The folks down at the American Film Institute have updated their "100 Years, 100 Movies" list with a new Top 100 based on critics and filmmakers who have voted for their favorite American films. Citizen Kane has taken the cake, as it has in the past (and should), and all I'm thinking is "What, no GRINDHOUSE?"
Of course I'm kidding. But since people are more drawn to complain rather than to embrace, this list has immediately drawn fire from people who automatically think that since THEIR movie isn't on the AFI list, immediately the list is worthless. "How can they put X movie on there when Y movie is better?" Then along comes someone else going "How can they put Y movie on there when X movie is better?" It reminds me of the Oscars, where everyone suddenly thinks they're the authority on the awards, everyone disagrees and nothing is resolved except for a lot of useless pissing and moaning from people who secretly like to detest film. The act gets old and tired pretty damn quick, and people forget that we all bring our own attitudes towards film. We should be asking ourselves what we love about this medium if all we do is be so cynical.
This reminds me of why I enjoy going to the Vancouver Film Festival every year. No one agrees on anything. "Paris Je T'aime" and "The Lives of Others" were my favorites of VIFF '06, yet you could find as many people who detested it as much as people who adored them. The annual visit to this festival is a powerful reminder to think for yourself and not to let someone "higher" in power sway your opinion. You just think differently than they do. And that's good.
When I saw the AFI list back in 1998, I didn't need to agree with it. What I took from the show was its underlining power: "Hey, here are some good looking films that I need to go check out on DVD!" And I did. And for any aspiring film students or avid filmgoers who are looking to see some better movies in this day and age of Shrek The Third, this can be a great benefit. It is also a benefit to have interviews with established filmmakers, writers, actors and film scholars to give their reasons for why they adored each film.
If anything, the AFI, -- which in itself is a great film institution -- does a lot of good (I have a few friends enrolled there currently), and I think these lists and shows that air on TV are a good thing. If I can offer a critisicm, however, I really feel that the shows should stay as far away from giving away the endings to a lot of the movies being profiled. The clips for Citizen Kane, for example, explains Rosebud and plays the very last shot of the film. Offensive, to say the least.
For wit, here is my personal Top 10 Favorites of All Time and how they stack up on the AFI list:
#1. Apocalypse Now - AFI #30
#2. 2001: A Space Odyssey - AFI #15
#3. The Apartment - AFI #80
#4. Stop Making Sense - N/A
#5. Woodstock - N/A
#6. Grave of the Fireflies - N/A, since it is a foreign film
#7. Network - AFI #64
#8. Grand Illusion - N/A, since it is a foreign film
#9. The Godfather Part II - AFI #32
#10. Magnolia - N/A
Haven't seen any of those? Well, start renting some DVD's!
Jason
efilmcritic.com
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