Club 50 Wrap-Up: 1987

Years Completed:
1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1995 | 1996 | 1998 | 1999 | 2001 
2002 | 2003 | 2005 | 2007 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013
 
Alas, it's time to go where it all begins, 1987. The year I was born and the year I decided to start this Club 50 list. It's as good a place as any. It's not like I could've started much earlier. BoxofficeMojo only has numbers going back to 1980, a year I have no connection to. It's Isthar* or bust as far as I'm concerned.

*Isthar won the box office the weekend I was born. Sadly, it didn't make the top 50 that year (#73) and I have yet to see it.

The list for 1987 is unrecognizable by today's standards. The studios were still unlocking the potential on the PG-13 rating, so a whopping 7 movies in the top 10 carried R ratings (the last time there were even three R-rated movies in the top ten was 2003). Comedies ruled the box office with 5 of the top 10  (more depending on what you call Good Morning Vietnam and Lethal Weapon).

I don't know how it stacks up against other years, but the latter part of the top 50 this year has surprising resiliency. The Princess Bride (41) is probably the most beloved movie that year. Others like Space Balls, The Lost Boys, Wall Street, The Running Man, and Adventures in Babysitting have loyal, sometimes cult, followings. Compared to 1988 at least, that a lot. That's not to say that there isn't a fair share of Black Widow-s and Like Father, Like Son-s down there too.

1987 was an average year for sequels with a total of 6, although you could throw the two Disney reissues (Snow White, Cinderella) into that. 13 of the movies have had sequels since then, which is also pretty standard.

The Oscar movies did quite well. Four of the five nominees made the top 50, Fatal Attraction and Moonstruck among the top five grossers of the year, and The Last Emperor (25) and Broadcast News (18) safely make the cut. Only Hope and Glory (88) came nowhere close.

To wind down each year as I complete them, I'm going to hand out a few superlatives or anecdotal awards to highlight some of the highs and lows of the year's top 50 box office earners.

First Seen: Space Balls

Most years, I have an educated guess if not absolute records. This year, it more of a shot in the dark. There's no Disney movie to go by. There's a strong chance the first movie was Ernest Goes to Camp on while I was at daycare or something. Space Balls is the first one that I remember definitely seeing. It probably wouldn't've been until at least 1997 though, making this the longest amount of time it took me to see a movie from a Club 50 year.

Last Seen: Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol

For a while, I held off of the whole franchise because I thought I'd be watching the first three in order to get to this, the only one on the Club 50 list. After I watched the original though, I jumped ahead. There's no way I'm watching four of those movies.

Happiest Surprise: The Running Man

There's a lot of options for this, which makes 1987 a good year. I love being surprised. Roxanne certainly cemented my love of Steve Martin. Can't Buy Me Love is so damn endearing. I'm picking The Running Man though because I enjoyed the hell out of it. It's all the things I enjoy about Arnold Schwarzenegger movies: Action, dumb jokes, and at least a touch of SciFi.

Biggest Disappointment: Broadcast News

This movie was built up for so long and, no, I just don't get the big deal. The same goes for Moonstruck, but especially for Broadcast News. I didn't dislike it. It gets the highest of praise though, and I don't see where that's coming from.

Looked Better Then: Lethal Weapon

It's one of the great buddy cop movies. I'm chalking this superlative up to everything looking little worse with Mel Gibson these days.

Looks Better Now: The Princess Bride

It's rightly regarded as a classic these days. It's hard to believe that it made less than Like Father, Like Son or Summer School.

Favorite: The Princess Bride

This is one of the most quotable movies ever made. The cast is wonderful and eclectic. I actually wouldn't know what to do if I met a person who dislikes this movie. I pray that I'll never have to meet that person.

2nd Favorite: Good Morning Vietnam

I'll admit that this gets bonus points because I get teary-eyed just thinking about Robin Williams. This might be the best mix of Robin Williams: great actor and Robin Williams: one of the funniest men on the planet.

3rd Favorite: The Running Man

Maybe if Network had explosions I'd like it too.

Honorable Mention:

Roxanne

Steve Martin is a national treasure.

Can't Buy Me Love

Maybe I'm more of a Patrick Dempsey fan than I thought. I can't say I remember seeing Amanda Peterson in anything else, but for this movie, she was perfect.

Lethal Weapon

If all this movie had to offer was "I'm getting to old for this shit" it would still have a place in the honorable mention.

Least Favorite: Nuts

Again? Another Barbara Streisand movie bottoming out a year? For the record, I liked The Guilt Trip. She's enjoyable in the Meet the Parents sequels. She's just also in a lot of movies, specifically from this late 80s/early 90s period, that I really don't enjoy.