Feature Film, Released between 1981-01-01 and 1981-12-31 (Sorted by Popularity Ascending)



1. Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

PG | 115 min | Action, Adventure

8.4
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.4/10 X  
85 Metascore

In 1936, archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis can obtain its awesome powers.

Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, John Rhys-Davies

Votes: 987,533 | Gross: $248.16M

2. The Evil Dead (1981)

NC-17 | 85 min | Horror

7.4
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  
71 Metascore

Five friends travel to a cabin in the woods, where they unknowingly release flesh-possessing demons.

Director: Sam Raimi | Stars: Bruce Campbell, Ellen Sandweiss, Richard DeManincor, Betsy Baker

Votes: 221,722 | Gross: $2.40M

3. Possession (1981)

R | 124 min | Drama, Horror

7.3
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X  
75 Metascore

A woman starts exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior after asking her husband for a divorce. Suspicions of infidelity soon give way to something much more sinister.

Director: Andrzej Zulawski | Stars: Isabelle Adjani, Sam Neill, Margit Carstensen, Heinz Bennent

Votes: 36,714 | Gross: $1.11M

4. Excalibur (1981)

PG | 140 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy

7.3
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X  
56 Metascore

Merlin the magician helps Arthur Pendragon unite the Britons around the Round Table of Camelot, even as dark forces conspire to tear it apart.

Director: John Boorman | Stars: Nigel Terry, Helen Mirren, Nicholas Clay, Cherie Lunghi

Votes: 64,352 | Gross: $34.97M

5. The Road Warrior (1981)

R | 96 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

7.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X  
77 Metascore

In the post-apocalyptic Australian wasteland, a cynical drifter agrees to help a small, gasoline-rich community escape a horde of bandits.

Director: George Miller | Stars: Mel Gibson, Bruce Spence, Michael Preston, Max Phipps

Votes: 186,266 | Gross: $12.47M

6. Porky's (1981)

R | 94 min | Comedy

6.2
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.2/10 X  
40 Metascore

In 1954, a group of Florida high-school guys try to help their buddy lose his virginity, which leads them to seek revenge on a sleazy nightclub owner and his redneck sheriff brother for harassing them.

Director: Bob Clark | Stars: Dan Monahan, Mark Herrier, Wyatt Knight, Roger Wilson

Votes: 44,253 | Gross: $111.29M

7. Time Bandits (1981)

PG | 110 min | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy

6.9
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X  
79 Metascore

A young boy accidentally joins a band of time travelling dwarves, as they jump from era to era looking for treasure to steal.

Director: Terry Gilliam | Stars: Sean Connery, Shelley Duvall, John Cleese, Katherine Helmond

Votes: 65,919 | Gross: $42.37M

8. An American Werewolf in London (1981)

R | 97 min | Comedy, Horror

7.5
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X  
55 Metascore

Two American college students on a walking tour of Britain are attacked by a werewolf that none of the locals will admit exists.

Director: John Landis | Stars: David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, Joe Belcher, Griffin Dunne

Votes: 112,950 | Gross: $30.57M

9. Body Heat (1981)

R | 113 min | Crime, Drama, Romance

7.4
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  
77 Metascore

In the midst of a searing Florida heat wave, a woman persuades her lover, a small-town lawyer, to murder her rich husband.

Director: Lawrence Kasdan | Stars: William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, Richard Crenna, Ted Danson

Votes: 38,033 | Gross: $24.06M

10. Escape from New York (1981)

R | 99 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

7.1
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.1/10 X  
76 Metascore

In 1997, when the U.S. president crashes into Manhattan, now a giant maximum security prison, a convicted bank robber is sent in to rescue him.

Director: John Carpenter | Stars: Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Donald Pleasence

Votes: 149,001 | Gross: $25.24M

11. Endless Love (1981)

R | 116 min | Drama, Romance

4.9
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4.9/10 X  
30 Metascore

Parental disapproval of a passionate romance between two teenagers leads to arguments, circumstance, insanity and tragedy.

