WASHINGTON - While not usually regarded as a golden age of American cinema, the 1980s produced plenty of popular classics -- and a few more of them have now been added to the prestigious National Film Registry.

that "The Breakfast Club," "The Princess Bride" and "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" are among the 25 movies tapped for preservation this year. They join three other more obscure 1980s titles on this year's list.

The national library also picked a few more recent favourites, including "Thelma & Louise," Disney's "The Lion King" and "Rushmore."

The library selects movies for preservation in its audio-visual vault in Culpeper, Virginia, because of their cultural, historic or artistic importance. This year's picks bring the total number of films in the registry to 700. The choices have become increasingly diverse and eclectic since the registry began in 1989.

Still, the library always makes room for some crowd-pleasers.

Considered a feminist landmark for its portrait of women who stand up to abusive partners and find liberation on a crime spree, "Thelma & Louise" achieved a rare distinction when its co-stars, Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon, were both nominated for the best-actress Oscar. (Jodie Foster won that year, for "The Silence of the Lambs.") It's the third movie directed by the prolific Ridley Scott to join the registry, following "Alien" and "Blade Runner."

Here are the movies selected by the Library of Congress in 2016 for inclusion in the National Film Registry:

  • "Life of an American Fireman" (1903)
  • "Musketeers of Pig Alley" (1912)
  • "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" (1916)
  • Films of Solomon Sir Jones (1924-1928)
  • "The Beau Brummels" (1928)
  • "Steamboat Bill, Jr." (1928)
  • "Lost Horizon" (1937)
  • "Ball of Fire" (1941)
  • "A Walk in the Sun" (1945)
  • "Blackboard Jungle" (1955)
  • "East of Eden" (1955)
  • "The Birds" (1963)
  • "Point Blank" (1967)
  • "Funny Girl" (1968)
  • "Putney Swope" (1969)
  • "The Decline of Western Civilization" (1981)
  • "Atomic Cafe" (1982)
  • "Suzanne, Suzanne" (1982)
  • "The Breakfast Club" (1985)
  • "The Princess Bride" (1987)
  • "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" (1988)
  • "Paris is Burning" (1990)
  • "Thelma & Louise" (1991)
  • "The Lion King" (1994)
  • "Rushmore" (1998)