Best Movies of 1983 by Rank
383
1
Philip Kaufman
Sam Shepard, Scott Glenn, Ed Harris
Adventure / Drama
USA
English
524
3
Robert Bresson
Christian Patey, Sylvie Van den Elsen, Vincent Risterucci
Crime / Drama
France / Switzerland
French
532
4
James L. Brooks
Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, Jack Nicholson, Danny DeVito, Jeff Daniels
Romance / Comedy / Drama
USA
English
659
6
Paul Verhoeven
Jeroen Krabbé, Renée Soutendijk
Thriller / Comedy / Drama
Netherlands
Dutch
711
7
Brian De Palma
Al Pacino, Steven Bauer, Michelle Pfeiffer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
Crime / Drama / Thriller / Gangster / Cult
USA
English
806
8
Bill Forsyth
Burt Lancaster, Peter Riegert, Fulton Mackay, Denis Lawson
Comedy / Drama / Cult
UK
English
878
9
Chris Marker
Florence Delay, Arielle Dombasle
Documentary / Experimental
France
French
957
10
Gregory Nava
Zaide Silvia Gutiérrez, David Villalpando, Ernesto Gómez Cruz
Drama / Adventure
USA / UK
Spanish
993
12
Richard Marquand
Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Anthony Daniels
Sci-Fi / Action / Adventure / Fantasy / Family / Cult
USA
English
997
13
Bob Clark
Peter Billingsley, Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin, Ian Petrella
Comedy / Family / Drama
USA / Canada
English
1005
14
Mike Nichols
Meryl Streep, Kurt Russell, Cher, Craig T. Nelson, Diana Scarwid
Thriller / Drama / Biography
USA
English
1021
15
Godfrey Reggio
Documentary / Experimental
USA
English (No Dialogue)
1062
16
David Cronenberg
James Woods, Deborah Harry, Sonja Smits, Peter Dvorsky
Fantasy / Sci-Fi / Horror / Thriller
Canada / USA
English
1176
17
Andrzej Wajda
Gérard Depardieu, Wojciech Pszoniak, Anne Alvaro
Drama / History / Period Film / Biography
France / Poland / West Germany
French
1302
18
Diane Kurys
Miou-Miou, Isabelle Huppert, Guy Marchand, Jean-Pierre Bacri
Drama / Period Film
France
French
1418
19
Francis Ford Coppola
Matt Dillon, Mickey Rourke, Diane Lane, Dennis Hopper, Diana Scarwid
Drama
USA
English
1438
20
Shohei Imamura
Ken Ogata, Sumiko Sakamoto, Aki Takejo, Tonpei Hidari, Seiji Kurasaki
Drama / Period Film
Japan
Japanese
1525
21
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand, Amy Irving, Mandy Patinkin
Comedy / Drama / Musical / Romance
UK / USA / Czechoslovakia
English
1603
22
Lynne Littman
Jane Alexander, William Devane, Rossie Harris, Roxana Zal
Drama / Sci-Fi
USA
English
1616
23
Geoff Murphy
Anzac Wallace, Bruno Lawrence, Tim Elliott, Kelly Johnson, Wi Kuki Kaa
Drama / Adventure / History
New Zealand
English
1641
24
Richard Eyre
Jonathan Pryce, Tim Curry, Rosemary Harris, Frank Finlay, Charlie Dore
Drama
UK
English
1655
25
Paul Brickman
Tom Cruise, Rebecca De Mornay, Joe Pantoliano, Richard Masur
Comedy / Crime
USA
English
1678
26
Andrei Tarkovsky
Oleg Yankovsky, Erland Josephson, Domiziana Giordano
Drama
Italy / France / Soviet Union
Russian
1754
27
Carlos Saura
Antonio Gades, Laura del Sol, Paco de Lucía
Drama / Musical / Romance
Spain
Spanish
1770
28
Woody Allen
Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, John Buckwalter, Patrick Horgan
Comedy / Fantasy
USA
English
1786
29
Lewis Gilbert
Michael Caine, Julie Walters, Michael Williams, Maureen Lipman
Drama / Comedy / Romance
UK
English
2064
30
Roger Spottiswoode
Nick Nolte, Ed Harris, Gene Hackman, Joanna Cassidy, Alma Martínez