Director: Franco Zeffirelli | Stars: Brooke Shields, Martin Hewitt, Shirley Knight, Don Murray

Votes: 9,059 | Gross: $31.18M

12. Das Boot (1981)

R | 149 min | Drama, War

8.4
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.4/10 X  
86 Metascore

A German U-boat stalks the frigid waters of the North Atlantic as its young crew experience the sheer terror and claustrophobic life of a submariner in World War II.

Director: Wolfgang Petersen | Stars: Jürgen Prochnow, Herbert Grönemeyer, Klaus Wennemann, Hubertus Bengsch

Votes: 255,764 | Gross: $11.49M

13. Stripes (1981)

R | 106 min | Comedy, War

6.8
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.8/10 X  
68 Metascore

Two friends who are dissatisfied with their jobs decide to join the army for a bit of fun.

Director: Ivan Reitman | Stars: Bill Murray, John Candy, Harold Ramis, Warren Oates

Votes: 76,888 | Gross: $85.30M

14. The Cannonball Run (1981)

PG | 95 min | Action, Comedy, Sport

6.2
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.2/10 X  
28 Metascore

A wide variety of eccentric competitors participate in a wild and illegal cross-country road race. However, the eccentric entrants will do anything to win the road race, including low-down, dirty tricks.

Director: Hal Needham | Stars: Burt Reynolds, Roger Moore, Farrah Fawcett, Dom DeLuise

Votes: 38,146 | Gross: $72.18M

15. History of the World: Part I (1981)

R | 92 min | Comedy, History, Musical

6.8
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.8/10 X  
47 Metascore

Mel Brooks brings his one-of-a-kind comic touch to the history of mankind covering events from the Old Testament to the French Revolution in a series of episodic comedy vignettes.

Director: Mel Brooks | Stars: Mel Brooks, Gregory Hines, Dom DeLuise, Madeline Kahn

Votes: 53,487 | Gross: $31.67M

16. Clash of the Titans (1981)

PG | 118 min | Action, Adventure, Family

6.9
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X  
59 Metascore

Perseus must battle Medusa and the Kraken to save the Princess Andromeda.

Director: Desmond Davis | Stars: Laurence Olivier, Harry Hamlin, Claire Bloom, Maggie Smith

Votes: 46,007 | Gross: $41.09M

17. Heavy Metal (1981)

R | 86 min | Animation, Adventure, Fantasy

6.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X  
51 Metascore

A glowing green orb - which embodies ultimate evil - terrorizes a young girl with an anthology of bizarre and fantastic stories of dark fantasy, eroticism and horror.

Directors: Gerald Potterton, John Bruno, John Halas, Julian Harris, Jimmy T. Murakami, Barrie Nelson, Paul Sabella, Jack Stokes, Pino Van Lamsweerde, Harold Whitaker | Stars: Richard Romanus, John Candy, Joe Flaherty, Don Francks

Votes: 36,607

18. The Burning (1981)

R | 91 min | Horror

6.3
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.3/10 X  
42 Metascore

A former summer camp caretaker, horribly burned from a prank gone wrong, lurks around an upstate New York summer camp bent on killing the teenagers responsible for his disfigurement.

Director: Tony Maylam | Stars: Brian Matthews, Leah Ayres, Brian Backer, Larry Joshua

Votes: 20,522

19. Chariots of Fire (1981)

PG | 125 min | Biography, Drama, Sport

7.1
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.1/10 X  
78 Metascore

Two British track athletes, one a determined Jew and the other a devout Christian, are driven to win in the 1924 Olympics as they wrestle with issues of pride and conscience.

Director: Hugh Hudson | Stars: Ben Cross, Ian Charleson, Nicholas Farrell, Nigel Havers

Votes: 63,497 | Gross: $58.97M

20. Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)

R | 87 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller

6.1
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.1/10 X  
26 Metascore

Five years after the events of the first film, a summer camp next to the infamous Camp Crystal Lake is preparing to open, but the legend of Jason is weighing heavy on the proceedings.

