Top 10 Films of 1984

1. ''The Terminator'' (James Cameron, USA)

2. ''Amadeus'' (Milos Forman, USA)

3. "Paris, Texas" (Wim Wenders, USA)

4. "The Wannsee Conference" (Heinz Schirk, Germany)

5. "Broadway Danny Rose" (Woody Allen, USA)

6. "Stranger Than Paradise" (Jim Jarmusch, USA)

7. ''Once Upon A Time In America'' (Sergio Leone, USA)

8. "The Killing Fields" (Roland Joffe, USA)

9. "A Passage To India" (David Lean, UK)

10. "Romancing The Stone" (Robert Zemeckis, USA)

Other great films:

After The Rehearsal (Sweden)

All Of Me

The Annunciation (Hungary)
Before Stonewall

Beverly Hills Cop

Blame It On Rio

Blood Simple

Body Double
The Bostonians
Carmen (Italy)

The Cotton Club

Crimes Of Passion
Dune

Fanny Hill

La Femme publique (France)

Footloose

Ghostbusters
Gremlins

Gwendoline (France)

Histoire d'O. Chapitre 2 (France)

The Home And The World (India)

Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom
The Karate Kid
Kids From Shaolin (China)

Lilian 

The Muppets Take Manhattan

Murder Rock
Nausicaa (Japan)
The Neverending Story (Germany)

El Norte

Les Nuits de la pleine lune (France)

Racing With The Moon

Repentance (Soviet Union)

Les Ripoux (France)

Seksmisja (Poland)

Shanghai Blues (Hong Kong)

Slunce seno jahody (Czechoslovakia)
Star Trek III: The Search For Spock
Starman
Stop Making Sense

Talk Dirty To Me Part III

Thais (Poland)

That Was Rock

They're Playing With Fire
This Is Spinal Tap

The Times Of Harvey Milk 

Volupia de mulher (Brazil)

What Have I Done To Deserve This ? (Spain)

Wheels On Meals (Hong Kong)
Widziadlo (Poland)

Short Top 3:

1. "J'ai faim j'ai froid" (Chantal Akerman, France)

2. "Le Voleur vit en enfer" (Robert Morin, Lorraine Dufour, Canada)

3. "Recollections Of Pavlovsk" (Irina Kalinina, Soviet Union)

Other great shorts:

After Hours (Australia)
The Painted Door (Canada)

Top 3 Music Videos:

1. "You Might Think" (Jeff Stein, The Cars)

2. "Hello Again" (Andy Warhol, The Cars)

3. "Stranger In Town" (Steve Barron, Toto)

Top Commercial:

"1984" (Ridley Scott, Apple)

Other great commercials:

Morning In America

TV Top 3:

1. "Miami Vice: Brother's Keeper" (Thomas Carter, NBC)

2. "Miami Vice: Calderone's Return" (Richard A. Colla, Paul Michael Glaser, NBC)

3. "Family Ties: 4 Rms Ocn Vu" (Lee Shallat, NBC)

Other great TV shows:

07 zglos sie 4 (Poland)

Yes Minister: Party Games (UK)

Cartoon Top 3:

1. "Jumping" (Osamu Tezuka, Japan)

2. "Charade" (Jon Minnis, Canada)

3. "Doctor DeSoto" (Michael, Sporn, USA)

Other great cartoons:

Anijam
Bitz Butz (Israel)
Blackberry Subway Jam (Canada)
Gravity (Hungary)
Hopla Badigeonneurs (Soviet Union)

Moa Moa (Italy)

Paradise (Canada)
Question de forme (Canada)
Romeo And Juliet (Yugoslavia)

Weak films of 1984:

L'Amour a mort (France)
Best Defense
Un Dimanche a la campagne (France)

The Element Of Crime (Denmark)
Little Drummer Girl
Pengkhianatan G30S-PKI (Indonesia)
Places In The Heart
Project A (Hong Kong)
Repo Man
Sixteen Candles
Sonatine (Canada)
Supergirl

Weak shorts:

A Girl's Own Story (Australia)

Weak cartoons:

