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AFI Top 100: A Superficial Analysis

by : DokBrowne [ email this article to a friend ]
 
Anybody remember AFI's 100 Greatest Movies list from a few years ago? It was a big deal at the time, even though no genuine (aka pretentious) movie fan respected its nonsensical inclusions, glaring omissions, and questionable rankings. But still, it seemed to matter, kind of like the Oscars. Everyone knows better than to trust the choices made by the Academy, yet it remains the master of ceremonies when it comes to movie awards. If nothing else, the American Film Institute's controversial list inspired a then teenaged me to branch out towards the classics of U.S. cinema (since foreign stuff was mostly ignored) and explore in greater depth what Hollywood had to offer before the 1980s. Plus, on a less noble level, I became fanatical about increasing the total number of films I'd seen on this so-called ultimate list. I think when it was first disclosed, my amount was a paltry 17 or so. Why do I care? What does it matter? Isn't it awfully trite? I dunno, nothing, and yes, but I'm a list person, and a movie person, so movie lists are my treasure. Behold, what I have thus far...

1 Citizen Kane (B) (does it deserve to be on the list: yes, though it's always seemed more like a technical/narrative breakthough than a truly brilliant film)

2 Casablanca (A-) (deserve: yes)

3 The Godfather (A) (deserve: yes)

4 Gone With the Wind (B+) (deserve: yes)

5 Lawrence of Arabia (C) (deserve: yes)

6 The Wizard of Oz (B) (deserve: yes)

7 The Graduate (C) (deserve: no, especially not this damn high up)

8 On the Waterfront (C) (deserve: not really)

9 Schindler's List (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: obviously)

10 Singin' in the Rain (A) (deserve: definitely)

11 It's a Wonderful Life (A-) (deserve: yes)

12 Sunset Boulevard (A) (deserve: yes)

13 The Bridge on the River Kwai (B-) (deserve: no)

14 Some Like it Hot (C+) (deserve: I understand why people think so, but this is just such an inane movie, I can't believe so many people love and respect it)

15 Star Wars (B) (deserve: without a doubt, though "Empire" coulda taken its place if they were going for sheer quality and not just historical significance)

16 All About Eve (A) (deserve: yes)

17 The African Queen (B+) (deserve: not sure. It's a bit fluffy)

18 Psycho (A) (deserve: of course, but where are the other Hitchcock masterpieces, motherfuckers?)

19 Chinatown (B) (deserve: yes)

20 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (C) (deserve: no. Overrated, mostly a commercial success)

21 The Grapes of Wrath (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: probably)

22 2001: A Space Odyssey (B+) (deserve: by the standards of the AFI, it should be in the top 10)

23 The Maltese Falcon (A-) (deserve: yes)

24 Raging Bull (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: yes)

25 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (B-) (deserve: possibly, though I could have done without it)

26 Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (A) (deserve: yes)

27 Bonnie & Clyde (B-) (deserve: no. It's only here because it broke the rules at the time)

28 Apocalypse Now (B) (deserve: yes)

29 Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (B+) (deserve: more than a lot of these movies, but still, not really)

30 The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (B+) (deserve: yes)

31 Annie Hall (B+) (deserve: compared to his best work, no - what about "Hannah and Her Sisters", "Crimes and Misdemeanors"? - but at least Woody is represented in some form)

32 The Godfather, Part II (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: yes. Given its acclaim, I'm rather surprised to see it ranked so low)

33 High Noon (A) (deserve: very much)

34 To Kill a Mockingbird (B+) (deserve: kind of)

35 It Happened One Night (B+) (deserve: no)

36 Midnight Cowboy (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: I'm thinking not)

37 The Best Years of Our Lives (A+) (deserve: as far as objectively great films go, this belongs at #1)

38 Double Indemnity (B+) (deserve: yes)

39 Doctor Zhivago (B) (deserve: not at all; it's like "Giant", earning a place here only because it was so "epic"-seeming in both content and publicity)

40 North by Northwest (B-) (deserve: eh, in my lesser opinion, it's weaker Hitchcock, and it's not as thematically rich as his other work)

41 West Side Story (B+) (deserve: as far as musicals, sure)

42 Rear Window (B) (deserve: yeah)

43 King Kong (B+) (deserve: yes)

44 The Birth of a Nation (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: yes)

45 A Streetcar Named Desire (C) (deserve: no. It's conventional melodrama with good acting)

46 A Clockwork Orange (B) (deserve: yes)

47 Taxi Driver (B+) (deserve: I don't object too much to it, although it isn't quite as great as many people believe)

48 Jaws (A-) (deserve: yes)

49 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (A-) (deserve: yes, even if "Pinocchio" is a superior picture and the finest example of Disney's genius)

50 Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (B) (deserve: eh)

51 The Philadelphia Story (B+) (deserve: I don't see what's so great about it. Big stars and a sometimes clever script, but what else?)

