Movies in the
1970s came in a wide variety, as the socially-conscious young directors that emerged in the late '60s grew in different directions, influenced by music, literature, and the nature of crime and war. The early part of the decade focused on increasingly realistic, gritty movies, including
Francis Ford Coppola's
Godfather pictures and
Robert Altman's
M*A*S*H. A trend that lasted through the decade was the popularity of
disaster movies, starting with
Airport in 1970. Another trend was the birth of the big-budget horror film, initiated by
William Friedkin's
The Exorcist which spawned numerous imitators. A pivotal moment in movies was the 1975 release of
Steven Spielberg's first major hit,
Jaws, widely regarded as the birth of the
blockbuster motion picture (a trend sealed two years later with the release of
Star Wars. The end of the decade saw the first crop of
Vietnam War movies, from directors Michael Cimino (
The Deer Hunter) and Coppola (
Apocalypse Now).
Significant 1970s Movies
Other Decades
1920s - 1930s - 1940s - 1950s - 1960s - 1970s - 1980s - 1990s - 2000s
