The concept of "landmark film" requires the identification of specific movies that became conspicuous to critics and audiences at the time of their release, or which, in historical hindsight, stand out from the more typical productions of an era. Some of the films discussed in this chapter may be categorized as turning points in feature film production on the relatively narrow grounds of their aesthetic and visual style, while others are set apart because of the place that they hold within the broad sweep of a changing American culture. Some of these movies are better known for the new potential they were perceived to offer to the motion-picture industry and to American cinematic art, rather than for any changes that they actually spawned. Some of them provoked attention during the 1960s, especially from major newspaper and magazine critics whose role in the nation's public discourse over appreciation of movies as an art form was on the rise, though they may have subsequently declined in significance over time. Others, by contrast, were underestimated or overlooked during the 1960s, but later grew in critical stature and recognition.
DAVID AND LISA Judith Crist, one of the nation's leading movie critics in the early 1960s, identified DAVID AND LISA (1962, directed by Frank Perry and based on a screenplay by his spouse, Eleanor), as the best film of the year.
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