Oh National Film Registry, I wish I knew how to quit you.
My early Christmas gift arrived this morning when the National Film Registry made its annual announcement of 25 American films deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”. These 25 bring the official total to 750 movies. Here, in chronological order, are the 25. Films with * denote a movie I submitted to the list this year. Honorable Mention goes to “Rebecca” and “My Fair Lady”, which I submitted last year, but didn’t make my cut this time. Ah well, they did just fine without me.
- Something Good – Negro Kiss (1898)
- Dixon-Wanamaker Expedition to Crow Agency (1908)
- The Girl Without a Soul (1917)
- The Navigator (1924)
- The Informer (1935)
- Rebecca (1940)
- Leave Her to Heaven (1945)
- The Lady from Shanghai (1947)
- On the Town (1949)*
- Cinderella (1950)*
- Pickup on South Street (1953)
- Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
- One-Eyed Jacks (1961)
- Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
- Hud (1963)
- My Fair Lady (1964)
- Monterey Pop (1968)
- Hearts and Minds (1974)
- The Shining (1980)*
- Hair Piece: A Film for Nappy-Headed People (1984)
- Broadcast News (1987)
- Jurassic Park (1993)*
- Eve’s Bayou (1997)
- Smoke Signals (1998)
- Brokeback Mountain (2005)
For the second year in a row, four of my picks made the final roster. Not bad says I. The 2018 inductees will be added to my rotation, with the first write-up appearing in February 2019. To quote another of this year’s entries, hold on to your butts.
The Horse's Head 