Top 100 Mystery Movies - 1980s
#78 Butcher, Baker, Nightmare, Maker - 1981
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- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsKurt RussellWilford BrimleyKeith DavidA research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.
- DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsBob HoskinsChristopher LloydJoanna CassidyWhen a cartoon rabbit is accused of murder, he enlists the help of a burnt out private investigator to prove his innocence.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsJohn TravoltaNancy AllenJohn LithgowA movie sound recordist accidentally records the evidence that proves that a car accident was actually murder and consequently finds himself in danger.
- DirectorAlan ParkerStarsGene HackmanWillem DafoeFrances McDormandTwo F.B.I. Agents with wildly different styles arrive in Mississippi to investigate the disappearance of some civil rights activists.
- DirectorMichael MannStarsWilliam PetersenKim GreistJoan AllenFormer FBI profiler Will Graham returns to service to pursue a deranged serial killer dubbed "the Tooth Fairy" by the media.
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsIsabella RosselliniKyle MacLachlanDennis HopperThe discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.
- DirectorDon BluthStarsElizabeth HartmanDerek JacobiDom DeLuiseTo save her ill son, a field mouse must seek the aid of a colony of rats, with whom she has a deeper link than she suspected.
- DirectorPaul VerhoevenStarsJeroen KrabbéRenée SoutendijkThom HoffmanA man who has been having visions of an impending danger begins an affair with a woman who may lead him to his doom.
- DirectorJim HensonStarsJim HensonFrank OzDave GoelzKermit the Frog, The Great Gonzo, and Fozzie Bear are reporters who travel to Britain to interview a rich victim of jewel thieves and help her along with her secretary, Miss Piggy.
- DirectorJames CameronStarsEd HarrisMary Elizabeth MastrantonioMichael BiehnA civilian diving team is enlisted to search for a lost nuclear submarine and faces danger while encountering an alien aquatic species.
- DirectorJohn MackenzieStarsBob HoskinsHelen MirrenPaul FreemanAn up-and-coming gangster is tested by the insurgence of an unknown, very powerful threat.
- DirectorJonathan LynnStarsEileen BrennanTim CurryMadeline KahnSix guests are anonymously invited to a strange mansion for dinner, but after their host is killed, they must cooperate with the staff to identify the murderer as the bodies pile up.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsCristina MarsillachIan CharlesonUrbano BarberiniA young opera singer is stalked by a deranged fan bent on killing the people associated with her to claim her for himself.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsCraig WassonMelanie GriffithGregg HenryA young actor's obsession with spying on a beautiful woman who lives nearby leads to a baffling series of events with drastic consequences.
- DirectorCosta-GavrasStarsJack LemmonSissy SpacekMelanie MayronWhen an idealistic American writer disappears during the Chilean coup d'état in September 1973, his wife and father try to find him.
- DirectorMartin DavidsonStarsTom BerengerMichael ParéJoe PantolianoA television newswoman picks up the story of a 1960s rock band whose long-lost leader Eddie Wilson may still be alive, while searching for the missing tapes of the band's never-released album.
- DirectorGeorge SluizerStarsBernard-Pierre DonnadieuGene BervoetsJohanna ter SteegeRex and Saskia, a young couple in love, are on vacation. They stop at a busy service station and Saskia is abducted. After three years and no sign of Saskia, Rex begins receiving letters from the abductor.
- DirectorMichael RitchieStarsChevy ChaseJoe Don BakerDana Wheeler-NicholsonWhile working undercover wisecracking newspaper reporter Irwin "Fletch" Fletcher is offered a large sum by a millionaire with a terminal disease to kill him. Intrigued, Fletch decides to unearth the full story behind the offer.
- DirectorRon ClementsBurny MattinsonDave MichenerStarsVincent PriceBarrie InghamVal BettinBasil, the rodent Sherlock Holmes, investigates the kidnapping of a toy maker and uncovers its link to his archenemy, Professor Ratigan.
- DirectorAlan ParkerStarsMickey RourkeRobert De NiroLisa BonetA private investigator is hired by a man who calls himself Louis Cyphre to track down a singer named Johnny Favorite. But the investigation takes an unexpected and somber turn.
