Iron Man, Carrie, The Little Mermaid and More Added to National Movie Registry

By /dec. July 14, 2022 at 6:49 PM EST

Since 1988, the Library of Congress has selected 25 films each year as new additions to the National Film Registry to be preserved for their historical, cultural, and aesthetic contributions to American culture. The National Film Preservation Board of the United States has included a wide selection of films since its inception, ranging from classics and newsreels to music videos and documentaries. There are even student films and home movies included in the collection.

This year, the selections highlight the diversity of American filmmakers by including at least 15 projects directed or co-directed by filmmakers of color, women or LGBTQ+ people. For example, home movies by jazz, blues and swing pioneer Cab Calloway are among the latest wave of inductees, along with an 1898 documentary about the Mardi Gras carnival and the 1950 adaptation of "Cyrano de Bergerac", which propelled José Ferrer to become the first Latinx actor to win the Oscar for Best Actor.

But in addition to these landmark works, I have a feeling that the more modern additions will make some sections of our readership quite old. Among those joining "Casablanca", "Enter the Dragon", "Grease", "The Muppet Movie", and others are now "The Little Mermaid", "House Party", "Carrie", "Hairspray", " Outcast" and "Iron Man".

But reader, you're not that old. Films recognized and preserved for future generations by the NFR need only be ten years old to be eligible for the ballot, which included 6,865 titles for consideration in 2022. And no matter how much time has passed Since the film's release, each selection has been, as Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden says in the Library of Congress announcement, "at the heart of American culture by helping to tell our national story for more than 125 years."

One of the band's most recent films is Jon Favreau's "Iron Man." Not only did it relaunch the career of Robert Downey Jr. and establish Marvel Studios as the powerhouse production company it is today, this film following Tony Stark and the incredible things he does in a cave with a box of remains was the very first entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which lives on almost 20 years later. Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige spoke about the magnitude of this achievement in a statement:

"Iron Man" was the very first independently produced film by Marvel Studios. It was the first film that we had full creative control and oversight over and it was really pivotal for the studio. All of our favorite movies are the ones we watch over and over again and grow up with. The idea that we're here, almost 15 years after 'Iron Man' was released, and have him join the movie registry tells us that he's stood the test of time and still has a meaning to audiences around the world."

Other important releases join...