National Film Registry Adds ‘Memento,’ ‘Titanic,’ ‘Die Hard,’ ‘The Goonies’ And More
Every year, the Library of Congress adds 25 “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant films” to theNational Film Registry, a move to protect and preserve American film history. Every year finds a fascinating mixture of films inducted – early silent movies, documentaries, blockbusters, and cult classics are among the 725 films in the registry. It’s a cool thing and an important thing, especially since arts funding in the United Statesis currently hanging over a precipice.
This year’s inductees include a Christopher Nolan classic, a great superhero movie, a beloved ’80s adventure, a more-relevant-than-ever satire, a Disney classic, one of the best action movies ever made, one of the most popular and lauded epics in Hollywood history, and so much more.
The most recent film included in this year’s batch isMemento, the twisted 2000 noir that put director Christopher Nolan on the radar of major studios and propelled him to the career he has today (and on some days, I still think this is his best movie). The other more modern inductee is James Cameron’sTitanic, which, 20 years after its release, remains one of the most impressive and beloved epics to ever make over a billion dollars worldwide.
’80s fans will celebrate the inclusion ofThe GooniesandDie Hard, the former a touchstone for an entire generation and the latter a touchstone for action cinema that has yet to be topped. Disney fans will cheerDumbomaking the list (before prompting a “Wait, itwasn’ton the registry already?") and comic book movie fans will be happy to see Richard Donner’s 1978Supermanfilm included.
Naturally, the list leans toward older movies and there are some doozies here: Stanley Kubrick’s thrillingSpartacus, Billy Wilder’s scathingAce in the Hole, Stanley Kramer’s hot-button dramaGuess Who’s Coming to Dinner, and Elia Kazan’s groundbreakingGentleman’s Agreementare counted among the new 25.