- DirectorGeorge MihalkaStarsPaul KelmanLori HallierNeil AffleckA decades-old folk tale surrounding a deranged murderer killing those who celebrate Valentine's Day turns out to be true to legend when a group defies the killer's order and people start turning up dead.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsAnthony FranciosaGiuliano GemmaJohn SaxonAn American novelist visiting Rome to promote his latest book is stalked and harassed by an obsessed fan who is committing a string of murders that appear to be tributes to his work.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsJennifer ConnellyDonald PleasenceDaria NicolodiA young girl who has an amazing ability to communicate with insects is transferred to an exclusive Swiss boarding school, where her unusual capability might help solve a string of murders.
- DirectorRichard TuggleClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodGeneviève BujoldDan HedayaNew Orleans single dad and cop Wes Block goes after a serial rapist-killer, but when he gets too close the hunter suddenly becomes the hunted.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsMichael CaineAngie DickinsonNancy AllenA mysterious blonde woman kills one of a psychiatrist's patients, and then goes after the high-class call girl who witnessed the murder.
- DirectorCarl ReinerStarsSteve MartinRachel WardAlan LaddFilm noir parody with a detective uncovering a sinister plot. Characters from classic noir films appear as scenes from various movies interjected into the story.
- DirectorJean BeckerStarsIsabelle AdjaniAlain SouchonSuzanne FlonA young woman who oozes sensuality arrives in a small town and marries the local mechanic. Was it love at first sight? What links her enigmatic presence to the family's piano? Is it curiosity or is it something far more sinister?
- DirectorRichard FranklinStarsStacy KeachJamie Lee CurtisMarion EdwardA laid-back American truck driver in south Australia suspects that the driver of a green van is killing young women along his route, and plays a game of cat-and-mouse to catch him.
- DirectorJean-Jacques AnnaudStarsSean ConneryChristian SlaterHelmut QualtingerAn intellectually nonconformist friar investigates a series of mysterious deaths in an isolated abbey.
- DirectorCarl SchenkelStarsDenzel WashingtonRobert TownsendJames FoxWhen police officer Xavier Quinn's childhood friend, Maubee, becomes associated with murder and a briefcase full of ten thousand dollar bills, The Mighty Quinn must clear his name. Or try to catch him, which could be even trickier.
- DirectorRichard MarquandStarsJeff BridgesGlenn ClosePeter CoyoteA wealthy woman is murdered in her beach house. The husband is allegedly knocked out first. He inherits all. He has a female ex criminal prosecutor represent him in court.
- DirectorRoger DonaldsonStarsKevin CostnerGene HackmanSean YoungA coverup and witchhunt occur after a politician accidentally kills his mistress.
- DirectorSidney LumetStarsMichael CaineChristopher ReeveDyan CannonA Broadway playwright puts murder in his plan to take credit for a student's play.
- DirectorWilliam Peter BlattyStarsStacy KeachScott WilsonJason MillerAn ex-marine psychiatrist attempts to rehabilitate his patients by indulging their fantasies, and seeks to prove the existence of a loving God to one especially troubled inmate.
- DirectorIvan PasserStarsJeff BridgesJohn HeardLisa EichhornRichard spots a man dumping a body, and decides to expose the man he thinks is the culprit with his friend Alex Cutter.
- DirectorJuan Piquer SimónStarsChristopher GeorgeLynda Day GeorgeFrank BrañaThe co-eds of a Boston college campus are targeted by a mysterious killer who is creating a human jigsaw puzzle from their body parts.
- DirectorPeter MedakStarsGeorge C. ScottTrish Van DevereMelvyn DouglasAfter experiencing tragic personal losses, a music professor rents a Seattle mansion, haunted by a slain boy.
- DirectorGuy HamiltonStarsPeter UstinovJames MasonMaggie SmithTrying to find how a millionaire wound up with a phony diamond brings Hercule Poirot to an exclusive island resort frequented by the rich and famous. When a murder is committed, everyone has an alibi.
- DirectorTommy Lee WallaceStarsTom AtkinsStacey NelkinDan O'HerlihyKids all over America want Silver Shamrock masks for Halloween. Doctor Daniel Challis seeks to uncover a plot by Silver Shamrock owner Conal Cochran.
- DirectorSean S. CunninghamStarsBetsy PalmerAdrienne KingJeannine TaylorA group of teenage camp counselors attempt to re-open an abandoned summer camp with a tragic past, but they are stalked by a mysterious, relentless killer.
- DirectorPaul LynchStarsLeslie NielsenJamie Lee CurtisCasey StevensAt a high-school senior prom, a masked killer stalks four teenagers who were responsible for the accidental death of a classmate six years previously.
