1981 in film explained
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Events
Top grossing films (U.S.)
| Rank | Title | Studio | Gross |
|---|
| 1. | Raiders of the Lost Ark | Paramount | $209,562,121 |
| 2. | On Golden Pond | Universal | $119,285,432 |
| 3. | Superman II | Warner Brothers | $108,185,706 |
| 4. | Arthur | Warner Brothers | $95,461,682 |
| 5. | Stripes | Columbia | $85,297,000 |
| 6. | The Cannonball Run | 20th Century Fox | $72,179,579 |
| 7. | Chariots of Fire | Columbia | $58,972,904 |
| 8. | For Your Eyes Only | MGM | $54,812,802 |
| 9. | The Four Seasons | Universal | $50,427,646 |
| 10. | Time Bandits | 20th Century Fox | $42,365,581 |
|
source: http://boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/?yr=1981&p=.htm
Awards
Academy Awards
Best Picture
Chariots of Fire - Enigma, The Ladd Company/Warner Bros.
Best Director
Warren Beatty - Reds
Best Actor
Henry Fonda - On Golden Pond
Best Actress
Katharine Hepburn - On Golden Pond
Best Supporting Actor
John Gielgud - Arthur
Best Supporting Actress
Maureen Stapleton - Reds
Best Foreign Language Film
Mephisto, directed by Istvan Szabo, Hungary Golden Globe Awards
Drama:
Best Picture
On Golden Pond
Best Actor
Henry Fonda - On Golden Pond
Best Actress
Meryl Streep - The French Lieutenant's Woman
Musical or comedy:
Best Picture
Arthur
Best Actor
Dudley Moore - Arthur
Best Actress
Bernadette Peters - Pennies from Heaven
Other
Best Director
Warren Beatty - Reds
Best Foreign Film
Chariots of Fire, United Kingdom
Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):
Man of Iron (Człowiek z żelaza), directed by Andrzej Wajda, Poland
Golden Lion (Venice Film Festival):
Marianne and Juliane (Die Bleierne Zeit), directed by Margarethe von Trotta, W. Germany
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):
Faster, Faster (Deprisa, deprisa / Vivre vite), directed by Carlos Saura, Spain / France
Films released in 1981
- Absence of Malice, directed by Sydney Pollack, starring Paul Newman, Sally Field and Melinda Dillon
- American Pop
- An American Werewolf in London, directed by John Landis, starring David Naughton, Griffin Dunne and Jenny Agutter
- Amy
- Arthur, starring Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli and John Gielgud
- Berlin Tunnel 21, starring Richard Thomas and Horst Buchholz
- Blow Out, directed by Brian De Palma, starring John Travolta, Nancy Allen and John Lithgow
- The Boat Is Full
- Body Heat
- Bustin' Loose
- The Cannonball Run
- Clash of the Titans, starring Harry Hamlin, Laurence Olivier and Maggie Smith
- Condorman
- Come on, Granpa's!
- Chariots of Fire, directed by Hugh Hudson, starring Ben Cross
- Das Boot (1982 US release)
- Dead & Buried
- Deadly Blessing starring Sharon Stone
- Deprisa, Deprisa, Golden Bear winner
- The Devil and Max Devlin
- Dragonslayer
- Endless Love, directed by Franco Zeffirelli, starring Brooke Shields
- Escape from New York, starring Kurt Russell
- Excalibur
- The Evil Dead
- Eyewitness
- The Fan
- For Your Eyes Only
- Fort Apache the Bronx
- The Four Seasons, starring Alan Alda and Carol Burnett
- The Fox and the Hound
- The French Lieutenant's Woman, starring Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons
- Friday the 13th Part 2
- Full Moon High
- Gallipoli, directed by Peter Weir, starring Mel Gibson
- Gangster Wars
- The German Sisters, Golden Lion winner
- The Great Muppet Caper
- Halloween II, starring Jamie Lee Curtis
- The Hand, starring Michael Caine, directed by Oliver Stone
- Happy Birthday to Me
- Hardly Working, starring Jerry Lewis
- Heavy Metal
- The Howling, directed by Joe Dante, starring Dee Wallace Stone
- Inseminoid
- The Killing Of Angel Street
- The Land of Hunger
- The Last Chase
- The Legend of the Lone Ranger
- Lola, a German film
- Looker
- Mad Max 2 , starring Mel Gibson
- Man of Iron, Palme d'Or winner
- Mephisto
- Modern Romance
- Mommie Dearest, starring Faye Dunaway, Diana Scarwid and Steve Forrest
- My Bloody Valentine
- My Dinner with Andre
- Neighbors
- Nice Dreams
- Night Crossing
- Nighthawks
- Nobody's Perfekt
- , starring Sam Neill, Rossano Brazzi
- On Golden Pond, starring Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, and Jane Fonda
- Only When I Laugh, starring Marsha Mason, Kristy McNichol, James Coco and Joan Hackett
- Outland
- Pacific Banana
- Pennies From Heaven, starring Steve Martin, based on the 1978 BBC Television serial by Dennis Potter.
- Pixote
- Prince of the City, directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Treat Williams
- The Private Eyes
- Quest for Fire also called La Guerre du feu
- Raggedy Man
- Ragtime, directed by Milos Forman, starring James Cagney, Howard E. Rollins, Jr. and Elizabeth McGovern
- Raiders of the Lost Ark, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Harrison Ford and Karen Allen
- Reds, starring Warren Beatty, Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson and Maureen Stapleton
- Rich And Famous
- Roadgames
- Saturday the 14th
- Sogni d'oro
- Southern Comfort
- Strange Behavior
- Stripes, starring Bill Murray
- Superman II
- Sweet & Sour Cops
- The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie
- The Tale of Today, Tomorrow, and the Day After
- Taps starring George C. Scott and Timothy Hutton
- Tarzan, the Ape Man
- Taxi zum Klo
- They All Laughed
- They Don't Wear Black Tie
- Thief
- This is Elvis
- Time Bandits
- True Confessions
- Utilities, directed by Harvey Hart, starring Robert Hays, Brooke Adams and John Marley
- Will
- Wolfen, starring Albert Finney, Diane Venora and Gregory Hines
- Women We Salute You!
- Zoot Suit, starring Edward James Olmos
Births
Deaths
- January 1 - Beulah Bondi, actress
- January 10 - Richard Boone, actor
- January 16 - Bernard Lee, actor
- February 1 - Wanda Hendrix, actress
- July 27 - William Wyler, director
- August 1 - Paddy Chayefsky, screenwriter
- August 4 - Melvyn Douglas, actor
- August 18 - Anita Loos, writer
- September 27 - Robert Montgomery, actor
- October 24 - Edith Head, costume designer
- November 12 - William Holden, actor
- November 27 - Lotte Lenya, actress
- November 29 - Natalie Wood, actress
- December 28 - Allan Dwan, pioneer film director
