At the Movies
The Best Films of 1988
TV Flash files “The Best Films of 1988” as hour 103 of 616 in the TV Flash guide — At the Movies (1982–1990) on Syndication, season 3, episode 16, aired 1988-12-31, 30 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S03E16: listed hour 103 of 616 in the At the Movies guide, hour 16 of 49 in season 3. It aired 1988-12-31 (30 min). The listed hour before it is “Talk Radio/Hellbound: Hellraiser II/The Accidental Tourist/The Boost/Pelle the Conqueror” (S03E15). Next is “The Worst Films of 1988” (S03E17). Broadcast log — titles and dates, not a plot bible.
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Best Films of 1988 sit in the At the Movies guide?
S03E16 is listed hour 103 of 616 — hour 16 of 49 in season 3, season 3 episode 16.
When did At the Movies S03E16 air?
The Best Films of 1988 aired 1988-12-31 and is listed at 30 minutes.
Is this the same as Sneak Previews?
Related Chicago-critics lineage; this syndicated 1982–1990 run (under various official titles) is the thumbs-as-shorthand era people mean by At the Movies. Balcony, barbs, mass criticism.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Two thumbs up: Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert turn newspaper rivalry into appointment film talk — balcony seats, clipped verdicts, and fights that were half the entertainment. Syndication made serious criticism mass. The argument as format: two Chicago men teaching America it was allowed to have taste, and to disagree on camera.
The balcony is the silhouette. Syndicated 1982–1990 under various official titles: Chicago critics debate new releases with clips, barbs, and binary thumb verdicts — two thumbs up, newspaper rivals as appointment film talk. At the Movies is Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert as celebrity critics: balcony seats, clipped verdicts, fights that were half the entertainment. The thumbs system became cultural shorthand. Serious criticism made mass. The argument as format. *Balcony as civic furniture, a thumb as the accessory…
Filed against
- Gene Siskel as Host/critic
Gene Siskel turned newspaper rivalry into appointment film talk on At the Movies — balcony seats, clipped verdicts, and fights that were half the entertainment. Two thumbs as a national grammar. TV Flash files him as 1980s syndication…
- Roger Ebert as Host/critic
Roger Ebert turned At the Movies into appointment film talk with Gene Siskel — two thumbs up, balcony seats, clipped verdicts, fights that were half the entertainment. Newspaper rivalry as syndication. TV Flash files him as 1980s…
Also in season 3
- S03E01 Moon Over Parador/Eight Men Out/Running on Empty/The Thin Blue Line/Crossing Delancey
- S03E02 Gorillas in the Mist/Patty Hearst/Sweet Hearts Dance/Miles from Home/Dead Ringers
- S03E03 Punchline/Heartbreak Hotel/Memories of Me/Bird/Kansas
- S03E04 Alien Nation/Elvira: Mistress of the Dark/Imagine: John Lennon/Salaam Bombay/Track 29
- S03E05 The Accused/Another Woman/Madame Sousatzka/Hotel Terminus/Clara's Heart
- S03E06 Things Change/Bat*21/Without a Clue/Mystic Pizza/Daffy Duck's Quackbusters