The best cult movies of the 1980s
The top 3 according to 153 votes from people: Brazil (1985) · This Is Spinal Tap (1984) · Time Bandits (1981). (Updated Feb 25, 2025.)
Repo Man, The Princess Bride, This Is Spinal Tap, Blue Velvet, Heathers, Re-Animator, Raising Arizona and Akira: the 1980s cult classics with the best Tomatometer scores.
Top 20
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1
Brazil (1985)
98% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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2
This Is Spinal Tap (1984)
96% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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3
Time Bandits (1981)
91% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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4
Repo Man (1984)
98% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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5
Heathers (1989)
95% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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6
Raising Arizona (1987)
91% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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7
Re-Animator (1985)
94% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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8
Akira (1988)
91% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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9
The Princess Bride (1987)
96% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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10
To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
88% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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11
Little Shop of Horrors (1986)
91% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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12
Sid & Nancy (1986)
89% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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13
Evil Dead II (1987)
88% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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14
The Thing (1982)
85% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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15
Near Dark (1987)
83% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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16
Blue Velvet (1986)
91% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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17
Blade Runner (1982)
89% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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18
Escape From New York (1981)
86% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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19
They Live (1988)
87% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
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20
Videodrome (1983)
83% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
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Comments (1)
They Live! I came here to chew bubblegum and kick ass... great to see it on the list