Taking a look at the year 1987, picking my 10 favorite movies from that year in random order.
The Princess Bride
A grandfather visits his sick grandson and wants to read to him from a book that includes kissing. “Boring”, says the boy. “Not in this book”, replies grandpa. Then a sparkling fairytale unfolds about a young woman who no longer believes in love after the man of her dreams went missing at sea. When she is kidnapped, she meets countless unusual fairytale characters. The film has a lot to offer: an original take on the genre, enthusiastic actors and a fun story for young and old. Fun fact: The Cliffs of Insanity are actually the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland, which I visited in 2019.
The Lost Boys
This is one of my favorite teen horror films and vampire films ever. It’s a colorful mix of action, horror and comedy. And it stars the hippest teen actors from that time. We follow two brothers who have just moved to the coastal town of Santa Cruz and are starting to suspect that there are vampires living there. Not a subtle movie, but highly entertaining.
Predator
A team of extremely tough commandos led by Dutch flies at the request of CIA agent Dillon to a Central American country to liberate hostages. But it’s not as easy at it sounds, since the hostages are dead and the team had to make its way through the hot jungle to safety then it turns out that an alien-like creature is hunting them. Strong thriller with horror and science fiction elements. And Arnold Schwarzenegger in his heyday.
Empire of the Sun
An ambitious film full of impressive images. It tells the story of a British boy who has led a protected life in Shanghai, is separated from his parents and has to stand up for himself when Japan enters China at the beginning of World War II. Director Steven Spielberg gives an almost bombastic portrayal of the event, aided by the music of composer John Williams. It’s based on the novel by J.G. Ballard and stars a very young Christian Bale.
Withnail and I
In 1969, two substance-abusing, unemployed actors retreat to the countryside for a holiday that proves disastrous. The excesses and excitement of that time are accurately and skillfully displayed. A great performance by Richard E. Grant as Withnail and a delightful role of Richard Griffith as Withnail’s homosexual uncle. Very worthwhile.
Planes, Trains and Automobiles
On his way for Thanksgiving, businessman Neal Page gets stuck with the annoying Del Griffith, who sells shower curtain rings. But the many obstacles blocking their path eventually bring the two closer together. Entertaining buddy-road movie by director John Hughes. A movie me and my family watched each year during the holidays, when I still lived with my parents.
Evil Dead II
The American horror film “Evil Dead”, the first film in what eventually would become a trilogy, was already absurd. For example the scene in which a woman was assaulted by a tree. But with “Evil Dead II”, director Sam Raimi made a truly bizarre horror. Once again, a group of people end up in a remote cabin, and once again they evoke a dark presence with texts from an ancient book. From now on, evil be presented in an inventive and bloody way. Eyeballs flying through the room, a headless zombie dancing, and protagonist Ash fights to the death with his own hand. By many considered the best in the “Evil Dead” series. You love it or hate it.
The Untouchables
In Chicago, during the Prohibition in the 1920s, the service is called off by mobster Al Capone, who sees the money flow with the illegal sale of liquor, and he has half of the police force in his pocket. Ambitious and incorruptible policeman Elliot Ness is asked to take him down. He assembles a small team to work with. Extraordinarily strong crime drama, with excellent performances by Robert DeNiro, Sean Connery, Kevin Costner and Andy Garcia. The highlight is the scene at the train station.
Lethal Weapon
Great action film with a fun premise: detective Riggs, tired of life since the death of his wife, is linker to his almost retired colleague Murtaugh. They are sent to the heavily armed gang of drug lord The General. Because Riggs doesn’t care if he survives the workday, he often acts crazy, which is effective, but also very risky, according to the family man Murtaugh. The high tempt, the strong action scenes and the witty one-liners between Mel Gibson and Danny Glover are fun to watch. The film had three sequels.
Robocop
Set in the future, cop Murphy is riddled with bullets by a gang. He is ‘recycled’ by replacing a large part of his body with robotic components and using his brain as a programmable control system. When you read the tagline: ‘Part man. Part machine. All cop. The future of law enforcement’, it sounds like a bad B-movie. Director Paul Verhoeven, however, made an interesting, nonchalant mix of ultra-violence, romance, society critical jokes and visual spectacle with his major Hollywood breakthrough.
