When it comes to the best period dramas, most viewers would look first to movies based before the 1970s. However, as the '70s ended more than 40 years ago and the decade had such a distinct style, movies set in those years are now being included in the genre. It isn't just the style that makes a movie a period drama, it's also the events that happen in the movies too. Dramas set in the '70s tend to be based on political events and social events of the time or even depictions of the adult movie industry. Between LGBTQ+ biopics and coming-of-age teen dramas, few other films have showcased the decade of disco in a more fascinating way.
The 1970s was possibly easier to turn into the best period dramas thanks to the fact that the era was already on display for filmmakers thanks to the creative output from that decade. Movies from Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, and more showed the world the 1970s up close and personal as the decade wore on, with big-budget blockbusters, gangster epics, and crime thrillers set against the backdrop of disco and the hippie movement of the era. As a result, many movies made as period pieces from that era had a lot to live up to, and the ones that did it well eventually ended up as some of the best period dramas ever made.
American Hustle (2013)
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It's obvious director David O'Russell is a huge Martin Scorsese fan. Not only did he direct The Fighter, which has many parallels to Raging Bull, but the gangster drama American Hustle homages Taxi Driver and Goodfellas. However, one major difference between the 2013 movie and the ones it's so influenced by is that it soaks up the '70s fashion and aesthetic like a sponge. The movie follows two con artists who have no other choice but to become pawns in a much larger game of the FBI's. And though the covert operation is the movie's premise, the soap-opera drama between the characters and the quiffs and up-dos take equal billing.
The Titans (2000)
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Based on the real-life story of Herman Boone, the Titans is one of the top sports dramas set in the 1970s. The era is important to this tale, as Boone was a high school football coach hired to help integrate a Virginia high school and help the Black and White teens become not only a force on the football field but a family who could trust each other. Meanwhile, forces in the community rise to get in his way and block the progress he was trying to instill in the team. Denzel Washington started as Boone, as he took over the coaching job in 1971 and turned the high school into a football powerhouse.
Almost Famous (2000)
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Almost Famous follows a 15-year-old aspiring rock journalist go on tour with the fictional rock band, Stillwater. Stillwater is an amalgam of a few '70s bands that director Cameron Crowe actually toured with, such as Led Zeppelin and Eagles. This makes the movie unique in its portrayal of the decade, as it's overly theatrical but also extremely accurate. The 2000 movie is the best of many things: it's one of the best road trip movies, features one of the best fictional bands, and is, of course, one of the best period dramas set in the '70s.
Donnie Brasco (1997)
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Many fans feel that Donnie Brasco doesn't get enough recognition in the gangster movie genre, but it's one of the best period dramas set in the 1970s. Donnie Brasco is based on the real-life story of Donnie Brasco, an undercover FBI agent who brought down the Bonanno crime family in the '70s. What the movie does so well is to depict the stress and constant anxiety of the situations undercover agents are put in. The Departed did this nine years later, but the 1997 movie was one of its kind for a long time, with fantastic performances by Johnny Depp and Al Pacino in the lead roles.
Inherent Vice (2014)
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There are many books that people consider unfilmable when it comes to adaptations and Thomas Pynchon's beloved novels count among those. However, in 2014, Paul Thomas Anderson decided he wanted to try and what resulted was Inherent Vice. Set in 1970, Joaquin Phoenix stars in Inherent Vice as a hippie private investigator named Doc Sportello whose ex-girlfriend hire him to help her new lover. Inherent Vice is fully immersed in the 70s hippie culture, and Josh Brolin is on top form as a straight-edge cop who constantly clashes with Doc. It picked up two Oscar nominations, including one for Phoenix, solidifying its position as one of the best period dramas set in the 1970s.
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
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The musical biopic Bohemian Rhapsody might have ended up in the 1980s, but most of this took place in the 70s, showing the rise of Queen and its flamboyant frontman, Freddie Mercury. The movie starts off in 1970, with Freddy Mercury catching on with the band Smile, which soon changed its name to Queen and became one of the biggest bands in the world. One of the best period dramas, the movie mostly tracks their rise up the charts in the 70s and then ends when Freddy learns he has AIDS and performs at Live Aid. The movie won four Oscars, including Best Actor for Rami Malek.
Casino (1995)
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Acting as somewhat of a companion piece to Goodfellas, the Scorsese-directed epic Casino is another years-spanning crime drama set in the 1970s. Unlike Goodfellas, which hardly plays on the 70s setting, Casino is doused in glamor, from the big hair to the flamboyant suits. The in-your-face '70s vibe in the movie could have something to do with the fact that it's set in Las Vegas, where everything is loud and eye-catching, whether it's the bright lights or the wallpaper. It's the only time Scorsese has fully thrown himself into a period piece by embracing the cheesiness, but the movie somehow still comes off as effortless and tasteful.
If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)
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Moonlight director Barry Jenkins followed up that award-winning movie with one of the best period dramas of the 1970s. If Beale Street Could Talk is a small story with the huge backdrop of police corruption and racial profiling that existed in that decade, and remains a problem four decades later. The movie follows a young pregnant woman whose lover was jailed on a false rape charge, and it tracks her futile attempts to get him cleared of the charges despite everything standing in her way. The movie picked up several awards and won Regina King the Oscar for Best ing Actress.
Dazed & Confused (1993)
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Dazed and Confused was the blueprint for director Richard Linklater's whole career, as most of his movies feature coming-of-age narratives and everyday people going about their normal lives. Though it was a 1990s box office bomb, most feel that Dazed and Confused remains the director's best movie, and that's partly thanks to how dedicated it is to representing teenagers' lifestyles in the '70s. As the characters were so fascinating and entertaining, it would have been great to have seen a sequel set in the '80s. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, but the filmmaker did direct the '80s-based coming-of-age movie, Everybody Wants Some, a "spiritual sequel" to the 1993 movie.
Boogie Nights (1997)
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Though he had directed the gripping crime drama Hard Eight just the year before, it was Boogie Nights that established director Paul Thomas Anderson's style. The movie is based in the '70s, which is also the setting for two other of the director's movies. The movie plays heavily on the stereotypes and cliches of the decade of disco, as it's full of flares, big haircuts, and one of the main characters is literally called "Rollergirl" because she never takes off her roller skates. And although Boogie Nights would look different if it was recast today, it's the powerful performances from the likes of Burt Reynolds and Philip Seymour Hoffman that make it one of the best period dramas of the 1990s.
