Cinema Wellman vs. The A.F.I.

Hello and welcome to Cinema Wellman! I am your host David, and today Cinema Wellman takes on the American Film Institute.

I’ve always questioned shadowy organizations and “governing bodies” and the like. They all seem like cabals to me in some way. FIFA, the NCAA, the Academy, and the A.F.I. all fit into this category. Anything they do comes under great scrutiny here. And I rarely agree with any of them.

And today I’m not agreeing with the A.F.I. because they put together what they consider to be the Top 100 films of all time.

I beg to differ. 

Keep in mind that I believe it to be impossible to create a list of the Top 100 American Films. I would never even begin to entertain the thought of compiling my Top 100 films. It couldn’t be done. I love so many movies for so many reasons. How could I compare and attempt to rank Godzilla, Bullitt and The Big Lebowski?

Impossible. 

I love thinking that I could pull it off someday, but I doubt that will ever happen. It just can’t be done.

You cannot make a ranked list of the 100 all-time best American movies.

BUT. If you DO do it…be prepared for Cinema Wellman to disagree with a lot of your decisions. 

And that’s what this episode is all about. 

The American Film Institute compiled a list of “AFI’s 100 Years, 100 Movies” twice. The most recent time they made the attempt was in 2007, and that’s the list I’ll be taking issue with today since they haven’t updated it since. Come on, A.F.I.! What else do you have to do all day?!

It’s been 16 years! Get on it!

Since I do consider the task impossible, I’ll cut them some slack overall. I won’t quibble with much but do have some changes I’d make to their list as it exists.

I’ve divided my comments into three different lists; 1) Okay with it being on the list but it’s way too high, 2) It’s on the list but should be higher, and 3) Get off the damn list. 

There’s also something else that I want to take care of first.

There are three non-American (U.K.) films that shouldn’t appear on an A.F.I. list. Our films aren’t on the B.F.I. list, so theirs shouldn’t be on ours. Even if they’re terrific! 

Lawrence of Arabia (1962) is #7 on this list, but it’s a British movie with a British director (David Lean) that was produced through a British company (Horizon Pictures). Fantastic film! Fantastic British film!

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) was a “co-production” with British director Lean on hand again. I’m not buying the inclusion of a “co-production.”

A Clockwork Orange (1971) was another “co-production” between Americans and Brits, this one directed by an American (Stanley Kubrick), but filmed entirely in England.

I’m not sure what the actual rules were for all of this, but I do think it’s odd for an “American” Film Institute to include British films in their list of “100 Years…100 Movies.”

If English speaking/non-American films were counted, then they missed an awful lot that were Top 100 worthy. 

With those UK films out of the way, let’s begin with the group of films that I have no issue with being included in the Top 100, BUT they are way too high on the list in my opinion.

#5)   Singin’ in the Rain (1952) 

There are only three other musicals on the list along with two additional “musical adjacent” movies. Singin’ in the Rain is a fine film, but it should be behind all three of the other musicals on the list (West Side Story #51, Cabaret #63, and Swing Time #90). 

I like this movie, but there’s no way it should be in the Top 5! Or Top 10. Or Top 25 for that matter. It deserves to be on the list, but not this high. 

#17) The Graduate (1967)

 Have you watched this recently? It has NOT aged well. Some movies stand the test of time, while others seem dated and lose some/all of their luster with age. 

The Mrs. Robinson plotline seems awfully creepy now, and our protagonist’s behavior at the end is unstable and jealous and possessive. It’s just not a good look.

I once had an ex-girlfriend who said she was going to show up at my wedding and pull a “Benjamin Braddock.”

Thankfully she did not. 

I get that this is a story of the 60’s and how crazy and free they were, blah blah blah.

Get out of the Top 20.

I’d be happy with The Graduate staying on the list, somewhere in the low 80s. 

#23) The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

 Great book. Important book. Classic literature. Decent movie with decent performances, but it just doesn’t stand up against other stellar films from the time period.

This is such a downer. I get it! It’s depressing subject matter about a depressing time. But drop it to the 70s somewhere. I don’t want to be covered with so much dust at #23!

#24) E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

Before all of you E.T. fans go ballistic, I don’t want it off the list. I just can’t imagine how this simple, silly, and sometimes boring movie makes it into the Top 25. 

There’s not much to it. Watch it again, and you’ll see what I mean. It’s cute at times, but cute doesn’t get you into the Top 25.

 

#37) The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

The only reason this film this film won Best Picture (and SIX other Oscars!), and the only reason it garners #37 on this prestigious list is because The Best Years of Our Lives was, like many other war movies of the 40s, a pro-America propaganda movie. Yay, America. Rah, Rah, us.

This film does deal with the issue of soldiers returning home traumatized and/or disabled, and it does so in a compassionate way. So that is a reason to keep it on the list.

