Stanley Kubrick directs this 1960 historical drama that stars Kirk Douglas in the title role, the leader of a revolution Third Servile War. The film is the only one of Kubrick’s in which he wasn’t given complete creative control, and yet it still won four Academy Awards and is the highest-grossing film in Universal Studio’s history. The Thracian gladiator led a slave revolt with an army of tens of thousands of men. He defeated Roman forces over half a dozen times, as he marched his people up and down the Italian peninsula. He was killed in April 71 B.C
Spartacus won the Oscar for Best Cinematography, Costume Design, Art Direction, and Supporting Actor, for Peter Ustinov’s work as Lentulus Batiatus. In 2017 the Library of Congress dubbed it culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and preserved it in the United States National Film Registry.
Selena (1997)
Jennifer Lopez stars in her breakthrough role in this 1997 biographical drama about late popstar, Selena. She was an up-and-coming musician, with a promising future ahead of her. Unfortunately, her life ended in tragedy, when someone very close to her turns on her and ultimately kills her. Selena Quintanilla-Perez was the queen of Latin music and. She rose to fame after his father discovered her amazing vocal and rhythmic talent. She was only 23 at the time of her death.
We had no idea at the time how bright of a star Lopez would be in her own right, but she nailed the role of Selena and was even nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy.
Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
In the early 1970s, a man named John Wojtowicz committed to robbing a bank to pay for his boyfriend's sex-change operation. Unfortunately, things didn’t go the way he hoped, and it all got a little bit out of hand, so much so that it results in a standoff with multiple law enforcement organizations. Wojtowicz was born in New York City in 1945 and led basically normal life. After returning from his service in Vietnam he began working for Chase Manhattan Bank.
Dog Day Afternoon was released in 1975 and stars Al Pacino as Wojtowicz. Nominated for seven Golden Globes and six Academy Awards, and winning for Best Original Screenplay, the film was preserved by the Library of Congress in 2009.
Raging Bull (1980)
Raging Bull is a 1980 biographical sports drama directed by film legend, Martin Scorsese. The film was adapted from a novel of the same name published in 1970 by Jake LaMotta and tells the tale of a troubled professional boxer with serious rage control issues (LaMotta.)LaMotta was a rough fighter and was even accused of being a bully. He was constantly caught up in brawls and unruly fights outside the rings,
In the film, LaMotta is played by Robert De Niro, who won both the Academy Award and the Golden Globe award for Best Actor for his performance in the picture. The movie also won the Academy Award for Best Film Editing and was nominated for six more, along with a number of other awards.
The Sound of Music (1965)
Julie Andrews stars in this 1965 classic directed by Robert Wise. It tells the tale of Baroness von Trapp, who worked as a governess for an Austrian military captain and wound up finding much more than she’d initially thought. She falls in love with both him and his children, and the two get married. All of this is happening, of course, in the middle of the war, which they are trying to escape.
The film won five Academy Awards, including the award for Best Director and the esteemed Best Picture award. It has been preserved in the National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”