52 From Here to Eternity (C+) (deserve: maybe I just don't get it well enough)

53 Amadeus (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: seems like it might, but I have doubts)

54 All Quiet on the Western Front (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: not really)

55 The Sound of Music (B) (deserve: no)

56 M.A.S.H. (B) (deserve: better "The Player")

57 The Third Man (C-) (deserve: I'm sure it does, but I only saw it when I was really young, and that's influenced by thoughts about it ever since)

58 Fantasia (A) (deserve: absolutely. One of the smartest and most surprising selections on the list)

59 Rebel Without a Cause (A) (deserve: yes)

60 Raiders of the Lost Ark (B+) (deserve: yes)

61 Vertigo (A-) (deserve: yes)

62 Tootsie (B) (deserve: no! Drag comedies aren't works of art, people. Granted, there's some depth to this one, but it still mines for laughs from the sight of a man dressed as a woman)

63 Stagecoach (C-) (deserve: not in my opinion, but me and westerns never got along so good)

64 Close Encounters of the Third Kind (B+) (deserve: yes)

65 The Silence of the Lambs (B-) (deserve: no)

66 Network (B) (deserve: more no, but I could buy it)

67 The Manchurian Candidate (A-) (deserve: yes)

68 An American in Paris (B) (deserve: not so much)

69 Shane (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: I don't know)

70 The French Conneciton (B) (deserve: no. Insubstantial (albeit strikingly "realistic" in the details) action. Not that big a deal)

71 Forrest Gump (B+) (deserve: as a historical benchmark only. I can name a handful of far more worthy Zemeckis films)

72 Ben-Hur (B) (deserve: no. It's the kind of movie that's designed to be on a list like this, but is really pretty shallow and quickly dated under its heavy glitter)

73 Wuthering Heights (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: I don't know)

74 The Gold Rush (A-) (deserve: yes)

75 Dances With Wolves (B+) (deserve: not really)

76 City Lights (A-) (deserve: not as much as "The Gold Rush")

77 American Graffiti (B) (deserve: yeah, in a sentimental way)

78 Rocky (B-) (deserve: no)

79 The Deer Hunter (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: yes)

80 The Wild Bunch (B+) (deserve: hmmm...not sure. I see the argument for it, but the movie just doesn't wow me like it does others and I feel more obligated by reputation than compelled by the film itself to appreciate its greatness)

81 Modern Times (B) (deserve: it's respectable, but there are a hundred movies that could take its place)

82 Giant (C+) (deserve: not in the least. This one's baffling. So it was an epic with a legendary cast - so was Taylor's "Cleopatra". This is a wholly mediocre movie)

83 Platoon (B) (deserve: if it made war movies more realistic, then I guess it has importance. But there are much better entries in this genre out there)

84 Fargo (C) (deserve: nope. I never got the appeal of this one. The Coens should have a masterpiece, I agree, but this ain't it)

85 Duck Soup (A-) (deserve: yes. It's the Bros. at their best)

86 Mutiny on the Bounty (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: I don't know for sure)

87 Frankenstein (B+) (deserve: no, and it cheeses me that "Bride of Frankenstein", which is unanimously considered an improvement, was overlooked)

88 Easy Rider (C+) (deserve: no. It's a forgettable cult "classic" and nothing more. Some say it has that "defining a generation and creating a new kind of filmmaking" legacy similar to "The Graduate" and while I appreciate that to a certain extent, it doesn't seem to matter much in the long run, really)

89 Patton (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: yes)

90 The Jazz Singer (D) (deserve: no. The worst choice on the entire list. It was the first movie to use sound? Well, what was the first movie to show a woman's breasts? Isn't that movie entitled to "great movie" status? Or the first color film? Come on)

91 My Fair Lady (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: not really, but I could be wrong)

92 A Place in the Sun (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: no)

93 The Apartment (A-) (deserve: a little)

94 Goodfellas (A) (deserve: yes)

95 Pulp Fiction (A) (deserve: yes; it should be war higher than 95)

96 The Searchers (C-) (deserve: kinda sorta)

97 Bringing Up Baby (B) (deserve: no. It's inconsequential and not that super a comedy. Like "The Philadelphia Story")

98 Unforgiven (B) (deserve: yes)

99 Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (HAVEN'T SEEN) (deserve: not from what I know about it. Looks really annoying)

100 Yankee Doodle Dandy (B) (deserve: no)

NUMBER OF MOVIES I'VE SEEN ON THE LIST: 85

More to come...unless I never get around to it


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