The Wraith (1986)
Kicking this volume off is a film that certainly has a cult following but may be unknown to younger movie geeks. It follows a mysterious man who manifests in a state-of-the-art sports car and targets a racing gang who is tormenting a small town in Mike Marvin’s The Wraith from 1986 starring Charlie Sheen, Nick Cassavetes, Sherilyn Fenn.
To me The Wraith is a wild blend of concepts mashed up into a film that certainly has its flaws but still is able to overcome them to deliver a campy ride of fun. There’s no denying some of the cheesiness in this film but that’s sort of the point when the plot revolves around a supernatural teenager and his awesome car. The performances are pretty good overall. Charlie Sheen carries the lead well. Nick Cassavetes is hilariously over-the-top as the leader of a street racing crew. And Sherilyn Fenn is charming as the love interest. The Wraith is lined with awesome 80s rock music with songs from names like Ozzy Osborne, Billy Idol, Motley Crew, and more. The chase sequences are adrenaline pumping, and sure the violent tones are a bit uneven in this story, but it all blends into a cinematic cocktail of 80s B-movie fun complete with nostalgic digital-effects that you can’t help but appreciate.
One Crazy Summer (1986)
We’re staying in 1986 for this next movie, but we’re stepping into the world of comedy when a teenage cartoonist and his friends help out a singer who is trying to keep her family property from being taken over in Savage Steve Holland’s One Crazy Summer starring John Cusack, Demi Moore, Curtis Armstrong, and Bobcat Goldthwaite.
This movie delivers everything you want from an 80s summer comedy. It delivers youthful energy from the charismatic cast led by John Cusack and Demi Moore. The soundtrack is filled with high energy pop music and the story is filled with all the comical lines, amusing hijinks, and summer romance you know and love from the 80s teen rom-com. The summer atmosphere in One Crazy Summer is infectious and the unconditional silliness in the progression of this story is engaging and high spirited. There’s a natural likability and relatability in these characters and One Crazy Summer is a movie that is clearly having fun so you can have fun with it. There’s plenty of adventure lining this story, the sense of humor is effective, and it makes this film an easily engaging escape that can connect to the freewheeling teenager inside you for 90 minutes.
Innerspace (1987)
This next movie delivers one of the most unique adventures in this series when a test pilot is miniaturized and accidentally injected into the body of an everyday store clerk in Joe Dante’s Innerspace from 1987 starring Martin Short, Meg Ryan, and Dennis Quaid.
Few films are as magically ridiculous as Innerspace. A movie that thrives on a completely unique premise. Having Dennis Quaid shrunk and injected into Martin Short is as absurd as it sounds. Yet it somehow still translates into slapstick gold through the performance from Short. Martin Short is a comedic legend, his physical humor is fantastic, and he gives this movie a perfect performance for the needs of the plot. The performances from Quaid and Ryan are solid as well. The pace is swift. This is easily a movie that could’ve stuck around too long but it doesn’t. It’s a swiftly moving film. It doesn’t overuse the same attempts at humor too often. And with a blend of comical dialogue, charismatic characters, great practical effects, and Short at full comedic speed the laughs never stale and after all these years Innerspace is still a one-of-a-kind cinematic ride.
An American Tail (1986)
Next up is I think the first animated movie to make this list, and it is a great one that centers on a young Russian mouse who gets separated from his family when emigrating to the United States in 1986’s An American Tail, directed by Don Bluth featuring voiceover work from Dom DeLuise, Christopher Plummer, and Phillip Glasser.
I think An American Tail is a movie that’s actually aged better over time. It wasn’t so well received upon its release being dinged for its gloomy story, and for spots of its social depictions. The story explores immigration and the emotional dynamics that can arise which does provide enough substance to connect to the heartstrings. The voice actors are all fantastic. They fuse life, energy, and emotion into these characters. So, you really can invest in this adventure and sure it’s a little downtrodden for a kid’s movie, but many nowadays are, so it was sort of ahead of its time in that aspect. But what stands out most with An American Tail is the impressive animation. The film just has an old school vibe to it that you can’t get with computer generated animation and the hand drawn artwork gives this movie depth, it really makes it feel lived in, and it just adds to the escape this movie can provide.
The Principal (1987)
We’re jumping back into the good old genre of action with this next little gem about a teacher who after a public drunken outburst is assigned to work at Brandel High, a crime-ridden school where everyone goes when they get kicked out of other schools in 1987’s The Principal starring Jim Belushi, Louis Gossett Jr., Rae Dawn Chong, and Michael Wright.
Now this isn’t a movie that is necessarily realistic. This Brandel High makes Thunderdome feel like summer camp. But for the needs of this story, it’s great for providing violent action, high energy bravado, and moderately effective spots of suspense. Belushi delivers a rough around the edge’s performance. He wears his temper on his sleeve so it’s a no brainer that his character isn’t going to take any shit. Which actually complements the more controlled and cooler under pressure performance from Gossett Jr. Together they’re a great team to carry the pace and when the action hits it’s surprisingly violent for being in a high school setting. They certainly don’t make movies like this anymore. The Substitute franchise would sort of take the spotlight in the high school thriller genre. But The Principal is super gritty, it doesn’t hold back, and sure it’s a bit over-the-top but that’s what really makes this movie work so well as a violent action thriller.
