1979 at the movies
Revisiting what was playing at the local cinema in 1979. Making lists like this pretty much demonstrates, to me anyway, that film has grown a lot less interesting over the course of the last few decades.
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- DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsMartin SheenMarlon BrandoRobert DuvallA U.S. Army officer serving in Vietnam is tasked with assassinating a renegade Special Forces Colonel who sees himself as a god.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsSigourney WeaverTom SkerrittJohn HurtThe crew of a commercial spacecraft encounters a deadly lifeform after investigating a mysterious transmission of unknown origin.
- DirectorWalter HillStarsMichael BeckJames RemarDorsey WrightA street gang known as the Warriors must fight its way from the Bronx to its home turf on Coney Island when its members are falsely accused of assassinating a respected gang leader.
- DirectorRobert BentonStarsDustin HoffmanMeryl StreepJane AlexanderAfter his wife leaves him, a work-obsessed Manhattan advertising executive is forced to learn long-neglected parenting skills, but a heated custody battle over the couple's young son deepens the wounds left by the separation.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsWilliam ShatnerLeonard NimoyDeForest KelleyWhen an alien spacecraft of enormous power is spotted approaching Earth, Admiral James T. Kirk resumes command of the overhauled USS Enterprise in order to intercept it.
- DirectorSylvester StalloneStarsSylvester StalloneTalia ShireBurt YoungRocky struggles in family life after his bout with Apollo Creed, while the embarrassed champ insistently goads him to accept a challenge for a rematch.
- DirectorStuart RosenbergStarsJames BrolinMargot KidderRod SteigerNewlyweds and their three children move into a large house where a mass murder was committed. They start to experience strange, inexplicable manifestations which have strong effects on everyone living in or visiting the house.
- DirectorBlake EdwardsStarsDudley MooreBo DerekJulie AndrewsA Hollywood composer goes through a mid-life crisis and becomes infatuated with a sexy, newly married woman.
- DirectorJames FrawleyStarsJim HensonFrank OzJerry NelsonKermit and his newfound friends trek across America to find success in Hollywood, but a frog legs merchant is after Kermit.
- DirectorCarl ReinerStarsSteve MartinBernadette PetersCatlin AdamsA simpleminded, sheltered country boy suddenly decides to leave his family home to experience life in the big city, where his naivete is both his best friend and his worst enemy.
- DirectorSydney PollackStarsRobert RedfordJane FondaValerie PerrineA rodeo star past his prime steals his company's horse and rides into the desert, accompanied by a feisty reporter.
- DirectorJames BridgesStarsJane FondaJack LemmonMichael DouglasA reporter finds what appears to be a cover-up of safety hazards at a nuclear power plant.
- DirectorIvan ReitmanStarsBill MurrayHarvey AtkinKate LynchWacky hijinks of counselors and campers at a less-than-average summer camp.
- DirectorDon SiegelStarsClint EastwoodPatrick McGoohanRoberts BlossomAlcatraz is the most secure prison of its time. It is believed that no one can ever escape from it, until three daring men make a possibly successful attempt at escaping from one of the most infamous prisons in the world.
- DirectorWoody AllenStarsWoody AllenDiane KeatonMariel HemingwayThe life of a divorced television writer dating a teenage girl is further complicated when he falls in love with his best friend's mistress.
- DirectorAlan J. PakulaStarsBurt ReynoldsJill ClayburghCandice BergenA divorced man falls in love, but somehow he can't get over his ex-wife. This affects his love life in comic ways. Based on Dan Wakefield's novel.
- DirectorGary NelsonStarsMaximilian SchellAnthony PerkinsRobert ForsterA research vessel finds a missing ship, commanded by a mysterious scientist, on the edge of a black hole.
- DirectorNorman JewisonStarsAl PacinoJack WardenJohn ForsytheA lawyer is forced to defend a judge, while defending other clients, and trying to find punishment for the guilty and provide justice for the innocent.
