AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies: In Search of

Back in 1998, the AFI's list of the 100 best American movies created a ton of controversy. This was at a time when the Internet was young, there wasn't as much listmaking in the media, all the end of the millenium/century/decade lists hadn't come out yet, and AFI hadn't yet started doing annual countdown shows.

People actually paid attention to this list, and most people didn't like it--with good reason. There wasn't a single Lubitsch or Preston Sturges movie on it, a lot of the movies had only a tangential link to America, and the other omissions were too numerous to mention. The 3-hour CBS show didn't help matters much by being really star-studded to the point that ditzy actors and actresses were screwing up details about great movies.

The TNT series, of which this movie was a part, was left in the shadows due to the attention that the CBS show and the list itself received. But the TNT series was very good. Each part focussed on ten movies linked by theme, and instead of being quip-heavy, the shows let the movies themselves show their greatness.

"In Search Of..." was especially entertaining, and featured some great, great movies. The script was intelligent, the cutting was well-done, and in short it made you appreciate these classic films.