1979 in Film - Notable Films Released in 1979

Notable Films Released in 1979

U.S.A. unless stated

#

• 10, directed by Blake Edwards, starring Dudley Moore, Julie Andrews, Bo Derek, Robert Webber, Brian Dennehy
• 1941, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Tim Matheson, Nancy Allen, Toshiro Mifune, Warren Oates, Robert Stack

A

• The Actress, the Dollars and the Transylvanians (Artista, dolarii şi ardelenii) - (Romania)
• L'adolescente (The Adolescent), directed by Jeanne Moreau, starring Simone Signoret - (France)
• The Adventure of Sudsakorn, the first and only cel-animated feature film from Thailand
• Agatha, directed by Michael Apted, starring Vanessa Redgrave and Dustin Hoffman - (U.K.)
• Ah! Nomugi Toge (Nomugi Pass) - (Japan)
• Air Crew (Ekipazh) - (U.S.S.R.)
• Alien, directed by Ridley Scott, starring Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, John Hurt, Ian Holm, Harry Dean Stanton, Yaphet Kotto - (U.S.A./U.K.)
• All Quiet on the Western Front, a TV film directed by Delbert Mann, starring Richard Thomas and Ernest Borgnine
• All That Jazz, directed by Bob Fosse, starring Roy Scheider, Ann Reinking, Ben Vereen, John Lithgow, Jessica Lange
• An Almost Perfect Affair, starring Keith Carradine and Monica Vitti
• Americathon, starring John Ritter and Harvey Korman
• The Amityville Horror, directed by Stuart Rosenberg, starring James Brolin, Margot Kidder, Rod Steiger
• …And Justice for All, directed by Norman Jewison, starring Al Pacino, John Forsythe, Jack Warden, Christine Lahti
• Anti-Clock, directed by Jane Arden - (U.K.)
• Apocalypse Now, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, starring Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Martin Sheen, Dennis Hopper, Laurence Fishburne, Frederic Forrest
• The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again, starring Don Knotts and Tim Conway
• Arabian Adventure. starring Christopher Lee and Emma Samms - (U.K.)
• Ashanti, directed by Richard Fleischer, starring Michael Caine and Peter Ustinov
• Autumn Marathon (Osenniy marafon) - (U.S.S.R.)

B

• Baby Snakes, directed by Frank Zappa
• Ball Lightning (Kulový blesk) - (Czechoslovakia)
• Ballad of Tara (Tcherike-ye Tara) - (Iran)
• Bear Island, starring Donald Sutherland, Vanessa Redgrave, Richard Widmark, Barbara Parkins
• Being There, directed by Hal Ashby, starring Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, Melvyn Douglas, Jack Warden
• The Bell Jar, starring Marilyn Hassett, Julie Harris, Anne Jackson
• Best Boy, award-winning documentary
• Beyond the Poseidon Adventure, directed by Irwin Allen, starring Michael Caine, Telly Savalas, Sally Field, Telly Savalas, Karl Malden, Shirley Jones
• Birth of The Beatles, directed by Richard Marquand
• The Bitch, starring Joan Collins - (U.K.)
• The Black Hole, directed by Gary Nelson, starring Maximilian Schell, Anthony Perkins, Ernest Borgnine, Yvette Mimieux
• The Black Stallion, directed by Carroll Ballard, starring Mickey Rooney, Hoyt Axton, Teri Garr, Kelly Reno
• Bloodline, directed by Terence Young, starring Audrey Hepburn, Ben Gazzara, James Mason, Gert Frobe, Beatrice Straight
• Bloody Kids, directed by Stephen Frears - (U.K.)
• Boardwalk, starring Ruth Gordon, Lee Strasberg, Janet Leigh, Ruth Gordon
• Breaking Away, directed by Peter Yates, starring Dennis Christopher, Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern, Jackie Earle Haley, Paul Dooley
• Breakthrough, starring Richard Burton, Robert Mitchum, Rod Steiger, Curd Jurgens
• Les Bronzés font du ski (a.k.a. French Fried Vacation 2), directed by Patrice Leconte - (France)
• The Brood, directed by David Cronenberg, starring Oliver Reed and Samantha Eggar - (Canada)
• Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, starring Gil Gerard and Erin Gray
• Buffet froid, directed by Bertrand Blier, starring Gérard Depardieu, Bernard Blier, Jean Carmet - (France)
• The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie
• Butch and Sundance: The Early Days, starring Tom Berenger and William Katt
• The Butterfly Murders (Die bian), directed by Tsui Hark - (Hong Kong)
• Bye Bye Brazil - (Brazil/France/Argentina)

