I’d say the tone is quite different. The '80s film version adheres more closely to the storyline of the original story, but I don’t think the original story reads as much like horror as the later movie plays.
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It had the same sense of paranoia but more in tone with the time it was written. And while the good guys have a more decisive win the ending is ambiguous with them wondering about the seagulls in the area.
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Before this thread devolves from “thought-provoking, humanitarian films” into “Ohmygod I luuuurve this movie”, a reminder to…
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Wrong decade!!!
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both excellent
I remember loving BNI and Natty Gann when they came out. I had completely forgotten them, though. HatH was really popular but I never saw it.
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Hands down, The Thing (1982) is one of the all time greatest SF/Horror films ever made. The only contender I can think of is Alien.
Both films really work up the sense of paranoia and dread of the enclosed spaces and the truly undefinable nature of what the characters are dealing with.
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Yikes! Is that how you show empathy and solidarity? 
Seriously though, is your ignorance of film what makes things “bizzare”? I grew up with all of these and while I wouldn’t necessarily put them on my personal list (as the host said, these are his) I can relate. I don’t think it’s bizzare, just what affected him most.
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DOGFIGHT! How could I have left that off! What a beautiful film.*
* Though not an 80s film after checking
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One out of ten. Guess I have not much in common with today’s humanity. Woohoo! So long, suckers…
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In the 80s, PBS was a bit ascendant: it had a collection of programming that I think has never since been matched, which was all naturally very empathetic in tone. From my childhood, I particularly remember
- Voyage of the Mimi (with a young Ben Affleck!)
- Read All About It
- An adaptation of Bridge to Terabithia (part of the WonderWorks series)
- How to be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days (Also WonderWorks)
I’m sure there were others, but I remember these vividly and they definitely helped shape me…
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Well, all storytelling is nonsense, at least from the point of view that doesn’t celebrate it. But I still want to say Miyazaki (and, oh my god, Takahata) are consummate storytellers. Everything they do is gold—even if it’s not up to their usual par, it’s still pretty much some of the best storytelling you can find in any medium.
Nausicaa shaped a lot of my early notions of caring about what happens to the world. You don’t need that particular film (or any film, really) to do that, but it was a handy and effective shortcut for many of us.
I guess that’s the first one on my list, then. I have to concentrate a bit and even remember what came out of the 80s, first.
- Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind (artists who start lists off with art drawn on the twos include…)
- Laputa (née Castle in the Sky, another Ghibli film)
- Grave of the Fireflies (another Ghibli film which I’m including even though I didn’t see it until the late 1990s)
- Empire of the Sun (nobody ever seems to remember this one even exists)
I can’t think of any more I’d put on this list. At least not yet. I clearly need to mull this over.
Oh yes. I’m stealing that one to add.
I prefer that version as well. Loved the dialogue, which has the finely-poised hand of Howard Hawks all over it. Not a great monster, except for the baby plants, which terrified me when I was a kid.
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I remember Wonderworks always being high quality and affecting, but my memory of specific shows is basically gone. I remember the title sequence being pretty cool CG that probably would seem like absolute crap today, and I think one of them was called The Rise and Rise of Daniel Rocket? That may have been American Playhouse or something.
There was a brief sequence from it at the beginning of the video, although it wasn’t identified in the narration or with a subtitle. I saw it in the theater and remember it being spectacular, but most kids didn’t go and the adult community never seemed to talk about it, either. I guess, despite its greatness, Americans just don’t care about a historical movie with no American characters in it?
And turns out, that was little Christian Bale in the lead. Little Batman, little Bateman.
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That one has always had a special place in my heart, as does My Dinner with André, (1981). André and Juzo Itami’s Tampopo (1985) have relatable characters who live life with passion. At least Wallace Shawn’s character is relatable.
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I won’t say it shaped my humanity, but Better Off Dead (1984) will always have a spot in my heart. On many days, I am still gently guided by the sage advice of Charles De Mar:
Go that way, really fast. If something gets in your way… turn.
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I’m also a fan of WoD’s sequel, Faraway, So Close! It’s a different experience, though. While Wings of Desire is a film, Faraway, So Close! is, by way of comparison, a movie. But it’s just as much about empathy and humanity as the first.
It’s also got Lou Reed and Willem Dafoe in it, which is pretty fun.
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TAMPOPO! What a delight!
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I can’t decide which was more empathetic or humanitarian, “Can I date your ex-girlfriend” or “I want my two dollars”.
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Ooh! Babette’s Feast!
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Are you talking about Nausicaa? It’s an excellent movie and wonderfully animated. What’s “nonsense” about that?
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