Raiders of the Lost Ark was number one at the box office while On Golden Pond won big at the Oscars. Other movies of the year include:
Absence of Malice
American Pop
An American Werewolf in London
Arthur
Aviator's Wife
Beau Pere
Blow Out
Body Heat
Burning
Bustin' Loose
Cannonball Run
Caveman
Chariots of Fire
Clash of the Titans
Condorman
Continental Divide
Coup de Torchon
Cutter's Way
Das Boot
Dead and Buried
Decline of Western Civilization, The
Devil and Max Devlin, The
Dragonslayer
Endless Love
Enter The Ninja
Escape From New York
Eureka
Excalibur
Eye for an Eye
Eye of the Needle
Eyes of a Stranger
Eyewitness
Fan
Fear No Evil
Final Conflict
First Monday In October
For Your Eyes Only
Fort Apache The Bronx
Four Friends
Four Seasons
Fox And The Hound
The French Lieutenant's Woman
Friday the 13th, Par t2
Funhouse
Gallipoli
Ghost Story
Graduation Day
Great Muppet Caper
Halloween II
Hand
Hell Night
History of the World, Part I
Honky Tonk Freeway
Howling
Incredible Shrinking Woman
Knightriders
Legend of the Lone Ranger
Liar's Moon
Lion of the Desert
Modern Romance
Mommie Dearest
Ms. 45
My Bloody Valentine
My Dinner with Andre
Neighbors
Nice Dreams
Night School
Night The Lights Went Out Georgia, The
Nighthawks
On Any Sunday II
On Golden Pond
Only When I Laugh
Outland
Paternity
Pennies from Heaven
PiranhaII
Pixote
Porky's
Postman Always Rings Twice
Prince of the City
Prowler
Ragtime
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Reds
Rich and Famous
Roadgames
Rollover
Scanners
Sharky's Machine
Shock Treatment
So Fine
S.O.B.
Southern Comfort
Sphinx
Stripes
Studen Bodies
Take This Job and Shove It
Taps
They All Laughed
Thief
Time Bandits
True Confessions
Under The Rainbow
Victory
Whose Life Is It Anyway
Wolfen
Woman Next Door
Zoot Suit
Zorro Gay Blade
Top Five Movies of 1981:
5: Stripes ($85.3M)
4: Arthur ($95.5M)
3: Porky's ($105.5M)
2: On Golden Pond ($118.7M)
1: Raiders of the Lost Ark ($242.4M)