The Summer Of '89

[drawkcabi]

Hi All,

As we approach yet again that time of year for the Academy Awards, and it seems, sadly, that the magic of that time and of cinema in general just keeps diminishing, I've been thinking back to when that magic was strong. One of the most magical times ever was the incredible movie Summer of 1989. For no specific reason, other than my love for movies and of remembering fond times, I've been compiling a list in the back of my mind of the movies that came out that summer. I knew it was long but as I keep getting reminded of more movies, over and over I keep finding myself saying That movie also came out then?!!

It's just become so amazing, I've got to share it with you all...

Now, there have been big movie summers before... 1975, with the release of mega hit Jaws, is regarded by many as the first modern blockbuster summer. Then there was the Summer of 1977 with the release of Star Wars, it's a clear contender for one of the biggest movie summers. Recently the Summer of 2019 with Avengers: Endgame, also huge.

There have also been years that were remarkable for just how many iconic movies came out the whole year round. 

1999, for example, may be the greatest of these year round moved years... The Matrix, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Office Space, The Sixth Sense, The Green Mile, Galaxyquest, American Pie, American Beauty, and quite a few others came out that year.

But when we narrow it down to just the Summer movie season, I don't think any year can compete with 1989 for sheer volume of notable movie releases! 

Not all the movies were winners, but more were than weren't. With the tent pole films, whether the movie ultimately was a hit with audiences or not is irrelevant what matters is there was a marketing build up and decent to overwhelming anticipation for these films. With the sequel films, maybe some of the entries of this summer became indicators their series was on the decline, but still contribute to the overall feel of that summer being jammed packed with films because of how iconic their franchises were.

On the other hand, there were also those movies where I think audience reception does count. Movies that got released with moderate or little to no advertising and promotion, but even the studios were blown away by how well received they were and how much money they took in.

Then there is the final category, movies that under performed or were just plain bombs but have since become cult hits to one degree or another...

So...when I say "summer movie season" what I'm specifically referring to all movies released between May 1st - August 31st.

Now just check out this list...

Summer Of 1989 Movies:

• Tim Burton's Batman 
• Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 
• Ghostbusters II 
• The Karate Kid, Part III 
• Lethal Weapon 2
• Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
• License To Kill (James Bond)
• Friday the 13th, Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan 
• A Nightmare On Elm Street 5: The Dream Child 
• The Abyss
• Roadhouse
• Honey, I Shrunk the Kids! 
• Hear No Evil, See No Evil
• When Harry Met Sally 
• Uncle Buck
• Parenthood
• Turner & Hooch
• UHF
• Weekend At Bernies
• Dead Poets Society 
• Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing
• Casualties Of War
• Millenium

Am I making too big a deal out of this or is that not just an impressive list, but an insane list for all those movies to have come out within just a 4 month span of time? Every weekend that summer, every single weekend, there was at least 1 movie opening we had been looking forward to and/or had just heard about and wanted to see. 

For the record, minus 5 movies: The Abyss, Roadhouse, Do the Right Thing, Friday the 13th VIII, and Nightmare On Elm Street 5 ... I saw every one of those movies in the theater. Batman and Ghostbusters II I saw twice.

That was the Summer of Batman as well, of course. The classic "Bat" symbol, the black bat on yellow, was EVERYWHERE!!! Baseball caps, tee-shirts, billboards, graffiti even. It may not have matched the heights of when Star Wars came out, but it was big. People were losing their minds waiting to see this movie 

Also, I always feel the need to defend my love for Ghostbusters II ! The original Ghostbusters is superior in every way, it's a masterpiece, but I maintain that the sequel was not bad! It was a quite good movie, just not a great movie and certainly not a masterpiece. I saw it that summer and I loved it. I liked it so much I made time to see it again even with all those other movies as available. 

The movie, Millenium, may be the most obscure movie on this list, but knowing the people in this board, this is probably one of the places where a much higher percentage of people know this movie. It was DOA at the box office, the studio didnt have any faith in it and releasd it at the very end of August that summer. It still to this day has terrible critics and audience scores. The movie may be one of the smallest cult films out there, but it still does have a tiny cult following and I'm in it. I like it. It's an interesting, slow burn, thinking person's time travel film. 

So with this out here now, lastly, I wish everyone the best of regards!

 

 

[Heartofice]

22 minutes ago, drawkcabi said:

Am I making too big a deal out of this or is that not just an impressive list, but an insane list for all those movies to have come out within just a 4 month span of time? Every weekend that summer, every single weekend, there was at least 1 movie opening we had been looking forward to and/or had just heard about and wanted to see. 

Actually I have to say you are making a big deal out of it. I don't think that is all that impressive a list in reality. Indiana Jones I'll give you, and Batman was massively hyped (but actually isn't a very good movie, something a 12 year old me knew at the time). Maybe it was my age at the time but Turner and Hooch and Honey I shrunk the kids I thought were bad at the time and nostalgia isn't improving them!

Now if you wanna just a decade and go to 1999! Then we are talking about a golden year!

[dbunting]

Have to agree, the list isn't that good and that was the summer leading to my senior year of high school so those should hold strong feelings for me. All the sequels you listed were pretty bad other than Indiana Jones. I think your 1999 list kills 1989 even with the Phantom Menace dragging it down!

[drawkcabi]

3 hours ago, Heartofice said:

Actually I have to say you are making a big deal out of it. I don't think that is all that impressive a list in reality. Indiana Jones I'll give you, and Batman was massively hyped (but actually isn't a very good movie, something a 12 year old me knew at the time). Maybe it was my age at the time but Turner and Hooch and Honey I shrunk the kids I thought were bad at the time and nostalgia isn't improving them!

Now if you wanna just a decade and go to 1999! Then we are talking about a golden year!