Director: Steve Miner | Stars: Betsy Palmer, Amy Steel, John Furey, Adrienne King

Votes: 72,307 | Gross: $21.72M

21. On Golden Pond (1981)

PG | 109 min | Drama

7.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X  
68 Metascore

Norman is a curmudgeon with an estranged relationship with his daughter Chelsea. At Golden Pond, he and his wife nevertheless agree to care for Billy, the son of Chelsea's new boyfriend, and a most unexpected relationship blooms.

Director: Mark Rydell | Stars: Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, Jane Fonda, Doug McKeon

Votes: 33,121 | Gross: $119.29M

22. For Your Eyes Only (1981)

PG | 127 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller

6.7
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.7/10 X  
54 Metascore

James Bond is assigned to find a missing British vessel, equipped with a weapons encryption device and prevent it from falling into enemy hands.

Director: John Glen | Stars: Roger Moore, Carole Bouquet, Topol, Lynn-Holly Johnson

Votes: 104,642 | Gross: $62.30M

23. Thief (1981)

R | 123 min | Action, Crime, Drama

7.4
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  
78 Metascore

An ace safe cracker wants to do one last big heist for the mob before going straight.

Director: Michael Mann | Stars: James Caan, Tuesday Weld, Willie Nelson, Jim Belushi

Votes: 34,967 | Gross: $11.49M

24. The Howling (1981)

R | 91 min | Horror

6.5
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.5/10 X  
68 Metascore

After a bizarre and near deadly encounter with a serial killer, a television newswoman is sent to a remote mountain resort whose residents may not be what they seem.

Director: Joe Dante | Stars: Dee Wallace, Patrick Macnee, Dennis Dugan, Christopher Stone

Votes: 38,060 | Gross: $17.99M

25. The Fox and the Hound (1981)

G | 83 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama

7.2
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X  
65 Metascore

A fox named Tod and a hound named Copper vow to be best friends forever. But as Copper grows into a hunting dog, their unlikely friendship faces the ultimate test.

Directors: Ted Berman, Richard Rich, Art Stevens, David Hand, Wolfgang Reitherman | Stars: Mickey Rooney, Kurt Russell, Pearl Bailey, Jack Albertson

Votes: 97,258 | Gross: $63.46M

26. Scanners (1981)

R | 103 min | Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller

6.7
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.7/10 X  
60 Metascore

A scientist trains a man with an advanced telepathic ability called "scanning" to stop a dangerous Scanner with extraordinary psychic powers from waging war against non scanners.

Director: David Cronenberg | Stars: Jennifer O'Neill, Stephen Lack, Patrick McGoohan, Lawrence Dane

Votes: 58,645 | Gross: $14.23M

27. Tarzan the Ape Man (1981)

Approved | 115 min | Adventure, Drama

3.4
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 3.4/10 X  
24 Metascore

While on an African expedition with her father, Jane Parker meets Tarzan, and the two become fascinated by each other.

Director: John Derek | Stars: Bo Derek, Richard Harris, Miles O'Keeffe, John Phillip Law

Votes: 6,020 | Gross: $36.57M

28. Blow Out (1981)

R | 108 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery

7.4
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  
86 Metascore

A movie sound recordist accidentally records the evidence that proves that a car accident was actually murder and consequently finds himself in danger.

Director: Brian De Palma | Stars: John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow, Dennis Franz

Votes: 57,867 | Gross: $13.75M

29. Condorman (1981)

PG | 90 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

5.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5.6/10 X  
46 Metascore

Cartoonist Woody becomes the superhero he draws. Using his gadgets he helps a Soviet spy defect to the West.

Director: Charles Jarrott | Stars: Michael Crawford, Oliver Reed, Barbara Carrera, James Hampton

Votes: 5,173

30. Roar (1981)

PG | 95 min | Adventure, Comedy, Thriller

6.1
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.1/10 X  
65 Metascore

A naturalist living with big cats in East Africa expects a visit by his family of four from Chicago. A mix-up leaves him searching for his family, who have been left in the clutches of wild lions.

Director: Noel Marshall | Stars: Tippi Hedren, Noel Marshall, Melanie Griffith, John Marshall

Votes: 4,283

31. Lady Chatterley's Lover (1981)

R | 104 min | Drama, Romance

5.1
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5.1/10 X  

After a crippling injury leaves her husband impotent, Lady Chatterly is torn between her love for her husband and her physical desires. With her husband's consent, she seeks out other means of fulfilling her needs.