- DirectorHal AshbyStarsPeter SellersShirley MacLaineMelvyn DouglasAfter the death of his employer forces him out of the only home he's ever known, a simpleminded, sheltered gardener becomes an unlikely trusted advisor to a powerful tycoon and an insider in Washington politics.
- DirectorVolker SchlöndorffStarsDavid BennentMario AdorfAngela WinklerIn 1924, Oskar Matzerath is born in the Free City of Danzig. At age three, he falls down a flight of stairs and stops growing. In 1939, World War II breaks out.
- DirectorPeter YatesStarsDennis ChristopherDennis QuaidDaniel SternA working-class Indiana teen obsessed with the Italian cycling team vies for the affections of a college girl while searching for life goals with his friends.
- DirectorMark RydellStarsBette MidlerAlan BatesFrederic ForrestThe tragic life of a self-destructive female rock star who struggles to deal with the constant pressures of her career and the demands of her ruthless business manager.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsJohn BelushiDan AykroydTreat WilliamsHysterical Californians prepare for a Japanese invasion in the days after Pearl Harbor.
- DirectorBob FosseStarsRoy ScheiderJessica LangeAnn ReinkingDirector/choreographer Bob Fosse tells his own life story as he details the sordid career of Joe Gideon, a womanizing, drug-using dancer.
- DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsOliver ReedSamantha EggarArt HindleA man tries to uncover an unconventional psychologist's therapy techniques on his institutionalized wife, amidst a series of brutal murders.
- DirectorTinto BrassStarsMalcolm McDowellPeter O'TooleHelen MirrenA dramatization of the ascent to Caesar and subsequent reign of Caligula, one of the most notorious leaders of ancient Rome. We see his ambition, his scheming, his perversion and decadence, his brutality and his lunacy.
- DirectorFranco ZeffirelliStarsJon VoightFaye DunawayRicky SchroderBilly Flynn is an ex-champion boxer who was KO'd by booze and gambling. When the wealthy, estranged mother of his young son begins trying to lure the boy away from him, Flynn must return to the ring to provide for his child.
- DirectorDavid Lowell RichStarsAlain DelonSusan BlakelyRobert WagnerA supersonic airborne disaster. In order to survive a flight headed for the Moscow Olympics, passengers of the Concorde must endure aerial acrobatics to dodge missiles and survive a device that decompresses the plane.
- DirectorRichard LesterStarsSean ConneryBrooke AdamsJack WestonA British mercenary arrives in pre-Revolution Cuba to help train General Batista's Army against Castro's guerrillas while he also romances a former lover now married to an unscrupulous plantation owner.
- DirectorJohn BadhamStarsFrank LangellaLaurence OlivierDonald PleasenceIn 1913, the charming, seductive and sinister vampire Count Dracula travels to England in search of an immortal bride.
- DirectorStan DragotiStarsGeorge HamiltonSusan Saint JamesRichard BenjaminAfter being evicted from his castle in Transylvania, Count Dracula and his assistant Renfield travel to New York to find a woman who the Count believes is the reincarnation of the woman he has loved for all eternity.
- DirectorGeorge P. CosmatosStarsRoger MooreTelly SavalasDavid NivenA World War II adventure involving a group of Allied P.O.W.s, Nazis, black market priceless art treasures, Greek resistance, a Greek monastery, and a secret German rocket base.
- DirectorKen AnnakinStarsSylvia KristelUrsula AndressBeau BridgesWhen French King Louis XIV (Beau Bridges) learns that his twin brother, Philippe (Beau Bridges), could usurp his crown, he sets out to imprison him in the Bastille prison but four loyal musketeers are protecting Philippe.
- DirectorPaul AaronStarsJennifer O'NeillChuck NorrisClu GulagerWhen the detectives of an undercover police unit are being mysteriously killed by a martial artist, a professional kickboxer is hired to assist them.
