1981

1. Blow Out (Brian De Palma)
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg)
3. Chariots of Fire (Hugh Hudson)
4. My Dinner With Andre (Louis Malle)
5. Lola (Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
6. Das Boot (Wolfgang Peterson)
7. Time Bandits (Terry Gilliam)
8. The Aviator's Wife (Eric Rohmer)
9. Escape From New York (John Carpenter)
10. Ms. .45 (Abel Ferrara)

Honorable Mentions:
The Evil Dead (Sam Raimi), Excalibur (John Boorman), Scanners (David Cronenberg), Vernon, Florida (Errol Morris), An American Werewolf In London (John Landis), Gallipoli (Peter Weir), Southern Comfort (Walter Hill), The Beyond (Lucio Fulci), Clash of the Titans (Desmond Davis), Roadgames (Richard Franklin)