Welcome to an exciting year-long project here at The Nerdy. 1984 was an exciting year for films giving us a lot of films that would go on to be beloved favorites and cult classics. Imagine a world where This is Spinal Tap and Repo Man hit theaters on the same day. That is the world of 1984.
We’re going to pick and choose which movies we hit, but right now the list stands at nearly three dozen.
Yes, we’re insane, but 1984 was that great of a year for film.
The articles will come out on the same day the films hit theaters in 1984 so that it is their true 40th anniversaries. All films are also watched again for the purposes of these reviews and are not being done from memory.
This time around, it’s Oct. 12, 1984, and we’re off to see Garbo Talks and Songwriter.
Garbo Talks
Garbo Talks is such an odd film. Nearly every moment of it is predictable, but you still appreciate the premise even if it never goes as nuts as it could.
Gilbert (Ron Silver) is an accountant who is happy to live his life as is for the most part, although his wife, Lisa (Carrie Fisher), wants more. When Gilbert learns his mother, Estelle (Anne Bancroft), is dying, he wants to fulfill her final wish: To meet Greta Garbo. He ends up putting aside other parts of his life to focus on this one goal, to the point he eventually loses Lisa. He succeeds in the end, but at what cost?
The film is cute, but it constantly feels as though it’s holding back. The lack of participation by Garbo is a definite roadblock, but understandable as she was long retired by 1984 and shunned publicity. But when your entire plot is based off of a person, you would think you might do more than have her remain silent other than one line, and never show her from any angle other than behind.
It’s a fine, cute movie, but is wholly unremarkable and utterly forgettable.
Songwriter
If you ever wanted a crash course in the way the music industry handles the rights to songs, then Songwriter is the film for you.
Doc Jenkins (Willie Nelson) has been partnered up with Blackie Buck (Kris Kristofferson) for years, but he’s grown tired of the grind and decides to become a producer. The problem is Doc has a deal with a gangster-style businessman who has the rights to anything he writes, and Doc dearly wants to get out of that deal.
Songwriter is very entertaining, thanks to Nelson and Kristofferson, but there are times when it feels as though it gets a bit too deep into the weeds about all of the ins and outs of how song publishing works. And despite all of those explanations, not everything is super clear about Doc’s deal with the gangster ‘bad guy.’
The film did not perform well at the box office, recouping only 10% of its budget and bringing in only $865,915 dollars. Considering how popular these two were at the time, that is a bit surprising, and the film is definitely better than that number portrays.
Perhaps it was a bit too much of “never ask how the sausage is made” about the music industry, but it was still entertaining.
1984 Movie Reviews will return on Oct. 19 with Best Revenge, Crimes of Passion, Little Drummer Girl, The Razor’s Edge, and Thief of Hearts.