- DirectorLewis John CarlinoStarsRobert DuvallBlythe DannerMichael O'KeefeAs he approaches manhood, Ben Meechum struggles to win the approval of his demanding alpha male father, an aggressively competitive, but frustrated Marine pilot.
- DirectorMartin BrestStarsGeorge BurnsArt CarneyLee StrasbergThree friends living on the dole decide to rob a bank.
- DirectorJames IvoryStarsLee RemickRobin EllisWesley AddyIt's the fall of 1850, a few miles outside Boston. The household of the dour Mr. Wentworth receives two unannounced visitors from Europe, Eugenia and Felix, the daughter and son of his half sister. Gertrude, one of Wentworth's two daughters, is instantly infatuated with her cousins, thinking them sophisticated and worldly. She turns her back on the local Unitarian minister, Mr. Brand, who has been calling on her, to delight in the pleasure and amusement Felix offers. Another wealthy neighbor, Mr. Acton, is attracted to Eugenia, who is going through a divorce with a European aristocrat. Are the Americans being used by the penniless Europeans? Or is there real affection?
- DirectorJoseph SargentStarsJames CoburnSusan AntonCurd JürgensA neo-Nazi doctor tries to make a superwoman of his daughter who has been specially fed, exercised, and conditioned since she was a child in preparation of the Olympics.
- DirectorPeter HyamsStarsHarrison FordLesley-Anne DownChristopher PlummerMargaret is a nurse in England during WW2, and married to a secret agent. Things get complicated when she falls for David, an American pilot.
- DirectorPaul SchraderStarsGeorge C. ScottPeter BoyleSeason HubleyA religious businessman from Michigan has to venture into the world of pornography in California, desperately searching for his runaway teenage daughter.
- DirectorRichard PearceStarsRip TornConchata FerrellBarry PrimusA widow with a young daughter travels to a ranch in Wyoming to manage the household of a rancher. After a while the man and woman develop a relationship that leads to a marriage. But life in the harsh place takes its toll.
- DirectorDom DeLuiseStarsDom DeLuiseSuzanne PleshetteJerry ReedMiami police fence stolen goods at a storefront-sting operation equipped with a two-way mirror.
- DirectorGerald Seth SindellStarsSusan KigerLisa LondonPamela Jean BryantCollege exploitation film focusing on the wild escapades of the women of H.O.T.S. Sorority. The antics include but are certainly not limited to a wet t-shirt contest, a sky-diving episode, plenty of fraternity boys and even a house-keeping robot. Can the girls of H.O.T.S. overcome the scrutiny of their unliberated student counterparts and the University Administration as they unknowingly become the focus of bumbling crooks?
- DirectorOtto PremingerStarsRichard AttenboroughNicol WilliamsonDerek JacobiWhen a leak of information in the African section of British Intelligence is discovered, security man Daintry is brought in to investigate.
- DirectorArthur HillerStarsPeter FalkAlan ArkinRichard LibertiniOn the eve of their children's marriage, NYC in-laws Sheldon Kornpett and Vince Ricardo embark on a series of misadventures involving the CIA, the Treasury Department and Central American dictators.
- DirectorJeff SteinStarsRoger DaltreyPete TownshendKeith MoonInterviews, TV clips and concert footage make up this comprehensive profile of The Who, Britain's premiere rock band.
- DirectorJonathan DemmeStarsRoy ScheiderJanet MargolinJohn GloverHarry breaks down and loses his job after his wife is assassinated - could it be his turn next ?
- DirectorGeorge Roy HillStarsLaurence OlivierDiane LaneThelonious BernardAn American teenager living in Paris meets and falls in love with a local.
- DirectorFrançois TruffautStarsJean-Pierre LéaudClaude JadeMarie-France PisierAntoine Doinel is now more than thirty. He divorces from Christine. He is a proofreader, and is in love with Sabine, a record seller. Colette, his teenager love, is now a lawyer. She buys Antoine's first published autobiographical novel. They meet again in a station...
