Harrison Ford on the set of the 1980s action movie 'Blade Runner.'
Movies

Best '80s thriller movies

Written by:
November 4, 2022
Sunset Boulevard // Corbis via Getty Images

Best '80s thriller movies

Stacker compiled a list of the best '80s thriller movies of all time based on our own Stacker score, a weighted index split evenly between IMDb user rating and Metascore. To qualify, the film had to have thriller as one of its genres on IMDb, have a Metascore, and have at least 5,000 IMDb user votes. Ties were broken by votes.

 

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#50. Southern Comfort (1981)

- Director: Walter Hill
- Stacker score: 83.7
- IMDb user rating: 7.1
- Metascore: 63
- Runtime: 106 minutes

#49. Silkwood (1983)

- Director: Mike Nichols
- Stacker score: 83.8
- IMDb user rating: 7.1
- Metascore: 64
- Runtime: 131 minutes

#48. The Hit (1984)

- Director: Stephen Frears
- Stacker score: 83.9
- IMDb user rating: 7.0
- Metascore: 75
- Runtime: 98 minutes

#47. They Live (1988)

- Director: John Carpenter
- Stacker score: 83.9
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 55
- Runtime: 94 minutes

#46. The Stunt Man (1980)

- Director: Richard Rush
- Stacker score: 84.1
- IMDb user rating: 7.0
- Metascore: 77
- Runtime: 131 minutes

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#45. Gloria (1980)

- Director: John Cassavetes
- Stacker score: 84.2
- IMDb user rating: 7.1
- Metascore: 68
- Runtime: 123 minutes

#44. Police Story 2 (1988)

- Director: Jackie Chan
- Stacker score: 84.2
- IMDb user rating: 7.1
- Metascore: 68
- Runtime: 101 minutes

#43. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)

- Director: John McNaughton
- Stacker score: 84.4
- IMDb user rating: 7.0
- Metascore: 80
- Runtime: 83 minutes

#42. Videodrome (1983)

- Director: David Cronenberg
- Stacker score: 84.4
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 60
- Runtime: 87 minutes

#41. Angel Heart (1987)

- Director: Alan Parker
- Stacker score: 84.5
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 61
- Runtime: 113 minutes

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#40. Tenebrae (1982)

- Director: Dario Argento
- Stacker score: 84.7
- IMDb user rating: 7.0
- Metascore: 83
- Runtime: 101 minutes

#39. Dressed to Kill (1980)

- Director: Brian De Palma
- Stacker score: 84.8
- IMDb user rating: 7.1
- Metascore: 74
- Runtime: 104 minutes

#38. Talk Radio (1988)

- Director: Oliver Stone
- Stacker score: 85.1
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 66
- Runtime: 110 minutes

#37. Runaway Train (1985)

- Director: Andrey Konchalovskiy
- Stacker score: 85.2
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 67
- Runtime: 111 minutes

#36. No Way Out (1987)

- Director: Roger Donaldson
- Stacker score: 85.2
- IMDb user rating: 7.1
- Metascore: 77
- Runtime: 114 minutes

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#35. WarGames (1983)

- Director: John Badham
- Stacker score: 85.2
- IMDb user rating: 7.1
- Metascore: 77
- Runtime: 114 minutes

#34. The Dead Zone (1983)

- Director: David Cronenberg
- Stacker score: 85.4
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 69
- Runtime: 103 minutes

#33. Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

- Director: Richard Donner
- Stacker score: 85.5
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 70
- Runtime: 114 minutes

#32. Manhunter (1986)

- Director: Michael Mann
- Stacker score: 86.0
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 75
- Runtime: 120 minutes

#31. Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

- Director: Martin Brest
- Stacker score: 86.1
- IMDb user rating: 7.3
- Metascore: 66
- Runtime: 105 minutes

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#30. House of Games (1987)

- Director: David Mamet
- Stacker score: 86.4
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 78
- Runtime: 102 minutes

#29. Dead Ringers (1988)

- Director: David Cronenberg
- Stacker score: 87.2
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Metascore: 86
- Runtime: 116 minutes

#28. Salvador (1986)

- Director: Oliver Stone
- Stacker score: 87.6
- IMDb user rating: 7.4
- Metascore: 69
- Runtime: 122 minutes

#27. Poltergeist (1982)

- Director: Tobe Hooper
- Stacker score: 87.6
- IMDb user rating: 7.3
- Metascore: 79
- Runtime: 114 minutes

#26. To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)

- Director: William Friedkin
- Stacker score: 87.8
- IMDb user rating: 7.3
- Metascore: 81
- Runtime: 116 minutes

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#25. The Abyss (1989)

- Director: James Cameron
- Stacker score: 87.9
- IMDb user rating: 7.5
- Metascore: 62
- Runtime: 140 minutes

#24. Witness (1985)

- Director: Peter Weir
- Stacker score: 88.3
- IMDb user rating: 7.4
- Metascore: 76
- Runtime: 112 minutes

#23. Body Heat (1981)

- Director: Lawrence Kasdan
- Stacker score: 88.4
- IMDb user rating: 7.4
- Metascore: 77
- Runtime: 113 minutes

#22. A Better Tomorrow (1986)

- Director: John Woo
- Stacker score: 88.5
- IMDb user rating: 7.4
- Metascore: 78
- Runtime: 95 minutes

#21. Thief (1981)

- Director: Michael Mann
- Stacker score: 88.5
- IMDb user rating: 7.4
- Metascore: 78
- Runtime: 123 minutes

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#20. The Name of the Rose (1986)

- Director: Jean-Jacques Annaud
- Stacker score: 89.2
- IMDb user rating: 7.7
- Metascore: 54
- Runtime: 130 minutes

#19. Blow Out (1981)

- Director: Brian De Palma
- Stacker score: 89.4
- IMDb user rating: 7.4
- Metascore: 86
- Runtime: 108 minutes

#18. Police Story (1985)

- Director: Jackie Chan
- Stacker score: 89.6
- IMDb user rating: 7.5
- Metascore: 78
- Runtime: 100 minutes

#17. Midnight Run (1988)

- Director: Martin Brest
- Stacker score: 89.6
- IMDb user rating: 7.5
- Metascore: 78
- Runtime: 126 minutes

#16. Lethal Weapon (1987)

- Director: Richard Donner
- Stacker score: 89.6
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Metascore: 68
- Runtime: 109 minutes

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#15. RoboCop (1987)

- Director: Paul Verhoeven
- Stacker score: 89.8
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Metascore: 70
- Runtime: 102 minutes

#14. First Blood (1982)

- Director: Ted Kotcheff
- Stacker score: 89.9
- IMDb user rating: 7.7
- Metascore: 61
- Runtime: 93 minutes

#13. The Road Warrior (1981)

- Director: George Miller
- Stacker score: 90.6
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Metascore: 77
- Runtime: 96 minutes

#12. Blood Simple (1984)

- Director: Joel Coen
- Stacker score: 91.2
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Metascore: 83
- Runtime: 99 minutes

#11. Mississippi Burning (1988)

- Director: Alan Parker
- Stacker score: 91.5
- IMDb user rating: 7.8
- Metascore: 65
- Runtime: 128 minutes

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#10. Blue Velvet (1986)

- Director: David Lynch
- Stacker score: 91.6
- IMDb user rating: 7.7
- Metascore: 76
- Runtime: 120 minutes

#9. Missing (1982)

- Director: Costa-Gavras
- Stacker score: 91.8
- IMDb user rating: 7.7
- Metascore: 78
- Runtime: 122 minutes

#8. After Hours (I) (1985)

- Director: Martin Scorsese
- Stacker score: 92.0
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Metascore: 90
- Runtime: 97 minutes

#7. The King of Comedy (1982)

- Director: Martin Scorsese
- Stacker score: 92.3
- IMDb user rating: 7.8
- Metascore: 73
- Runtime: 109 minutes

#6. The Killer (1989)

- Director: John Woo
- Stacker score: 93.3
- IMDb user rating: 7.8
- Metascore: 82
- Runtime: 111 minutes

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#5. Akira (1988)

- Director: Katsuhiro Ôtomo
- Stacker score: 93.8
- IMDb user rating: 8.0
- Metascore: 67
- Runtime: 124 minutes

#4. The Untouchables (1987)

- Director: Brian De Palma
- Stacker score: 94.0
- IMDb user rating: 7.9
- Metascore: 79
- Runtime: 119 minutes

#3. Die Hard (1988)

- Director: John McTiernan
- Stacker score: 96.5
- IMDb user rating: 8.2
- Metascore: 72
- Runtime: 132 minutes

#2. Blade Runner (1982)

- Director: Ridley Scott
- Stacker score: 96.8
- IMDb user rating: 8.1
- Metascore: 84
- Runtime: 117 minutes

#1. Aliens (1986)

- Director: James Cameron
- Stacker score: 100.0
- IMDb user rating: 8.4
- Metascore: 84
- Runtime: 137 minutes

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