The ’70s and ’80s were an experimental time for movies. Sci-fi and horror reached new heights, with some of history’s most successful directors cutting their teeth on genre blockbusters before achieving awards glory in subsequent decades. But while old IP continues to inspire a plethora of remakes and reboots, some American classics don’t totally hold up.
Aggressive sexual content disguised as comedy — often revolving around male characters refusing to take “no” for an answer — hits differently in a Hollywood that’s experienced the Me Too movement. What once seemed funny comes across as creepy, and directors handwaving these characters’ misbehavior can leave contemporary audiences questioning the artists’ motives.
Even before the phrase was known to mainstream audiences, rape culture was a frequent topic of discussion for ’80s filmmakers. Many films explored the role that drugs and alcohol sometimes have in the seduction process, and the blurred ethical lines that can emerge from socializing in uninhibited settings. Often played off as raunchy humor, the idea of “what she doesn’t know won’t hurt her” was a widely accepted comedic trope at the time.
The thought of a defenseless woman being taken advantage of is hardly a laughing matter for today’s audiences. And yet, despite the modern age of cancel culture, some of cinema’s most beloved, successful, and revered American classics feature artifacts from that bygone era. From a young age, generations of moviegoers are exposed to subliminal messages suggesting that consent isn’t a necessary prerequisite for dating, which only perpetuates that behavior in real life.
Movies from that time period often placed responsibility and blame on women, and assault was portrayed as a predictable consequence of drinking and partying too hard. Although filmmakers are now more conscious of the sexist taboos and contemporary cultural boundaries, numerous American classics normalized sexual harassment and even assault.
Comedy and sexuality are not perceived the same way they were 40 years ago, and that’s a good thing. And questionable sexual messaging doesn’t have to negate the good aspects of legendary movies, which is also a good thing. But rewatching these titles with a contemporary perspective allows us to observe the way our society has evolved while exploring the role that cinema might have played in establishing old social norms.
Keep reading for our list of ten films worth reevaluation for their problematic depictions of sex and dating.
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“Animal House” (1978)
Image Credit: Courtesy Everett Collection John Landis’ college classic frequently touched on underage sexuality — and occasionally hinted at sexual abuse. In one particularly lewd scene, Larry “Pinto” Kroger contemplates date raping his freshman girlfriend after she passes out nude in his bed. At a crossroads, Larry’s conscience appears in the form of a devil and an angel on his shoulder. On his right, he’s advised to “fuck her brains out,” while the lighter left side of his soul warns, “You will despise yourself forever.” Using his better judgment, Larry rolls the girl in a shopping cart to her house where he leaves her passed out on the front porch for her father to find her.
“I’m proud of you, Lawrence,” the angel says. “You homo,” the devil responds.
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“Back to the Future” (1985)
Image Credit: ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection A movie initially pitched to Disney before it was picked up by Universal, “Back to the Future” was the highest-grossing film of 1985. Robert Zemeckis’ film was deemed too risqué for the House of Mouse, which was turned off by Marty’s incestual relationship with his teenage mother Lorraine.
In case you don’t know the film, Marty travels back 30 years in time, crossing paths with his parents’ high school versions. Although warry about altering the space-time continuum, Marty makes it his mission to drive his mother into his dad’s arms.
Unfortunately for Marty, that means being as forceful and ungentlemanly as possible on the first date so his father Geroge could come to her rescue. Luckily(?) for Marty, the school bully Biff steps in to assault Lorraine before things get too far. Athough all is well in the end, the lengths Marty goes to protect his family’s future makes viewers wonder how he could still look his mother in the eyes when he returns to 1985.
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“Ghostbusters” (1984)
Image Credit: Courtesy Everett Collection “Ghostbusters” features one of Bill Murray’s most prominent roles as Dr. Peter Venkman, a college professor who early in the film uses his position of power to fake ESP test results that would land him one-on-one time with a student he’s crushing on.
Venkman’s same “coming on strong” style of flirting continues after he takes a liking to Sigourney Weaver’s Dana, a client of the Ghostbusters. After shutting down pickup lines and literally forcing him out of her apartment, Dana eventually agrees to go out with Venkman. When she gets picked up, however, Dana’s been possessed by the demonic entity that haunts her apartment. Thankfully for everyone involved, Venkman happens to have 300 cc’s of Thorazine on him, a powerful sedative that he administers to the possessed woman. Although he goes on to save the day, audiences were left to wonder why he coincidentally had the drugs on him.
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“Grease” (1978)
Image Credit: ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection “Tell me more, tell me more!” Danny Zuko’s greaser friends melodically shout as they sing the backup vocals for John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John’s song “Summer Nights.” The questions that follow come from both the perspective of Sandy and Danny’s friends. The girls want to know if the summer connection was “love at first sight” while the boys want to know if Sandy “put up a fight.” After realizing they attend the same high school, the couple goes to the drive-in where Sandy is groped by her date before he climbs on top of her and smothers her with kisses against her will. Before she storms out of the movie, Danny lets her know not to worry and that “nobody is watching.” Now alone at the drive-in and forced to sit and wonder why she left him, Danny bursts into song, immediately regretting the decision that left him in misery.
