The NFR Class of 2023

This photo comes from the Deadline article about the Registry.

National Film Registry day is seriously becoming more and more like Christmas morning for me. I’ve been up since about 4:30 this morning because, to quote a very niche Disney World commercial, I was too excited to sleep. This year’s selections for the Registry definitely did not disappoint, and I’ve enjoyed spending time today learning about each film while injecting emergency caffeine into my system. Here at last is the NFR Class of 2023 in chronological order:

  • A Movie Trip Through Filmland (1921)
  • Dinner at Eight (1933)+
  • Bohulano Family Film Collection (1950s-1970s)
  • Helen Keller: In Her Story (1954)
  • Lady and the Tramp (1955)+
  • Edge of the City (1957)
  • We’re Alive (1974)
  • Cruisin’ J-Town (1975)
  • ¡Alambrista! (1977)
  • Passing Through (1977)
  • Fame (1980)+
  • Desperately Seeking Susan (1985)
  • The Lighted Field (1987)
  • Matewan (1987)
  • Home Alone (1990)*
  • Queen of Diamonds (1991)
  • Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)+
  • The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)*
  • The Wedding Banquet (1993)
  • Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision (1994)
  • Apollo 13 (1995)
  • Bamboozled (2000)
  • Love & Basketball (2000)
  • 12 Years a Slave (2013)*
  • 20 Feet from Stardom (2013)

* Movies I nominated this year

+ Movies I have nominated in previous years

Other notes

  • Three of my 50 nominated movies made the cut this year, a step up from last year’s two, and more or less my yearly average. According to the NFR press release, 6,875 titles were submitted by the public this year, so getting three on there is pretty damn good.
  • Maybe I’ve just been doing this for too long, but I look at this year’s crop and I think “Yep, that’s an NFR list”. As usual, the board makes an eclectic selection of list-worthy movies, but nothing really sticks out to me as a surprise. These are all movies that are either justifiably iconic, made by filmmakers with previous entries, or highlight independent and experimental work. The only one that surprised me in a good way was “20 Feet from Stardom”, a movie I enjoyed when I saw it 10 years ago and look forward to revisiting.
  • Of the less-familiar titles, the one that intrigues me the most is the “Bohulano Family Film Collection”, filmed by a family from my hometown of Stockton, California. I’m genuinely curious to see what Stockton looked like before my time (my family moved there in the late ’80s), and equally curious to find out if I have any six-degrees-of-separation from this family. It’s astonishing to me that my hometown is getting some recognition on this list beyond “Cool Hand Luke” and that one shot in “Raiders of the Lost Ark“.
  • Also noteworthy is “¡Alambrista!” the only one of Representative Joaquin Castro’s 27 submissions to make the cut. I don’t know how I feel about getting more of my submissions on this list than Representative Castro’s much more publicized selection.
  • It’s nice to see Helen Keller represented via her Oscar-winning documentary, though I worry this really messes up my chances of getting “The Miracle Worker” on this list. I’ll keep fighting for you, Patty Duke!
  • As best I can tell, the only double-dippers from these movies are actors Catherine O’Hara and Alfre Woodard. Amazingly, this is the first NFR representation for either of them. Welcome to the club!
  • Congratulations to Damon Wayans, the first Wayans brother on the NFR (although his sister Kim made the cut last year). And apologies to Marlon Wayans, who I predicted would be the first Wayans brother to make the list. Clearly, no one on the NFR board is ready to re-watch “Requiem for a Dream”.
  • Not to gripe too much about what didn’t make the cut, but the NFR has once again excluded any of Jane Fonda’s filmography, and her current NFR total remains at 0. I’m beginning to think there’s a conspiracy behind all of this. Is she being kept off the list because she was married to Ted Turner? Hasn’t she atoned for that yet?

And finally, I know that in the grand scheme of things with all of the horrible atrocities happening in the world right now, my little movie blog “don’t amount to a hill of beans”. That being said, if reading any of my posts has given you even a moment of respite or happiness, I’m grateful to have added a little bit of good into the world. Thanks for your continued support, and my wish for 2024 is peace and freedom.

Stay safe and Happy Viewing,

Tony

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