- DirectorDaniel VigneStarsGérard DepardieuNathalie BayeMaurice BarrierIn medieval France, some villagers challenge a man's claim of identity when he (as he says) returns home from some time in the army.
- DirectorGary ShermanStarsJames FarentinoMelody AndersonJack AlbertsonSheriff Dan Gillis investigates eerie deaths in a sleepy coastal town.
- DirectorHarold BeckerStarsAl PacinoEllen BarkinJohn GoodmanA detective investigating a series of murders becomes involved with a woman who may be the culprit.
- DirectorMichael AptedStarsWilliam HurtLee MarvinBrian DennehyA Moscow police officer investigates a vicious triple homicide and stumbles upon a high-level international political conspiracy.
- DirectorRoman PolanskiStarsHarrison FordBetty BuckleyEmmanuelle SeignerIn a hotel room in Paris, a doctor comes out of the shower and finds that his wife has disappeared. He soon finds himself caught up in a world of intrigue, espionage, gangsters, drugs and murder.
- DirectorRichard FranklinStarsHenry ThomasDabney ColemanMichael MurphyA young boy and his imaginary friend end up on the run while in possession of a top-secret spy gadget.
- DirectorJames B. HarrisStarsJames WoodsLesley Ann WarrenCharles DurningAn obsessive, insubordinate homicide cop is convinced a serial killer is loose in the Hollywood area and disobeys orders in order to catch him.
- DirectorWalter MurchStarsFairuza BalkNicol WilliamsonJean MarshDorothy, saved from a psychiatric experiment by a mysterious girl, is somehow called back to Oz when a vain witch and the Nome King destroy everything that makes the magical land beautiful.
- DirectorJoseph ZitoStarsVicky DawsonChristopher GoutmanLawrence TierneyAn unknown killer, clad in World War II U.S. Army fatigues, stalks a small California town, bent on reliving a 35 year-old double murder by focusing on a group of college kids holding an annual graduation dance.
- DirectorPeter HyamsStarsMichael DouglasHal HolbrookYaphet KottoFrustrated with a legal system gone haywire, a secret society of judges hires hitmen to snuff out criminals who escape courtroom justice - but one young judge questions the ethics of their vigilante system.
- DirectorPaul SommerCarl UrbanoRay PattersonStarsDon MessickCasey KasemSorrell BookeAfter the death of Shaggy's Uncle Beaureguard, he, Scooby, and Scrappy arrive at his uncle's plantation to collect the inheritance. But as soon as they arrive, they find it is haunted by the ghost of a Confederate soldier. With this spook on their tails while they search for Shaggy's inheritance, they hired to help of the Boo Brothers, a trio of ghost-exterminators to help catch this nasty ghoul.
- DirectorStanley R. JaffeStarsKate NelliganJudd HirschDavid DukesEstranged New Yorker (Kate Nelligan) turns to the police after her son disappears.
- DirectorGeoff MurphyStarsBruno LawrenceAlison RoutledgePete SmithA scientist awakens to find himself alone in the world. In a desperate attempt to search for others, he finds only two who have their own agenda.
- DirectorFrançois TruffautStarsFanny ArdantJean-Louis TrintignantJean-Pierre KalfonAfter he's implicated in several murders, a real estate agent hides out from the cops while his intrepid secretary does some private investigating of her own to locate the killer.
- DirectorAlan ZasloveStarsCorey BurtonPeter CullenJim CummingsChip and Dale, Disney's favorite chipmunk team, form their own protection agency for their fellow animals, where they seek to help the helpless and protect those in peril from those who would exploit them.
- DirectorPeter HyamsStarsRoy ScheiderJohn LithgowHelen MirrenA joint USA-Soviet expedition is sent to Jupiter to learn exactly what happened to the "Discovery" and its H.A.L. 9000 computer.
- DirectorStanley KwanStarsLeslie CheungAnita MuiAlex ManFleur is the blue angel in one of Hong Kong's "flower houses" - bordellos and night clubs of the 1930s. A detached and beautiful performer, she falls in love with Twelfth Master Chan, heir to a chain of pharmacies. They agree to a suicide pact. 50 years later, in modern Hong Kong, Fleur's ghost appears in Yuen's newspaper office, wanting to place an ad to find Chan, who never arrived in the afterlife. Yuen, and his equally bewildered girlfriend, An Chor, are captivated by Fleur and her story.