Etienne et Sara (Canada)
Lights Before Dawn (Hungary)
Le Metro
Observational Hazard
Rectangle et rectangles (Canada)
Sigmund (Italy)

Weak TV shows:

Kabaret Olgi Lipinskiej: Blondynka Alternatywa (Poland)

Kabaret Olgi Lipinskiej: Jak sie nie krec (Poland)

Top Musical of 1984

"Footloose" (Herbert Ross, Paramount)

The Terminator (1984) *****

This 1984 film marks the birth of an entirely new film genre - the action movie. Before ''The Terminator'', there were adventure films (like ''Raiders of the Lost Ark''), there were science-fiction flicks (like ''Star Wars''), there were horror movies (like ''Jaws'') and there were police dramas (like ''The French Connection''). But then Canadian-born filmmaker James Cameron had the bright idea of combining all those genres into one single film, and bingo - a whole new type of movie has been created. ''The Terminator'' has the action set pieces of an adventure film, the high-tech special effects of a science-fiction flick, the shocking thrills of a horror movie and the exciting car chases of a police drama. There are even touches of humour. The immortal Arnold Schwarzenegger's line, ''I'll be back'' is actually a hilarious and elaborate gag. Reversing the typical action-sequence structure (where the hero usually delivers a punch line after performing a daring stunt), here the the quip is the set-up, and the action scene - Arnie coming right back, fully armed and riding a pickup-truck into a police station - becomes the punch line. Stylistically, the film is a masterpiece. Cameron's direction is dazzling. The noirish cinematography gives the movie a distinct, dark and forbidding look, which became quite familiar by the late 1980's, but was quite innovative at the time (just look at the difference in the visual look of 1978's ''Superman'' and the 1989's ''Batman'' to see how the superhero films have evolved due to Terminator's influence). The rapid-fire editing has also set a new pace for Hollywood movies from then on, making older action/adventure films look sluggish by comparison. The bone-rushing violence, the unrelenting suspense, the spectacular chases and action sequences, and a bleak vision of a post-apocalyptic future - all contribute to the excitement and the thrills. And there is even some sexual titillation thrown in for good measure. The plot is simple, but effective - an evil cyborg (Arnold Schwarzenegger) from a post-nuclear future, is sent to the past (1984's Lost Angeles) to kill a young girl (Linda Hamilton) who will become the mother of a future resistance leader. A resistance fighter (Michael Biehn) is also send to the past to protect her. Once this premise is introduced, the film doesn't waste any time on parallel subplots or narrative complications - it becomes one, long, exciting and relentless chase sequence that never stops.

Amadeus (1984) *****

The Wannsee Conference (1984) ****

A precise, real-time (exactly 85 minutes - the length of the actual event) reenactment of the infamous Wannsee Conference in January 1942, when leading Nazi officials gathered to discuss the implementation of the Holocaust.

Paris, Texas (1984) ****

Stranger Than Paradise (1984) ****

While clearly inspired by Wim Wenders' road movies (especially "Alice In The Cities"), it's still a completely original and superbly directed little film.

Broadway Danny Rose (1984) ****

Excellent comedy from Woody Allen.

The Killing Fields (1984) ****

Shocking drama set in Cambodia during the rule of Pol Pot.

Once Upon A Time In America (1984) ****

Footloose (1984) ***

Beverly Hills Cop (1984) ***

The Times Of Harvey Milk (1984) ***

Oscar-winning documentary about America's first openly gay politician, assassinated in 1978.

All Of Me (1984) ***

Steve Martin gives a terrific performance is this wild comedy.

Shanghai Blues (1984) ***

Tsui Hark's first masterpiece is a fast-paced comedy set in 1947 Shanghai.

Blood Simple (1984) ***

Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. With Frances McDormand, Dan Hedaya, M.Emmet Walsh, and John Getz. This exciting debut effort by the Coen Brothers, made in 1984, seemlessly blends elements of old film noir melodramas, Alfred Hitchcock thrillers and contemporary horror movies. It tells the story of a tough bar owner (Dan Hedaya) who hires a slimy private eye (M.Emmet Walsh) to murder his wife (Frances McDormand) and her lover (John Getz). It’s a tense and crafty little movie, full of surprising plot twists. The young filmmakers (who would later made such memorable classics as Raising Arizona, Barton Fink and Fargo) have managed to built suspense through expert use of dark light, claustrophobic space, realistic sets and interesting camera movements.

