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But which of them are actually the best?
But what movies entertained audiences during these disturbing times?
Here are the 32 best movies of the 1970s.
Slap Shot (1977)
File this one under: Whats Paul Newman doing here?
Though marinated in the politics and social dynamics of the mid-70s, Altmans picture remains eerily relevant decades later.
Emblematic of the decades moral decay, The French Connection still hits hard after all these years.
Shouldnt that be the American way?
Enter the Dragon gives only a glimpse of what could have been.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
- Predating Steven Spielbergs own seismic movie E.T.
The Extra-Terrestrial is his 1977 epic Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
It is about a free spirit in a closed system.
I didnt realize until later that many of them were criminally insane.
We had an arsonist working in the art department.
Epitomizing the miasma of an amoral decade is Eastwoods rhetorical question, Do you feel lucky, punk?
Then, he stepped into the ring with Rocky, and hes never been the same ever since.
It predictably spawned a franchise, with Rocky III giving the world Eye of the Tiger.
Chinatown (1974)
One can define Roman Polanskis Chinatown by its final line: Forget it, Jake.
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Francis Ford Coppola nearly lost his marbles making Apocalypse Now.
In this case, being a frightening film about what it means to confront the evils of self-doubt.
Some trivia for you: The movie was comically scheduled for a day-after-Christmas release, December 26.
Its a profession full of closed doors, ignored phone calls, and anonymous cryptic conversations.
