# Forgotten movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [January 2, 2024, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476 "2024-01-02T02:08:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 19
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2024, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/361 "2024-01-14T17:36:28Z")
> [@CaptMurdock](#): > > **The Baltimore Bullet** (1980) - James Coburn as a pool hustler and a young Bruce Boxleitner as his protege. Made the rounds of early pay-broadcast services, but I haven’t seen it around in nearly forty years. [It’s on youtube.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orYzjfHdIUc) At 25:36, there’s a brief but hard-to-forget scene of legendary B-movie extra [Joyce Mandel](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0541657/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_q_Joyce%2520Mandel) as a waitress. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2024, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/362 "2024-01-14T23:21:21Z")
**Thank God it’s Friday** (1978). A Disco comedy with Jeff Goldblum, Debra Winger, Donna Summer, and a pre-Berlin Terri Nunn. It made me laugh both times I saw it which was before I hated Disco, and again after I stopped hating Disco. ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2024, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/363 "2024-01-14T23:27:06Z")
Weird. The Wikipedia entry says **Forbidden Zone** was shot in 1977 and 1978, and released in 1982. But I swear that while I was in college (1970-74) I saw some sort of preview of this. The plot certainly sounds the same, and after the viewing we were asked to fill out comment cards. Of course, at my age I may be suffering from a severe case of the Mandela Effect. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2024, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/364 "2024-01-14T23:34:56Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > **Thank God it’s Friday** (1978). This reminded me of another music film, “Streets Of Fire”, a Walter Hill film from 1984. > **[Streets of Fire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streets_of_Fire)** > > Streets of Fire is a 1984 American action crime neo-noir film directed by Walter Hill, from a screenplay by Hill and Larry Gross. Described on the poster and in the opening credits as "A Rock & Roll Fable", the film combines elements of the automobile culture and music from the 1950s with the fashion style and sociology of the 1980s. Starring Michael Paré, Diane Lane, Rick Moranis, Amy Madigan, Willem Dafoe, Deborah Van Valkenburgh, E.G. Daily, and Bill Paxton, the film follows ex-soldiers Tom St... I saw it in the theater (I was 16) and enjoyed it very much at the time, though I already felt that it was a bit cheesy. It was biker/greaser gang movie with musical numbers that somehow played in a universe that was half 50s/half 80s. A strange film, also a box office bomb as I see checking the wiki page, and it was soon forgotten. I think I just once caught it on TV, and it didn’t even make it to cult classic, it was just forgotten. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2024, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/365 "2024-01-14T23:40:58Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > Sadly, this one is only available on Region 2 DVD. And while I have the disc, it is only playable in Region 2. Anybody got any ideas how I can make my Region 1 DVD player into a Region 2 player? If you have a Windows PC with a DVD drive you should be able to change the region in the device manager property settings. Note the “changes remaining” indication–once you’ve used them up there’s no going back. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2024, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/366 "2024-01-14T23:44:22Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > “Streets Of Fire”, a Walter Hill film from 1984. That film was in heavy rotation on HBO mid-1980s before disappearing forever. I mostly remember it because I tried get my hair to look like Willem Dafoe’s. The hair product bill almost bankrupted me. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2024, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/367 "2024-01-14T23:53:51Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > If you have a Windows PC with a DVD drive you should be able to change the region in the device manager property settings. Note the “changes remaining” indication–once you’ve used them up there’s no going back. Thanks! I’ll look into that. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/368 "2024-01-15T00:15:14Z")
If you are talking about a computer DVD drive, yes you can re-flash the firmware to eliminate region locking, but I have not had to do this for decades; make sure this is indeed a problem. Also, use VLC to play the discs since it ignores region coding. If you are dealing with a standalone DVD player, put in the appropriate code (may require the remote control) like @Dewey_Finn says (again, that takes me back…) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/369 "2024-01-15T00:19:00Z")
I believe you can only change the region in Windows four or five times before it locks. If you regularly need to read Region 2 DVDs on your computer, it might be worthwhile to buy a second DVD-ROM drive and permanently set it to Region 2. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/370 "2024-01-15T01:02:11Z")
