fans, this movie is very funny shit!  Let's talk plot, shall we?  Chuck Lumley (Henry Winkler), a mild mannered yes man, and Billy Blazejowski (Michael Keaton), a morally bankrupt and utterly hilarious idea man agree to help out Chuck's prostitute neighbor Belinda (Shelly Long) and her fellow prostitute friends by becoming their pimps.  Since they work the night shift, nobody is around to keep tabs on the two as they begin their thriving business venture. By doing so, the morgue is turned into a bordello, the "love brokers" and their "employees" watch as the money comes pouring in, and a love connection is made between Belinda and Chuck.  The movie also gives us one of the best movie quotes ever.  A lazy co-worker of Chuck's who accomplishes nothing while working the afternoon shift is watching  re-runs of the Flinstones and laments to Chuck as he leaves, "Wow, that Barney Rubble.What an actor!"  This is definitely one of my personal favorites and a highly underrated flick.  Quotability: 9  Rewatchability: 10