- DirectorBernardo BertolucciStarsJill ClayburghMatthew BarryVeronica LazarWhile touring in Italy, a recently-widowed American opera singer has an incestuous relationship with her 15-year-old son to help him overcome his heroin addiction.
- DirectorGeorge MillerStarsMel GibsonJoanne SamuelHugh Keays-ByrneIn a self-destructing world, a vengeful Australian policeman sets out to stop a violent motorcycle gang.
- DirectorHoward ZieffStarsBarbra StreisandRyan O'NealPaul SandA bankrupt entrepreneur attempts to recoup some of her losses by getting a washed-out boxer she picked up as a tax loss back into the ring - an idea her protégé isn't fond of.
- DirectorRainer Werner FassbinderStarsHanna SchygullaKlaus LöwitschIvan DesnyMaria marries Hermann Braun in the last days of World War II, only for him to go missing in the war. Alone, Maria puts to use her beauty and ambition in order to find prosperity during Germany's "economic miracle" of the 1950s.
- DirectorPeter BrookStarsDragan MaksimovicTerence StampMikica DimitrijevicG.I. Gurdjieff is a spiritual teacher and mystic who, after a lifetime study, developed a form of meditation incorporating modern dance.
- DirectorRonald NeameStarsSean ConneryNatalie WoodKarl MaldenThe U.S. must join forces with the U.S.S.R. in order to destroy a gigantic asteroid heading straight for Earth.
- DirectorTerry JonesStarsGraham ChapmanJohn CleeseMichael PalinBorn on the original Christmas in the stable next door to Jesus Christ, Brian of Nazareth spends his life being mistaken for a messiah.
- DirectorLewis GilbertStarsRoger MooreLois ChilesMichael LonsdaleJames Bond investigates the mid-air theft of a space shuttle, and discovers a plot to commit global genocide.
- DirectorBill NortonStarsCandy ClarkBo HopkinsRon HowardTold in four different New Year's Eves in the mid 1960s, John, Terry, Debbie, Steve and Laurie deal with adulthood, the Vietnam war, peace rallies, and relationships.
- DirectorBob ClarkStarsChristopher PlummerJames MasonDavid HemmingsSherlock Holmes investigates the murders commited by Jack the Ripper and discovers a conspiracy to protect the killer.
- DirectorMichael O'DonoghueStarsMichael O'DonoghueDan AykroydRhonda CoulletMike O'Donoghue's parody of "Mondo Cane" showcases curious performers, strange musicians, celebrity mutations and unusual short films, including Thomas Alva Edison's "Elephant Electrocution".
- DirectorGillian ArmstrongStarsJudy DavisSam NeillWendy HughesA proud young woman in early 20th century Australia must choose between marriage and independence.
- DirectorMartin RittStarsSally FieldBeau BridgesRon LeibmanA young single mother and textile worker agrees to help unionize her mill despite the problems and dangers involved.
- DirectorTed KotcheffStarsNick NolteCharles DurningMac DavisA satire of American professional football in which a veteran pass-catcher's individuality and refusal to become part of the team family are bitterly resented by his disciplinarian coaches.
- DirectorWerner HerzogStarsKlaus KinskiIsabelle AdjaniBruno GanzCount Dracula moves from Transylvania to Wismar, spreading the Black Plague across the land. Only a woman pure of heart can bring an end to his reign of horror.
- DirectorBruce BilsonStarsEdward HerrmannBarbara HarrisSusan ClarkA new preacher in town joins forces with an unlikely group of crimefighters: six dedicated church ladies who are ready, but not necessarily equipped--to help.
- DirectorHarold BeckerStarsJohn SavageJames WoodsFranklyn SealesAn LA police officer is murdered in the onion fields outside of Bakersfield. However, legal loopholes could keep his kidnappers from receiving justice, and his partner is haunted by overwhelming survivor's guilt.
