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Top 5 movies of the '80s that shaped popular culture forever

29.09.11

Few people who have lived through the '80s can look back on them without fond memories. Americans wanted entertainment and a means to escape ordinary life and were not disappointed. We were given big-hair bands, hundreds of beloved TV sitcoms, personal computing and 10 years of unforgettable movies.

While there are well over a hundred movies worth mentioning, five movies stand out to this writer as those rare gems that really captured the essence of the decade and helped to foster a generation's imagination and shape the future of a nation.

5. "Back to the Future," 1985; domestic box office receipts to date: $210,609,762

Robert Zemeckis' film about a dissatisfied teenager (Michael J. Fox) who cannot seem to escape his dead-end life in a small California town teams up with his scientist friend Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) as they spin a new twist to the classic "It's a Wonderful Life" theme. Aside from many catch phrases that endure to this day, and the DeLorean's iconic popularity, this movie dared audiences to believe we can make our futures brighter. Ronald Reagan, a fan of the film, referred to the movie in his 1986 State of the Union address when he said, "Never has there been a more exciting time to be alive, a time of rousing wonder and heroic achievement. As they said in the film 'Back to the Future,' 'Where we're going, we don't need roads.'"

Source: KSL-TV