‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ and ‘Ganja & Hess’ Have Been Added to the National Film Registry

A new batch of classic films have made their way into the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry this week, including Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Bill Gunn’s Ganja & Hess!

The National Film Registry recognizes films that are of “cultural, historic or aesthetic importance which preserves the nation’s film heritage.”

Deadline reports that the new selections bring the number of feature titles in the registry to 900. The public submitted nominations of more than 6,700 titles for consideration this year for context.

The National Film Registry says of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, “Graphic, lurid and completely unapologetic in its brutality, ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ has since its debut in drive-ins and grindhouse theaters, become a cultural, generational and filmmaking touchstone. Filmed for a pittance and supposedly as difficult of a production as a film can be (beset with record heat and filthy locations), ‘Texas’ would establish many of the tenets of what would become the gore/slasher/splatter genre, including the long-lasting ‘final girl’ trope. Condemned by many at the time of its release for what was seen as its gratuitousness, the film was nevertheless embraced by young movie audiences for both its jump-out-of-your seat-scares (great use of isolation and darkness) and its elements of (very) dark humor.”

Celebrating Ganja & Hess, the Registry writes, “Bill Gunn ranks high on any list of filmmakers deserving far more recognition. Film critic Richard Brody described Gunn as being ‘a visionary filmmaker left on the sidelines of the most ostensibly liberated period of American filmmaking.’ Playwright, novelist, actor and director Gunn’s Blaxploitation era cult-horror fever dream classic ‘Ganja and Hess’ proved a sensation at Cannes in 1973. Fifty years on, this film addresses complexities of addiction, sexuality and Black identity that remain prescient. Preserved by the Museum of Modern Art.”

Here’s the full lineup of new arrivals for 2024, which also includes noteworthy sci-fi classic Invaders from Mars…

• Annabelle Serpentine Dance (1895)
• KoKo’s Earth Control (1928)
• Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)
• Pride of the Yankees (1942)
• Invaders from Mars (1953)
• The Miracle Worker (1962)
• The Chelsea Girls (1966)
• Ganja and Hess (1973)
• Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
• Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
• Zora Lathan Student Films (1975-76)
• Up in Smoke (1978)
• Will (1981)
• Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan (1982)
• Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
• Dirty Dancing (1987)
• Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989)
• Powwow Highway (1989)
• My Own Private Idaho (1991)
• American Me (1992)
• Mi Familia (1995)
• Compensation (1999)
• Spy Kids (2001)
• No Country for Old Men (2007)
• The Social Network (2010)

“Films reflect our nation’s history and culture and must be preserved in our national library for generations to come. We’re honored by the responsibility to add 25 diverse new films to the National Film Registry each year as we work to preserve our cultural heritage,” said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. “This is a collective effort in the film community to preserve our cinematic heritage, and we are grateful to our partners, including the National Film Preservation Board.”

You can learn more about the 2024 Library of Congress National Film Registry here.

The public can submit nominations throughout the year on the Library’s web site. Nominations for next year will be accepted until August 15, 2025. Cast your vote at loc.gov/film.

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