- DirectorDon CoscarelliStarsA. Michael BaldwinBill ThornburyReggie BannisterA teenage boy and his friends face off against a mysterious grave robber, known only as the Tall Man, who employs a lethal arsenal of unearthly weapons.
- DirectorRichard QuineStarsPeter SellersLynne FrederickLionel JeffriesIn order to save King Rudolph of Ruritania from assassins and murderous usurpers, the kingdom hires a look-a-like London cabby to impersonate the Monarch.
- DirectorJohn FrankenheimerStarsTalia ShireRobert FoxworthArmand AssanteA government health inspector is dispatched to assess the damage a logging company is causing to a patch of forest claimed by Native Americans, and comes face to face with true terror wreaking havoc in the woods.
- DirectorMichael PreeceStarsTim ConwayDon KnottsDavid WayneA mobster tricks an ex-boxer and his manager to take part in a series of (fixed) fights as part of a scheme to get his hands on an old boxing gym.
- DirectorAnthony HarveyStarsAli MacGrawDean Paul MartinMaximilian SchellA rising tennis star falls for an older woman engaged with a wealthy man she doesn't love. Will he become the next John McEnroe? Will she choose love over financial security?
- DirectorFranc RoddamStarsPhil DanielsLeslie AshPhil DavisJimmy Cooper loathes his dead-end job and his working-class parents. He seeks solace with his mod clique, scooter riding, and drugs, only to be disappointed.
- DirectorAlbert BrooksStarsDick HaynesAlbert BrooksMatthew TobinA film crew sets out to record a year in the life of an average family, but things quickly start going wrong.
- DirectorJeff MargolisStarsRichard PryorPatti LaBelleHuey P. NewtonRichard Pryor's classic 1979 concert film has him discussing a wide range of topics, including race, the police and his favorite target -- himself.
- DirectorAllan ArkushJoe DanteStarsP.J. SolesVincent Van PattenClint HowardRamones fanatic and delinquent Riff Randell battles it out with the strict new principal of Vince Lombardi High School, Miss Togar, with help from the Ramones.
- DirectorMark L. LesterStarsLinda BlairJim BrayBeverly GarlandSkaters band together to keep their roller-disco open.
- DirectorPeter BogdanovichStarsBen GazzaraDenholm ElliottJames VilliersJack Flowers, an American hustler in early-1970s Singapore, dreams of building a fortune by running a brothel and returning to the States to live a life of luxury.
- DirectorMichael SchultzStarsRichard BenjaminJames CocoScatman CrothersTo inherit a fortune, various addressees of a will must compete in a wild scavenger hunt to collect selected items, but cannot be simply bought.
- DirectorAlan ClarkeStarsRay WinstoneMick FordJulian FirthAn uncompromising story of life in a British juvenile offender institution in the '70s.
- DirectorAndrei TarkovskyStarsAlisa FreyndlikhAleksandr KaydanovskiyAnatoliy SolonitsynA guide leads two men through an area known as the Zone to find a room that grants wishes.
- DirectorRoman PolanskiStarsNastassja KinskiPeter FirthLeigh LawsonA strong-willed young peasant girl attracts the affection of two men.
- DirectorDerek JarmanStarsPeter BullDavid MeyerNeil CunninghamBanished to a forsaken island, the Right Duke of Milan and Sorcerer Prospero gets the chance to take his revenge on the King of Naples with the assistance of his airy spirit-servant, Ariel.
- DirectorRainer Werner FassbinderStarsEddie ConstantineHanna SchygullaVolker SpenglerA wildly anarchic satire of urban guerrilla warfare in which a band of leftist radicals inadvertently become puppets of the West German government, which uses them to justify its authoritarian policies.
- DirectorNicholas MeyerStarsMalcolm McDowellMary SteenburgenDavid WarnerH.G. Wells pursues Jack the Ripper to the 20th Century when the serial murderer uses the future writer's time machine to escape his time period.