C

• C.H.O.M.P.S., directed by Don Chaffey, starring Wesley Eure, Valerie Bertinelli, Conrad Bain, Red Buttons
• California Dreaming, starring Glynnis O'Connor, Dennis Christopher, Tanya Roberts
• Caligula, directed by Tinto Brass, written by Gore Vidal, starring Malcolm McDowell, Teresa Ann Savoy, Helen Mirren, Peter O'Toole - (Italy/U.S.A.)
• The Castle of Cagliostro (Rupan sansei: Kariosutoro no shiro), an anime film by Hayao Miyazaki - (Japan)
• The Cat and the Canary, starring Honor Blackman, Carol Lynley, Olivia Hussey - (U.K.)
• The Champ, directed by Franco Zeffirelli, starring Jon Voight, Faye Dunaway, Ricky Schroder, Jack Warden, Arthur Hill
• Chapter Two, starring James Caan, Marsha Mason, Joseph Bologna, Valerie Harper
• The China Syndrome, directed by James Bridges, starring Jack Lemmon, Jane Fonda, Michael Douglas
• Christ Stopped at Eboli (Cristo si è fermato a Eboli), directed by Francesco Rosi, starring Gian Maria Volonté - (Italy/France)
• The Concorde ... Airport '79, starring Alain Delon, Susan Blakely, Robert Wagner, George Kennedy
• Cuba, directed by Richard Lester, starring Sean Connery, Brooke Adams, Chris Sarandon

D

• David - (West Germany) - Golden Bear winner
• Derek and Clive Get the Horn, starring Peter Cook and Dudley Moore - (U.K.)
• Dirty Ho (Lan tou He), starring Gordon Liu - (Hong Kong)
• Don Giovanni, directed by Joseph Losey, starring Ruggero Raimondi, John Macurdy, Kiri Te Kanawa - (Italy/France/U.K./West Germany)
• Dracula, directed by John Badham, starring Frank Langella, Laurence Olivier, Trevor Eve - (U.S.A./U.K.)
• Dreamer, starring Tim Matheson

E

• Eagle's Wing, starring Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston - (U.K.)
• The Electric Horseman, directed by Sydney Pollack, starring Robert Redford, Jane Fonda, Valerie Perrine, John Saxon, Willie Nelson
• Escape from Alcatraz, directed by Don Siegel, starring Clint Eastwood, Patrick McGoohan, Fred Ward
• Escape to Athena, starring Roger Moore, David Niven, Elliott Gould, Stefanie Powers, Claudia Cardinale, Telly Savalas - (U.K.)
• The Europeans, directed by James Ivory, starring Lee Remick, Lisa Eichhorn, Kristin Griffith - (U.K.)

F

• Fast Break, starring Gabe Kaplan and Bernard King
• Felicity, starring Glory Annen - (Australia)
• ffolkes, aka North Sea Hijack, starring Roger Moore, James Mason, Anthony Perkins, Michael Parks - (U.K.)
• The Fifth Musketeer, starring Sylvia Kristel, Ursula Andress, Beau Bridges, Ian McShane, Rex Harrison - (Austria/West Germany)
• Firepower, starring Sophia Loren, James Coburn, O.J. Simpson - (U.K.)
• First Case, Second Case (Qazieh, Shekl-e Avval, Shekl-e Dovom), directed by Abbas Kiarostami - (Iran)
• The First Great Train Robbery, starring Sean Connery, Lesley-Anne Down, Donald Sutherland - (U.K.)
• A Force of One, starring Chuck Norris and Jennifer O'Neill
• French Postcards, starring Miles Chapin, David Marshall Grant, Debra Winger

G

• Gal Young 'Un, directed by Victor Nuñez
• The Genealogy (Jokbo) - (South Korea)
• Going in Style, directed by Martin Brest, starring George Burns, Art Carney, Lee Strasberg
• Gol Maal (Confusion) - (India)
• Goldengirl, starring Susan Anton, James Coburn, Leslie Caron
• Grass Labyrinth (Kusa Meikyū) - (Japan)
• The Great Santini, starring Robert Duvall, Michael O'Keefe, Blythe Danner, Lisa Jane Persky, Stan Shaw
• The Great Riviera Bank Robbery, starring Ian McShane - (U.K.)