Ce premier long métrage des frères Coen, tourné en 1984, s’inspire aussi bien de vieux film noirs, de films d'Alfred Hitchcock et de films d’horreur contemporains. L’histoire est simple: un mari jaloux (Dan Hedaya) demande à un détective (M.Emmet Walsh) de supprimer sa femme (Frances Mcormand) et son amant (John Getz). Mais l’intrigue ne se déroule pas du tout comme prévue. C'est un petit film très astucieux, et plein des grosses surprises. Les jeunes cinéastes (qui ont réalisés par la suite des films encore plus mémorables, tels que Raising Arizona, Barton Fink and Fargo), sont parvenus à créer un suspense inoubliable grâce à l’utilisation experte de tous les élements cinématographiques: la lumière, l’espace, le décor et les movements de camera.

The Karate Kid (1984) ***

Good film starring Ralph Macchio as an eager karate student.

Before Stonewall (1984) ***

Excellent documentary about the persecutions of gay people in America before the famous Stonewall riots in the summer of 1969.

Kids From Shaolin (1984) ***

Directed by Chang Hsin-Yen. Jet Li stars in this enjoyable kung-fu film about two warring families.

Wheels On Meals (1984) ***

Jackie Chan stars in this chop socky film set in Europe.

The Bostonians (1984) ***

An adaptation of a Henry James's novel.

El Norte (1984) ***

Excellent film about illegal immigrants from Central America.

Ghostbusters (1984) ***

Blockbuster comedy about ghost hunters in New York City.

Gremlins (1984) ***

An ingenious mix of comedy, horror and science-fiction.

Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom (1984) ***

Exciting adventure film, set in India.

Dune (1984) ***

An adaptation of the famous novel.

They're Playing With Fire (1984) ***

Racing With The Moon (1984) ***

Stop Making Sense (1984) ***

Directed by Jonathan Demme. A concert film by Talking Heads. Songs include:

"Psycho Killer" **
"Burning Down The House" **
"Once In A Lifetime" ***

That Was Rock (1984) ***

This musical documentary consists of the footage from two concert films, "The T.A.M.I Show" (1964), directed by Steve Binder and "The Big T.N.T Show" (1966), directed by Larry Peerce. Hosted by Chuck Berry. Songs include:

"You Don't Own Me" (Lesley Gore) ***

Murder Rock (1984) ***

The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984) ***

The best of several feature films starring The Muppets.

Nausicaa (1984) ***

A Japanese animated feature.

The Neverending Story (1984) ***

A German fantasy film.

A Passage To India (1984) ***

David Lean's last film.

Romancing The Stone (1984) ***

An exciting adventure film.

Star Trek III: The Search For Spock (1984) ***

The "Star Trek" saga continues.

Crimes Of Passion (1984) ***

Starman (1984) ***

Science-fiction film about an alien from Outer Space.

This Is Spinal Tap (1984) ***

Brilliant mockumentary that parodies concert film like "The Last Waltz".

Carmen (1984) ***

Sumptuous cinematic adaptation of one of the greatest operas of all times.

The Cotton Club (1984) ***

Body Double (1984) ***

Blame It On Rio (1984) ***

Les Ripoux (1984) ***

Les Nuits de la pleine lune (1984) ***

L'Amour a mort (1984) *

Alain Resnais' most difficult film, and that's saying something about the director of "L'Annee derniere a Marienbad" (1961), "Muriel ou le temps d'un retour" (1963) and "Providence" (1977). But unlike those earlier masterpieces, "L'Amour a mort" isn't just difficult, but extremely boring as well, though, to be fair, not nearly as boring as "Je t'aime je t'aime" (1968).

Un Dimanche a la campagne (1984) **

Bertrand Tavernier's film about an impressionist painter.

Gwendoline (1984) ***

La Femme publique (1984) ***

What Have I Done To Deserve This ? (1984) ***