So, stay on the list, but drop down to the 90s. 

The next grouping features films that appear on the list, but they should be higher up in our opinion.

#96) Do the Right Thing (1989) - New to the 2007 list/not on 1997's list

Film has always been a reflection of society (good and bad), and issues surrounding race have been visited in movies since the medium began.

I was surprised to see that there were only three films on this Top 100 list that dealt with race as one of the major themes. There should definitely be more on the list, and Do the Right Thing deserved to be in the Top 50.

It’s honest, it’s unflinching, it’s sometimes difficult to watch, and there should be more thought-provoking films like it on this list. 

 

#93) The French Connection (1971)

 How can a film that is considered to be one of the greatest police stories ever filmed only reach #93 on this list?!

This has everything a gritty crime drama from the 70s should have; an ethically challenged cop, a dirty NYC, an iconic car chase, and lots of heroin.

It still stands out as an exciting action film 52 years after its release. That is not an easy task, especially looking at some of the other films on this list that have withered over time.

#87) 12 Angry Men (1957) - New to the 2007 list/not on 1997's list

Another genre that is virtually ignored by the A.F.I. on this list is the courtroom drama. There are really only two on this list (To Kill a Mockingbird is #25), and they should swap positions in my book.

12 Angry Men is a phenomenal film with an all-star cast (Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Jack Warden, Martin Balsam, E.G. Marshall, and Jack Klugman) that is much more than a courtroom movie. 

It’s one of those “claustrophobic” movies in the sense that, like Hitchcock’s Rope, the entire movie takes place in one room. In this case, it’s the juror’s room as they deliberate the fate of a young man who is charged with stabbing his abusive father. 

Lee J. Cobb is a standout in this cast as a bigoted loudmouth who constantly butts heads with Fonda’s character.

I am definitely going to do a future episode about “Courtroom Movies,” and this will be near the top of that list. 

Just thinking about this movie makes me want to watch it again. 

   

#72) The Shawshank Redemption (1994) - New to the 2007 list/not on 1997's list

Another future episode is going to be all about “Prison Movies,” and The Shawshank Redemption is a cinch for Top 3.

I’m not suggesting it should be Top 3 on this list, but it should be a hell of a lot higher than #72. That’s just absurd. 

In another surprise to me, this is the only prison movie on the list. I guess Charlie Chaplin never made a prison movie. The A.F.I. seems to have included every movie he was ever involved in. Overrated.

I love The Shawshank Redemption even though it stars an enemy of Cinema Wellman, Tim Robbins. It’s a wonderful film that goes beyond its prison setting. 

I know people who will watch this to the finish whenever they run across it on TV. Doesn’t matter if they stumble across the 15th minute or the 115th minute. Watch from where you are. 

We all have those movies!

#64) Network (1976)

Ten Oscar nominations, four Oscar wins (including 3 for acting!), an eerily prescient story written by Paddy Chayefsky, directed by Sidney Lumet, and the best the A.F.I. can do is #64?  That’s ridiculous. Especially when you look at some of the films that are ranked higher. Six of the films I’m about to toss out are ranked higher than Network. 

That’s just ridiculous. 

And the last film on this short list of movies that deserve a much higher ranking is…

 

#56) Jaws (1975)

My love for Jaws has been well documented here at Cinema Wellman, so it’s no surprise that I want to move it up A.F.I.’s list.

I’m not going to go totally bananas and demand it be in the Top 5, or even the Top 10…

BUT…it deserves to be a lot higher than #56. I’d be more than satisfied with #30 next time they re-rack this list.

I’ll be waiting, A.F.I.!

Our final group includes films that should just get off the damn list for a variety of reasons and indiscretions. 

#89) The Sixth Sense (1999) - New to the 2007 list/not on 1997's list

I figured out the big twist 20 minutes into this movie! This film and its director are wildly overrated. 

This is a cut rate thriller at best. 

#83) Titanic (1997) - New to the 2007 list/not on 1997's list

I have gone on record many times professing my loathing of this movie (and its director!). 

It’s new to the list. I should be thankful that it’s not ranked higher than #83 and just move on.

#76) Forrest Gump (1994) 

Good god, I hate this one as well, and everyone knows it! 

Another overrated Best Picture winner that everyone was “supposed” to fall in love with.

I just don’t fall in love that easily.

#45) Shane (1953)

The western was once the most popular genre in movies, so it definitely should be represented on this list. 

I’d go so far as to say it warrants three westerns in the Top 100. How about that? I’m being generous today. 

There are actually six (6) westerns on the list, and that’s way too many. I’m getting rid of Shane because it’s boring and as sappy as a Vermont maple. 

This movie always angered me because it’s so well loved. 