> [@LurkMeister](#): > > The Wikipedia entry says **Forbidden Zone** was shot in 1977 and 1978, and released in 1982. But I swear that while I was in college (1970-74) I saw some sort of preview of this. The plot certainly sounds the same, and after the viewing we were asked to fill out comment cards. Of course, at my age I may be suffering from a severe case of the Mandela Effect. There was a 1974 French film whose name was _Zone Interdite_. The English-language release of it was called _Forbidden Zone_ (which is just the translation of the title into English). Was that what you saw?: > **[Zone interdite (1974)](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0856287/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_8_tt_8_nm_0_q_Forbidden%2520Zone)** > > 1h 40m ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/371 "2024-01-15T02:59:30Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > set it to Region 2 Not Region 0? My advice to @Spoons was to check if his drive has a region set at all; if not (which I assume is the most probable case), obviously there is no need to put one in. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/372 "2024-01-15T03:10:29Z")
In Windows 10 Device Manager, I can change to a different region code by selecting a country name. I don’t see any option for selecting Region 0. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/373 "2024-01-15T04:05:24Z")
> [@LurkMeister](#): > > Weird. The Wikipedia entry says **Forbidden Zone** was shot in 1977 and 1978, and released in 1982. But I swear that while I was in college (1970-74) I saw some sort of preview of this. The plot certainly sounds the same, and after the viewing we were asked to fill out comment cards. Of course, at my age I may be suffering from a severe case of the Mandela Effect. I would swear an oath that my friends at I discussed specific scenes from Weird Al’s movie _UHF._ But the friends I remember talking to about this were in Colorado and when UHF was released I was living in Texas, so I couldn’t have discussed it with the friends I remember discussing it with. Even though I know my memory is false, I still remember it that way. Maybe we were talking about other Weird Al related things? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/374 "2024-01-15T05:33:01Z")
> [@LurkMeister](#): > > **Forbidden Zone** was shot in 1977 and 1978, and released in 1982. But I swear that while I was in college (1970-74) I saw some sort of preview of this. Elfman originated the **Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo** in 1972 as “musical theater”. I wouldn’t be surprised if there was something you may have seen that was a precursor of this Cinematic Opus. Where do you think you saw it? Check the timeline… I mean, how could there be any possible other explanation? ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/375 "2024-01-15T05:52:19Z")
I’ve probably mentioned this before, but _God Bless the Child_ is a great example of a forgotten movie made by no one I’ve ever heard of and starring no one I’ve ever heard of that somehow succeeds in being very deeply moving. The movie is not in any way religious (the title just evokes a common expression) and it admirably resists the temptation to descend into being maudlin. Instead it’s a matter-of-fact story about a single mother with a young daughter who can barely make ends meet, and then loses her job and is thrown into the rock-bottom of abject poverty. She cannot save herself, but she makes the ultimate sacrifice to save her daughter. It won the WGA award in 1988 for best writing. > **[God Bless the Child (TV Movie 1988) ⭐ 7.3 | Drama](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095227/)** > > 1h 33m | Not Rated ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/376 "2024-01-15T06:06:45Z")
It is very common to stitch together two distant memories into one. Saying that someone did something like that is not at all saying something terrible about a person. Human beings are not designed to be storehouses of precise digital information. So if someone has stitched together their memories of three movies and three television episodes which are completely unrelated into one item, it’s not that surprising. Once they realize that they have done such a thing, perhaps they may also realize that the combined memories can be used to create a new movie or television series that is even better than the ones they have mashed together. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/377 "2024-01-15T06:37:56Z")
Didn’t it (“Streets of Fire”) also have a great soundtrack, and that was its major selling theme? ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/378 "2024-01-15T06:41:30Z")
Yep. I think that as long as Dan Hartman’s “I Can Dream About You” is played on classic rock radio, _Streets of Fire_ will at least somewhat not be forgotten. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/379 "2024-01-15T06:41:45Z")
Mare Winningham, the mother in that movie, has had quite a prolific career. She continues to act in her 60s. > **[Mare Winningham](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mare_Winningham)** > > Mary Megan Winningham, known professionally as Mare Winningham (/mɛər/; born May 16, 1959), is an American actress and singer-songwriter. She is the recipient of two Primetime Emmy Awards and has been nominated for an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards and two Tony Awards. > An eight-time Emmy Award nominee, she won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for Amber Waves in 1980 and George Wallace in 1998. She was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actre... ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476/380 "2024-01-15T06:50:12Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Mare Winningham, the mother in that movie, has had quite a prolific career. She continues to act in her 60s. Thanks for that! I had no idea she had such an impressive track record. She was great in that movie (and so was the little girl) but I don’t recall seeing her in anything else. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476.md?page=18) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forgotten-movies/995476.md?page=20)