Movies Similar to 1980: The Unforgettable Day

Empire of Light(2022)

The duty manager of a seaside cinema, who is struggling with her mental health, forms a relationship with a new employee on the south coast of England in the 1980s.

Wall Street(1987)

A young and impatient stockbroker is willing to do anything to get to the top, including trading on illegal inside information taken through a ruthless and greedy corporate raider, whom takes the youth under his wing.

The Squid and the Whale(2005)

Based on the true childhood experiences of Noah Baumbach and his brother, The Squid and the Whale tells the touching story of two young boys dealing with their parents' divorce in Brooklyn in the 1980s.

In America(2003)

A family of Irish immigrants adjusts to life on the mean streets of Hell's Kitchen while also grieving the death of a child.

My Beautiful Laundrette(1985)

A Pakistani Briton renovates a rundown laundrette with his male lover while dealing with drama within his family, the local Pakistani community, and a persistent mob of skinheads.

La Cerisaie(1982)

Mysterious Skin(2005)

A teenage hustler and a young man obsessed with alien abductions cross paths, together discovering a horrible, liberating truth.

Daskale ti didaskes?(1983)

Dimitris Thalassias is a single singing teacher at a senior high school in Athens and undertakes the care of a child abandoned by its mother at the door of the foundling hospital. He does everything required to raise it right, but he sees his life changing unexpectedly, since his fiancée leaves him, and his relations with his students go from bad to worse. While this is happening, the mother shows up to claim her child. In the end, everything is corrected, and a solution is provided through marriage.

This Is England(2007)

A story about a troubled boy growing up in England, set in 1983. He comes across a few skinheads on his way home from school, after a fight. They become his new best friends, even like family. Based on experiences of director Shane Meadows.

The Man Who Loved Yngve(2008)

It’s November 1989 and the world is changing. So is Jarle, who attends Kongsgård High School in Stavanger. He plays the guitar/lead singer in a local punk band, has a great girlfriend, and has the coolest best friend. But it's all about to change when Yngve enters the classroom.

The Apprentice(2024)

A young Donald Trump, eager to make his name as a hungry scion of a wealthy family in 1970s New York, comes under the spell of Roy Cohn, the cutthroat attorney who would help create the Donald Trump we know today. Cohn sees in Trump the perfect protégé—someone with raw ambition, a hunger for success, and a willingness to do whatever it takes to win.

Memories of Murder(2003)

During the late 1980s, two detectives in a South Korean province attempt to solve the nation's first series of rape-and-murder cases.

Pretty in Pink(1986)

Andie is an outcast, hanging out either with her older boss, who owns the record store where she works, or her quirky high school classmate Duckie, who has a crush on her. When one of the rich and popular kids at school, Blane, asks Andie out, it seems too good to be true. As Andie starts falling for Blane, she begins to realize that dating someone from a different social sphere is not easy.

Hunger(2008)

The story of Bobby Sands, the IRA member who led the 1981 hunger strike during The Troubles in which Irish Republican prisoners tried to win political status.

The Curiosity of Chance(2006)

It’s the ‘80s once again, new wave angst and genderbending fashion are all the rage, but new kid at school, Chance Marquis, is trying to find new ways to stand out. Being an odd and somewhat awkward teenager makes him the target of the school bully. To deal with this dilemma, Chance turns to the opposite ends of the high school spectrum for help. On one side is the flamboyant drag queen and at the other, the varsity jock, Levi Sparks with whom Chance develops a unique friendship.

Brooklyn Rules(2007)

Brooklyn, 1985. With the mob world as a backdrop, three life-long friends struggle with questions of love, loss and loyalty.

Lucas(1986)

A brilliant but socially inept 14-year-old experiences heartbreak for the first time when his two best friends – Cappie, an older-brother figure, and Maggie, the new girl with whom he is in love – fall for each other.

Citizen X(1995)

Based on the true story of a Russian serial killer who, over many years, claimed victim to over 50 people. His victims were mostly under the age of 17. In what was then a communists state, the police investigations were hampered by bureaucracy, incompetence and those in power. The story is told from the viewpoint of the detective in charge of the case.

Billy Elliot(2000)

County Durham, England, 1984. The miners' strike has started and the police have started coming up from Bethnal Green, starting a class war with the lower classes suffering. Caught in the middle of the conflict is 11-year old Billy Elliot, who, after leaving his boxing club for the day, stumbles upon a ballet class and finds out that he's naturally talented. He practices with his teacher Mrs. Wilkinson for an upcoming audition in Newcastle-upon Tyne for the royal Ballet school in London.

Bad Education(2004)

An examination on the effect of Franco-era religious schooling and sexual abuse on the lives of two longtime friends.