Terminator To Be Archived

[MA-Caver]

'Terminator' to be preserved in US film registry


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081230/ap_en_mo/classic_films
By BRETT ZONGKER, Associated Press Writer Brett Zongker, Associated Press Writer – Tue Dec 30, 7:06 am ET
WASHINGTON – One of Arnold Schwarzenegger's most famous one-liners will be back for generations to come, now that 1984's "The Terminator" has been selected for preservation in the nation's film archive.
The low-budget film directed by James Cameron set a new standard for science-fiction and made Schwarzenegger, now California's governor, a star. The Library of Congress announced Tuesday morning that it's one of 25 films being added to the National Film Registry. The formal unveiling was scheduled for 8 a.m.
The move will guard Schwarzenegger's deadpan, "I'll be back," against deterioration, along with the sounds and images of the other culturally significant picks. Other titles being added to the registry include the groundbreaking all-black-cast film "Hallelujah" from 1929; Richard Brooks' 1967 film adaptation of Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood"; and the 1972 film "Deliverance," based on James Dickey's novel about four businessmen on a nightmarish canoe trip in the remote Georgia wilderness.
"The registry helps this nation understand the diversity of America's film heritage and, just as importantly, the need for its preservation," Librarian of Congress James H. Billington said in announcing his 2008 selections. "The nation has lost about half of the films produced before 1950 and as much as 90 percent of those made before 1920."

I'm glad that more and more films are being kept preserved so that the losses of before won't happen again. I've a DVD of a Ronald Coleman film "Lost Horizon" which was put together as best as it could be ...sometimes using stills from the movie production to fill in certain gaps. My father told me about this film and I found it in a library where the curator of the media dept is a true film buff and got his hands on a copy.

Their selection of the Terminator I think is a good one. It did raise the bar in Sci-fi film making and story telling. The sequels gradually lower the bar on story telling but at least the original will be preserved.

This is the Wiki article of the National Film Registry and has the list of films they've cataloged so far. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Registry

What other films do you feel need to be preserved?

 

[Kreth]

What other films do you feel need to be preserved?

Everything, except Napoleon Dynamite and I Heart Huckabees.

 

[BrandonLucas]

The original Episodes IV, V, and VI of Star Wars.

Incidentally, I didn't know that Terminator was a low budget film.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Everything, except Napoleon Dynamite and I Heart Huckabees.

You do realize that would include Gymkata

 

[Cryozombie]

Yojimbo. Seven Samurai. Two important, influential pieces of film making history.

Same with the Original Night of the Living Dead. Not only did it spawn a new Genre of horror (Zombie movies prior to NOTLD had a different feel) but it was social and political commentary as well.

 

[MA-Caver]

By comparison to the films of the day... it was indeed low budget but done so well that one would'nt think so. Watch the film again and you can see how inexpensively it was made. I believe it was one of the last films to use miniatures and stop motion animation (via Stan Winston). At $6.2 million that's a paltry sum compared to the $20 million for the sequel. But (the original) did garner over $165 million in ticket sales worldwide. So not a bad profit indeed. The film also changed the evil robot concept in the genre of Sci-fi films forever.
Interestingly enough the original had several key scenes cut from the final released (able to be viewed on a special edition DVD) that helped tie in to the sequel (or set it up) and gave a nice character development for Kyle Reese, and Lt. Traxter (Paul Winfield's character). But of course time restraints left them on the cutting room floor -- which were thankfully recovered.

 

[matt.m]

I know Rocky I is already there. Terminator is a great fit. However, Highlander I should be there. Great story telling very low budget.

 

[exile]

The Lost Horizon was a wonderful, heartbreaking, eerie movie. I saw it when I was a young kid and have never forgotten it.

I'm with Kreth on this: pretty much any film in the very good to great category deserves to be preserved this way. There are hundreds, maybe thousands of movies that it would be terrible to lose. Of course, there are still more that we would definitely benefit from the loss of.... I suggest Beach Blanket Bingo for nonpreservation, just for starters.

 

[Kreth]

I'm with Kreth on this: pretty much any film in the very good to great category deserves to be preserved this way. There are hundreds, maybe thousands of movies that it would be terrible to lose. Of course, there are still more that we would definitely benefit from the loss of.... I suggest Beach Blanket Bingo for nonpreservation, just for starters.

Well, I think if we're going to preserve some of our movies, we should preserve all of them. Good or bad, they're a reflection of our culture. And some films, like Plan 9 From Outer Space, should be saved because they are so awesomely bad.

 

[jarrod]

i would like to see napolean dynamite & i heart huckabees archived.

i didn't really like napolean dynamite, i just like to agitate kreth

jf

 

[MA-Caver]

The Lost Horizon was a wonderful, heartbreaking, eerie movie. I saw it when I was a young kid and have never forgotten it.

Lost Horizon with Ronald Coleman was indeed a great film. The DVD is pretty good although you lose about 4-5 minutes of footage replaced with stills from the production (using separate audio track) because when they discovered the film it was in bad shape... they were able to restore much of it (thankfully) and put it to longer lasting DVD.
One hopes that others will likewise be preserved.

Damn good use for a time machine... to "buy" new copies of these great films and bring them back here to be stored and cared for. :uhyeah:

 

[matt.m]

Funny enough,

The Terminator was on Encore last night after Oh, Brother Where Art Thou?

Watching it again made me appreciate the "Just better than" effects than that of Flash Gordon. Hey, I want that one in the preservation as well.