Scanners (1981)

Scanners are like X-Men: they've got powers that most people don't, they can hurt others with those powers, and they can be weaponized when influenced by the wrong people. When a previously undiscovered scanner turns up, he's pretty quickly brought into a program to hone his skills so he can track down another powerful scanner.

And then it just gets both farfetched and repetitive. I was so bored.

C-

Absence of Malice (1981)

Sally Field is a Miami reporter who gets an unofficial leak from an A.D.A. that a local businessman is a prime suspect in a murder case. The businessman (Paul Newman) takes immediate action, confronting her and demanding answers. As the story grows, so does the fallout and their relationship.

This is my second viewing, and it sadly does not hold up as well as I'd hoped. What I remembered most vividly from when I saw this in my youth was Melinda Dillon's tragic B-plot. Though that's still a standout and both Field & Newman are winning personalities, the reporter character (well, basically the entire newspaper) just doesn't make sense. She's bad at her job and probably would've been either fired or at least pulled from the story after the first publication.

B

Time Bandits (1981)

When a group of time traveling little people take a path through a British kid's bedroom, he follows them. Soon he's aiding in their robberies and providing much-needed geographical and historical knowledge.

What a bizarre, irreverent, and silly movie. We laughed a lot.

B

Gallipoli (1981)

Two young Australians meet while participating in a local foot race and decide to join the armed forces going to fight in the first world war.

The pacing was a little weird in that equal weight was given to both big events and seemingly mundane happenings. But it’s never boring and the end, though telegraphed, was heartbreaking.

B

The Evil Dead (1981)

This is one of those movies that I've held dear in memory. I was telling my older son that it's silly but scary and rented it for Halloween night in eager anticipation of sharing it with him.

Well, it is kinda funny...for a while. The problem is that we were laughing at the effects and acting rather than any intended jokes in the script. The stop-motion stuff is cheesy and the actors are more wooden than the volunteers for spiritual skits at my summer camp ever were.

If you want to see superb Raimi and Bruce Campbell action, rent Army of Darkness instead.

D+

Modern Romance (1981)

I think that Albert Brooks is a lot like Leonard Cohen. They're both brilliant, original writers and they both are entertaining and interesting performers...when taken in small doses. Listening to an entire Cohen CD is monotonous, as is watching Albert Brooks kvetch in every scene -- especially as he's alone, monologuing, in many of them. What seems like a burst of creativity when it pops up for a few minutes every half hour winds up being tedious and distinctly unfunny when it's the entire show.

This was less of a romance than a look at a budding stalker who whines aloud. The only good scenes were the ones that had nothing to do with the title "romance" -- shopping for running gear and editing in sound for a running sequence on a film were the only amusing portions...and they were only mildly so. The main storyline is terrible.

D

Over the Edge (1981)

Kind of a low-rent Outsiders where every kid's a greaser and almost every adult's a soc -- Matt Dillon even tries out his rebel act here first. But it's just so ridiculous. It winds up being a poorly-acted Teens Gone Bad horror movie, even has a Dawn of the Dead ending with the adults trapped in a building while the kids run wild.

The only value to this movie for me was the fact that it transported me, momentarily, to my youth. These kids would've been right at home in my middle school yearbook. And did everyone own the same striped sheets in the late '70s? We did -- and I know I've seen them pop up in a couple of other films, too.

D

Prince of the City (1981)

Too long. There should have been much more focus on the relationship between the cops early on. I felt very little investment in Ciello's plight.

D+

Ghost Story (1981)

What a complete POS. No suspense whatsoever and a "duh" payoff. Stupid.

D-

Pennies From Heaven (1981)

A mean, ugly bore. The only sequences that are worth a look are the first "Pennies From Heaven" "performed" by the accordion man & "Let's Face the Music and Dance." The rest is a sordid slog.

F

Chariots of Fire (1981)

I had a bit of trouble for the first half-hour telling everyone apart and thought that Abraham's roommate was Liddell...totally wrong. I didn't put together that Liddell didn't attend Cambridge until rather late in the show – something about the bland faces and the blondeness of everyone except Abraham both bored and confused me. I also didn't like the way that remembered thoughts echoed aloud at turning points throughout the film. I found it a bit insulting, as though the director didn't trust us to remember key conversations. If he truly wanted to be helpful, he should have given us audible clues whenever a character came on screen, like "ah, yes, good ol' Lindsey...although he's a spoiled rich kid, we can't help but like him for his good humor and for being a fellow Cambridge man." The weird thing is, I'm not even sure my sarcastic explanation is accurate! After spending hours with these fellows, I still can’t tell them apart.

B