Come back, Shane?

How about get off the damn list, Shane.

#40) The Sound of Music (1965)

I disliked this movie the very first time I saw it. I never trusted those von Trapps. I think they were in cahoots with the wrong people to be in cahoots with in 1930s Austria.

I honestly don’t see the appeal of this. I hate it as much as I hate Mary Poppins. Maybe I just hate Julie Andrews. 

Is that possible?

In any event, there’s no way this movie belongs on this list, especially at #40.

#34) Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) 

This dusty old shoe highlighting questionable labor practices and safety issues in mines is one of only two animated movies on the list. Toy Story being the other. I kind of get that since animation hasn’t always been a valued genre among the academies and institutes and such. 

I’ll give you Toy Story being on this list, but how is this the other animated movie and not Beauty and the Beast?!?! 

That’s criminal. 

Alert the Hague!

Beauty and the Beast was the first animated film nominated for Best Picture for a reason people! 

Out with Snow White and her pals, in with Belle and the Beast!

#20) It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

This film has the distinction of being the only thing I hate about Christmas. 

I think this may be the most overrated movie of all time. It is a melodramatic, overly sappy holiday Christmas movie. And that’s it. That’s all it is. 

It should have been a TV movie. It should have been an episode of “The Twilight Zone.” Either of those would have been more acceptable. 

But instead, we have what’s considered the 20th best American movie of all-time?!?!

I. Don’t. Think. So. 

#12) The Searchers (1956) 

Speaking of overrated. John Wayne.

One great performance (True Grit) and hundreds of other movies where he plays the exact same character. 

My issue with this 1956 film (and countless westerns of the time) is their depiction/treatment of Native American tribes. 

It’s disgraceful that Native Americans were portrayed as bloodthirsty, savage enemies in about 90% of westerns in which they are included. Even worse was the fact that these characters were played by white people most of the time.

I have no issue with saying that The Searchers was, at one time, considered the greatest western of all-time. But things change. Minstrel shows used to be considered great entertainment. Thankfully we don’t have them anymore. 

Removing Shane and The Searchers leaves this list with a proper number of westerns. 

#6) Gone with the Wind (1939)

Frankly, my dear, get off the list. 

Your time has come and gone. 

Not even the best film of 1939, Gone with the Wind has long been the lazy answer to the question about the greatest American film. 

It’s overblown, overrated, racist, and it needs to go away.

Do you remember when Parasite deservedly won the Best Picture Oscar in 2020 and that idiot who was president at the time was griping about a foreign film winning Best Picture?

I remember watching the clip and this moron is ranting about why an American movie didn’t win. In my head I’m thinking I hope he mentions Gone with the Wind, that would be perfect.

He then said, “Why don’t they make pictures like Gone With the Wind anymore?” Perfect. Just perfect. 

That, in and of itself, is proof that this film needs to be removed from this list.

And, before we go, why are there three…THREE Charlie Chaplin films in the Top 100?!!? That’s so unnecessary.

#11) City Lights (1931), #58) The Gold Rush (1925), and #78) Modern Times (1936) 

I could never understand all of the Charlie Chaplin love. That character was a one trick pony that did the same annoying shit over and over in movie after movie. 

Maybe do a Google search about him and the ages of some of his lovers over the years. Little Tramp indeed! Creepy.

Keep one if you love him so much. Pick one. They’re all the same.

And put it at #100.

Well, that’s a wrap for “Cinema Wellman vs. the American Film Institute.”

I think I was pretty reasonable when all is said and done. I can’t wait until they re-rack this again because when they do, I’ll be right here to get all salty about it all over again.

Back in the day, VH1 did a mini docuseries attempting to determine the greatest album of all time. It was fascinating listening to famous artists talk eloquently about the albums they grew up listening to and the many albums that influenced them as musicians. 

Michael Stipe of R.E.M. was the last interview and he went into detail about how impossible a task it is to determine the greatest album of all time. He brought up the same points I made at the start of this episode. There are so many different factors involved that it would be impossible to say that one album was the greatest ever. 

At the end of the interview, and I think this was shown over the closing credits of the miniseries, Stipe asked the producer, “So which album ended up being number one?”

The producer’s response was, “OK Computer by Radiohead.”

All Stipe could say was, “Yeah. That sounds about right.” 

So, with all of my griping about A.F.I.’s “100 Years, 100 Movies” list, I never told you what movie is ranked number one. 

It’s Citizen Kane. 

As Michael Stipe would say, “Yeah. That sounds about right.”

Join us right here in Cinema Wellman next week when “Led Zeppelin Goes to the Movies!” And, in kind of a double episode, we’re going to do a “Spoiler Alert” for the Led Zeppelin concert movie The Song Remains the Same.

We hope you return for that!

And until then, take care.