Interactive visualisation

Interactive Viz Link

This viz was inspired by random thoughts whilst putting my little one to bed. As a child of the 80s I remember fondly frequenting the video store on a Friday night to choose a good film or two to watch over the weekend.

This viz splices the 80s decade by film release year and shows the top 10 films per release year by IMDB ranking, filtered to only titles with greater than 50k votes, I have then coloured (rather loudly given we are talking a decade of spandex and sweatbands) the film genre.

Wow – there are some classics contained here!

The 80s – a cinematic kaleidoscope of classics

The 1980s film landscape is a treasure trove of classics that have stood the test of time. From Spielberg’s iconic heartwarming tale of an alien in E.T. (1982 #6) the to the adventures of Indiana Jones (1981 #2, 1984 #10), the era brought forth iconic characters and unforgettable moments.

John Hughes redefined teen cinema with The Breakfast Club (1985 #5) and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986 #5), capturing the essence of adolescent struggles and rebellion. Meanwhile, the sci-fi realm witnessed the birth of the time-traveling DeLorean in Back to the Future (1985 #1), becoming a symbol of ’80s pop culture.

Action-packed blockbusters like The Terminator (1984 #4), Die Hard (1988 #3) turned stars like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis into household names. The force continued to be with us in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980 #1) adding another chapter to the epic space opera.

In the horror genre, Freddy Krueger invaded dreams in Nightmare on Elm Street (1984 outside the top10 at #11) while Jack Torrance went mad in Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of Stephen King’s The Shining (1980 #2).

Cult classics such as Ghostbusters (1984 #7) and The Goonies (1985 #7) brought humor and adventure to the forefront, etching their mark on ’80s film lore.

TL;DR

The 80s, with their blend of nostalgia, creativity, and timeless storytelling captivated audiences around the world, making the 1980s a golden age in cinema history.

Thanks for reading, ping me if you have any questions or thoughts about my viz.

Adam

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