Can You Guess AFI’s Top Ten?
Posted on June 10, 2008 at 8:00 am
The American Film Institute will be announcing the top movies in ten categories: Animated, Fantasy, Gangster, Sci-Fi, Western,
Sports, Mystery, Romantic Comedy, Courtroom Drama and Epic Films. If you can guess #1 in each category, you can win $1000 in Best Buy gift cards.
The winners will be announced on June 17 in a special featuring stars like Harrison Ford and Jessica Alba.
Here’s the entry form.
Below are some hints on the films I think are likely candidates. If you win, remember to thank me in your acceptance speech!
I took a look at the choices, but I’m not going to try and guess. It’s hard to do because my personal favorites have a way of biasing me against the choices that I think AFI members will probably make. If only we were allowed to pick two categories – “Will Win” and “Should Win” like some critics do before the Academy Awards.
I am going to conduct a contest for “The Top Ten Most Odious Ways to Dumb Down Our Culture By Getting People to View Art As A Competitive Horse Race Rather Than a Diverse, Multi-Faceted and Nuanced Way To Enhance Your Appreciation Of The World Around You.” Hmmmmm. Now let me see…. what shall I pick as No. One?
This is a curious exercise indeed. Apparently they have afixed group from which the best are to be chosen. I did not see any way to write in a suggestion. And I am surprised that some films did not make any of the lists (I did not see any of the King King’s listed – a serious omission). Also there was a strong preference for later films. I think the system is flawed. But there has always been a strong urge toward control in the AFI. I was a member when we lived near Washington DC, but I have long since let my membership lapse.
Well, I hope they have fun. The show ought to be kind of interesting.
Very good points from all of you, as I would expect from three of my favorite commenters! But I am in favor of these lists for the same reason I enjoy creating my own lists — they stir up interest in classic films that would otherwise be neglected in favor of the “new releases” shelf.
I didn’t know about the contest, or I would have surely entered. I probably would not have gotten them all right, however. Naturally, I did not expect my favorites to make it to the top, but some of them actually did. But there were some that were left out that I really thought should be there and some top choices that I did not agree with at all. And there were so many genres left out that they could do a couple more of these specials covering them. For instance: Musicals, Film Noir, Comedy, History, Adventure, etc. The Incredible’s, Cars and Alladin were left off the top ten list of Animation. Shrek? one of these others I think. Chariots of Fire left from the Sports films. (and they kept playing the theme song as they showed them). The Lord of the Rings was also an Epic, but only mentioned as a Fantasy. I thought Ben-Hur should have been the #1. I thought Star Wars should have been #1 Sci Fi, I could never sit all the way through 2001 A Space Odyssey. Where was Close Encounters? Caddyshack is more of a comedy than a sports movie. I also prefer North by Northwest to Vertigo. But these are fun to watch anyway, even if I don’t agree. I hope they do some more.