1982: THE SUMMER OF MOVIES

Forty years ago in 1982 is now considered by many to be a landmark year of summer movies. American Cinematheque and Beyond Fest have put together a festival called "1982: The Summer of Movies" that will screen some of the films that were released that year beginning on Tuesday, May 3rd through May 13th. The screenings will be held at the Los Feliz 3 Theatres in Los Angeles and the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica.

The films that will be part of this celebration will include sci-fi thrillers ("Blade Runner"; "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan"; "The Road Warrior"; "Tron"), comedies ("Night Shift"; "Dead Men Wear Plaid"), teen comedies ("Fast Times at Ridgemont High"; "The Last American Virgin"), musicals ("The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas", "Grease 2", "Pink Floyd: The Wall"; "Annie"), horror ("Poltergeist"; "Friday the 13th: Part Three": "The Thing"; "Cat People") animated features ("The Secret of Nimh"; "The Last Unicorn") and action-adventure ("Conan the Barbarian"; "The Beastmaster"; "Rocky III").

All screenings will include exclusive clips from the upcoming documentary, "1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever!". For additional information and to purchase tickets, please click below:

1982: The Summer of Movies

I was almost twenty years old at the time and looking back at some of the films that were released over this three month period is actually quite mind-blowing: although varied wildly in style and quality, most of these movies have gone on to become true classics of cinema. Here are a few trailers of a few of my favorites: