8. Airplane (1980)
Airplane is unchallenged as the funniest comedy movie of all time. The jokes come at you at such a rapid pace it's impossible not to miss one, which makes it one of the few comedies you can come back to over and over again and never be bored. It's been over thirty years since Airplane was released and countless imitators have appeared, but nobody has ever come close let alone equalled the classic. It's the perfect mixture of satire, parody, surrealism, absurdity, puns, slapstick and sight gags, never relenting for its streamlined running time to make sure the jokes had the maximum impact. The film has influenced everybody from the Farrelly brothers of There's Something About Mary fame to Seth Macfarlane and many of its jokes have been reworked, plagiarised and parodied by numerous movies and tv shows since. Everybody has quoted Airplane at some point - sometimes inadvertently - as many of its lines have entered the popular lexicon and it goes without saying that this is the greatest and most important comedy movie of all time.
7. Blade Runner (1982)
Ridley Scott's complex masterpiece created the features that became part of the dystopian cliche. The permanent downfall of rain, neon lights and overpowering architecture have all become a mainstay in futuristic movie worlds. The look of Blade Runner owes much to Fritz Lang's Metropolis, but Blade Runner and its extraordinary sets took it to a different level and it became an important example of neo-noir. Its production design is some of the greatest in any film as Scott created this mesmerising new world right from Philip K. Dick's novel. The film may have bombed at the box-office back in 1982, but subsequent reassessments have taken the film to a mythological level few films reside on. Grumpy old Harrison Ford infamously hates the movie and did not get on well with Ridley Scott, but if it wasn't for Ford's comments you wouldn't have guessed it as he gives a great performance making us question what it is to be human. Like the previously mentioned Star Wars and 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner changed the sci-fi genre. It was more grown up and deeper than George Lucas' franchise and more accessible than Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece - it was in many ways a hybrid of the two. A cross between exciting thrills and existential philosophical questions. Such is the ingenuity of Scott's masterpiece, dystopian Los Angeles is still as fresh today as it was in 1982.
6. Do The Right Thing (1989)
Spike Lee's infamous joint is a visceral gathering of violence, race relations, humour, a great soundtrack and intense energy. The film comes from Lee's heart, it is a passionate exploration of race in a diverse society, though always dignified and intelligent, asking questions everybody else is too scared to ask. With the assistance of some great Public Enemy tunes, Lee powers home his stylish masterpiece towards its inevitably explosive and controversial finale. Do the Right Thing evolved black cinema in its biggest way since Mario Van Peebles directed Sweet Sweetback and the way the movie spoke to the audience makes it a defining movie for the generation. Lee creates no false pretences of a harmonious ending, which would have been the solution 99% of the time and the blunt realism of the film allows the audiences to switch their allegiances numerous times and debate the ending. The film may not sit right with certain sections of the audience, but that proves the film is as effective as it intended to be and Spike's study of racism is honest, passionate and thoughtful. For a filmmaker as brilliant as Lee, it is a testament to this film that it remains his finest joint.