LOS ANGELES — The Oscar-winning “Forrest Gump,” Walt
Disney’s classic animated film “Bambi,” Charlie Chaplin’s first
feature-length comedy, “The Kid,” and a 1912 silent comedy, “A Cure for
Pokeritis” (starring cinema’s earliest comedy superstar, John Bunny) are
among the 25 movies that have been selected to be preserved as
cultural, artistic and historical treasures in the National Registry of
the Library of Congress.
Librarian of Congress James H. Billington made the
selections, which span the years 1912 to 1994 and include an eclectic
mixture of feature films, documentaries, short subjects and experimental
films.
With this year’s selections, there are 575 films in
the registry. “These films are selected because of their enduring
significance to American culture,” Billington said in a statement. “Our
film heritage must be protected because these cinematic treasures
document our history and culture and reflect our hopes and dreams.”
The Library of Congress Packard Campus for Audio
Visual Conservation ensures each title named to the registry is
preserved for future generations.
Here’s a look at the 25 selections:
“Allures” (1961) Director Jordan Belson was dubbed
the master of “cosmic cinema” who created abstract imagery with color,
light and moving patterns and objects. “Allures” is a five-minute film
that Belson said “was probably the space-iest film that had been done
until then. It creates a feeling of moving into the void.”
“Bambi” (1942) Disney’s personal favorite follows the
adventures of a fawn named Bambi and his friends Flower the skunk and
Thumper the bunny.
“The Big Heat” (1953) Fritz Lang directed this film noir starring Glenn Ford, Lee Marvin and Gloria Grahame.
“A Computer Animated Hand” (1972) Ed Catmull,
co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios, created a program nearly 40 years
ago to digitally animate a human hand. This one-minute film displays
the animated hand.
“Crisis: Behind a Presidential Commitment” (1963)
Filmmaker Robert Drew and several other documentary directors including
D.A. Pennebaker and Richard Leacock chronicled Alabama Gov. George
Wallace’s attempts to stop two African American students from enrolling
at the University of Alabama and President John F. Kennedy’s response.
“The Cry of Children” (1912) This silent drama about child labor helped instigate labor reform.
“A Cure for Pokeritis” (1912) Rotund comic John
Bunny, who died in 1915, was one of the biggest comedy stars between
1910 and 1915. In this farce, he plays a henpecked husband.
“El Mariachi” (1992) Robert Rodriguez’s first feature, which he made for $7,000 while a film student at the University of Texas.
“Faces” (1968) John Cassavetes’ masterwork offers a
razor-sharp critique of middle-class America. Gena Rowlands, John
Marley, Lynn Carlin and Seymour Cassel star.
“Fruit Cake Factory” (1985) Chick Strand’s
documentary on young Mexican women who make ornamental papier-mache
fruits and vegetables.
“Forrest Gump” (1994) Robert Zemeckis directed this
box-office hit, which went on to win several Academy Awards including
best picture, director and lead actor for Tom Hanks, who plays a sweet
Everyman who encounters the major events of the 1960s and ‘70s.
“Growing Up Female” (1971) Ohio college students
Julia Reichart and Jim Klein follow six girls and women from the ages of
4 to 34 at home, work and school.
“Hester Street” (1975) Director Joan Micklin Silver’s
feature, which was financed by her husband, looks at Eastern European
Jewish life in America in the early 1900s. Carol Kane earned an Oscar
nomination as an immigrant who arrives in New York to marry.
“I, an Actress” (1977) The late underground filmmaker George Kuchar’s comedy about his directing techniques.
“The Iron Horse” (1924) John Ford’s seminal Western
focuses on how the country was united after the Civil War with the
building of the transcontinental railroad.
“The Kid” (1921) Charlie Chaplin’s first
feature-length comedy-drama, about the Little Tramp taking in a
foundling (Jackie Coogan).
“The Lost Weekend” (1945) Billy Wilder’s
Oscar-winning drama examining the effects of alcoholism with a realism
that hadn’t been shown on screen before. Ray Milland, who was known more
for his lighter roles, won an Oscar for his performance as the young
writer who loses everything when he turns to alcohol. The film also won
Academy Awards for best picture, director and screenplay.
“The Negro Soldier” (1944) Frank Capra’s World War II
U.S. Army film unit produced this look at the contributions of African
Americans in society as well as their heroic contributions in the war.
The film was produced as a response to discrimination against African
Americans who were stationed in the South during the war.
“Nicholas Brothers Family Home Movies” (1930s-1940s)
Legendary tap dancing brothers Fayard and Harold Nicholas, who graced
such films as 1948’s “The Pirate,” also shot home movies that feature
one-of-a-kind footage of Broadway, Harlem and Hollywood.
“Norma Rae” (1979) Sally Field won her first Oscar as
a single mother working at a textile mill in the South who attempts to
organize the workers. Martin Ritt directed.
“Porgy and Bess” (1959) Otto Preminger directed this
lavish version of George Gershwin and DuBose Heyward’s folk opera,
starring Sidney Poitier, Dorothy Dandridge, Sammy Davis Jr., Pearl
Bailey and Diahann Carroll. There are very few prints of the film in
existence, so it has rarely been seen in recent decades.
“The Silence of the Lambs” (1991) The horror thriller
based on the book by Thomas Harris swept the Academy Awards, winning
best picture, director (Jonathan Demme), adapted screenplay (Ted Tally),
lead actress for Jodie Foster as rookie FBI agent Clarice Starling and
lead actor for Anthony Hopkins as the cannibalistic serial killer
Hannibal Lecter.
“Stand and Deliver” (1988) Edward James Olmos earned
an Oscar nomination in the inspiring true story of East Los Angeles high
school teacher Jaime Escalante.
“Twentieth Century” (1934) Howard Hawks directed this
breathlessly funny screwball comedy adapted by Ben Hecht and Charles
MacArthur from their Broadway play about an egomaniacal director (John
Barrymore) and his temperamental leading lady (Carole Lombard).
“War of the Worlds” (1953) George Pal produced this
lavish, Oscar-winning, special effects-laden sci-fi thriller based on
H.G. Wells’ novel about Martian aircraft landing on Earth. Gene Barry
and Ann Robinson star.
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