For 2007, the National Film Registry selects Back to the Future, Bullitt
On December 27th 2007, the Library of Congress National Film Registry announced the 25 movies to be added to its collection for the year. Once again, this website didn’t exist at that time, so it’s no prime news, but it’s important enough to tell you all about it.
Get the press release and watch the trailers after the jump.
Here’s an extract from the press release (source: The Library of Congress):
“LIBRARY OF CONGRESS NATIONAL FILM REGISTRY SELECTIONS FOR 2007
Back to the Future (1985)
Before “Beowulf” or “The Polar Express,” writer/director Robert Zemeckis explored the possibilities of special effects with the 1985 box-office smash “Back to the Future.” With his writing partner Bob Gale, Zemeckis tells the tale of accidental time-tourist Marty McFly. Stranded in the year 1955, Marty (Michael J. Fox)—with the help of Dr. Emmett Brown (played masterfully over-the-top by Christopher Lloyd)—must not only find a way home, but also teach his father how to become a man, repair the space/time continuum and save his family from being erased from existence. All this, while fighting off the advances of his then-teenaged mother. It’s “The Twilight Zone” meets Preston Sturges.Bullitt (1968)
“renowned for its exhilarating 11-minute car chase, arguably the finest in cinema history”
For his first American film, British director Peter Yates made an inspired decision: shoot a crime drama on location in San Francisco, rather than on the usual streets of L.A. or New York City. The pitched streets and stunning vistas of San Francisco, backed by a superb Lalo Schifrin score, play a central role in this film renowned for its exhilarating 11-minute car chase, arguably the finest in cinema history. Steve McQueen as the cop in the title role romances Jacqueline Bisset and solves a murder case while fighting off the mob and a sleazy district attorney, played by Robert Vaughn. ”
These movies being two of our all-time favorites, we’re thrilled by the news, and their selection shows how great their importance is in the History of cinema. And because they’re also in the first films which come to mind when talking about ”car movies”, a lot of auto aficionados, gearheads and car geeks are going to be pleased too.
