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The Pendragon Society

Filmsite.org’s Greatest Films of 1978

In our recent society discussions we were talking about 1978 being a great year for American cinema, particularly given the releases of masterpieces like Days of Heaven and The Deer Hunter. It was also the year that saw the arrival of two of the most seminal and influential films of the horror genre, John Carpenter’s scary slasher classic, Halloween and George E. Romero’s gruesome zombie picture, Dawn of the Dead. Below is Filmsite’s picks for the best of that year. Interestingly the yearly lists on the site do include foreign language entries despite them not being considered for their greatest films of all-time lists. The films are listed in alphabetical order.

(National Lampoon’s) Animal House (1978), 109 minutes, Director: John Landis

The Buddy Holly Story (1978), 113 minutes, Director: Steve Rash

La Cage aux Folles (1978, Fr./It.) (aka Birds of a Feather), 91 minutes, Director: Edouard Molinaro

Coming Home (1978), 126 minutes, Director: Hal Ashby

Dawn of the Dead (1978, It./US), 126 minutes, Director: George A. Romero

Days of Heaven (1978), 95 minutes, Director: Terrence Malick

The Deer Hunter (1978), 183 minutes, Director: Michael Cimino

Get Out Your Handkerchiefs (1978, Fr./Belg.) (Préparez Vos Mouchoirs), 109 minutes, Director: Bertrand Blier

Grease (1978), 110 minutes, Director: Randal Kleiser

Halloween (1978), 90 minutes, Director: John Carpenter

Heaven Can Wait (1978), 100 minutes, Director: Warren Beatty, Buck Henry

The Last Waltz (1978), 117 minutes, Director: Martin Scorsese

Midnight Express (1978, UK/US), 120 minutes, Director: Alan Parker

Superman The Movie (1978), 143 minutes, Director: Richard Donner

The Tree of Wooden Clogs (1978, It.) (aka L’Albero Degli Zoccoli), 186 minutes, D: Ermanno Olmi

An Unmarried Woman (1978), 124 minutes, D: Paul Mazursky

Up in Smoke (1978), 86 minutes, D: Lou Adler, Tommy Chong

Watership Down (1978, UK), 101 minutes, D: Martin Rosen