American Film Institute Awards 2007
The American Film Institute Awards 2007 honored the ten most influential American motion pictures and television shows of 2007, chosen by juries assembled by the American Film Institute. The lists were announced on December 16, 2007.
Both lists are in alphabetical order[1]; quotes from the jury rationales follow each film[2] or television series.[3]
Films
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead ("a grand opera of immorality ... staged exquisitely by Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei and Albert Finney, whose performances fuse to form a diamond that sparkles with the dazzlement of dysfunction")
- The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Le scaphandre et le papillon) ("challenges us to look into a mirror, appreciate the fragility of our own lives and marvel at the power of the mind")
- Into the Wild ("celebrates the dreamer in all of us - and the danger of dreaming alone")
- Juno ("Ellen Page delivers the breakthrough performance of the year - one that embodies the comedy inherent in being a misfit and the strength that comes when facing life's biggest challenges")
- Knocked Up ("stretches the boundaries of romantic comedies by introducing one of American film's most unlikely pairings, and then brilliantly crafts a story where ... the couple embrace each other - and the audience - in a world of humor and heart")
- Michael Clayton ("pulse-quickening entertainment for both the heart and mind")
- No Country for Old Men ("the Coen Brothers' masterful juxtaposition of savagery and innocence is a powerful tale of morality in a bleak world where a life can end with the flip of a coin") (Academy Award for Best Picture Winner)
- Ratatouille ("creates environments that are so fully realized, so rich with detail, that both young and old alike will feel as though their passports have been stamped and their palates sated") (Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Winner)
- The Savages ("places our destiny firmly in the hands of talented artists, and, ultimately, proves the power of film in bringing us all together to celebrate life")
- There Will Be Blood ("Paul Thomas Anderson's epic poem of savagery, optimism and obsession is a true meditation on America")
Television programs
- 30 Rock ("establishes Tina Fey as one of the true talents of her generation")
- Dexter ("stories that are wildly ambitious, intricately told, and deeply, emotionally engaging")
- Everybody Hates Chris ("provides a very real look at growing up in America - a challenge that demands a discussion of race and class often absent from television today")
- Friday Night Lights ("a celebration of small-town Texas truth, a paean to the hopes and dreams of a community")
- Longford ("impeccably scripted and directed, this telling of a true tale will echo across the ages in the performances of Jim Broadbent and Samantha Morton")
- Mad Men ("hypnotic time capsule brilliantly captures 1960s Madison Avenue, along with all the discomfort that hides in the dark corners of nostalgia")
- Pushing Daisies ("bounds with endless invention, a stunning visual palette, and a team of actors who revel in the surprises that come to life in each episode")
- The Sopranos ("delivered the goods in its final season and, in doing so, cemented its place in the pantheon of American television")
- Tell Me You Love Me ("pulls back the covers on "happily ever after" and offers an unblinking look at life's most intimate moments")
- Ugly Betty ("campy, catty and adorably over the top")
References
- ^ AFI Awards 2007 from the AFI website
- ^ AFI 2007 Movie of the Year Official Selections from the AFI website<
- ^ AFI 2007 TV Programs of the Year Official Selections from the AFI website<