Starting Over (1979)

In possibly his best performance, Burt Reynolds is sweet and sensitive in a romantic comedy about life after divorce. Dumped by Candice Bergen, Reynolds portrays the uneasiness of dating again with the equally wary Jill Clayburgh. Bergen performs three songs.

d: Alan J. Pakula | imdb.com

Meatballs (1979)

Bill Murray’s charming friendship with 12-year-old Chris Makepeace and his “It just doesn’t matter” speech highlight the comedic set pieces at Camp North Star, where the counselors fool around and there’s an Olympiad showdown with Camp Mohawk.

d: Ivan Reitman | imdb.com | trailer | It just doesn’t matter

Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979)

Richard Pryor masters the art of autobiographical comedy, inhabiting and impersonating white people, squirrel monkeys and body parts — the most stunning, his heart during his heart attack. It is, quite possibly, the best stand-up concert ever.

d: Jeff Margolis | imdb.com | Kids lying | Pet monkeys | Ali

The Inglorious Bastards (1978)

Imagine Sam Peckinpah making a World War II picture on a drive-in movie budget starring blaxploitation hero Fred Williamson. Italian director Enzo G. Castellari did and Quentin Tarantino enjoyed it so much he spun it off into his own war epic.

d: Enzo G. Castellari | imdb.com | trailer | “Inglourious Basterds”

Rolling Thunder (1977)

After seven years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, William Devane returns home a hero — one who can endure any torture. Then four border outlaws kill his family, and he enlists army buddy Tommy Lee Jones to exact revenge in a dark, well-crafted film.

d: John Flynn | imdb.com | trailer | One macho motherfucker.

Carrie (1976)

I first saw “Carrie” in college on a brokedown VCR, which played everything in black and white. That version was scarier than the original. But even in color, Stephen King’s novel comes alive and every girl’s fantasy is realized — burning down their senior prom.

d: Brian De Palma | imdb.com | trailer