The American Film Institute is probably best known for those lists of the 100 Greatest Movies of All Time (y’know… if it’s an American production in some way). Well, every year they hold their own awards, because every group of people has to have awards. They recognize the ten best films (for this year, it’s eleven due to a tie) and the ten best television programs of the year. There are not winners in these categories, but each one gets celebrated. On that front, I kind of like the AFI approach to awards.
Along with the awards, AFI has put together this four and a half minute montage chronicling the last 120 years of film. Now, it would be ridiculous to cover every single year. Instead, they start with 1894’s Strong Man and jump every ten years, showcasing films like Rear Window, The Godfather: Part II, Pulp Fiction, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (which is ten years old, people…). The video culminates with clips from all of this year’s honorees, including Boyhood, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), and Interstellar.
You can give the video a watch below, and maybe they showcase some stuff you do not know what it is. Give them a try. Below the video is a list of all the featured films and television shows.
Films and Television Shows Featured:
- Strong Man
- A Fire in a Burlesque Theatre
- Judith of Bethulia
- Kid Auto Races at Venice
- Sherlock Jr.
- Greed
- Of Human Bondage
- It Happened One Night
- Bright Eyes
- To Have and Have Not
- National Velvet
- Double Indemnity
- Carmen Jones
- A Star Is Born
- Rear Window
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
- On the Waterfront
- A Fistful of Dollars
- My Fair Lady
- Mary Poppins
- Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
- “Good Times”
- Young Frankenstein
- The Godfather: Part II
- Chinatown
- Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
- Ghost Busters
- Amadeus
- Beverly Hills Cop
- Pulp Fiction
- The Shawshank Redemption
- The Lion King
- Legends of the Fall
- Forrest Gump
- “Friends”
- Sideways
- “Lost”
- Million Dollar Baby
- Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
- Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
- Ray
AFI AWARDS 2014 Honorees as they appear:
- Whiplash
- Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
- Interstellar
- Selma
- Into the Woods
- “Transparent”
- Nightcrawler
- “Fargo”
- “The Americans”
- “Jane the Virgin”
- “Game of Thrones”
- Foxcatcher
- Unbroken
- “The Knick”
- The Imitation Game
- American Sniper
- “Mad Men”
- “How to Get Away with Murder”
- “Silicon Valley”
- “Orange is the New Black”
- Boyhood
