The 1970s is widely regarded as one of the most transformative decades in cinema history, giving birth to the New Hollywood movement and iconic films like The Godfather, Star Wars, and Jaws. But beyond these blockbusters, there were numerous brilliant films that went underappreciated, overshadowed by their more famous contemporaries or ahead of their time. Here are 10 underappreciated must-see movies from the 1970s that deserve more attention.
1. The Last Picture Show (1971)
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich, The Last Picture Show is a haunting and poetic portrait of small-town America. Though it received critical acclaim and several Academy Award nominations, it often gets overshadowed by other major films of the decade.
Plot Overview: Set in the early 1950s in a dying Texas town, the film follows a group of teenagers struggling to find meaning in their lives as they come of age. As the town's only movie theater prepares to close, the characters grapple with love, loss, and the fading of their once-vibrant community.
Why It’s Underappreciated: The Last Picture Show is a deeply reflective film, filled with nuanced performances from Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, and Cloris Leachman. Its black-and-white cinematography and poignant depiction of disillusionment make it a timeless meditation on the inevitability of change. While critically celebrated, it remains underappreciated by modern audiences, particularly when compared to other New Hollywood films of the time.
2. McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)
Directed by Robert Altman, McCabe & Mrs. Miller is a revisionist Western that subverts many of the genre's conventions. While Altman’s more famous films like MASH* and Nashville are often celebrated, McCabe & Mrs. Miller deserves far more recognition for its atmospheric storytelling and unique approach.
Plot Overview: Set in the Pacific Northwest during the late 19th century, the film tells the story of John McCabe (Warren Beatty), a gambler who teams up with the shrewd businesswoman Constance Miller (Julie Christie) to open a successful brothel in a remote mining town. However, their enterprise soon attracts the attention of ruthless corporate interests.
Why It’s Underappreciated: The film’s subversion of the traditional Western, combined with its muted, dreamlike cinematography by Vilmos Zsigmond and Altman’s signature overlapping dialogue, creates an almost ethereal atmosphere. McCabe & Mrs. Miller didn’t achieve commercial success at the time, perhaps because it went against the grain of what audiences expected from Westerns, but its rich performances and mournful tone have helped it gain a devoted following in the years since.
3. Badlands (1973)
Directed by Terrence Malick, Badlands marked the feature debut of a filmmaker who would go on to become one of the most distinctive voices in cinema. Though it’s recognized by cinephiles, it often flies under the radar when discussing influential films of the 1970s.
Plot Overview: Inspired by the real-life 1958 killing spree of Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate, the film follows Kit (Martin Sheen) and Holly (Sissy Spacek), two young lovers who embark on a violent road trip across the Midwest, leaving a trail of bodies in their wake.
Why It’s Underappreciated: Badlands is an astonishingly assured debut, filled with stunning natural imagery and philosophical undertones that would become hallmarks of Malick’s later work. The film's haunting, almost detached exploration of violence and youth alienation contrasts with the more bombastic crime films of the era. While Badlands has since gained respect, it still doesn’t get the mainstream recognition it deserves.
4. The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973)
Directed by Peter Yates, The Friends of Eddie Coyle is an understated crime drama that never achieved the level of fame of other crime films from the 1970s like The Godfather or Mean Streets, but it’s every bit as deserving of attention.
Plot Overview: The film centers around Eddie Coyle (Robert Mitchum), an aging, small-time Boston gunrunner facing a lengthy prison sentence. To avoid jail, he agrees to cooperate with the police by informing on his criminal associates, putting his life at risk in the process.
Why It’s Underappreciated: Robert Mitchum gives one of his best performances as the weary and desperate Eddie Coyle, a man whose life of crime has left him with few options. The film’s gritty realism, combined with its tragic portrayal of a man caught between loyalty and survival, makes it a standout in the crime genre. However, it was overshadowed by flashier and more commercially successful crime films of the era.
5. The Long Goodbye (1973)
Directed by Robert Altman, The Long Goodbye is a unique neo-noir film that reimagines Raymond Chandler's famous detective Philip Marlowe for the 1970s. Though it received mixed reviews upon its release, it has since been reappraised as one of Altman’s finest works.
Plot Overview: The film stars Elliott Gould as a laid-back, disillusioned Philip Marlowe, who becomes embroiled in a complex murder investigation after being hired to find a friend’s missing wife. As he navigates Los Angeles' seedy underbelly, Marlowe uncovers a web of deceit that stretches beyond the initial case.
Why It’s Underappreciated: The Long Goodbye is a sly deconstruction of both the hard-boiled detective genre and the myth of the lone private eye. Altman’s playful direction, combined with Gould’s unconventional take on Marlowe, turns the film into a melancholic meditation on disillusionment and the shifting moral landscape of the 1970s. Its slow-burn approach and tonal shifts didn’t appeal to all audiences at the time, but it’s now regarded as one of the most original neo-noirs of its era.