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“Porky’s” (1981)
Image Credit: ©20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection Set in 1954, “Porky’s” finds folly in the sexual promiscuity of six hormonal high school boys and the sex-crazed girls they meet in their youth. Coach Lynn “Lassie” Honeywell gets her nickname from the dog-like howls she cries out during sex. In the middle of gym class, Coach Brackett decides to find out for himself if the rumor is true. Leading her to the boys’ locker room, Lynn cannot contain herself as she is turned on by the pheromones of sweaty high school boy clothes. She pounces on Brackett before she howls loudly enough for the packed gym to hear.
“Porky’s” also features a glory hole scene where the boys drill a hole into the girls’ locker room to watch them shower — and one of the boys even puts his penis through the hole before the party is broken up by a coach. Insistent that the offender be caught and brought to justice, a character named Balbricker asks the principal to let her inspect the nude boys to identify the penis with the mole she saw in her locker room.
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“Revenge of the Nerds” (1984)
Image Credit: ©20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection “Revenge of the Nerds” has some questionable scenes that have not aged well, to put it lightly. From hiding cameras in the dorms to spying on girls as they sleep, shower, and change to selling those nude photos at a fundraising booth, “Revenge of the Nerds” objectifies women in just about every sense of the word. Perhaps the most controversial moment in the movie, which has received backlash in recent years, is the “sex under false pretenses” scene where Lewis uses a Halloween costume to disguise himself, tricking Betty into thinking he is her jock boyfriend Stan. After Betty realizes she’s been misled and assaulted she is not upset but instead grateful for the “wonderful” encounter, asking Lewis “Are all nerds as good as you?” to which he confirms and replies “All jocks ever think about is sports. All we ever think about is sex.” Now a parent, the film’s director Jeff Kanew was later taken aback by the scene, reconsidering its humor.
“It’s not excusable,” Kanew said in a 2019 interview with GQ. “If it were my daughter, I probably wouldn’t like it.”
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“Sixteen Candles” (1984)
Image Credit: ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection For many teenage girls in the ’80s “Sixteen Candles” pretty-boy Jake Ryan was a dream guy. Jake boasts about how easy it is for him to get laid, letting his friend Ted know that he has “Caroline passed out in the bed upstairs” and could “violate her 10 different ways if I wanted to.” That isn’t what Jake decides to do, but he instead passes his inebriated girlfriend off to Ted for him to drive her home. In his father’s Rolls-Royce, which he lent to Ted, Jake tells him to “have fun” with her as they pull out of the garage. In 2018, “Sixteen Candles” star Molly Ringwald wrote an essay published in The New Yorker speaking out about the problematic aspects of the movie.
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“Top Gun” (1986)
Image Credit: ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection When “Top Gun” was released, aviator shades, bomber jackets, and Kenny Loggins took over American culture.
But while the dogfights and sunsets were undeniably fun to watch, Tom Cruise’s Maverick throws off more than a few red flags with his flirting style. After serenading Charlie (Kelly McGillis) to The Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” in a packed bar, Maverick doesn’t hesitate to follow the woman he’s just met into the ladies’ restroom. Although they only trade a few lines during this scene, Charlie pops the question “What do you want to do, just drop right down on the tile and go for it?” to which Maverick replies “Actually I had this counter in mind,” through an awkward grin. Maybe his co-pilot Goose was right, Maverick does live his life between his legs.
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“Fast Times at Ridgemont High” (1982)
Image Credit: Courtesy Everett Collection Although this film keeps the unwanted dirty talk and touching to a minimum, “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” features a notable plotline about statutory rape. When a 15-year-old freshman named Stacy befriends a sexually advanced senior, Linda, she’s coached on how to hook up with older guys, even practicing her oral skills in the school cafeteria. When she meets 26-year-old Ron, she knows he’s the perfect candidate to lose her virginity to. Lying and claiming she’s 19, Stacy has sex with Ron in a dingy baseball field dugout referred to as “the point.”
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“The Breakfast Club” (1985)
Image Credit: ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection Another John Hughes classic, “The Breakfast Club” has remained popular for generations despite some questionable content. Throughout the movie, Molly Ringwald’s character Claire is constantly harassed and disrespected by Judd Nelson’s John Bender. Things take a more serious turn when Bender finds himself met with Claire’s open legs as he hides underneath a table, avoiding Vice Principal Vernon. Played off as coughing, Claire muffles a sound, implying that she’s being touched under the table. When Bender comes up, he passes the clearly intentional incident off as an accident.
