National Film Registry

[TikiSoo]

Mardi Gras Carnival (1898)
Cab Calloway Home Movies (1948-1951)
Hairspray (1988)
When Harry Met Sally (1989)

I do think WHEN HARRY MET SALLY and HAIRSPRAY are outstanding movies that will be enjoyed through the ages. Do they really need a restoration? Or is this just a list of films deemed culturally "significant"?

But very popular films sometimes are shown so often that they are in surprisingly poor shape. This was true of The Godfather, and I think it was also true of The Exorcist.

The problem with THE GODFATHER and BUTCH CASSIDY (not so sure about EXORCIST) is they used weird vegetable dyes on the film that faded badly. The 70's: all orange-all the time. I also think film of that era is particularly grainy.

As a cultural historian, choices like Mardi Gras Carnival from 1898 and Cab Calloway's home movies strike me as thrilling little documents of the past. But really-NO other silent films?

[drednm]

In past years, they GENERALLY tried to get at least one film from each decade. Or at least it seemed so. Maybe that was just a coincidence.

[CinemaInternational]

2023 selections....

• 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)

[CinemaInternational]

Thank you for posting this. Kind of a meh list overall. Yes to DINNER AT EIGHT, LADY AND THE TRAMP, and APOLLO 13. Ten years is much too soon for eligibility.

There is definitely that ho-hum feeling about it all, and frankly, the way that Terminator II still makes the rounds on TV, it does not need immediate preservation. The whole list skews too recent.