Drama / War / Romance
USA
English
2121
31
John Badham
Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, John Wood, Ally Sheedy, Barry Corbin
Sci-Fi / Thriller / Drama / War
USA
English
2162
32
Alain Tanner
Bruno Ganz, Teresa Madruga, Julia Vonderlinn, José de Carvalho
Drama
Switzerland / Portugal / UK
French
2196
33
Andrzej Wajda
Hanna Schygulla, Piotr Lysak, Armin Mueller-Stahl
Drama / War / Romance
West Germany / France
Polish
2197
34
James Ivory
Greta Scacchi, Christopher Cazenove, Julian Glover, Susan Fleetwood
Drama / Period Film
UK
English
2221
35
John Landis
Dan Aykroyd, Eddie Murphy, Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche
Comedy
USA
English
2230
36
Euzhan Palcy
Garry Cadenat, Darling Légitimus, Douta Seck
Drama
France
French
2266
37
John Glen
Roger Moore, Maud Adams, Louis Jourdan, Kristina Wayborn, Kabir Bedi
Action / Adventure / Thriller / Spy / Family / Cult
UK / USA
English
2284
38
Carl Schultz
Wendy Hughes, Robyn Nevin, Nicholas Gledhill, John Hargreaves
Drama
Australia
English
2286
39
Robert Ellis Miller
Tom Conti, Kelly McGillis, Roberts Blossom, Cynthia Harris
Comedy / Drama / Romance
USA
English
2311
40
Luc Besson
Pierre Jolivet, Jean Bouise, Fritz Wepper, Jean Reno, Christiane Krüger
Sci-Fi
France
French (No Dialogue)
2314
41
Sidney Lumet
Timothy Hutton, Mandy Patinkin, Lindsay Crouse, Edward Asner
Drama / Spy
UK / USA
English
2318
42
Nikita Mikhalkov
Irina Kupchenko, Mikhail Ulyanov
Drama
Soviet Union
Russian
2332
43
Nagisa Oshima
David Bowie, Tom Conti, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Takeshi Kitano, Jack Thompson
Drama / War
UK / Japan
English
2333
44
Maurice Pialat
Sandrine Bonnaire, Maurice Pialat, Dominique Besnehard, Evelyne Ker
Drama
France
French
2360
45
Francis Ford Coppola
C. Thomas Howell, Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe
Crime / Drama
USA
English
2379
46
Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam
Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones
Comedy / Musical / Fantasy / Cult
UK
English
2382
47
David Hugh Jones
Jeremy Irons, Ben Kingsley, Patricia Hodge, Avril Elgar
Drama
UK
English
2429
48
Bob Fosse
Mariel Hemingway, Eric Roberts, Cliff Robertson, Carroll Baker, Roger Rees
Biography / Drama
USA
English
2434
49
Adrian Lyne
Jennifer Beals, Michael Nouri, Lilia Skala, Sunny Johnson
Drama / Romance / Musical / Cult
USA
English
2449
50
David Cronenberg
Christopher Walken, Brooke Adams, Tom Skerritt, Herbert Lom, Anthony Zerbe
Drama / Fantasy / Horror / Thriller / Sci-Fi / Cult
USA
English
2449
50
Michael Apted
William Hurt, Lee Marvin, Brian Dennehy, Ian Bannen, Joanna Pacula
Drama / Thriller / Crime / Mystery / Detective
USA
English
2449
50
Irvin Kershner
Sean Connery, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Max von Sydow, Barbara Carrera, Kim Basinger
Action / Adventure / Thriller / Spy / Family / Cult
UK / USA / West Germany
English
2456
51
John Sayles
Rosanna Arquette, Vincent Spano, Joanna Merlin, Jack Davidson, Nick Ferrari
Comedy / Drama / Romance / Period Film
USA
English
2456
51
Alan Johnson
Mel Brooks, Anne Bancroft, Tim Matheson, Charles Durning, Christopher Lloyd
Drama / War / Comedy / Spy
USA
English
2507
52
Yoshimitsu Morita
Yusaku Matsuda, Juzo Itami, Saori Yuki, Ichirota Miyagawa
Comedy / Drama
Japan
Japanese
2525
53
Bruce Gowers