H

• Hair, directed by Milos Forman, starring John Savage, Treat Williams, Beverly D'Angelo
• Hanover Street, directed by Peter Hyams, starring Harrison Ford, Lesley-Anne Down, Christopher Plummer - (U.S.A./U.K.)
• Hardcore, directed by Paul Schrader, starring George C. Scott and Peter Boyle
• Heart of the Forest (El corazón del bosque) - (Spain)
• Heartland, directed by Richard Pearce, starring Rip Torn and Conchata Ferrell - Golden Bear winner, Sundance Grand Jury Prize
• Hot Stuff, directed by and starring Dom DeLuise, with Suzanne Pleshette, Ossie Davis, Jerry Reed
• The Human Factor, starring Richard Attenborough, John Gielgud, Derek Jacobi - (U.K.)
• Hurricane, starring Mia Farrow, Jason Robards, Max von Sydow, Trevor Howard
• The Hussy (La drôlesse) - (France)
• The Hypothesis of the Stolen Painting (L'Hypothèse du tableau volé), directed by Raúl Ruiz - (France)

I

• I as in Icarus (I... comme Icare), starring Yves Montand - (France)
• The In-Laws, directed by Arthur Hiller, starring Alan Arkin and Peter Falk

J

• Jack Frost, directed by Rankin/Bass, starring Robert Morse
• Jaguar - (Philippines)
• The Jerk, directed by Carl Reiner, starring Steve Martin and Bernadette Peters
• Jesus, directed by Peter Sykes and John Krisch, starring Brian Deacon - (Australia/U.S.A./U.K.)
• Just You and Me, Kid, starring George Burns and Brooke Shields

K

• Kaala Patthar (Black Stone), starring Shashi Kapoor - (India)
• Kassbach – Ein Porträt (Kassbach - A Portrait) - (Austria)
• The Kids Are Alright, a rockumentary featuring The Who - (U.K.)
• Knockabout, directed by and starring Sammo Hung - (Hong Kong)
• Kramer vs. Kramer, directed by Robert Benton, starring Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep (both won Oscars), Justin Henry, JoBeth Williams, Jane Alexander

L

• Lady Oscar, starring Catriona MacColl and Patsy Kensit - (France/Japan)
• The Lady Vanishes, starring Elliott Gould, Cybill Shepherd, Angela Lansbury
• Last Embrace, directed by Jonathan Demme, starring Roy Scheider and Janet Margolin
• The Last of the Knucklemen - (Australia)
• A Little Romance, directed by George Roy Hill, starring Laurence Olivier, Diane Lane, Sally Kellerman - (France/U.S.A.)
• Little Tragedies (Malenkie tragedii) - (U.S.S.R.)
• Love and Bullets, directed by Stuart Rosenberg, starring Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland, Rod Steiger
• Love at First Bite, starring George Hamilton and Susan Saint James
• Love on the Run (L'amour en fuite), directed by François Truffaut - (France)
• Lovers and Liars (Viaggio con Anita), starring Goldie Hawn and Giancarlo Giannini - (Italy/France)
• La Luna, directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, starring Jill Clayburgh - (Italy)

