‘Dark Knight,’ ‘Grease’ added to lm registry

This year’s inductees into the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry, a collection of the most influential American movies, include a neo-noir superhero action spectacle, a ’50s-set ’70s musical and an animated send-up of a classic fairy tale trope.

“The Dark Knight,” “Grease” and “Shrek” are just three of the 25 pictures to be added to the registry, which aims to preserve movies of cultural, historical or aesthetic importance, ranging from blockbusters and musicals to silent films, documentaries and adaptations.

This year’s selection spans nearly 100 years and includes a record number of movies directed by women or filmmakers of color. Nine feature women at the helm: “Suspense” (1913), co-directed by Lois Weber; Ida May Park’s “Bread” (1918); Aloha Wanderwell’s “With Car and Camera Around the World” (1929); Ida Lupino’s “Outrage” (1950); Kathleen Collins’ “Losing Ground” (1982); Julie Dash’s “Illusions” (1982); Lourdes Portillo’s “The Devil Never Sleeps” (1994); Kathryn Bigelow’s “The Hurt Locker” (2008); and “Mauna Kea: Temple Under Siege” (2006) co-directed by Joan Lander.

The group also includes seven movies from filmmakers of color, including director Wayne Wang’s 1993 classic “The Joy Luck Club.”

“I could have never imagined, after reading a few chapters of Amy [Tan]’s manuscript that eventually became ‘The Joy Luck Club’ book, that my dream of its adaptation would result in a movie that is still talked about decades later,” producer Janet Yang told the National Film Registry.