Most film historians agree that 1939 was the great year for classic films. The most notable releases were “The Wizard of Oz” and “Gone with the Wind.” A pair of films that became golden age classics and an example of the dominance of MGM during the early studio era. But 1939 also saw the release of “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” “Wuthering Heights,” “The Women,” “Goodbye Mr. Chips,” “Ninotchka,” “Dark Victory,” “Stagecoach,” and “Babes in Arms.”
1999 has been considered another banner year of influential films in the modern era. During the turn of the millennium, we had “The Matrix,” “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” “Election,” “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace,” “Magnolia,” “American Beauty,” Cruel Intentions,” and “The Talented Mr. Ripley” among many others.
For many Sci-Fi geeks of the 80s, 1982 became a huge year for science fiction that would produce many influential and classic genre pictures. The list is impressive, to say the least: “Conan: The Barbarian,” “Blade Runner,” “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan,” “Tron,” “The Thing,” “Poltergeist,” “The Dark Crystal,” and “First Blood” are just a sampling.
And even nongenre classics were released like “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” “Grease 2,” “Tootsie,” “Sophie’s Choice,” “Victor, Victoria,” and “An Officer & Gentlemen,” and other highly acclaimed films.
I was just a wee lad in 82, so I vividly remember seeing many of these films in theatres that summer. Although a few I discovered later in my teens since I had strict parents who followed the rating system to the letter, and then some.
Wait, you say I forgot one essential film that year? No, I didn’t forget Mr. Spielberg’s classic, career-defining movie. It was the highest-grossing movie and dominated the box office during the summer of 82.
So, let’s take a closer look at both E.T. and some of the other notable releases, now 40 years old and running.
E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL
The June 11th release of E.T. was like an atom bomb at the multiplex. Steven Spielberg’s classic tale of a boy named Elliot and his siblings befriending an abandoned alien and helping him return home became an instant classic. The film’s talented cast, John Williams’s emotive score combined with Steve Spielberg’s expert direction, was the perfect family film of the summer. And the move landed like a bullseye, firing on all cylinders as it thrilled and pulled on audiences’ heartstrings.
This was my big movie that year, as I was the perfect age for E.T. I was like a little Elliot looking for my lost alien. And it was the rare film I got to see twice in the theatre, thanks to my constant nagging to see it again and again.
And E.T. was a merchandising bonanza upon its release. There were plush toys, figures, board games, and the infamous E.T. Atari video game that became an urban myth (see the excellent 2014 documentary “Atari: Game Over”). I remember the movie record LP narrated by Michael Jackson (!) that I played on near repeat.
It was the summer of E.T. that sadly doomed many other big releases that came out in its wake.
THE THING
While John Carpenter’s “The Thing” is regarded as a horror classic and considered one of the director’s best films, the movie was a disappointing flop when released just a few weeks after E.T. It was obvious audiences preferred their aliens’ cute & cuddly instead of grotesque and evil.
The nihilist remake of the 1951 classic “Thing from Another World” about a group of scientists stationed at a remote Antarctic facility that battles a parasitic, shape-shifting alien creature is a masterpiece of cold war paranoia. After toiling in hi concept indie films like “Halloween,” “The Fog,” and “Escape from New York,” this was to be Carpenter’s breakthrough studio movie. Universal Studios awarded the rising filmmaker a big budget and huge marketing push. And studio executives were so disappointed by “The Thing’s” box office failure they fired Carpenter from directing “Firestarter,” which eventually starred a young Drew Barrymore.
“The Thing” is a fantastic horror movie with a great cast, including Kurt Russell and Wilford Brimley. Due to the hard “R” rating, I didn’t get to watch the movie until I was much older. I recently viewed the film last year, and it’s remarkable how well it’s held up. Carpenter’s direction creates a creepy and tense atmosphere, and the sequence where Russell tests the blood of his comrades to find out whom the alien is impersonating is one of those great movie moments.
BLADE RUNNER
Another failure at the box office that found a second life on home video and cable was “Blade Runner,” directed by Ridley Scott. A loose adaption of Phillip K. Dick’s novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” this was Scott’s ambitious third film after his smash “Alien,”
“Blade Runner” is essentially an old-school film noir dressed up in a futuristic setting that became a massive influence in the cyberpunk genre. The movie stars Harrison Ford as Deckard, a retired Blade Runner who hunts and “retires” android replicants. When he’s called back for one last job tracking down four rogue replicants in 2019 Los Angeles, he finds himself falling in love with a specially designed replicant called Rachel and questioning the nature of his humanity. Director Ridley Scott and his design team created a stunning and bleak future cityscape that influenced and defined many dystopian future set films. And the film features strong performances from Ford, Sean Young, and Rutger Hauer.