M

• Mad Max, directed by George Miller, starring Mel Gibson - (Australia)
• The Magician of Lublin, starring Alan Arkin, Louise Fletcher, Valerie Perrine
• Magnificent Butcher (Lin shi rong), starring Sammo Hung - (Hong Kong)
• The Main Event, starring Barbra Streisand and Ryan O'Neal
• Mamá cumple cien años (Mama Turns 100), directed by Carlos Saura, starring Geraldine Chaplin - (Spain)
• Manhattan, directed by and starring Woody Allen, with Diane Keaton, Michael Murphy, Mariel Hemingway
• A Man, a Woman, and a Bank, starring Donald Sutherland and Brooke Adams
• The Marriage of Maria Braun, directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, starring Hanna Schygulla - (West Germany)
• Mattie the Goose-boy (Lúdas Matyi) - (Hungary)
• Maula Jatt - (Pakistan)
• Meatballs, directed by Ivan Reitman, starring Bill Murray - (Canada)
• The Meeting Place Cannot Be Changed (Mesto vstrechi izmenit nelzya) - (U.S.S.R.)
• Meetings with Remarkable Men, Gurdjieff biography directed by Peter Brook - (U.K.)
• Meteor, directed by Ronald Neame, starring Sean Connery, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden, Henry Fonda, Martin Landau, Trevor Howard
• Monty Python's Life of Brian, directed by Terry Jones, starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin - (U.K.)
• Moonraker, directed by Lewis Gilbert, starring Roger Moore (as James Bond), with Lois Chiles, Michael Lonsdale, Richard Kiel - (U.K.)
• More American Graffiti, starring Candy Clark, Ron Howard, Paul LeMat, Charles Martin Smith, Cindy Williams
• Moscow Does Not Believe In Tears - (U.S.S.R.) - Academy Award for Best Foreign-Language Film
• Mr. Mike's Mondo Video, starring Michael O'Donoghue, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray
• The Muppet Movie, made by Jim Henson, with Charles Durning and Dom DeLuise
• Murder by Decree, starring Christopher Plummer (as Sherlock Holmes) and James Mason - (U.K./Canada)
• My Brilliant Career, directed by Gillian Armstrong, starring Judy Davis and Sam Neill - (Australia)

N

• Nightwing, directed by Arthur Hiller, starring Nick Mancuso and Kathryn Harrold
• Noorie, directed by Manmohan Krishna - (India)
• Norma Rae, directed by Martin Ritt, starring Sally Field, Ron Leibman, Beau Bridges
• The North Avenue Irregulars, starring Karen Valentine, Barbara Harris, Susan Clark
• North Dallas Forty, starring Nick Nolte, Mac Davis, G. D. Spradlin, Dayle Haddon, Bo Svenson, John Matuszak
• Nosferatu (Nosferatu: Phantom der Nach), directed by Werner Herzog, starring Klaus Kinski, Isabelle Adjani, Bruno Ganz - (West Germany)

O

• The Odd Angry Shot, starring Bryan Brown - (Australia)
• The Odd Couple (Bo ming chan dao duo ming qiang), starring Sammo Hung - (Hong Kong)
• The Onion Field, directed by Harold Becker, starring James Woods, John Savage, Franklyn Seales, Ted Danson
• Operación Ogro, directed by Gillo Pontecorvo, starring Gian Maria Volonté - (Spain/Italy)
• Over the Edge, directed by Jonathan Kaplan, starring Matt Dillon

P

• The Passage, starring Anthony Quinn, James Mason, Malcolm McDowell, Patricia Neal, Kay Lenz
• A Perfect Couple, directed by Robert Altman, starring Paul Dooley and Marta Heflin
• Peruvazhiyambalam, directed by Padmarajan - (India)
• Les petites fugues (The Little Fugitives) - (Switzerland)
• Phantasm, directed by Don Coscarelli
• The Plank, directed by and starring Eric Sykes, with Arthur Lowe - (U.K.)
• Prince Nezha's Triumph Against Dragon King (Nezha nao hai), an animated film - (China)
• The Prisoner of Zenda, starring Peter Sellers, Lynne Frederick and Lionel Jeffries
• The Prize Fighter, starring Don Knotts and Tim Conway
• Prophecy, directed by John Frankenheimer, starring Talia Shire, Robert Foxworth, Richard Dysart, Armand Assante

Q

• Quadrophenia, directed by Franc Roddam, starring Phil Daniels, Leslie Ash, Ray Winstone, with music by The Who - (U.K.)

R

• Real Life, directed by and starring Albert Brooks, with Charles Grodin
• Richard Pryor: Live in Concert
• Rich Kids, starring Trini Alvarado and John Lithgow
• Rock 'n' Roll High School, produced by Roger Corman, featuring The Ramones
• Rocky II, directed by and starring Sylvester Stallone, with Carl Weathers, Talia Shire, Burgess Meredith, Burt Young
• The Rose, directed by Mark Rydell, starring Bette Midler, Alan Bates, Frederic Forrest
• Running, starring Michael Douglas