- DirectorGisaburô SugiiStarsMayumi TanakaChika SakamotoJunko HoriTwo kittens go on a metaphysical journey on a magical railroad train.
- DirectorAndrew DavisStarsSteven SeagalPam GrierHenry SilvaA former Special Operations Vietnam vet works as a Chicago cop, and uncovers C.I.A. wrongdoing.
- DirectorJack ClaytonStarsMary Grace CanfieldRichard DavalosJake DengelIn a small American town, a diabolical circus and its demonic proprietor prey on the townsfolk.
- DirectorMamoru OshiiKôji SawaiStarsToshio FurukawaDavid JarvisDoug ErholtzThe screwball cops of Special Vehicles Section 2 Division 2 must investigate and stop a spree of rampaging construction robots.
- DirectorBuddy Van HornStarsClint EastwoodLiam NeesonPatricia ClarksonInspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan must stop a sick secret contest to murder various San Francisco celebrities, with himself being one of the targets.
- DirectorWalter HillStarsRalph MacchioJoe SenecaJami GertzA wannabe blues-guitar virtuoso finds an old blues player and hopes he can teach him a long-lost song by legendary musician Robert Johnson.
- DirectorNorman JewisonStarsHoward E. Rollins Jr.Adolph CaesarArt EvansAn African-American officer investigates a murder in a racially charged situation in World War II.
- DirectorRichard FranklinStarsAnthony PerkinsVera MilesMeg TillyAfter twenty-two years of psychiatric care, Norman Bates attempts to return to a life of solitude, but the specters of his crimes - and his mother - continue to haunt him.
- DirectorFrank LaLoggiaStarsLukas HaasLen CariouAlex RoccoAn author tells the story of how, as a young boy growing up in a 1960s small town, he was haunted after witnessing the murder of a little girl.
- DirectorFred WaltonStarsDeborah ForemanGriffin O'NealClayton RohnerNine college students staying at a friend's remote island mansion begin to fall victim to an unseen murderer over the April Fool's Day weekend, but nothing is as it seems.
- DirectorStanislav GovorukhinStarsVladimir ZeldinTatyana DrubichAleksandr KaydanovskiyA psychological thriller based on the novel by Agatha Christie. Ten strangers are forced to come face to face with their dark pasts after receiving invitation to an isolated island off the coast of England.
- DirectorVíctor EriceStarsOmero AntonuttiSonsoles ArangurenIcíar BollaínA woman reflects on her childhood relationship with her father, attempting to understand the depths of his despair and the truth of his myths.
- DirectorNorman JewisonStarsJane FondaAnne BancroftMeg TillyWhen a naive novice nun is discovered with a dead newborn in her convent quarters, a court-appointed psychiatrist investigates her case.
- DirectorVincent WardStarsBruce LyonsChris HaywoodHamish GoughMen seeking relief from the Black Death, guided by a boy's vision, dig a tunnel from 14th century England to 20th century New Zealand.
- DirectorBob BalabanStarsRandy QuaidMary Beth HurtSandy DennisA young boy living in 1950s suburbia suspects that his parents are cannibalistic murderers.
- DirectorMamoru OshiiStarsFumi HiranoToshio FurukawaAkira KamiyaThe night before the school festival, things seem to be repeating themselves. Gradually, all the world functions come to a stop, the only ones that are not affected are a select group of student friends.
- DirectorWilliam LustigStarsTom AtkinsBruce CampbellLaurene LandonA killer dressed in a police uniform begins murdering innocent people on the streets of New York City.
- DirectorPeter YatesStarsWilliam HurtSigourney WeaverChristopher PlummerA janitor who claims he's seen a murder becomes romantically involved with the glamorous TV reporter covering the story.
- DirectorDavid HareStarsVanessa RedgraveIan HolmJudi DenchThe mysterious death of an enigmatic young man newly arrived in the suburb of Wetherby releases the long-repressed, dark passions of some of its residents.
- DirectorGuy HamiltonStarsAngela LansburyTony CurtisRock HudsonMiss Jane Marple comes to solve the mystery when a local woman is poisoned and a visiting movie star seems to have been the intended victim.
- DirectorPaul SchraderStarsRichard GereLauren HuttonHector ElizondoA Los Angeles escort is accused of a murder which he did not commit.
- DirectorRoman KachanovGlenn StantonStarsOlga GromovaVsevolod LarionovYuriy VolyntsevZoologist professor Steel, his small daughter Christine and captain Green leave Earth in search for rare space animals. The journey turns into adventurous and dangerous mission involving space pirates and a missing captain of a ship.