Much like “The Thing,” the movie flopped as audiences were still in thrall with the uplifting E.T., and in a baffling move, “Blade Runner” was released the same weekend as “The Thing,” where both movies split the older audience. The moody, dystopian thriller frustrated moviegoers with its slow burn and downer storyline despite the stunning production design. And the cynical, dramatic turn by Harrison Ford was a far cry from the heroic Indiana Jones and lacked the brogue charm of Han Solo.
On a personal level, “Blade Runner” is one of my all-time favorite movies. It’s right up there with “Star Wars” on my top 5 list of films. I have fond memories of discovering the movie late at night airing on the TNT network, back when cable channels used to air many late 70s and early 80s action fare to fill their schedules. Even with the commercials, trims, and cuts for broadcast TV, I was utterly mesmerized. Since that fateful night, I’ve purchased the film in every available home video format.
TRON
It’s hard to believe, but Disney was running on fumes in the early 80s as their animation department was floundering, and they were still smarting from the disappointing “The Black Hole” released in 1979. Instead of playing it safe, they took a gamble on new director Steven Lisberger and his ambitious live-action/animation hybrid project called “Tron.”
Starring a young and charismatic Jeff Bridges, “Tron” is the story of game developer Kevin Flynn attempting to hack the ENCOM corporation to find proof that ENCOM stole and distributed his series of arcade hit games. When Flynn sneaks into ENCOM’s on-site headquarters, he is digitized and trapped in the computer realm ruled by the “Master Control Program” and sent to compete in the gladiatorial games. Soon, he teams up with “programs” Tron & Yori to defeat the MCP and return to the physical world.
Despite the goofball premise, “Tron” flirts with future concepts like the internet, social media, and the rise of artificial intelligence. The movie also exploits the fear of computers as PCs and Macs were beginning to invade people’s homes. It’s disappointing that the film couldn’t tie any of these themes into a compelling narrative, but “Tron” excels at the computer realm’s world-building. It’s a clever blend of Disney animation with the language of classic arcade games, which were all the rage in the early 80s. Even if the graphics look simplistic, the bright neon colors and geometric-shaped vehicles over stark black and white photography were evocative and eye-popping. Not to mention the Syd Mead designed “Light Cycles,” featured in the film’s signature action set piece.
“Tron” became a groundbreaking film for computer animation and graphics, but the film also suffered at the box office. The concepts were so strange and weird that audiences preferred the warm embrace of the cuddly E.T. “Tron” stayed alive after its disappointing release thanks to its striking visuals and the famous “Tron” Disneyland ride back in the mid-’80s. In 2010, Disney resurrected the IP with the reboot/sequel “Tron: Legacy,” starring an older, grizzled Jeff Bridges. The film was a stylish update of the neon computer world but did middling box office that put the kibosh on any future installments, although a rumored third entry is in development.
I was a big fan of “Tron” and remembered being wowed in the theatre. As a ten-year-old obsessed with Pac-Man and Donkey Kong, I was the target audience for the movie. I remember begging my parents to buy me a personal computer, but I got a Coleco-Vision instead.
STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN
It’s not hyperbole to say that if “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” hadn’t worked, it might have spelled the end of the Trek franchise. And indeed, there would be no “Star Trek: The Next Generation” or any other various spin-offs.
“Star Trek: The Motion Picture” did decent box office, but the high production cost made it a breakeven endeavor. Paramount greenlighted the sequel with a much smaller budget and brought filmmaker Nicholas Meyer to work with movie producer/writer Harve Bennet to craft a more character-driven entry.
Technically a sequel to the original series “Space Seed” episode, “Star Trek II” finds Kirk and crew facing off against the maniacal Khan and his genetically modified clan of eugenics supermen as they hijack the USS Reliant. The film plays like one giant duel between Kirk on the Enterprise and Khan on the Reliant as they battle over “Project Genesis,” a device that holds the power of planetary creation. And in the wrong hands, a weapon of planetary destruction.
Even with the shoestring budget, “Star Trek II” returns the franchise to top form, perfectly capturing the spirit of the TV show and translating it to a cinematic canvas. The movie features an outstanding, scenery-chewing performance by Ricardo Montalban as Khan and Kirstie Alley as the sexy Vulcan Saavik.
And this is the entry that features the famous death of Spock, an event that would make “Star Trek II” the start of a mini trilogy, concluding in 1986 with “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” (AKA save the whales).
Fortunately, “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” escaped the E.T. curse and was a big hit with fans. The movie grossed almost as much as the first “Star Trek,” an excellent return due to the reduced budget. And the original series of franchise films would move forward with great success (minus “Star Trek V”), with the crew signing off in “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.”
IN CONCLUSION:
I can’t believe it’s been 40 years since 1982. That year was a nostalgic sugar rush for many Gen Xers growing up in Regan-era suburbia. Thanks to directors like Steven Spielberg, Joe Dante, and Robert Zemeckis, all armed with the visual effects wizardry of Industrial Light & Magic, the pump was primed for a decade of hi-concept, original, pop culture-defining entertainment.
And it all started in the summer of 1982, led by a boy named Elliot and his alien pal E.T.