6. Two-Lane Blacktop (1971)
Directed by Monte Hellman, Two-Lane Blacktop is a minimalist road movie that has since achieved cult status but remains largely unknown to mainstream audiences. Its quiet, existential tone sets it apart from other road movies of the 1970s.
Plot Overview: The film follows two drifters, The Driver (James Taylor) and The Mechanic (Dennis Wilson), who travel the American Southwest in their souped-up 1955 Chevy, challenging strangers to street races. Along the way, they pick up a girl (Laurie Bird) and encounter another drifter, GTO (Warren Oates), leading to a loosely connected series of events that feel more like a meditation on freedom and purpose than a conventional narrative.
Why It’s Underappreciated: Two-Lane Blacktop is a film about alienation, the emptiness of the open road, and the search for identity in a changing world. The film’s sparse dialogue and focus on mood and atmosphere over plot turned off many viewers, but its dreamlike quality and existential undertones have helped it endure. For fans of existential cinema or 1970s counterculture, it’s a must-watch.
7. Wake in Fright (1971)
Directed by Ted Kotcheff, Wake in Fright is a harrowing Australian psychological thriller that explores the dark heart of the outback. Though it’s often considered a classic in Australia, it remains underappreciated internationally.
Plot Overview: The film follows John Grant (Gary Bond), a schoolteacher stranded in a remote outback town during his vacation. As he becomes entangled with the local residents, John is drawn into a nightmarish world of drinking, gambling, and violence that spirals out of control.
Why It’s Underappreciated: Wake in Fright is a brutal and unflinching look at isolation, masculinity, and moral degradation. Its intense atmosphere and relentless pacing create a feeling of suffocating dread, making it one of the most psychologically disturbing films of the 1970s. While it has received some critical reappraisal in recent years, it’s still not as widely known or appreciated as it should be.
8. The Conversation (1974)
Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, The Conversation is often overshadowed by Coppola’s other masterpieces of the decade, such as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now. However, this paranoid thriller stands on its own as one of the most intelligent and unsettling films of the 1970s.
Plot Overview: The film follows Harry Caul (Gene Hackman), a surveillance expert who becomes obsessed with a conversation he records between two people, fearing that his work may lead to their deaths. As Caul tries to uncover the truth, his own paranoia and guilt begin to consume him.
Why It’s Underappreciated: The Conversation is a masterful exploration of surveillance, guilt, and the consequences of professional detachment. Hackman delivers a career-defining performance as the morally conflicted Caul, and Coppola’s tight, suspenseful direction makes the film a tense psychological thriller. Although it won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, The Conversation never gained the same level of recognition as Coppola’s other works, making it an essential yet often overlooked entry in his filmography.
9. The Duellists (1977)
Ridley Scott’s directorial debut, The Duellists, is a beautifully crafted period drama that explores themes of honor, obsession, and the futility of violence. Despite its visual artistry and strong performances, it remains one of Scott’s most underappreciated films.
Plot Overview: Set during the Napoleonic Wars, the film follows two French officers, D’Hubert (Keith Carradine) and Feraud (Harvey Keitel), whose rivalry leads them into a series of increasingly deadly duels over the course of several years. As their lives become defined by this conflict, the futility of their actions becomes more apparent.
Why It’s Underappreciated: The Duellists is a visually stunning film, with Scott’s meticulous attention to detail and painterly compositions foreshadowing his later work in Blade Runner and Gladiator. Despite its critical success, it never gained the commercial popularity it deserved. The film’s meditative pace and historical setting may have alienated mainstream audiences, but for those who appreciate character-driven stories and stunning cinematography, The Duellists is a hidden gem.
10. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974)
Directed by Sam Peckinpah, Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia is a gritty, violent, and deeply personal film that was widely dismissed upon its release but has since gained a cult following.
Plot Overview: The film follows Bennie (Warren Oates), a down-and-out piano player in Mexico, who is hired to find the head of Alfredo Garcia, a man with a bounty on him. As Bennie embarks on a dangerous journey to retrieve the head, his quest becomes a bloody descent into madness and moral degradation.
Why It’s Underappreciated: Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia is a brutal and uncompromising film that reflects Peckinpah’s bleak worldview. Oates gives a mesmerizing performance as a man driven to the edge by desperation, while Peckinpah’s raw, visceral direction creates a nihilistic atmosphere that is both disturbing and captivating. Although it was heavily criticized upon its release, the film has since been reevaluated as a bold, uncompromising work that captures the darker side of the American Dream.
Conclusion
The 1970s was a decade of innovation and risk-taking in cinema, but even amidst this creative boom, some exceptional films were overlooked. Whether it’s the melancholic nostalgia of The Last Picture Show, the existential road trip of Two-Lane Blacktop, or the paranoid thriller of The Conversation, these underappreciated gems offer a diverse range of stories and styles that continue to resonate today.
For cinephiles and casual viewers alike, these 10 underappreciated films from the 1970s provide a glimpse into the hidden corners of one of cinema’s most influential decades. So if you’re in the mood to explore something off the beaten path, these movies are waiting to be rediscovered.
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