I had the same thoughts when I saw that list. :nod:
I didn't watch the entire 3 hour special(way too long) but I saw most of it and the final summary. I had to search the internet to see which films had been up for nomination. Here's my 2 cents...
Animation--- It was a pretty good list, but The Little Mermaid really should have been there. The Little Mermaid is the film that helped usher Disney back into the golden era of high quality musical animation. Bambi... I wouldn't even have placed on the list. People remember Bambi for its cuteness and tearjerking moment but not much else. The Secret of NIMH failed to make the cut. Too bad, I love the maturity of that cartoon.
Fantasy---Honestly, I couldn't be more disappointed with their final list. That's not to say I didn't enjoy the movies they picked....but that list was very one dimensional. 8/10 of those movies could be considered Light Fantasy. Where is the dark fantasy or the mythological fantasy? Some of the movies that were nominated but didn't make it----Clash of the Titans, The Dark Crystal, Pirates of the Carribean, Spiderman 2, Mary Poppins, The Princess Bride and Harry Potter to name a few. As much as I adore Big, one of these other films should have taken its place.
Sci-Fi---Again, a pretty good list with the exception of a few glaring ommisions. I would remove Back to the Future and Invasion of the Body Snatchers and replace them with either one of The Matrix, Planet of the Apes, Frankenstein or Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind. I feel these 4 films had a larger impact on the genre than the 2 they put in. I have yet to watch A Clockwork Orange(just not my kind of story) but have seen The Day the Earth Stood Still and was glad it made the list.
Sports---I am not a sports film fan but surprisingly I have seen 6/10 movies on that list. Caddyshack is funny but I don't like it there. Did they put that there so they could represent Golf? I would have put in The Bad News Bears or The Karate Kid over that.
Western---This genre is beyond my expertise. I just haven't seen enough westerns.
Gangster---Same as above. I don't watch a lot of gangster films...but it seemed a no-brainer that the 2 Godfathers would be there.
Mystery---Blue Velvet?! Yuck.
There are 2 movies on that list I haven't seen- The Third Man & Chinatown...so I can't comment on those. I was a surprised Laura ranked so high as I felt that movie was a bit meandering. If they had to pick a movie with a haunting dead woman then Rebecca would have been my choice. And I am not at all surprised this category was dominated by old films. Good mystery is a dying art in Hollywood. With the age of tv & internet, it is difficult to keep suspense in movies a secret. And most mysteries nowadays are adaptations of novels, so everyone knows the climax before it even reaches the screen. Films I wanted on the list--- The Bourne Identity and Gaslight.
Romantic Comedy---Yikes! The worse top 10 of the night. This list practically screamed 'old-voters-who-don't-go-out-anymore'. The compilation is just way too tame. I did appreciate that the classics It Happened One Night, The Philadelphia Story and Roman Holiday were there. I've never seen Annie Hall but I'm not at all surprised by its rank. Moonstruck, Harold and Maude and Sleepless in Seatle are all yawner-type romances.:yawn: They should be replaced by either His Girl Friday, Pretty Woman, While you were Sleeping, 16 Candles(yes it was actually nominated!) or Shakespeare in Love. And shouldn't the #1 romantic comedy be a film we've at least heard of. City Lights? Has anyone seen it?
Courtroom Drama---A fair top 10. I still don't like seeing A Few Good Men there. I find it highly overrated, with the Jack Nicholson scene the only thing people ever seem to reference. Inherit the Wind really should have made the cut. The Evolution vs Creation battle was superbly acted. On the slightly unconventional side, I would have also chosen either Primal Fear or Suspect.
Epic---Again, this is one of those categories that is meant to salute a bygone era. Not many epics being made today. And for that matter what exactly is an epic anyway? Somehow I don't see Saving Private Ryan as an epic...especially when you put it on a list with big sweeping epics like the Ten Commandments, Spartacus, Gone with the Wind, Ben-Hur and Lawrence of Arabia.
And did anyone else find it strange that Horror wasn't even included as a category?
