Tampa Film Fan

top 5 reasons why i’m going to watch afi’s greatest movie quotes special tonight

Yesterday I heard a very intriguing commentary on NPR. The commentator (I didn’t catch his name) expressed his annoyance at all the lists the media promotes — the 25 Greatest Americans on the Discovery Channel, the 100 Greatest Kid Stars on VH-1, and so on. He felt that we’re in the midst of a pop culture overkill. He was especially annoyed at the American Film Institute (AFI)’s top 100 lists of the past few years (100 Greatest Movies, 100 Heroes and Villains, 100 Songs, etc.). To him, these lists contained very few surprises and weren’t much fun. He felt that there is enough focus on current and upcoming films and that AFI should attempt to expose the average viewer to movies of which she might not be aware. The commentator felt that AFI was missing great opportunities to truly promote film — and film awareness — and had given in to the current pop culture obsession with lists that rehash what we already know.

I agreed with most of what he said, but, being the pop culture slut I am, I’m still going to watch AFI’S 100 Years… 100 Movie Quotes: America’s Greatest Quips, Comeback and Catchphrases on CBS tonight. Here’s the top five reasons why:

5. Lists appeal to the obsessive-compulsive, super-organized side of me.

4. I’m a pop culture slut, as previously mentioned.

3. Part of the fun is guessing what will make the list (and for OCD overkill, count how many you guessed correctly).

2. I’m always looking for blog posting topics.

1. Umm…well…dammit…coming up with lists is hard work, so anyone who has gone to enough trouble to put together a TV special about their list deserves at least a few viewers.