Director: Just Jaeckin | Stars: Sylvia Kristel, Shane Briant, Nicholas Clay, Ann Mitchell

Votes: 3,122

32. Christiane F. (1981)

R | 138 min | Biography, Drama

7.5
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X  

A teen girl in 1970s Berlin becomes addicted to heroin. Everything in her life slowly begins to distort and disappear as she befriends a small crew of junkies and falls in love with a drug-abusing male prostitute.

Director: Uli Edel | Stars: Natja Brunckhorst, Eberhard Auriga, Peggy Bussieck, Lothar Chamski

Votes: 27,120

33. Mommie Dearest (1981)

R | 129 min | Biography, Drama

6.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X  
55 Metascore

The abusive and traumatic adoptive upbringing of Christina Crawford at the hands of her mother, screen queen Joan Crawford, is depicted.

Director: Frank Perry | Stars: Faye Dunaway, Diana Scarwid, Steve Forrest, Howard Da Silva

Votes: 17,126 | Gross: $19.03M

34. Taps (I) (1981)

PG | 126 min | Drama

6.7
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.7/10 X  
49 Metascore

Military cadets take extreme measures to ensure the future of their academy when its existence is threatened by local condo developers.

Director: Harold Becker | Stars: George C. Scott, Timothy Hutton, Ronny Cox, Sean Penn

Votes: 19,353 | Gross: $35.86M

35. Halloween II (1981)

R | 92 min | Horror

6.5
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.5/10 X  
40 Metascore

While Dr. Loomis hunts for Michael Myers, a traumatized Laurie is rushed to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, and The Shape is not far behind her.

Director: Rick Rosenthal | Stars: Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasence, Charles Cyphers, Jeffrey Kramer

Votes: 95,887 | Gross: $25.53M

36. Arthur (1981)

PG | 97 min | Comedy, Romance

6.9
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X  
69 Metascore

Alcoholic billionaire playboy Arthur Bach must marry a woman he does not love, or he will be cut off from his $750,000,000 fortune. But when Arthur falls in love with a poor waitress, he must decide if he wants to choose love or money.

Director: Steve Gordon | Stars: Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli, John Gielgud, Geraldine Fitzgerald

Votes: 30,001 | Gross: $95.46M

37. Dragonslayer (1981)

PG | 109 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy

6.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X  
68 Metascore

A young wizarding apprentice is sent to kill a dragon which has been devouring girls from a nearby kingdom.

Director: Matthew Robbins | Stars: Peter MacNicol, Caitlin Clarke, Ralph Richardson, John Hallam

Votes: 19,011 | Gross: $14.11M

38. Quest for Fire (1981)

R | 100 min | Adventure, Drama

7.3
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X  
79 Metascore

This story takes place in prehistoric time when three tribesmen search for a new fire source.

Director: Jean-Jacques Annaud | Stars: Everett McGill, Ron Perlman, Nicholas Kadi, Rae Dawn Chong

Votes: 23,095 | Gross: $20.96M

39. Gallipoli (1981)

PG | 110 min | Adventure, Drama, History

7.4
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  
65 Metascore

Two Australian sprinters face the brutal realities of war when they are sent to fight in the Gallipoli campaign in Turkey during World War I.

Director: Peter Weir | Stars: Mel Gibson, Mark Lee, Bill Kerr, Harold Hopkins

Votes: 40,865 | Gross: $5.73M

40. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1981)

R | 122 min | Crime, Drama, Romance

6.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X  
61 Metascore

The sensuous wife of a lunch wagon proprietor and a rootless drifter begin a sordidly steamy affair and conspire to murder her Greek husband.

Director: Bob Rafelson | Stars: Jack Nicholson, Jessica Lange, John Colicos, Michael Lerner

Votes: 24,736 | Gross: $12.38M

41. Outland (1981)

R | 109 min | Action, Crime, Sci-Fi

6.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X  
48 Metascore

A federal marshal stationed at a mining colony on the Jupiter moon of Io uncovers a drug-smuggling conspiracy. He gets no help from the workers or authorities when he finds himself marked for murder.

