Looking at my film history posts, I evidently only remember to talk about the National Film Registry when I’m working on my biennial Favorite Films post. However, the Library of Congress designates 25 films every year deemed “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.” Over 900 films are on the registry now, even if you go through the whole list, you’ll think of more that could be added (and which you can nominate). So it’s always nice to see the new entries.
You can read about the picks from Deadline, NPR, and Variety. The list of 25 is below, but you can learn more about the Library’s process from nomination and selection of this year’s films on their own site.
As always, the Library picks films from across the decades, across genres, and across current public awareness. They need not have all screened at Caaaaaannes:
- Annabelle Serpentine Dance (1895)
- KoKo’s Earth Control (1928)
- Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)
- Pride of the Yankees (1942)
- Invaders from Mars (1953)
- The Miracle Worker (1962)
- The Chelsea Girls (1966)
- Ganja and Hess (1973)
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
- Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
- Zora Lathan Student Films (1975-76)
- Up in Smoke (1978)
- Will (1981)
- Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan (1982)
- Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
- Dirty Dancing (1987)
- Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989)
- Powwow Highway (1989)
- My Own Private Idaho (1991)
- American Me (1992)
- Mi Familia (1995)
- Compensation (1999)
- Spy Kids (2001)
- No Country for Old Men (2007)
- The Social Network (2010)
And, of course, if you have a bunch of films, why not have a montage? The Library of Congress has been doing delightful announcement videos and this year is no exception. Enjoy.