AFI's 10 Top 10 honors the ten greatest American films in ten classic film genres. Presented by the American Film Institute (AFI), the lists were unveiled on a television special broadcast by CBS on June 17, 2008. Clint Eastwood, James Woods, Quentin Tarantino, Lesley Ann Warren, Gabriel Byrne, Kirk Douglas, Isabella Rossellini, Sean Astin, Harrison Ford, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Elizabeth Perkins, Cuba Gooding, Jr., James Earl Jones, Nathan Lane, Martin Scorsese, Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Michael J. Fox, Dennis Hopper, Gene Hackman, Amy Madigan, Dominic Monaghan, Rita Wilson, Andie MacDowell, Harold Ramis, Roman Polanski, Robert Loggia, Talia Shire, Susan Sarandon, Daniel Stern, Norman Jewison, Sidney Lumet, Rob Reiner, Ray Liotta, and Jane Fonda discussed their admiration for and personal contributions to the films cited. Like previous specials in the AFI 100 Years... series, the entire list of 500 nominated films is available on the American Film Institute website. Presented by Jennifer Love Hewitt, AFI defines "animated" as a genre in which the film's images are primarily created by computer or hand and the characters are voiced by actors. Presented by Sean Astin, AFI defines "fantasy" as a genre where live-action characters inhabit imagined settings or experience situations that transcend the rules of the natural world. Presented by Quentin Tarantino, AFI defines the "gangster film" as a genre that centers on organized crime or maverick criminals in a twentieth century setting. Presented by Sigourney Weaver, AFI defines "science fiction" as a genre that marries a scientific or technological premise with imaginative speculation. Presented by Clint Eastwood, AFI defines "western" as a genre of films set in the American West that embodies the spirit, the struggle and the demise of the new frontier. Presented by Cuba Gooding, Jr., AFI defines "sports" as a genre of films with protagonists who play athletics or other games of competition. Presented by Gabriel Byrne, AFI defines "mystery" as a genre that revolves around the solution of a crime. Presented by Jessica Alba, AFI defines "romantic comedy" as a genre in which the development of a romance leads to comic situations. Presented by James Woods, AFI defines "courtroom drama" as a genre of film in which a system of justice plays a critical role in the film's narrative. Presented by Kirk Douglas, AFI defines "epic" as a genre of large-scale films set in a cinematic interpretation of the past. [edit] Distinctions - Alfred Hitchcock has a record number of movies in the mystery category, with four films he directed: Vertigo, Rear Window, North by Northwest, and Dial M for Murder.
- Steven Spielberg has directed two epics on the list with Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan, and one science fiction film, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.
- Stanley Kubrick directed multiple films on the lists with 2001: A Space Odyssey and A Clockwork Orange on the science fiction list, and Spartacus on the epic films list.
- The Walt Disney Company has more films per category on the list than any other director or producer. In the animation category, they had nine animated films that they either produced (seven) or released under their Walt Disney Pictures banner (two produced by Pixar). The only non-Disney animated film on the list is Shrek.
- James Stewart is the most represented leading actor with six films. He makes his mark in four categories: fantasy with It's a Wonderful Life and Harvey, mystery with Vertigo and Rear Window, romantic comedy with The Philadelphia Story, and courtroom drama with Anatomy of a Murder.
- Tom Hanks stars in four ranking films, each in a different genre: fantasy with Big, romantic comedy with Sleepless in Seattle, epic with Saving Private Ryan, and animation with Toy Story.
- Gene Hackman appears in four of the list's films: the gangster movie Bonnie and Clyde, the epic Reds, the sports film Hoosiers, and the Western Unforgiven.
- Diane Keaton also appears in four ranking films: gangster with The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, romantic comedy with Annie Hall, and epic with Reds. She had a lead role in Annie Hall and Reds, but only a supporting role in The Godfather and The Godfather Part II.
- Actors John Wayne, Grace Kelly, Paul Newman, Robert De Niro, Jack Nicholson, Al Pacino, Warren Beatty, Talia Shire, and James Earl Jones each have three films on the list.
- John Ford directed 2 of the films in the Western category, Stagecoach and The Searchers.
- Ward Bond appears in five films on these lists: It Happened One Night, Gone with the Wind, The Searchers, The Maltese Falcon, and It's a Wonderful Life, but all of them in varying degrees of support.
- There are a total of thirteen Academy Award Best Picture winners in six categories that appear on the lists: Rocky in sports, Unforgiven in the westerns, The Godfather and The Godfather Part II in the gangsters, Annie Hall and It Happened One Night in the romantic comedies, Kramer vs. Kramer in the courtroom dramas, and finally, Lawrence of Arabia, Ben-Hur, Schindler's List, Gone with the Wind, Titanic, and All Quiet on the Western Front in the epics.
- The most recently released film on the list is Finding Nemo (2003). The oldest film on the list is The Thief of Bagdad (1924). They were released seventy-nine years apart.
- Warner Bros. owns some or all rights (for certain films, in certain countries only) to 26 films on the list- more than any other studio. This includes the eight pre-1986 MGM films on the list, DVD rights to City Lights, and rights in certain countries to King Kong and Stagecoach.
- Eight films on the romantic comedy list (Annie Hall, City Lights, Harold and Maude, Moonstruck, Adam's Rib, The Philadelphia Story, It Happened One Night, and When Harry Met Sally...) are on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs list, and nine of them (Annie Hall, Harold and Maude, Sleepless in Seattle, The Philadelphia Story, It Happened One Night, Roman Holiday, Moonstruck, City Lights, and When Harry Met Sally...) are on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Passions list.
- Of all the films on the list, none were made prior to the 1920s, 1 is from the 1920s, 11 are from the 1930s, 14 are from the 1940s, 17 are from the 1950s, 11 are from the 1960s, 12 are from the 1970s, 16 are from the 1980s, 15 are from the 1990s, and 3 are from the 2000s.
- The Thief of Bagdad (1924) and City Lights (1931) are the only silent films on the list.
- 33 of the films on the list were filmed in black-and-white, and the other 67 were filmed in color, although a few (such as It's a Wonderful Life) were filmed in black-and-white but colorized later on.
- Stanley Kubrick and Ridley Scott each have two films represented on the "Sci-Fi" list; Kubrick directed 2001: A Space Odyssey and A Clockwork Orange, while Scott directed Blade Runner and Alien.
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