- DirectorPhilip KaufmanStarsKen WahlKaren AllenJohn FriedrichThe Wanderers is a teenage, Italian gang in Bronx, NYC, 1963. They have their confrontations with other gangs. Drugs and weapons are uncool. Adult life awaits them.
- DirectorFred WaltonStarsCarol KaneCharles DurningRutanya AldaA psychopathic killer terrorizes a babysitter, then returns seven years later to menace her again.
- DirectorWilliam RichertStarsJeff BridgesJohn HustonAnthony PerkinsThe younger brother of an assassinated US President is led down a rabbit hole of conspiracies and dead ends after learning of a man claiming to be the real shooter.
- DirectorNeal IsraelStarsHarvey KormanFred WillardPeter RiegertIn a story told in narrative flashbacks, a young TV consultant is hired by the President of a bankrupt USA to organize a telethon in order to prevent the country from being repossessed by wealthy Native Americans.
- DirectorPeter FondaStarsPeter FondaBrooke ShieldsFiona LewisA drifter named Beaudray Demerille wins a young orphan named Wanda in a poker game and takes her gold prospecting in the Grand Canyon.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsBrad DourifJohn HustonDan ShorFresh out of the army, Hazel Motes attempts to open the first Church Without Christ in the small town of Taulkinham.
- DirectorWerner HerzogStarsKlaus KinskiEva MattesWolfgang ReichmannFranz Woyzeck is a hapless, hopeless soldier, alone and powerless in society, assaulted from all sides by forces he can not control.
- DirectorWorth KeeterStarsEarl OwensbyKristina ReynoldsSid RancerA man finds out that his family has a werewolf curse put upon them.
- DirectorJohn SchlesingerStarsRichard GereLisa EichhornVanessa RedgraveJoining WWII, USA ships soldiers to UK. Matt and John arrive in 1942. Each see a local woman - married or to be engaged with soldiers serving faraway.
- DirectorDouglas HickoxStarsBurt LancasterPeter O'TooleSimon WardA dramatization of the Battle of Isandlwana, where the British Army met its match against the Zulu nation.
- DirectorRaúl RuizStarsJean RougeulChantal PaleyJean RaynaudTwo narrators, one seen and one unseen, discuss possible connections between a series of paintings. The on-screen narrator walks through three-dimensional reproductions of each painting, featuring real people, sometimes moving, in an effort to explain the series' significance.
- DirectorMilos FormanStarsJohn SavageTreat WilliamsBeverly D'AngeloClaude Bukowski leaves the family ranch in Oklahoma for New York where he is rapidly embraced into the hippie group of youngsters led by Berger, yet he's already been drafted. He soon falls in love with Sheila Franklin, a rich girl but still a rebel inside.
- DirectorJack SmightStarsGabe KaplanHarold SylvesterMichael WarrenDavid Greene is a New York basketball enthusiast, who wants to coach. He is then offered the coaching job at a small Nevada college. He brings along some players, who are a bit odd but good. Like Swish who unknown to the rest of the team is a girl. Preacher, who's being sought by some nefarious characters. And D.C., who's a fugitive. And along with some of the students at the college, he turns them into a contender. In order to give the team the respect they deserve and some exposure, Greene schemes to try and get the number 1 team led by Bo Winnegar, to play them. Brian liked to dish to Bob for the easy layup. Kev stole the ball and fed Mel on a breakaway. Reg would guard the paint.
- DirectorMichael WinnerStarsSophia LorenJames CoburnO.J. SimpsonA merc is hired by the F.B.I. to track down a powerful recluse criminal. A woman is also trying to track him down for her own personal vendetta.
- DirectorRichard LesterStarsWilliam KattTom BerengerJeff CoreyA prequel of sorts to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) which chronicles the two outlaws' lives in the years before the events portrayed in the 1969 movie.
- DirectorChuck JonesPhil MonroeMaurice NobleStarsMel BlancArthur Q. BryanPaul JulianBugs Bunny reflects on his past cartoon exploits.