MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > ☝️ Pop vs. Box 👇 1979

☝️ Pop vs. Box 👇 1979

posted 3 years ago by Redsfan001 (6147)
29 replies | jump to latest

Continuing in the series of a movies rise and fall of popularity to father time.

Current popular ranking *indicates box office rank

1. 🎖️Alien *9
2. Apocalypse Now *5
3. Caligula n/a (34k votes)
4. The Warriors *32
5. Mad Max n/a (195k votes)
6. Star Trek : The Motion Picture *4
7. Meatballs *13
8. Stalker n/a (121k votes)
9. Monty Python's Life of Brian n/a (375k votes)
10. 10 *10
11. Moonraker *8
12. Escape From Alcatraz *14

(Popularity rankings are fluid and can change from day to day)

Box Office 1979 *indicates current popular ranking

1.🎖️ Kramer vs. Kramer (100m) *15
2. The Amityville Horror (86m) *16
3. Rocky II (85m) *25
4. Star Trek : The Motion Picture (82m) *6
5. Apocalypse Now (78m) *2
6. The Muppet Movie (76m) *29
7. The Jerk (73m) *26
8. Moonraker (70m) *11
9. Alien (60m) *1
10. 10 (52m) *10
11. Love at First Bite (43m) *84

Biggest Winner:☝️

🏆The Warriors +28

Biggest Loser:👇

💣Love at First Bite -73

Additional/comments:

Mad Max, Caligula,Stalker,Life of Brian- limited release

Malibu High, Rock n Roll High School omitted for low vote count.

Movie with most votes:✍️

🗽Alien (822k)

The Forgotten: 🤔
(Movies with good-moderate box office and low vote count)

The Electric Horseman 42m :7k votes
The Main Event 43m : 2k votes
Love at First Bite 43m : 5k votes
Starting Over 41m : 2k votes
North Dallas Forty 26m : 4k votes

The Newcomers: 👶
(Movies with good vote count and low or no box office)

Life of Brian 375k votes :140k
Mad Max 195k votes : 8m
Stalker 121k votes : n/a
Caligula 34k votes : n/a
Nosferatu the Vampire 33k votes : n/a

👇 Additional scoring page 2 👇

(Added 8/30/21)

[–] Mrmojo4700 (21466) 3 years ago

That sounds about right for Love at First Bite. My parents loved that movie and still talk about it to this day, but now most people have never heard of it.

This is my list of DVD / VHS I want or already have from that year:

Apocalypse Now (1979)
Mad Max (1979)
The Great Alligator (1979)
Killer Fish (1979)
Beyond the Darkness (1979)
Phantasm (1979)
Time After Time (1979)
Prophecy (1979)
The Frisco Kid (1979)
Night Wing (1979)
Disco Godfather (1979)
Salem’s Lot (1979)
Zombie (1979)

[–] Redsfan001 (6147) 3 years ago

I'm not a big horror guy, but if it was on cable, I would check out the original Phantasm. I've seen one of them a long long time ago but I don't remember which one.

The hook on Love at First bite was "George Hamilton as a Vampire? Ridiculous!"

I've never seen it and is now on my watch list.

[–] CKid (3842) 3 years ago

My favorite films from 1979, in alphabetical order, were ...
(* an asterisk indicates that I own the film on either DVD or Blu-ray)
10
Being There
Breaking Away*
The China Syndrome
Escape from Alcatraz
French Postcards
The Frisco Kid*
The Great Santini*
The Jerk
A Little Romance*
Meatballs*
Norma Rae
Over the Edge
Rich Kids
Rock 'n' Roll High School*
Rocky II
Tess*
The Warriors

[–] Redsfan001 (6147) 3 years ago

I was on the fence omitting Rock n Roll High School, it had only 9k votes and a limited release.

I haven't seen it in years, but I remember liking the raunchy high school comedy when I watched it in my teens.

[–] CKid (3842) 3 years ago

I had seen the Ramones in concert several times back when I lived in New York.
That's one of the reasons I bought the DVD of the film. Another was P.J. Soles.
And speaking of DVDs, this thread inspired me to buy a few more. Namely, Breaking Away and The Frisco Kid.

[–] chilidoggg (14285) 3 years ago

Over the Edge belongs in a time capsule, compare and contrast with John's Hughes' and Steven Spielberg's 1980's teenagers.

[–] CKid (3842) 3 years ago

You are oh so right, chilidoggg.
Here's a taste of the film for those who have never seen it, along with one of the songs in the film, Valerie Carter's cover of
Ooh Child - https://youtu.be/In7enKVo2xo
Btw, I'm pretty sure that this was Matt Dillon's first film.

