There has been an outbreak of listomania amongst the bloggers I read. (Not to be confused with Lisztomania, starring Roger Daltry. I have resisted thus far, yet I find my resolve pretty much shot.
The Top 10 films in 10 categories that the AFI put out in a special last month which I have recorded but not watched; this week for sure.
* means I saw.
Animation
*1. Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs, 1937 – haven’t seen in years
*2. Pinocchio, 1940 – haven’t seen in even longer; those Disney movies used to get re-released every seven years when I was growing it, it seemed, so it was probably 1961
*3. Bambi, 1942 – Ditto, but 1963. Scared the heck out of me.
*4. The Lion King, 1994 – I liked it fine.
*5. Fantasia, 1940 – Actually own on VHS, own the soundtrack. There are slow spots, but the good stuff is really great.
* 6. Toy Story, 1995 – like a lot, though I like its successor much better
7. Beauty And The Beast, 1991 – have I actually seen this all the way through? I’ve seen so many segments.
*8. Shrek, 2001 – I like it, and I own it on VHS – it was a gift – but I’d put any of the Pixar films I’ve seen ahead of it, which is all of them save for Cars and WALL-E.
*9. Cinderella, 1950 – but not since 1964
*10. Finding Nemo, 2003 – interestingly, there are chase scenes that terrified my daughter last Christmas when we were at a party, like Bambi freaked me out.
Most egregious omission. The Iron Giant should most definitely be here.
Fantasy
*1. The Wizard Of Oz, 1939 – one of my all-time favorites.
*2. The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring, 2001 – I think I’m just not a fantasy guy. Never read the books – I got about 50 pages into The Hobbit – and after seeing this movie, never saw the other two. I know “Horrors!”
*3. It’s A Wonderful Life, 1946 – stretches the meaning of the category, I suppose. Actively avoided until my wife nagged me to see it; much better than I would have thought.
*4. King Kong, 1933 – need to see again.
*5. Miracle on 34th Street, 1947 – ditto.
*6. Field Of Dreams, 1989 – was skimming someone’s list and complained that this wasn’t on the sports list. Probably my favorite sports film, now that I think of it.
7. Harvey, 1950 – would see scenes on TV.
*8. Groundhog Day, 1993 – Top 5 film, irrespective of genre. Own on VHS.
9. The Thief Of Baghdad, 1924
*10. Big, 1988 – has great scenes; I have it on VHS, so sometime, I’ll have to see if it holds up.
Most egregious omission: The Princess Bride
Science Fiction
*1. 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968 – I’ll admit it; I don’t quite “get” it.
*2. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, 1977 – everyone says, probably correctly, that Empire Strikes Back is better, but this is the blueprint; Top 25 movie, probably Top 10 for me.
*3. E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, 1982 – Dare I say this? I HATED the end of this movie, and I liked it until then. Maybe I was having a bad day.
*4. A Clockwork Orange, 1971 – Horrified me. Own, love the soundtrack, though.
*5. The Day The Earth Stood Still, 1951 – need to see again.
6. Blade Runner, 1982 – probably should see.
*7. Alien, 1979 – it was good for what it was. Never saw the sequels.
*8. Terminator 2: Judgment Day, 1991 – I’ve seen on commercial TV, which distorts the watching process tremendously.
*9. Invasion Of The Body Snatchers, 1956 – prefer to the 1978 remake.
*10. Back To The Future, 1985 – seen so many times on TV, practically know by heart.
Sports
*1. Raging Bull, 1980 – as I noted here, the DVD extras helped me appreciate it more. Still, it’s a film at arm’s length.
*2. Rocky, 1976 – saw this in a Charlotte, NC movie theater with my mother. Liked it more than i thought I would.
*3. The Pride Of The Yankees, 1942 – sob. It’s been years, though.
*4. Hoosiers, 1986 – saw on video this century. Liked it.
*5. Bull Durham, 1988 – great choice.
*6. The Hustler, 1961 – it’s been years.
7. Caddyshack, 1980 – did I see this? Again, one sees clips and scenes, but possibly not the whole thing.
*8. Breaking Away, 1979 – I liked this a lot at the time but wonder if it aged well.
