Film Flashback February 14, 1986

There were lots of choices of movies to see on Valentine's Day 34 years ago in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The Martin Four has a horror movie, a couple of romances, and an action bromance. 

Freddy was getting his revenge in A Nightmare On Elm Street 2 Freddy's Revenge. I've never been a huge fan of these movies, but Freddy is definitely an icon of horror. The first movie is the best of the bunch, but it's diminishing returns ever after. I do like Scary Terry on Rick and Morty though. 

Out of Africa would win seven Academy Awards with mega stars Robert Redford and Meryl Streep starring in the Sydney Pollack directed blockbuster. It would get Best Picture and Pollack would get Best Director while netting 11 nominations total. I have never seen this melodrama, but I might have to watch it one of these days. 

I did go see Murphy's Romance at the Martin Four when it was running there. It might seem a bit odd for a then single 19 year old to go see a romance movie instead of the horror film or action film playing, but I was a big fan of both James Garner and Sally Field. The trailer and television spots had made the movie look like a good combo of romance and comedy. It was a very entertaining film. Garner got an Academy Award nomination for the film directed by Martin Ritt. 

The other option at Martin Four was a Chuck Norris and Lee Marvin action film The Delta Force. It was a Cannon Film so you know it had a certain level of B movie fun to it. George Kennedy and Shelley Winters are also part of the cast. The trailer is tough to take in this post 9-11 world. Many years have passed, but the level of foreshadowing real events pretty much smacked me in the face. It was the last film of Lee Marvin.

The Cinema Twin has Kevin Bacon in Quicksilver and the Steven Spielberg juggernaut The Color Purple with Whoopi Goldberg, Danny Glover, and Oprah Winfrey which, like Out of Africa, also received 11 Academy Award nominations, but would not win any. The movie would play at the Cinema Twin for quite some time. I have not seen either of these films, but need to get around to watching them someday.

So that's what was playing at the movies in Murfreesboro, Tennessee on February 14, 1986. We'll be heading back fifty years next week to check out an X rated flick with Pink Floyd ties.