Eddie Murphy, James Argiro, Gus Loundermon, Brian O'Neal, Kevin O'Neal
Documentary / Comedy
USA
English
2525
53
Michael Mann
Scott Glenn, Alberta Watson, Jürgen Prochnow, Robert Prosky, Gabriel Byrne
Drama / Horror / Mystery / Thriller / War / Adventure
UK
English
2525
53
Hark Tsui
Biao Yuen, Hoi Mang, Adam Cheng, Moon Lee, Brigitte Lin, Damian Lau
Horror / Adventure / Action / Fantasy
Hong Kong
Cantonese
2591
54
Noel Buckner, Mary Dore, Sam Sills
Ruth Davidow, Studs Terkel, Bill McCarthy, Ed Balchowsky, Steve Nelson
Documentary / History / War
USA
English
2591
54
Alain Resnais
Vittorio Gassman, Ruggero Raimondi, Geraldine Chaplin, Fanny Ardant
Drama / Comedy / Musical / Period Film
France
French
2591
54
John Korty, Charles Swenson, Jennifer Gallagher
Lorenzo Music, Marshall Efron, James Cranna, Julie Payne, Hamilton Camp
Animation / Fantasy
USA
English
2606
55
Ettore Scola
Etienne Guichard, Régis Bouquet, Francesco de Rosa
Musical / Comedy
Italy / France / Algeria
English
2606
55
Imre Gyöngyössy, Barna Kabay
Hédi Temessy, Ferenc Zenthe, Gábor Fehér
Drama / War
Hungary
Hungarian
2606
55
Pyotr Todorovsky
Nikolai Burlyayev, Natalya Andrejchenko, Inna Churikova
Drama / Romance / War
Soviet Union
Russian
2618
56
Kevin Brownlow, David Gill
Charles Chaplin, James Mason, Edna Purviance, Albert Austin
Documentary / Biography / Comedy / Family
UK
English (Silent Scenes)
2628
57
John Sayles
Linda Griffiths, Jane Hallaren, Jon DeVries, Jo Henderson, Jessica MacDonald
Drama
USA
English
2628
57
Franc Roddam
David Keith, Robert Prosky, G.D. Spradlin, Barbara Babcock, Michael Biehn
Thriller
USA
English
2628
57
Stan Dragoti
Michael Keaton, Teri Garr, Frederick Koehler, Taliesin Jaffe, Courtney White
Comedy / Drama
USA
English
2628
57
Harold Ramis
Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, Anthony Michael Hall
Adventure / Comedy / Romance
USA
English
2628
57
Peter Hyams
Michael Douglas, Hal Holbrook, Yaphet Kotto, Sharon Gless, James Sikking
Action / Drama / Crime / Thriller
USA
English
2628
57
Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Pat Hingle, Bradford Dillman, Paul Drake
Action / Crime / Thriller / Detective / Gangster
USA
English
2628
57
Joe Dante, John Landis, George Miller, Steven Spielberg
Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Vic Morrow, Doug McGrath, Charles Hallahan
Fantasy / Horror / Sci-Fi / Thriller
USA
English
2628
57
Martha Coolidge
Nicolas Cage, Deborah Foreman, Elizabeth Daily, Michael Bowen, Cameron Dye
Comedy / Romance
USA
English
2635
58
Matthew Chapman
Peter Coyote, Victoria Tennant, Blaine Novak, Dan Shor, Richard Romanus
Drama / Gangster / Romance
USA
English
2645
59
Martin Ritt
Mary Steenburgen, Rip Torn, Peter Coyote, Dana Hill
Drama / Biography
USA
English
2646
60
François Truffaut
Fanny Ardant, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Jean-Pierre Kalfon, Philippe Laudenbach
Comedy / Crime / Mystery / Thriller / Romance / Gangster
France
French
2657
61
Carl Reiner
Steve Martin, Kathleen Turner, David Warner, Paul Benedict, Richard Brestoff
Comedy / Romance / Sci-Fi / Horror
USA
English
2661
62
John Landis
Michael Jackson, Ola Ray, Vincent Price
Horror / Romance / Short / Thriller / Musical
USA
English
2682
63
Jean-Luc Godard
Maruschka Detmers, Jacques Bonnaffé, Myriem Roussel
Drama / Crime / Romance / Experimental
France
French
2683