9. National Velvet, 1944 – seen scenes.
*10. Jerry Maguire, 1996 – liked well enough.
Most egregious omission: A League of Their Own,
Western
1. The Searchers, 1956 – haven’t seen.
*2. High Noon, 1952 – good in the genre.
3. Shane, 1953 – know I’ve seen the ending.
4. Unforgiven, 1992 – this is when Eastwood started becoming a filmmaker.
5. Red River, 1948 – nope.
6. The Wild Bunch, 1969 – studiously avoided Peckinpah at the time.
7. Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid, 1969 – great affection for this film.
8. McCabe And Mrs. Miller, 1971 – Tom the Dog has me wanting to see this one.
9. Stagecoach, 1939
10. Cat Ballou, 1965
Gangster
Not really my genre.
*1. The Godfather, 1972
*2. Goodfellas, 1990
3. The Godfather Part II, 1974
4. White Heat, 1949
5. Bonnie And Clyde, 1967
6. Scarface: The Shame Of The Nation, 1932
7. Pulp Fiction, 1994 – if it weren’t so darn funny, my wife wouldn’t have gotten through it. Own the soundtrack.
8. The Public Enemy, 1931
9. Little Caesar, 1931
10. Scarface, 1983
Mystery
1. Vertigo, 1958
*2. Chinatown, 1974 -saw it, did not love it.
*3. Rear Window, 1954 – saw in a theatrical re-release. LOVE it.
4. Laura, 1944
5. The Third Man, 1949
6. The Maltese Falcon, 1941
7. North By Northwest, 1959
8. Blue Velvet, 1986
9. Dial M For Murder, 1954
*10. The Usual Suspects, 1995 – I suspect this has not aged well.
Seems I’ve seen scenes of 6, 7, and 9.
Romantic Comedies
*1. City Lights, 1931 – sweet.
*2. Annie Hall, 1977 – my linchpin film. Seen four times in the theater. Own on VHS.
3. It Happened One Night, 1934
*4. Roman Holiday, 1953 – saw on TV not so long ago, enjoyed.
*5. The Philadelphia Story, 1940 – saw on commercial TV and enjoyed it anyway.
*6. When Harry Met Sally…, 1989 – liked, didn’t love and haven’t seen since (well, except that scene…)
*7. Adam’s Rib, 1949 – TV film; seemed enjoyable when I saw it years ago
*8. Moonstruck, 1987 – that I remember it as well as I do over 20 years later speaks well of it.
*9. Harold And Maude, 1971 – need to see again.
*10. Sleepless In Seattle, 1993 – it was OK
Courtroom Drama
I’m a sucker for these, including TV shows (The Defenders, Judd fore the defense, the lawyers’ segment of the Bold Ones, and, of course, Perry Mason)
*1. To Kill A Mockingbird, 1962 – saw again last summer Stellar.
*2. 12 Angry Men, 1957 – only a tad dated, and the core message holds. Own on DVD.
*3. Kramer Vs. Kramer, 1979 does this age well?
*4. The Verdict, 1982 – I loved Newman in this.
*5. A Few Good Men, 1992 – except for the courtroom scenes, this is fading from memory
6. Witness For The Prosecution, 1957
7. Anatomy of a Murder, 1959
8. In Cold Blood, 1967
9. A Cry In The Dark, 1988
10. Judgment At Nuremberg, 1961
Epic
1. Lawrence of Arabia, 1962
*2. Ben-Hur, 1959 – saw on commercial TV, which I suspect doesn’t do it justice. Still had some exciting bits.
3. Schindler’s List, 1993 – yes, this is an epic. Saw once, talked about it for longer than it ran, will never see again, but glad I saw it and think that anyone who claims to love film should.
4. Gone With The Wind, 1939 – can’t, I just can’t. And I’ve actually tried.
5. Spartacus, 1960 – bits and pieces.
*6. Titanic, 1997 – don’t hate it.
7. All Quiet On The Western Front, 1930
8. Saving Private Ryan, 1998
*9. Reds, 1981 – this was SO long, it had an intermission. Should have stopped with the first half.
*10. The Ten Commandments, 1956 – hysterically funny.
ROG