I actually agree with you about Batman. I liked it but I was disappointed also as I thought it would be better. The reason I saw that movie twice is someone I was with hadn't seen it and wanted to and I suppose part of me wanted to see it to make sure there wasn't more to it I was missing.

But the hype for Batman was a real thing. People had been waiting months, some people years, for this movie and the promotion of it was crazy too. I feel it's a 3/5 star movie but at the same time I can't deny the style of the film, the performances, and the mark it's made on movie history still makes it an iconic film. 

Turner & Hooch, agreed. But many people have fond memories or at least strong feelings for it, so it is remembered by many.

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids! Disagree, but that's OK. I just am a fan of many of Joe Johnston movies! Honey I Shrunk the Kids, The Rocketeer, Jumanji, Captain America: First Avenger. I think all those are fantastic movies but I also know there are people who are luke warm about them or flat out don't like them. Hidalgo was good, not great, and even like Jurassic Park III more than Jurassic Park: The Lost World, but I still don't think it's anything more than OK, while The Lost World I think I'm on the borderline between OK and not liking it.

I mentioned 1999, but like I said, it was spread out throughout the year, even if it had a good cluster there in the summer, it wasn't as prolific as Summer '89.

Whether they ended up being good movies or disappointing ones, the Summer of '89 was just one movie I had been wanting to see right after another, all Summer long. I had never seen it like that to that degree before or since.

Then the amount of movies I didn't know too much about going in and then coming out either really liking them or loving them...When Harry Met Sally, Uncle Buck, Parenthood, UHF, Dead Poets Society, Millenium.

I still think I'm right. Summer of '89 was unquestionably the biggest summer ever for the amount of notable movie releases. Even if the opinion on the quality of all those films varies between us all. 

[Heartofice]

I think you could make the case for a number of other years just having better summer releases:

1984: Ghostbusters, Temple of Doom, Karate Kid, Gremlins and Never ending story

1985: Goonies, Back to the Future, Teen Wolf, Weird Science, Fright Night

1986: Top Gun, Aliens, The Fly, Big Trouble in Little China, Labyrinth

You could probably keep going with this. 

[BigFatCoward]

https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/best-summer-ever-which-summer-blockbuster-season-reigns-supreme/

Rotten tomatoes has ranking. Hard to disagree with number 1.  Though for me personally 84 was better. 

[dbunting]

30 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said:

https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/best-summer-ever-which-summer-blockbuster-season-reigns-supreme/

Rotten tomatoes has ranking. Hard to disagree with number 1.  Though for me personally 84 was better. 

Yeah 1982 and 1984 for me were the best of that list.

[drawkcabi]

1 hour ago, Heartofice said:

I think you could make the case for a number of other years just having better summer releases:

1984: Ghostbusters, Temple of Doom, Karate Kid, Gremlins and Never ending story

1985: Goonies, Back to the Future, Teen Wolf, Weird Science, Fright Night

1986: Top Gun, Aliens, The Fly, Big Trouble in Little China, Labyrinth

You could probably keep going with this. 

 

1 hour ago, BigFatCoward said:

https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/best-summer-ever-which-summer-blockbuster-season-reigns-supreme/

Rotten tomatoes has ranking. Hard to disagree with number 1.  Though for me personally 84 was better. 

Very great years and great article! Thanks!

I'm just going for sheer volume though with my ranking.

I gave 20 movies, all theatrically released within that 4 momth time span, I saw 16 of them in the theater and regardless how I felt after I saw them, I was at least looking forward to seeing them to one degree or another before going in.

For me, as someone who loves going to the movies, when I was at an age when the experience meant the absolute most to me, nothing matched that particular kind of excitement from that summer of having movie after movie after movie to go see. 

You have no argument from me that there were probably summers that when you add up the quality I feel the films are worth after seeing them, and the way I feel about them now after however many years...I'm almost positive there are summers that beat 1989 on those grounds. 

I'm just picking out what I think was unique about 1989, the particular metric that when used puts that year on top, and expanding a bit on it, why I feel that makes it special. Although I believe more often than not that quality > quantity...quantity can on occasion lead to some fun times and great memories! 

[DanteGabriel]

Off the top of my head I would have said 1986 was a pretty great movie year. Besides HoI's list, there were other culturally significant movies: Stand by Me, Platoon, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Pretty in Pink, Highlander, and Transformers the Movie.

 

 

[Cas Stark]

That list doesn't look that great to me, but I feel like we're pretty close to 'objective reality' level evidence that the quality of movies has taken a nosedive in the last decade.  

[Heartofice]

4 minutes ago, Cas Stark said:

That list doesn't look that great to me, but I feel like we're pretty close to 'objective reality' level evidence that the quality of movies has taken a nosedive in the last decade.  

How can you say that when there is so much to look forward to this summer. We have unlimited low tier superhero movies, another terrible disney remake, an arthritic Indiana Jones movie and Fast 1 Million to enjoy.

https://www.movieinsider.com/movies/summer/2023

(to be fair Oppenheimer might be good and I always like the MI movies, but still.. I think the trend is clear)

[drawkcabi]

I still maintain that objectively, Summer 1989 was remarkable due to its very impressivre number of theatrical releases from iconic franchises (regardless whether the particular entries of that summer were good or not) along with such a high number of stand alone films that have either become iconic films or cult hits in their own right.

Subjectively, I feel that makes it unique, interesting, and worth talking about. YMMV there. Even though it is also not my favorite movie Summer, Iike the RT list, it's in my top 10.

Also, subjectively, I would have to say my favorite movie Summer was 1984.

 

ETA:

Just had to edit my initial post too because I realized I forgot a few movies...

[Frey family reunion]

While the quality of movies have suffered, we're certainly in the golden age of episodic british period pieces and detective shows.