- DirectorMichael RadfordStarsSarah MilesJoss AcklandJohn HurtIn 1940s Kenya, a married couple join other affluent British expatriates in a lifestyle of recklessness and excess, but soon find themselves in a troubling situation.
- DirectorSidney LumetStarsJane FondaJeff BridgesRaul JuliaA washed up, alcoholic actress who is prone to blackouts wakes up next to a murdered man. Did she kill him and, if not, is she in danger?
- DirectorJohn SchlesingerStarsMartin SheenHelen ShaverHarley CrossCal Jamison, a police psychologist, is forced to deal with a series of ritualistic murders and a malevolent cult.Change
- DirectorMichael RitchieStarsChevy ChaseHal HolbrookJulianne PhillipsAfter receiving an inheritance in Louisiana, Los Angeles reporter Irwin Fletcher heads to the Belle Isle plantation where he gets himself into hilarious trouble.
- DirectorDanny SteinmannStarsMelanie KinnamanJohn ShepherdAnthony BarrileStill haunted by his past, Tommy Jarvis, who, as a child, killed Jason Voorhees, is sent to a secluded halfway house in the countryside, where the killing of a young man triggers a brutal series of murders in the area.
- DirectorJoe DanteStarsTom HanksBruce DernCarrie FisherAn overstressed suburbanite and his neighbors are convinced that the new family on the block is part of a murderous Satanic cult.
- DirectorWilliam FriedkinStarsAl PacinoPaul SorvinoKaren AllenA police officer goes undercover in the underground S&M gay subculture of New York City to catch a serial killer who is preying on gay men.
- DirectorWilliam TannenStarsKris KristoffersonTreat WilliamsRip TornTwo U.S. border patrolmen find a buried 20+ year old jeep in the desert with a skeleton, rifle and $800,000. They keep the money. Suddenly, the FBI shows a lot of interest in the car.
- DirectorMichael RitchieStarsEddie MurphyJ.L. ReateCharles DanceA private detective specializing in missing children is charged with the task of finding a special child whom dark forces want to eliminate.
- DirectorGeorge P. CosmatosStarsPeter WellerRichard CrennaAmanda PaysPerched on the hull of a wrecked Soviet freighter, a team of deep-sea miners led by head oceanographer Steven Beck comes face to face with a mutant creature that's the product of a failed genetic experiment.
- DirectorRoger YoungStarsTom SelleckJane SeymourLauren HuttonA handsome jewel thief is arrested and in order to avoid prison, must break into the heavily guarded German Embassy to steal millions in gems.
- DirectorCurtis HansonStarsSteve GuttenbergElizabeth McGovernIsabelle HuppertA young executive starts an affair with his boss's wife which then escalates into a nightmare after he lies to the police in order to protect her.
- DirectorAnthony PerkinsStarsAnthony PerkinsDiana ScarwidJeff FaheyNorman Bates falls in love with a fallen nun who stays at the Bates Motel alongside a drifter and a curious reporter. Meanwhile, "Mother" is still watching.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsGabriel ByrneJulian SandsNatasha RichardsonThe Shelleys visit Lord Byron and compete to write a horror story.
- DirectorBob ClarkStarsJudd NelsonElizabeth PerkinsJohn HurtRobin, one year out of law school with one trial, gets set up with an unwinnable murder case for having forced his law firm to make him partner with unethical behavior, tarnishing the firm.
- DirectorRobert BentonStarsJeff BridgesKim BasingerRip TornIn 1950s Texas, a woman trying to recover sexy photos of herself and divorce her husband witnesses a murder and uncovers corrupt land dealings.
- DirectorRoger SpottiswoodeStarsBen JohnsonJamie Lee CurtisHart BochnerThree years after a prank went terribly awry, the six college students responsible are targeted by a masked killer at a New Year's Eve party aboard a moving train.
- DirectorJ. Lee ThompsonStarsCharles BronsonKathleen WilhoiteCarrie SnodgressFramed for his ex-wife's murder by a parolee he once put behind bars, Los Angeles cop Jack Murphy escapes from custody to capture the killer, but he is now handcuffed to a foul-mouthed thief he had only just arrested.
- DirectorScott SpiegelStarsLiz KernRenée EstevezDan HicksThe overnight stock crew of a local supermarket find themselves being stalked and slashed by a mysterious maniac.