Russkies (1987)
Coming up next is one of those childhood adventures that the decade loved. This one follows a group of patriot American boys who befriend a Russian sailor shipwrecked in enemy territory in Russkies from 1987 directed by Rick Rosenthal. Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Peter Billingsly, Stefen DeSalle, and Whip Hubley.
Russkies is one of those feel-good, well-intentioned kid adventure flicks that admittedly does work though the tropes but still able to thrive on the enthusiastic performances from the younger cast. This group of kids isn’t necessarily Goonies or Stand by Me level charisma but it’s more than enough to fuel the energy of this adventure movie that lines itself nicely with kindhearted emotion. Phoenix, Billingsley, DeSalle and Walters are all great which gives the collection of characters an engaging appeal as they befriend this adult Russian sailor. Now I do think the movie takes itself a bit too seriously in place. Particularly from the older cast as the Cold War implications are cemented. This does stretch the runtime a bit longer than it needs to be, but regardless Russkies is a lighthearted adventure with a surprisingly compelling plot.
Up the Creek (1984)
Before Van Wilder there was Bob McGraw, a charming 12th year college student living life from one party to the next who will compete in a river rafting competition in Robert Butler’s Up the Creek from 1984 starring Tim Matheson, Jennifer Runyon, Stephen Furst, and a handful of other familiar faces.
Teen raunch coms are a dime a dozen and the 80s churned out a sea of them but Up the Creek is certainly one that rises to the top of its competition. There are better films in this genre with more memorable characters and bold personalities but that’s what I think makes Up the Creek work so well. It doesn’t force much on you. It’s a film simply doing its things and it lets you sink into the film rather than trying to beat you over the head with a barrage of forced comedy. Now not all the humor works, but the jovial silliness and the free-spirited atmosphere this movie provides is appealing. Up the Creek plays like a cool summer party you walk by and want to join in on and with waves of raunchy humor, high energy music, and endless amounts of gratuitous nudity Up the Creek is a film that cements itself in the genre.
Bad Medicine (1985)
This next little forgotten comedy follows Jeff, a young man with dreams of being a physician. The only problem is he can’t get into American medical school, so he decides to study abroad in Latin America under the teaching of the country’s dictator in 1985s Bad Medicine from director Harvey Miller starring Steve Guttenberg, Alan Arkin, Julie Hagerty, and Curtis Armstrong.
This was a movie that definitely came and went with little impact left. I’ll admit it’s not a laugh out loud comedy and some of the jokes and attempts at humor are a little too dumb for its own good but if you like silly comedies then there is plenty of fun to be had with Bad Medicine. Gutenberg was coming off two Police Academy movies and a role in Cocoon, so this was sort of his first solo headlining film and while it has its flaws it is a good time primarily because of the charming performance from Guttenberg. I do think he’s ultimately better than what this movie turned out to be but if you just want to sit back and turn your brain off to a quick moving comedy filled with just enough adventure lining it then this movie does more thing well than it does bad. Guttenberg would be in better films, but Bad Medicine is a lighthearted relic of 80s comedy and still nostalgically comical today.
Star 80 (1983)
We’re going from silly comedy to the darkness of jealousy in this next movie. It’s a biopic based on a young aspiring model whose life was cut short by obsession and jealousy in Star 80 from 1983 starring Mariel Hemmingway, Eric Roberts, and Cliff Robertson. Directed by Bob Fosse in what would be his final film before his passing in 1987.
Now Star 80 is definitely one of those movies that doesn’t have a ton of rewatch value. Not because it isn’t good. Overall is an excellently assembled film. But this story goes to some very dark places and does so with a raw, intimate, and unsettling exploration of obsession, manipulation, jealousy, and deep seeded abuse. This is a movie that makes you feel uncomfortable, but the performances will grab you and pull you in. Mariel Hemmingway is amazing as Dorothy Stratten and delivers the full spectrum of emotion. And Eric Roberts delivers a masterclass in acting with a sadistic performance that will stick with you long after the end credits roll. The direction creates an intimate atmosphere, so you feel the foreboding tension of the evil to come even more. You will most certainly be emotionally exhausted after seeing Star 80 and may never want to see it again, but it’s also a forgotten piece of well-crafted 80s cinema.
Little Nikita (1988)
And for the final film in this volume, I have a forgotten little thriller about an FBI agent investigating an All-American family as being potential Soviet sleeper agents that discovers the teenage son has no idea about his false family in Robert Benjamin’s Little Nikita from 1988 starring Sydney Poitier, River Phoenix, and Richard Jenkins.
Little Nikita was another of those movies that came and went with nary a ripple of impact despite having the star power of Sydney Poitier and River Phoenix. The plot has its holes and gaps in logic but the chemistry between Phoenix and Poitier to me is enough to invest in this story. Sure, the film lines itself with many of the spy movie tropes and the pacing may be a bit uneven. Yet the chemistry of the leads and the curiosity factor are enough to enjoy this film for what it is. The plot beats are a bit traditional and it’s a very straight forward film. And it does play more like a TV movie than a big screen feature film, but Little Nikita is another of those movies that are a timestamp to the 80s when films could rely on the simplicity of their focal idea while letting the star power do the rest. It didn’t necessarily work for Little Nikita but regardless it’s still a nostalgic thriller that can deliver an entertaining night on the couch.
Anthony J. Digioia II © 2025 SilverScreen Analysis & Movies Never Say Die
