American Hustle and 3 Other Best Movies Set In the 70s to Watch if You Feel Nostalgic
These movies will take you back 50 years.
We offer a list of films that act as time machines, sending viewers back to an era many either did not experience or have long since missed: the atmospheric, cinematic 1970s.
1. American Hustle, 2013
David O. Russell's dizzying work is about a couple of adventurers who make money by manipulating expensive pictures.
American Hustle is an example of virtuoso cinematic stylization. The era is reproduced with meticulous, almost manic verisimilitude in the costumes, music, and epochal mood of the characters played by Christian Bale, Amy Adams, and Bradley Cooper.
With this film, Russell established himself as a master with a distinct style and mood. His portrayal of the '70s is wild and mischievous, full of fun and adventure.
2. Boogie Nights, 1997
Paul Thomas Anderson, one of the leading directors of modern cinema, paints an epochal fresco about the Californian porn industry of the 70s. With a keen sense of the era, Anderson explores the shift from theatrical adult films to home video.
Despite its liveliness, Boogie Nights is a complex, multifaceted work in which Anderson reflects on human ambition, family, and the pervasive issue of fatherhood.
Its rhythm, musical content, and dizzying long scenes make Boogie Nights one of the most vivid portraits of the era.
3. The Nice Guys, 2016
Shane Black's action thriller incorporates everything viewers love about '70s noir detectives: It features California at night, a complex plot, and eccentric detectives who are caught up in risky criminal adventures.
Black is not only skilled at evoking nostalgia and recreating the texture of the time, but he is also a talented screenwriter. This is especially evident in the on-screen chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe.
4. Rush, 2013
Racing cars, male confrontation, and Formula 1 – Ron Howard's film showcases the most remarkable artifacts of racing and tells their story through the lens of the '70s.
Specifically, it tells the story of the rivalry between Niki Lauda and James Hunt, who lived in completely different worlds but collided on deadly Formula 1 tracks.
Watching Rush, one cannot miss the perfection and technical mastery with which Howard conveys the mood of the era. His portrayal of the 1970s is meticulous and deeply detailed, and it is hypnotic in its own way.