[–] Mrmojo4700 (21466) 3 years ago

Was that the kid from The bad News bears?

[–] chilidoggg (14285) 3 years ago

Matt Dillon?

I heard people say he is the Milton Berle of his generation. Enormous phallus.

[–] Mrmojo4700 (21466) 3 years ago

Damn! I never knew Milton Berle was gifted in that area.

[–] BillHicksFan (10567) 3 years ago

My favs in order:

Wise Blood
Hothead
Hardcore
And Justice For All…
My Brilliant Career
Manhattan
Kramer vs. Kramer

[–] Redsfan001 (6147) 3 years ago

Thanks for adding, need to revisit And Justice for All...

All I remember about that is the reaction from Jeffrey Tambor's character shaving his head....crazy in 1979 but nobody would bat an eye today.

[–] BillHicksFan (10567) 3 years ago

You're welcome... I think its because he was a little crazy. But yeah, even the "squares" had long hair in the 70s.

"Hello Arthur"

[–] [deleted] 3 years ago

Alien, Apocalypse Now and The Warriors are sacred. They are the kind of films that I refer to as "infrastructure ".
Must haves for the serious collector .

[–] Redsfan001 (6147) 3 years ago

👍 all very unique films...well Alien WAS unique at the time of release.

[–] trevorh321 (5495) 3 years ago

I own several movies from 1979, my favorites being
Alien - masterpiece
The Black Stallion - a gorgeous moving film, the final race is breathtaking
Breaking Away - very little in this film surprised me and yet I loved every moment
Star Trek the Motion Picture - the director's cut is the best version
The Black Hole - this is a guilty pleasure, for sure, because I recognize its faults but still there is something compelling about this film, I love the visuals and the score

[–] Redsfan001 (6147) 3 years ago

I'm a big sci fi guy also.

I don't think I've seen The Black Hole since the 1980's. I've heard the talk about it, but if I've ever come across it, I'd watch it again because it's been so long. (I did the same thing for Saturn 3)

[–] chilidoggg (14285) 3 years ago

I didn't like The Black Hole when I saw it in the theatre in its original release, but I watched it again maybe 20/25 years later and it was borderline good.

[–] chilidoggg (14285) 3 years ago

Caligula is unwatchable. I've tried and failed twice.

[–] ElizabethJoestar (946) 3 years ago

I somehow managed to get through it while giving it the MST3K treatment with a friend. It was 50% brilliant and 50% awful sleaze. Would never want to watch it again though, no matter how much I enjoy Malcolm McDowell's performance.

[–] Redsfan001 (6147) 3 years ago

Agreed 100%.

I remember renting it as a horny teen in the 1980's, I also didn't get through it. Afterwards I realized that it was just a trick in the age before reviews were available. The tantalizing title was all they need.

Obviously the makers didn't give two shits about the quality of the film, just looking to make a quick buck.

[–] chilidoggg (14285) 3 years ago

Yeah I also watched it on video early 80's, and I remember the porno wasn't even as good as the stuff you could get in the back room of the video store (which surprised me because IMO Penthouse was the "classiest" of the skin mags.) Then there was a re-release in 1999? in Santa Monica or Hollywood so I went to see it again. Theater was full, I was there about 45 minutes, no reactions of any sort from the audience, I was the first to walk out.

Helen Mirren was supposedly in it.

Also, Hugh Hefner had earlier produced a version of Macbeth that was X rated and it was pretty good. I don't think it had gratuitous sex scenes (certainly no porno) just naked old witches.

[–] TimMC (9143) 3 years ago

10. 10 *10

[–] Redsfan001 (6147) 3 years ago

Yahtzee?

Hate to sound cliche and all the regulars have heard this before, but it's a movie that couldn't be made today..

"Let's make a movie about a middle age man's unfulfilled sex life and his uncontrollable sexual urge to stalk a beautiful woman..and we will make it as a comedy" - is a sentence not heard in movie studios today.

[–] TimMC (9143) 3 years ago

You are probably right about that.

I love Dudley Moore and I just can't remember ever watching this movie. I found it on a pirate site but am hoping that Amazon or Tubi or NETFLIX get it soon. OR>>>> LOL.

[–] Redsfan001 (6147) 3 years ago

It's available on YouTube to buy or rent..only 7k views!

[–] IrinaOma (648) 3 years ago

My favorite films are ALIEN (my all-tme fave!), Moonraker, Prophecy, Mad Max, Time After Time, Cuba, Apocalypse Now, Rocky 2