Library of Congress Adds Movies to the 2010 Film Registry

The Library of Congress announced its 2010 Film Registry list. The Library of Congress Film Registry seeks to preserve films that are “…culturally, historically or aesthetically significant, to be preserved for all time.” These films aren’t necessarily the best films of a particular genre. Rather they are representatives of the time in which they were made.  The films range from comical (Airplane and The Pink Panther) to dramatic (All the Presidents Men and Malcolm X) to groundbreaking (Newark Athlete and The Front Page) to even the blockbusters (The Empire Strikes Back and Saturday Night Fever).  In case you are wondering which films made the list for 2010, they are:

1.            Airplane (1980)

2.           All the President’s Men (1976)

3.           The Bargain (1914)

4.           Cry of Jazz (1959)

5.           Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB (1967)

6.           The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

7.            The Exorcist (1973)

8.           The Front Page (1931)

9.           Grey Gardens (1976)

10.          I Am Joaquin (1969)

11.           It’s a Gift (1934)

12.           Let There Be Light (1946)

13.           Lonesome (1928)

14.           Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)

15.           Malcolm X (1992)

16.           McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971)

17.           Newark Athlete (1891)

18.           Our Lady of the Sphere (1969)

19.           The Pink Panther (1964)

20.           Preservation of the Sign Language (1913)

21.           Saturday Night Fever (1977)

22.           Study of a River (1996)

23.           Tarantella (1940)

24.           A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945)

25.           A Trip Down Market Street (1906)

Yes, some on the list are more well known than others. Yet, whether they are a documentary, short film or feature film, they all have a story to tell. Be it about political corruption, the importance of dreams, social justice or just getting the bad guy before he strikes again, stories are how human beings inform and instruct each other and subsequent generations. So, the having the Library of Congress preserve these films isn’t just a publicity stunt to make them look less stuffy.  Rather it is keeping with the library’s mission to “…further human understanding”. So, these films to the Film Registry will help future generations know more about life in the 20^th Century. Either that or they’ll be very entertained.

To learn more about the films on the list, go to:
http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2010/10-273.html

Source:
http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2010/10-273.html

Advertisement

The 1970’s, The Greatest Decade in Film?

Over the years, I have read quite a few articles that state the 1970’s were the greatest decade in film. Yes, many directors made their mark in the 1970’s, such as Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, just to name a few. Also, there are a good number of films that were both commercial and critical successes, such as, The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, Taxi Driver, Network, again just to name a few.

Still, a lot can happen after a decade passes and films can fall into and out of favor. So, can any one decade be considered the greatest decade in film? Many say that 1939 is the greatest year in film, since that was the year films such as The Wizard of Oz, Gone With The Wind, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Wuthering Heights were released. Of course, just because many people say such a thing, doesn’t make it true. Also, as the years went on, some of those films seem dated and hokey to modern audiences.

For me, the jury is still out as to whether or not the 1970’s were the greatest decade in film. So, I’ll just take this opportunity to highlight what I think sets filmmaking in the  1970’s apart from other decades.

Directors were products of universities, not studios
Martin Scorsese graduated from New York University and he was a film major. Francis Ford Coppola majored in drama at Hofstra University and did graduate work in film at UCLA. George Lucas went to University of Southern California film school.  Steven Spielberg went to California State University Long Beach. This list of directors and where they went to school shows that unlike directors of the past they weren’t “apprenticed” under one director or just fell into directing.  The people mentioned above were exposed to not only the liberal arts tradition, they were also exposed to and examined French films, Italian films, German films, Japanese films, Hollywood films, art films and they were getting their hands dirty by making their own films. This exposure to many different movie making modes and being allowed to try out their ideas, lead to Hollywood movies that had a richness and depth that wasn’t there before.

Hollywood recovered from development of television
My theory is that it took Hollywood 10 years to recover from the shock that television inflicted. Yes, developments like Cinemascope and color film becoming standard helped to bring people back to the movies. Still, once the powers that be were convinced that people still wanted to go the movies on a regular basis, they were more willing to give directors like Scorsese, Coppola, Lucas and others a chance.

Willingness to explore social issues
Somewhat related to the above, by the 1970’s, the old school of studio heads had died out and those that came after were willing to okay movies that weren’t just about “Boy Meets Girl”.  The movies of the decade dealt with the aftermath of the Vietnam war (The Deer Hunter, Coming Home), political corruption (All The Presidents’ Men), the effect of television in our lives (Network), racism and the drug trade (Superfly) and the list goes on. These films took on issues and the directors and other involved with the film weren’t afraid to face some controversy.

The Blockbuster Film
I also feel the need to mention that the blockbuster film, as we know it, came about in the 1970’s. Films like Jaws, Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Superman weren’t just successful films. They broke box office records, had catch phrases and led to merchandising deals and sequels. Since then, it is rare that a blockbuster film doesn’t have some merchandise related to it, does very, very well at the box office and have a sequel or two in the works.

So, while the 1970’s may not be the definitive best decade in film, it does stand out from the decades that came before and from those that came afterwards.

Sources:

http://www.theauteurs.com/topics/2849?page=3

http://movieprojector.blogspot.com/2009/08/best-movies-of-1970s.html

http://www.filmsite.org/1939.html

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000217/bio

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000338/bio

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000184/bio