Back to the 80s: Memorial Day Weekend 1985

It's time for the first segment of Back to the 80s. If you went to a movie theater on Memorial Day Weekend 1985, what could you have seen?

A View to a Kill

Super-spy James Bond attempts to keep super-villain Max Zorin from creating a massive earthquake that will flood Silicon Valley, thus leaving him with complete control f the world’s microchip market.

How did it play in 1985? Fairly well. It was the 13th highest grossing movie of the year and the 14th (out of 23) in the Bond series. It was the last Bond with Roger Moore in the lead. The critics didn’t think much of it and now it has a reputation as one of the worst Bond films.

Did I see it then? Yes. I don’t recall much about it though.

How does it play today? It’s passable entertainment, more so if you are a fan of the Bond movies. I liked the widescreen cinematography and the John Barry score provides the perfect sonic mood for a Bond film. Unfortunately, most everything else is sub-par. The plot is a retread of previous Bond films and Max Zorin is no Goldfinger. Tanya Roberts is terrible as the leading lady. Only Grace Jones, who plays the requisite villain’s henchmen (henchwoman?) has an impact, although her character is just as underwritten as everyone else‘s. The action scenes are OK, except for a ridiculous chase involving a stolen fire truck and lots of police cars that seems more appropriate to The Blues Brothers.

Rambo: First Blood Part II

The big hit of Memorial Day 1985 was Rambo: First Blood Part II, the action-packed, ultra-violent sequel to the 1982 film First Blood. The plot, such as it is, has Sylvester Stallone’s title character sent into Vietnam on a covert mission to find out if American POWs are still there. He is soon betrayed and must use every weapon in existence to fight his way out and blow as much stuff up as (in)humanly possible.

How did it play in 1985? Huge. It was the number one movie at the box office for 4 weeks in a row and was the second highest grossing movie of he year.

Did I see it then? No. I wanted to, but my parents were pretty strict about letting me see R-rated movies. I didn’t see it until much later.

How does it play today? It’s quite ridiculous and a little offensive. I know this is the kind of movie you’re not supposed to analyze but it’s hard not to roll your eyes at it. The action gets increasingly improbable as the movie goes on as Rambo becomes an unstoppable one-man killing machine.

The script was co-written by Stallone and none other than James Cameron, who had directed The Terminator a year earlier. There are certainly parts of the movie that are quite exciting if you can suspend your disbelief. Perhaps the best thing about Rambo II is the score by Jerry Goldsmith. Using ostinato, odd-metered rhythms, the score pulsates with kinetic energy. The elegiac theme “It’s a Long Road” from the same composer’s score to First Blood, makes several appearances and is masterfully transformed into an action fanfare.

Two other movies opened up in late May 1985. First, was the Richard Pryor/John Candy comedy Brewster’s Millions about a baseball player who must spend $30 million in 30 days without telling anyone why. If he succeeds, he gets $300 million. I remember my sister and I watching this a lot when it was on HBO, but I’m not interested in seeing it again. The Chevy Chase comedy Fletch was a popular movie about an investigative journalist who used multiple disguises to catch the bad guys. It spawned a sequel and there have been several attempts to remake it. I saw it in the theaters and several times thereafter but haven’t seen it recently.

Next week: An infamous bomb and a popular kid's movie.