Top Movies of 1981


The top movies of 1981 list is calculated by community movie ratings and members' "Top Movies List". Lists are updated daily.

21. Superman II

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.7 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Action/Adventure
MPAA Rating: PG
Director: Richard Lester & Richard Donner
Actors: Gene Hackman, Christopher Reeve, Ned Beatty, Margot Kidder, Jackie Cooper, Terence Stamp
Plot: The Man of Steel has found love in Lois Lane, but he must make the ultimate sacrifice and give up his powers if he wants to truly be with her. Unfortunately a trio of Kryptonian criminals have landed on earth and teamed up with Lex Luther to rule the planet.

22. The Great Muppet Caper

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.8 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Family/Comedy
MPAA Rating: G
Director: Jim Henson
Actors: Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, Charles Grodin, Diana Rigg, John Cleese
Plot: Kermit, Fozzie and Gonzo are reporters sent to London to interview Lady Holiday, a fashion designer who has just had her diamond necklace stolen. Kermit falls for her secretary, Miss Piggy. When a second jewelery theft happens, Miss Piggy is framed and the reporters will stop at nothing to uncover the real thief.

23. Taps

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.8 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Drama
MPAA Rating: PG
Director: Harold Becker
Actors: George C. Scott, Timothy Hutton, Ronny Cox, Sean Penn, Tom Cruise, Evan Handler
Plot: Cadets at a military boarding school revolt when the school is shut down.

24. Mommie Dearest

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.7 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Biography/Drama
MPAA Rating: PG
Director: Frank Perry
Actors: Faye Dunaway, Diana Scarwid, Steve Forrest, Howard Da Silva, Mara Hobel, Rutanya Alda
Plot: Based on the book about Joan Crawford, written by her adopted daughter Christine, the perfect Hollywood life presented by the family is just a facade.

25. Atlantic City

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.7 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Crime/Drama
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Louis Malle
Actors: Burt Lancaster, Susan Sarandon, Robert Joy, Robert Goulet, Kate Reid, Michel Piccoli

26. Oblomov ( Neskolko dney iz zhizni I.I. Oblomova )

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 3.1 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Comedy/Drama
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Nikita Mikhalkov
Actors: Oleg Tabakov, Yuri Bogatyryov, Andrei Popov, Yelena Solovey, Avangard Leontyev, Andrei Razumovsky

27. Southern Comfort

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.7 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Director: Walter Hill
Actors: Keith Carradine, Powers Boothe, Fred Ward, Peter Coyote, Franklyn Seales, T.K. Carter
Plot: A troop of National Guardsmen get on the wrong side of a murderous clan of Cajuns in the bayous of Louisiana.

28. Body Heat

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.7 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Drama/Thriller
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Actors: William Hurt, Richard Crenna, Kathleen Turner, Mickey Rourke, J.A. Preston, Ted Danson
Plot: During the hottest time of the year, a man is convinced by his girlfriend to murder her husband - make it look accidental - so that they can be together. Will she turn on him in the end?

29. Nice Dreams

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.7 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Comedy/Action
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Tommy Chong
Actors: Tommy Chong, Cheech Marin, Benita Barrie, Sandra Bernhard, Tony Cox, Peter Jason
Plot: Two loser potheads are making a living selling weed out of an ice cream truck when one them gets an idea.

30. Dark Night of the Scarecrow

Year of Release: 1981
Overall Rating: 2.8 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Horror/Mystery
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Frank De Felitta
Actors: Charles Durning, Robert F. Lyons, Claude Earl Jones, Lane Smith, Tonya Crowe, Larry Drake
Plot: A mentally-challenged young man, dressed as a scarecrow, saves a young woman, but a crowd blames him for the attack and kills him. When members of the posse start dying, it appears the man has come back from the dead seeking vengeance.

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