Queer Films to Be Added to the National Film Registry

The Library of Congress is adding 25 movies to the National Film Registry, and there are more than a few queer movies on the list.

If you didn't know, each year the Library of Congress adds films noted for their cultural, historic or aesthetic importance to our cultural history.

Films either gay in content or gay-adjacent include Ang Lee's "The Wedding Banquet," the musical "Fame," Disney's "The Lady and the Tramp," and the Madonna-helmed "Desperately Seeking Susan".

Of these titles, "The Wedding Banquet", released in 1993, is the most overly gay. Lee's film, his first international success, is a romantic comedy about a gay man who agrees to marry a woman for a green card. All goes well until his parents decide to come to the States and plan his wedding not knowing that he is in a same sex relationship.

The list also includes Ron Howard's space drama Apollo 13; the holiday family classic "Home Alone";James Cameron's "Terminator 2: Judgment Day";' Gina Prince-Bythewood's "Love & Basketball"; Spike Lee's "Bamboozled"; and Steve McQueen's Best Picture Oscar winner "12 Years a Slave". (Scroll down for the full list of films.)

Ang Lee said of "The Wedding Banquet": "I didn't make the movie to be influential, but it was. I see since the movie, whether it's cross-culture or gay issues, some major breakthroughs, certainly in Taiwan and the Chinese community because the movie was well-liked. It just eased into people's lives quite naturally."

Spike Lee talking of "Bamboozled" told the Library of Congress, "One of the most powerful sequences I think I've done is the closing scenes of "Bamboozled", where we show historically, visually, the hatefulness of white people in blackface."

Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden made the announcement today saying the selection dates back more than 100 years to a 1921 Kodak educational film titled "A Movie Trip Through Filmland" about how film stock is produced and the impact of movies globally. In total, the titles added today bring the number of films in the registry to 875.

Commented Howard on "Apollo 13: "It's a very honest, heartfelt reflection of something that was very American, which was the space program in that time and what it meant to the country and to the world... I was very proud of the outcome. The experience remains an absolute highlight. It was one of those experiences that none of us involved in will ever forget."

Said Prince-Bythewood of her "Love & Basketball": "A great deal of this film was autobiographical. Monica's character, growing up as an athlete, all the feelings she felt, feeling 'othered' and different as if something's wrong with her because she loves sports. All those were things that I had to deal with growing up, being a female athlete and with my parents."

McQueen called "12 Years a Slave's" Solomon Northup "an American hero... Slavery for me was a subject matter that hadn't been sort of given enough recognition within the narrative of cinema history. I wanted to address it for that reason, but also because it was a subject which had so much to do with how we live now. It wasn't just something which was dated. It was something which is living and breathing, because you see the evidence of slavery today."

For Hayden, "Films are an integral piece of America's cultural heritage, reflecting stories of our nation for more than 125 years. We are proud to add 25 diverse films to the National Film Registry as we preserve our history through film. We're grateful to the film community for collaborating with the Library of Congress in our goal to preserve the heritage of cinema for generations to come."

NATO President and CEO Michael O'Leary added, "For more than a century, movies have shaped the American experience, with cinemas playing a vital role in our communities and cultural landscape. On behalf of theater owners the world over, we applaud the Library's important work in recognizing and preserving these special works so that moviegoers can continue to discover classic films on the big screen."

Joseph Masher, NATO Board Member and CEO of New York's BTM Cinemas, said, "Preserving films is like safeguarding the memories of our cultural evolution. This registry ensures that the art of storytelling through cinema endures for generations to come."

Said Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Director and President Jacqueline Stewart, who is chair of the National Film Preservation Board, "I'm delighted to see several films this year that recognize a diversity of Asian American experiences. There's Cruisin' J-Town, a film about jazz musicians in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo community, specifically the band Hiroshima. There's also the Bohulano Family Film collection, home movies from the 1950s-1970s shot by a family in Stockton, California's Filipino community. Also added is the documentary, "Maya Lin: A Strong, Clear Vision", about one of our most important contemporary artists who designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C."

Turner Classic Movies will host a TV special Thursday, Dec. 14, starting at 8 pm ET to screen a selection of films named to the registry this year.

Films selected for the 2023 National Film Registry (in chronological order)

A Movie Trip Through Filmland (1921)
Dinner at Eight (1933)
Bohulano Family Film Collection (1950s-1970s)
Helen Keller: In Her Story (1954)
Lady and the Tramp (1955)
Edge of the City (1957)
We're Alive (1974)
Cruisin' J-Town (1975)
¡Alambrista! (1977)
Passing Through (1977)
Fame (1980)
Desperately Seeking Susan (1985)
The Lighted Field (1987)
Matewan (1987)
Home Alone (1990)
Queen of Diamonds (1991)
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
The Wedding Banquet (1993)
Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision (1994)
Apollo 13 (1995)
Bamboozled (2000)
Love & Basketball (2000)
12 Years a Slave (2013)
20 Feet from Stardom (2013)