Director: Peter Hyams | Stars: Sean Connery, Frances Sternhagen, Peter Boyle, James Sikking

Votes: 31,134 | Gross: $17.37M

42. Private Lessons (1981)

R | 87 min | Comedy

5.1
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5.1/10 X  
34 Metascore

An immigrant housemaid seduces a 15-year-old boy and later fakes her own death as part of his chauffeur's blackmail plot. Troubles arise when the two start to fall in love.

Directors: Alan Myerson, James Fargo | Stars: Sylvia Kristel, Howard Hesseman, Eric Brown, Patrick Piccininni

Votes: 4,030 | Gross: $26.28M

43. Reds (1981)

PG | 195 min | Biography, Drama, History

7.3
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X  
76 Metascore

A radical American journalist becomes involved with the Communist revolution in Russia, and hopes to bring its spirit and idealism to the United States.

Director: Warren Beatty | Stars: Warren Beatty, Diane Keaton, Edward Herrmann, Jerzy Kosinski

Votes: 23,768 | Gross: $40.38M

44. Cannibal Ferox (1981)

93 min | Adventure, Horror

5.1
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5.1/10 X  

Three friends set out to disprove cannibalism on a trip to the Amazonian jungle, where they meet two men trying to escape a vicious cannibal tribe.

Director: Umberto Lenzi | Stars: Giovanni Lombardo Radice, Lorraine De Selle, Danilo Mattei, Zora Kerova

Votes: 10,365

45. My Dinner with Andre (1981)

PG | 110 min | Comedy, Drama

7.7
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X  
83 Metascore

Two old friends meet for dinner; as one tells anecdotes detailing his experiences, the other notices their differing worldviews.

Director: Louis Malle | Stars: Andre Gregory, Wallace Shawn, Jean Lenauer, Roy Butler

Votes: 23,445 | Gross: $5.25M

46. The Beyond (1981)

R | 87 min | Horror

6.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X  
38 Metascore

A young woman inherits an old hotel in Louisiana where, following a series of supernatural "accidents", she learns that the building was built over one of the entrances to Hell.

Director: Lucio Fulci | Stars: Catriona MacColl, David Warbeck, Cinzia Monreale, Antoine Saint-John

Votes: 24,076 | Gross: $0.12M

47. Deadly Blessing (1981)

R | 100 min | Horror, Thriller

5.5
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5.5/10 X  
56 Metascore

After her husband dies under mysterious circumstances, a widow becomes increasingly paranoid of the neighboring religious community that may have diabolical plans for her.

Director: Wes Craven | Stars: Maren Jensen, Sharon Stone, Susan Buckner, Jeff East

Votes: 6,555 | Gross: $8.28M

48. The Funhouse (1981)

R | 96 min | Horror

5.9
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5.9/10 X  
56 Metascore

Four teenagers visit a local carnival for a night of innocent amusement, but soon discover that nothing there is innocent or amusing.

Director: Tobe Hooper | Stars: Elizabeth Berridge, Shawn Carson, Jeanne Austin, Jack McDermott

Votes: 15,292 | Gross: $7.89M

49. Victory (1981)

PG | 116 min | Drama, Sport, War

6.6
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X  
57 Metascore

As allied P.O.W.s prepare for a soccer game against the German National Team to be played in Nazi-occupied Paris, the French Resistance and British officers are making plans for the team's escape.

Director: John Huston | Stars: Michael Caine, Sylvester Stallone, Pelé, Bobby Moore

Votes: 32,080 | Gross: $10.85M

50. Butterfly (1981)

R | 108 min | Crime, Drama

4.7
Rate this
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4.7/10 X  

In 1937 Nevada, silver mine caretaker Jess Tyler is reunited with his teenage daughter Kady who will do anything to persuade Jess to let her have claim to the mine.

Director: Matt Cimber | Stars: Stacy Keach, Pia Zadora, Orson Welles, Lois Nettleton

Votes: 1,479


1-50 of 3,362 titles. | Next »

Recently Viewed