Welcome to an exciting year-long project here at The Nerdy. 1986 was an exciting year for films giving us a lot of films that would go on to be beloved favorites and cult classics. It was also the start to a major shift in cultural and societal norms, and some of those still reverberate to this day.
We’re going to pick and choose which movies we hit, but right now the list stands at nearly four dozen.
Yes, we’re insane, but 1986 was that great of a year for film.
The articles will come out – in most cases – on the same day the films hit theaters in 1986 so that it is their true 40th anniversary. All films are also watched again for the purposes of these reviews and are not being done from memory. In some cases, it truly will be the first time we’ve seen them.
This time around, it’s March 7, 1986, and we’re off to see Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation, Desert Hearts, Highlander, and Nomads.
Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation
Who knew we needed more backstory on the Care Bears and their cousins?
The second theatrical outing for the Care Bears franchise takes us back to when the Care Bears were just cubs and living on a floating ship with the Care Bear Cousins, being cared for by a yellow bear and a purple horse. They were living there to hide from an evil creature known as Dark Heart. Following an attack, it is decided the Care Bears and the Cousins will go to live in separate locations to throw Dark Heart off the trail. Because of their bravery, the two guardians are named True Heart Bear and Noble Heart Horse, and they are charged with raising everyone to prepare them for a future conflict with Dark Heart.
You know what… I didn’t hate this movie. It was well-acted, the animation was well-done, and the story, other than an odd twist involving shape-shifting at the end, kept me generally entertained.
All that being said, I’m not calling this high cinema or anything, but I’ve certainly seen far worse over the course of this project.
Desert Hearts
Sometimes you wish movies could end sooner, and other times you wish they could have at least another 30 minutes of character development.
Vivan Bell (Helen Shaver) heads to a ranch outside of Reno, NV, for six weeks to establish residency in the state so she can divorce her husband. The reasons for the divorce are initially vague but crystallize as the film progresses. While living at the ranch, she meets Cay Rivvers (Patricia Charbonneau), the ‘wild’ stepdaughter of the ranch owner, who seems to be the town’s lothario with women. While Cay has embraced who she is, Vivan is only just accepting it, and then the sparks fly.
It is a well-worn trope in media for lesbian love stories to end in some form of tragedy. Desert Hearts resolves with a happy ending, but it gets there at the cost of the characters never feeling fully developed. You’re never entirely sure what attracts Cay to Vivan other than the novelty of the age difference. And the film definitely could have benefited from understanding more of how Vivan came to the conclusion she is gay.
It’s a milestone in gay cinema, but it is certainly not perfect.
Highlander
Here we are… it’s time to talk immortals.
Connor MacLeod (Christopher Lambert) is an immortal Scotsman born in the 16th century. Following the activation of his ability, he is trained in the ways of the immortals by Juan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez (Sean Connery). All of this is against the backdrop of the Kurgen (Clancy Brown) wanting to kill all of them so he can win The Prize, the ultimate reqard for the last of the immortals.
This is one of those films that very much found a second life in the golden age of the video stores. The film only did $12.8M at the box office, but managed to launch multiple sequels, a successful TV spinoff, and an upcoming remake off of the popularity it found in home entertainment.
Here’s the thing: I love this movie. I’ve loved it from the first time I saw it. But, that being said, on this rewatch I found myself asking way more questions about the premise than I ever had before. Who set the rules? Who grants The Prize and so on.
All of that being said… I couldn’t care less. I would still watch this movie 20 more times without hesitation.
Nomads
I… what?
Jean-Charles Pommier (Pierce Brosnan) is brought to a hospital in a crazed state. As he dies, his memories transfer into one of the doctors treating him, Dr. Eileen Flax (Lesley-Anne Down). From this she learns he was an anthropologist who had started tracking nomadic people that never stopped moving in Los Angeles. And, as tends to happen, they are actually mischievous spirits drawn to trauma.
It’s a tale as old as time.
The film was written and directed by John McTiernan who would go on to direct Predator and Die Hard, but this movie is just a muddled mess. Brosnan, whom I generally enjoy, puts on a horrific French accent the entire movie. The main drive of the plot never really makes sense as to why she got all of his memories. It’s just messy, poorly shot and edited, and was honestly unpleasant to watch.
1986 Movie Reviews will continue on March 14, 2026, with Crossroads and Gung Ho.
