The year was 1982. In the wake of the late ’70s blossoming of the blockbuster, we find America in a state of craving big movies in genres previously seen as less than prestigious and only for the low brow grindhouse and drive-in crowds. But these films were doing boffo business at the box office now. In the realm of science fiction, 1982 brought us the likes of Blade Runner, E. T. the Extra-Terrestrial, John Carpenter’s The Thing, Tron, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, The Road Warrior and others. Fantasy was just as hot with films like Conan the Barbarian, The Dark Crystal, The Sword and the Sorcerer and The Beastmaster. Horror was also blooming with the likes of the aforementioned The Thing as well as Poltergeist, Cat People, Creepshow, Friday the 13th 3D and Halloween III: Season of the Witch. Even the action and comedy genres were rolling out future classics like First Blood, 48 Hrs, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Tootsie and Night Shift. The nearly 3-hour 1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever! seeks to cover and contextual all these films and much more.

It would have been so easy to phone this thing in. If you have seen any of those I Love the ’80s/’90s/etc. specials on VH1, this documentary could have easily followed a similar format of basically getting a bunch of comedians and TV personalities to make light comments and jokes on a film interspersed with movie clips that essentially amount to one “Remember this one?” after another. But it doesn’t. While we do have a little of that to keep the pace brisk and the mood light, this documentary delves into more detail on the origin and making of the films being discussed with industry insiders and film critics discussing the films and how they fit into this particular lightning-in-a-bottle year. As a result, it plays out more as a series of mini-documentaries, providing legitimately useful information on each film and reasonable arguments as to why 1982 truly was an amazing year for nerd culture. We have Ron Howard and Henry Winkler discussing the conception of Night Shift and how Winkler was used as leverage to get it made. Cameron Crowe and Amy Heckerling talk about how Fast Times at Ridgemont High came about and the significance of a teen comedy that felt real. Barry Bostwick talks about the cartoonish action of Megaforce. William Shatner and Nicholas Meyer discuss the back-to-basics approach of Wrath of Khan and how it was designed to be like a really great episode of the series rather than getting bogged down in the pseudo-philosophical bloat of the first film. This is a veritable smorgasbord of unique and insightful interviews and behind-the-scenes info. While it is structured around the big films of the year, it also at times uses them as a springboard to discuss other elements of 1982 pop culture including video games (the infamous E. T. Atari game is discussed of course) and television. On a personal level, while I was just a wee lad in 1982, the films released this year had a massive influence on my upbringing with many of them going into regular rotation in my VCR or on television during the formative years of my childhood. Watching this was like a joy bomb of nostalgia in the best possible way.

The transfer is, as you would expect, a little all over the place. The newly-shot interview clips are clean and crisp but the archival footage and trailers are wildly variable in quality based on the source used. This is pretty much expected, but few of the clips used are actually sub-par. As such, the transfer is overally pretty solid. The audio is similarly variable but perfectly intelligible even on the lowest quality sources like Henry Winkler’s personal home movie footage on the set of Night Shift. While the film itself is pretty meaty, we also get a whole host of extras on top of it. We get two audio commentaries, one with director Roger Lay, Jr. and writer Mark A. Altman, and another with Producers Scott Mantz, Thomas P. Vitale & Mark A. Altman. It seems a bit self-reflexive to include commentaries about commentaries essentially, but they actually explain quite a bit in terms of why certain films were covered more than others, how certain interview subjects were locked down as well as explaining what ended up on the cutting room floor. Speaking of, the disc also includes 40 minutes of deleted and extended scenes as well as a “The Fans Speak” featurette that has fans of the era discussing their favorite films. We also get a 30 minute 2022 San Diego Comic Con panel and, like all MVD Rewind releases, a mini-poster.

1982: The Greatest Geek Year Ever! is a fun and informative doc that MVD has served up with a nice slate of extras that should have any ’80s film fan salivating. Highly recommended if you’re looking for a trip down memory lane or just want to glean some info on a truly pivotal year in film history.