Purple Rose Puzzles webpages banner

The Movies of 1988

Trivia, Word Search, and a Quiz

Rain Man is the top grossing movie this year. It stars Tom Cruise as a selfish yuppie who learns he has an autistic-savant brother, played by Dustin Hoffman. Cruise will not receive an Oscar nomination for his performance, but Hoffman does and wins for Best Actor.

The movie also wins for Best Picture. Which is a good thing, because this will be the last MGM title to receive a Best Picture nomination until Licorice Pizza (2021) some 33 years later.

Here's some more trivia from the world of cinema in 1988:

  • Jesse Plemons and Haley Joel Osment are born a week apart in April.
  • Actors making their movie debuts include Stephen Baldwin in the sports drama Homeboy, Macaulay Culkin in the drama Rocket Gibraltar, Benicio del Toro in the comedy Big Top Pee-wee, Cuba Gooding, Jr. in the romantic comedy Coming to America, Dermot Mulroney in the crime mystery Sunset, and Oliver Platt in the dark comedy Married to the Mob. Actresses doing the same include Julia Roberts in the comedy-drama Satisfaction, Lili Taylor in the romantic comedy She's Having a Baby, and Milla Jovovich in the erotic drama Two Moon Junction.
  • Who Framed Roger Rabbit breaks new technological ground with its blending of animated imagery and live-action human acting. It also brings together for the first time Disney's Donald Duck and Warner Bros.' Daffy Duck.
  • On March 7, the Writer's Guild of America goes on strike against producers and networks, delaying the start of the fall television schedule. Lasting 153 days, it is one of the longest work stoppages in Hollywood's history.
  • Child actress Heather O'Rourke of Poltergeist (1982) dies at the tender age of 12, as does child actress Judith Barsi at 10 before her final two movies The Land Before Time and All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989) are released.

1988 Movies Word Search

The movies in the following two word searches were movies released in 1988. Just like all the movies on this page (unless otherwise noted).

The first word search is easy: 20 movie titles hidden in a small 22 × 20 letter grid. The second is more challenging: 36 movie titles in a large 34 × 32 letter grid.

So load your printer with standard 8.5" × 11" paper, download, hit print and start solving. Our PDF files print out beautifully and are always free to download on our site.

[direct link]

More Word Searches

These word search puzzles are on particular movies from 1988. They each have 36 terms hidden in a large 34 × 32 letter grid.

Big Die Hard Rain Man Who Framed Roger Rabbit

10 Question Quiz on 1988 Movies

How well do you know what came out on the Silver Screen in 1988? Take our quiz and find out. There's no time limit and no scoring. Just have fun!

1. Which singer plays opposite Barbara Hershey in Walt Disney's Beaches?

A. Bette Midler
B. Barbra Streisand
C. Dolly Parton
D. Cher

2. In Midnight Run, Jack Walsh (Robert De Niro) is a bounty hunter who is tasked with taking former Mafia accountant Jonathan Mardukas (Charles Grodin) to Los Angeles. What does Jack do with Jonathan once they arrive there?

A. Imprisons him
B. Kills him
C. Frees him
D. Hires him

3. What bigger-than-life object does Tom Hanks, who plays an oversized kid, famously walk onto in Penny Marshall's body-swap comedy Big?

A. Piano keys
B. Chess board
C. Rocking chair
D. Stack of pancakes

4. In Die Hard, Bruce Willis plays an NYPD cop trying to save the day from German robbers who have taken a group of holiday partygoers hostage. Which holiday is this?

A. July 4th
B. Halloween
C. Thanksgiving
D. Christmas

5. Based on the classic 1843 novella A Christmas Carol, the black comedy Scrooged follows Bill Murray as he is visted by a succession of ghosts on Christmas Eve intent on rekindling his Christmas spirit. Which famous author wrote that novella?

A. Ernest Hemingway
B. Charles Dickens
C. Herman Melville
D. Mark Twain

6. In Ron Howard's dark fantasy Willow, Val Kilmer plays what type of character?

A. Basket weaver
B. Young wizard
C. Renegade warrior
D. Mountain hermit

7. Which real-life outlaw of the Old West does Emilio Estevez portray in Young Guns?

A. Butch Cassidy
B. Sundance Kid
C. Jesse James
D. Billy the Kid

8. Winona Ryder, Christian Slater and Shannen Doherty star in the dark comedy Heathers. How many characters in the movie are named Heather?

A. Two
B. Three
C. Four
D. Five

9. Which actress is NOT in Working Girl?

A. Melanie Griffith
B. Jane Fonda
C. Sigourney Weaver
D. Joan Cusack

10. The movie A Fish Called Wanda stars John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis and Kevin Kline. What is it about?

A. TV fishing show
B. High school teachers
C. Traveling comedy troupe
D. Double-cross jewel heist

Want more? We have another page on the cinema of 1988

Explore other years in the world of cinema

Home