Same Old Song and Dance

So another year, another AFI list….this one leaving me scratching my head more than any list they’ve compiled before. I enjoy taking in these lists, and watching the specials when they air, but I’m beginning to feel like Barry in HIGH FIDELITY. No sooner does number one arrive, than do I feel the urge to call AFI out for giving one film neo-classic status in a list of old safe choices (very pussy!).

The listologist in me (Is that even a word?) was pretty entertained, but I got rather crusty when the ten fantasy films were named. I’m not sure about you fine folks, but when I think fantasy films, I tend to lean more toward the mythic/fairy tale end of the spectrum (LORD OF THE RINGS, LEGEND, HARRY POTTER). The AFI on the other hand, seemed to qualify it as any film where anything magical happens. Of the ten films they chose, I’ve seen nine – and would recommend them all. However, I’m having a very hard time qualifying titles like GROUNDHOG DAY and MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET as fantasy.

This leads me to my second spot of grumpiness on the night. The AFI has an all-star squad that they like to work into every list. These ten or twelve titles are undoubtedly classics, but I find it defeating to come up with new categories to list if you’re just going to go back to listing the same safe dozen? For instance…

is SCHINDLER’S LIST an epic?
…is CITY LIGHTS a romantic comedy?
…is A CLOCKWORK ORANGE science fiction?

There were other such head-scratching instances, but I’ve complained enough about the list today (perhaps I’ll come up with ten overlooked titles tomorrow). When it was over, I saw the list for what I always see it as – a really swell rental recommendation list. Find the list of all one hundred titles after the jump.

Animation
10. Finding Nemo (2003)
9. Cinderella (1950)
8. Shrek (2001)
7. Beauty and the Beast (1991)
6. Toy Story (1995)
5. Fantasia (1940)
4. The Lion King (1994)
3. Bambi (1942)
2. Pinocchio (1940)
1. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

Fantasy
10. Big (1988)
9. The Thief of Bagdad (1924)
8. Groundhog Day (1993)
7. Harvey (1950)
6. Field of Dreams (1989)
5. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
4. King Kong (1933)
3. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
2. The Lord of the Rings (2001)
1. The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Sci-Fi
10. Back to the Future (1985)
9. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
8. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
7. Alien (1979)
6. Blade Runner (1982)
5. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
4. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
3. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
2. Star Wars (1977)
1. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Sports
10. Jerry Maguire (1996)
9. National Velvet (1944)
8. Breaking Away (1979)
7. Caddyshack (1980)
6. The Hustler (1961)
5. Bull Durham (1988)
4. Hoosiers (1986)
3. Pride of the Yankees (1942)
2. Rocky (1976)
1. Raging Bull (1980)

Westerns
10. Cat Ballou (1965)
9. Stagecoach (1939)
8. McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)
7. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
6. The Wild Bunch (1969)
5. Red River (1948)
4. Unforgiven (1992)
3. Shane (1953)
2. High Noon (1952)
1. The Searchers (1956)

Gangster
10. Scarface (1983)
9. Little Caesar (1931)
8. The Public Enemy (1931)
7. Pulp Fiction (1994)
6. Scarface: The Shame of a Nation (1932)
5. Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
4. White Heat (1949)
3. The Godfather, Part II (1974)
2. Goodfellas (1990)
1. The Godfather (1972)

Mysteries
10. The Usual Suspects (1995)
9. Dial M for Murder (1954)
8. Blue Velvet (1986)
7. North By Northwest (1959)
6. The Maltese Falcon (1941)
5. The Third Man (1949)
4. Laura (1941)
3. Rear Window (1954)
2. Chinatown (1974)
1. Vertigo (1958)

Romantic Comedies
10. Sleepless in Seattle (1993)
9. Harold and Maude (1971)
8. Moonstruck (1987)
7. Adam’s Rib (1949)
6. When Harry Met Sally… (1989)
5. The Philadelphia Story (1940)
4. Roman Holiday (1953)
3. It Happened One Night (1934)
2. Annie Hall (1977)
1. City Lights (1931)

Courtroom Dramas
10. Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
9. A Cry in the Dark (1988)
8. In Cold Blood (1967)
7. Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
6. Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
5. A Few Good Men (1992)
4. The Verdict (1982)
3. Kramer Vs. Kramer (1979)
2. 12 Angry Men (1957)
1. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

Epics
10. The Ten Commandments (1956)
9. Reds (1981)
8. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
7. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
6. Titanic (1997)
5. Spartacus (1960)
4. Gone With the Wind (1939)
3. Schindler’s List (1993)
2. Ben-Hur (1959)
1. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)