S

• Saint Jack, directed by Peter Bogdanovich, starring Ben Gazzara
• Scavenger Hunt, starring Cloris Leachman, Cleavon Little, Vincent Price, Tony Randall
• Scum, starring Ray Winstone - (U.K.)
• A Scream from Silence (Mourir à tue-tête) - (Canada)
• The Seduction of Joe Tynan, starring Alan Alda, Meryl Streep, Melvyn Douglas, Barbara Harris, Rip Torn
• A Sense of Freedom, directed by John Mackenzie - (U.K.)
• Série noire (Black Series), directed by Alain Corneau - (France)
• Siberiade, directed by Andrei Konchalovsky - (U.S.S.R.)
• Sisters, or the Balance of Happiness (Schwestern oder Die Balance des Glücks), directed by Margarethe von Trotta - (West Germany)
• Skatetown, U.S.A., starring Scott Baio, Flip Wilson, Maureen McCormick, Patrick Swayze
• Something Out of Nothing, directed by Nikola Rudarov, starring Asen Kisimov, Stefan Danailov, Aneta Sotirova - (Bulgaria)
• Stalker, directed by Andrei Tarkovsky - (U.S.S.R.)
• Star Trek: The Motion Picture, directed by Robert Wise, starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Persis Khambatta, Stephen Collins
• Starting Over, directed by Alan J. Pakula, starring Burt Reynolds, Jill Clayburgh, Candice Bergen, Charles Durning
• Suhaag (a.k.a. Sign of Marriage), starring Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Rekha - (India)
• The Survivors (Los sobrevivientes) - (Cuba)

T

• Take Down, starring Lorenzo Lamas and Maureen McCormick
• Tale of Tales (Skazka skazok), an animated film - (U.S.S.R.)
• Tarka the Otter, narrated by Peter Ustinov - (U.K.)
• The Tempest, directed by Derek Jarman, starring Toyah Wilcox - (U.K.)
• Tess, directed by Roman Polanski, starring Nastassja Kinski - (France/U.K.)
• That Summer, starring Ray Winstone - (U.K.)
• The Third Generation (Die Dritte Generation), directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, starring Hanna Schygulla - (West Germany)
• Those Wonderful Movie Cranks (Báječní muži s klikou), directed by Jiří Menzel - (Czechoslovakia)
• La Tía Alejandra (Aunt Alejandra) - (Mexico)
• Tim, starring Mel Gibson and Piper Laurie - (Australia)
• Time After Time, directed by Nicholas Meyer, starring Malcolm McDowell, David Warner, Mary Steenburgen
• The Tin Drum (Die Blechtrommel), directed by Volker Schlöndorff, starring David Bennent - (West Germany) - Palme d'Or winner
• To Forget Venice (Dimenticare Venezia), starring Mariangela Melato and Erland Josephson - (Italy)
• Tourist Trap, starring Chuck Connors and Tanya Roberts

U

• Ultraman - (Japan)
• Ultraman: Great Monster Decisive Battle - (Japan)
• Uncle Marin, the Billionaire (Nea Mărin miliardar) - (Romania)

V

• Vengeance Is Mine (fukushū suru wa ware ni ari), directed by Shōhei Imamura, starring Ken Ogata - (Japan)
• The Villain, directed by Hal Needham, starring Kirk Douglas, Ann-Margret, Arnold Schwarzenegger
• The Visitor, starring John Huston, Glenn Ford, Shelley Winters

W

• Wanda Nevada, directed by and starring Peter Fonda, with Brooke Shields
• The Wanderers, starring Ken Wahl and Karen Allen
• The Warriors, directed by Walter Hill, starring Michael Beck, James Remar, David Patrick Kelly, Deborah Van Valkenburgh
• When a Stranger Calls, starring Charles Durning and Carol Kane
• Winter Kills, starring Jeff Bridges, John Huston, Anthony Perkins
• Wise Blood, directed by and starring John Huston, with Brad Dourif - (U.S.A./West Germany)
• Woman Between Wolf and Dog (Femme entre chien et loup) - (Belgium/France)
• Woyzeck, directed by Werner Herzog, starring Klaus Kinski and Eva Mattes - (West Germany)

XYZ

• Yanks, directed by John Schlesinger, starring Richard Gere, Lisa Eichhorn, Vanessa Redgrave - (U.S.A./U.K.)
• Zulu Dawn, starring Peter O'Toole, Burt Lancaster, Simon Ward - (U.S.A./South Africa/Netherlands)