64
Lizzie Borden
Honey, Adele Bertei, Jean Satterfield, Florynce Kennedy, Becky Johnston, Pat Murphy
Comedy / Drama / Sci-Fi / Mystery / Thriller
USA
English
2688
65
Georges Rouquier
Henri Rouquier, Maria Signorini, Roger Malet, Marius Benaben, André Benaben
Documentary / Drama
France
French
2690
66
Edward Bennett
Julie Covington, Ian Charleson, John Phillips, Susan Engel, Philip Locke
Drama / History / War
UK
English
2694
67
Robin Davis
Nathalie Baye, Francis Huster, Richard Bohringer, Madeleine Robinson
Drama
France
French
2697
68
Héctor Olivera
Federico Luppi, Víctor Laplace, Héctor Bidonde, Rodolfo Ranni
Comedy / Drama / War
Argentina
Spanish
2697
68
Erden Kiral
Genco Erkal, Erkan Yücel, Serif Sezer, Rana Cabbar, Erol Demiröz
Drama
Turkey / West Germany
Turkish
2712
69
Robert Duvall
Angelo Evans, Steve Tsigonoff, Michael Evans, Ruthie Evans, Tony Evans
Drama / Fantasy
USA
English
2712
69
Steve Carver
Chuck Norris, David Carradine, Barbara Carrera, Leon Isaac Kennedy
Action / Drama / Thriller
USA
English
2712
69
Jack Clayton
Jason Robards, Jonathan Pryce, Diane Ladd, Royal Dano, Vidal Peterson
Horror / Fantasy / Mystery / Thriller
USA
English
2719
70
Harrison Engle
Theodore Roosevelt, George C. Scott, Bob Boyd, John Gable
Documentary / Drama / Biography / History
USA
English
2719
70
Burny Mattinson
Alan Young, Wayne Allwine, Hal Smith, Will Ryan, Eddie Carroll, Patricia Parris
Family / Fantasy / Short / Animation
USA
English
2719
70
Carroll Ballard
Charles Martin Smith, Brian Dennehy, Zachary Ittimangnaq, Samson Jorah
Adventure / Drama
USA
English
2747
71
Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
Paul Melchert, Yves Stening, Sean Callinan, David Benton
Short / Drama / Experimental / Comedy / Fantasy
Australia
English
2751
72
Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis, Herb Edelman, Zane Buzby, Foster Brooks
Comedy
USA
English
2751
72
Sally Potter
Julie Christie, David Gale, Colette Laffont, Thom Osborn
Drama
UK
English
2751
72
Joe Dante
Kathleen Quinlan, Jeremy Licht, Nancy Cartwright, Bill Mumy
Horror / Fantasy / Sci-Fi / Thriller
USA
English
2751
72
Chantal Akerman
Aurore Clément, Magali Noël, Lio, Helen Broderick
Comedy / Musical
Belgium / France
French
2751
72
Charles Burnett
Everett Silas, Jessie Holmes, Gaye Shannon-Burnett, Ronnie Bell
Drama
USA
English
2753
73
Bette Gordon
Sandy McLeod, Will Patton, Richard M. Davidson, Luis Guzmán, Nan Goldin
Drama
USA / West Germany / UK
English
2761
75
Trinh T. Minh-ha
Documentary / Short
USA / Senegal
English
2771
76
David Perlov
Klaus Kinski, David Perlov, Mira Perlov, Neomi Perlov, Yael Perlov
Documentary
Israel
Hebrew
2776
77
Federico Fellini
Freddie Jones, Barbara Jefford, Victor Poletti, Peter Cellier
Comedy / War / Period Film
France / Italy
Italian
2776
77
Raoul Ruiz
Jean-Bernard Guillard, Philippe Deplanche, Jean Badin
Drama / Fantasy / Experimental / Adventure
France
French
NR
-
Blake Edwards
Ted Wass, David Niven, Robert Wagner, Herbert Lom, Capucine, Joanna Lumley
Comedy / Crime / Detective / Family
UK / USA
English
NR
-
Eric Rohmer
Amanda Langlet, Arielle Dombasle, Pascal Greggory, Féodor Atkine
Comedy / Drama / Romance
France
French
NR
-
Richard Lester
Christopher Reeve, Richard Pryor, Jackie Cooper, Marc McClure, Annette O'Toole
Action / Adventure / Comedy / Fantasy / Sci-Fi / Comic
UK
English
