Rllmuk's favourite films of the 50s

[Chosty]

It's the decade that saw the end of the dominance of the Hollywood studio system, and the introduction of innovations to counter the rise of television, such as VistaVision, CinemaScope and the first real attempt at 3D.

Select your favourite films of the 1950s (1950-1959) and order them as follows. Please stick to the formatting! It makes it much easier and quicker to compile the results.

1. This is my favourite film of the decade

2. This is my next favourite

3. And so on

4. You get the idea

...

20. No more films after this

Don't worry if you can't choose 20 - that's just the maximum. No merging of trilogies into one entry! Use the main English name and first year of release as listed by IMDb. You can browse films there by year, and Wikipedia does something similar.

By popular demand, discussion is now welcome in the individual voting threads. The main thread's here.

Thanks and happy selecting!

[lordcookie]

1. 12 Angry Men

2. Harvey

3. Night of the Hunter

4. Paths of Glory

5. Vertigo

6. 400 Blows

7. The Ladykillers

8. Forbidden Games

9. Singin' in the Rain

10. Sweet Smell of Success

11. Kiss Me Deadly

12. Sleeping Beauty

13. Some Like it Hot

14. Rashomon

15. Rear Window

16. Sansho the Bailiff

17. Ordet

18. Bigger Than Life

19. Sunset Blvd.

20. The Unmailed Letter

Barring the odd exception this list is pretty predictable with most of the big films of the decade finding their way somewhere in the final 20. But that is simply because those big famous films are so good that I couldn't leave them out in favour of more unusual fare. I do have a few dotted throughout the list that might not be familiar to all (Forbidden Games, Ordet and The Unmailed Letter perhaps being the least well known) but I think the '50s is one of those decades where the reputations of certain films were fully deserved.

1. 12 Angry Men - Sidney Lumet has been a constant companion throughout most of the decade lists so far (I think only Kubrick has bettered him by being in more) and there is a very simple reason for that - he is a chuffing brilliant film-maker. 12 Angry Men is arguably his most famous film and also his best. Anybody with even a passing interest in cinema will have probably seen it and if not what the hell are you doing in this folder? The film, about one man trying to sway the rest of the jurors that the defendant is innocent, is a tightly written and tense experience where character is king. In fact there is nothing but character in the film as the whole thing takes place inside one small room. But this story doesn't need flashy visuals or action when it has sparkling dialogue and a cast to die for. It is probably my most watched film on the list and thoroughly deserves its place at the top.

2. Harvey - Thank God Spielberg's proposed remake never got off the ground as I fail to see how anyone, even Spielberg, could improve on this masterpiece. Like everyone else I love James Stewart as an actor and it is hard to think of too many actors from any decade that could have so convinced in this role. For a film that deals with alcoholism and mental illness it is an amazingly light, warm and funny film that keeps moralising to a minimum. Stewart's performance is so good that you believe wholeheartedly in the presence of Harvey or, at the very least, that Stewart sees it. He is also brilliant at playing a drunk. Seeing as we are now in the Holiday moods it is a perfect time to revisit this classic.

3. Night of the Hunter - Laughton's one film as director received such a frosty reception upon release we never got to see if this was a fluke or the start of a great directorial career. As with Michael Powell's Peeping Tom from the last decade this is another example where the critics and the public got it spectacularly wrong first time around. Night of the Hunter is a twisted fairytale of a story and its macabre nursery rhyme rhythm has never been bettered. The story, a religious fanatic marries a gullible widow whose young children are reluctant to tell him where their real daddy hid $10,000 he'd stolen in a robbery, is a simple one and characters are rudimentary at best, but where this film excels is in crafting a beguiling and nightmarish atmosphere that still manages to tap into childhood fears. Robert Mitchum has never been better as the murderous criminal masquerading as a preacher. He is powerful, cunning and scary as hell. Whilst the 1980s saw the birth of many iconic horror villains none of them have the same creepy impact as Harry Powell. The black and white cinematography is utterly breathtaking especially in its use of foreboding shadows. A stunning one-of-a-kind experience.

4. Paths of Glory - Yet again Kubrick makes a final 20 but this one is tinged with a little sadness as it will be the last time one of his films makes an appearance. If nothing else doing this thread has taught me that he really is my favourite director (although closely followed by Michael Powell who had a more condensed period of greatness). Kubrick has often been criticised of being unable to connect emotionally with his characters and for a large part it is a valid comment, yet not universally applicable to all his films. Case in point being Paths of Glory, a film about a soldier in WW1 who refuse to continue with an impossible attack and his superiors decide to make an example of them. This is an emotionally charged movie about duty and responsibility that is Kubrick at his best. It has his keen eye for framing (the farcical chess-like beginning as the commanders decide what to do with their men back in the safety of their palatial surroundings to the grimy, blood stained trenches on the front-line) but the characters are not kept at arms length like many of his films, instead you feel everything the characters do. It is a stunning war movie that has not aged a day.

5. Vertigo - Surprisingly, Hitchcock has largely been absent from my lists despite his immense gift as a film-maker. Vertigo has, and probably always will be, my favourite Hitchcock film. I think it was the first film of his I saw where I took notice of who the director was so it holds more emotional significance than his other films (I'm pretty sure I had seen The Birds and North by Northwest before but just enjoyed them as spectacles rather than wanting to find out who made them and what else he had done). There is very little reason to explain the virtues of a film 99% of the forum would have seen already. It is a wonderfully crafted film that is beautifully shot, with great performances and a plot that keeps you on your toes. Psycho is arguably his most famous film but this is his most satisfying, especially on repeat viewings.

6. 400 Blows - The French New Wave was a hugely influential period in cinema history yet many of the films, even the really great ones, are more interested in breaking convention than necessarily delivering an emotionally rich story. It is for this reason that François Truffaut's 400 Blows is the best film of the movement. It is a touching and believable story about a young boy who has no direction in life and turns to petty crime. Whilst it is a moral story Truffaut doesn't ram it down your throat and the lead, wonderfully played by Jean-Pierre Léaud, imbues the character with charm and an inquisitive mischief. Inspired in part by Truffaut's own childhood and shot almost like a documentary this is a refreshingly frank and unsentimental look at adolescence with one of the most iconic closing shots in all of cinema.

7. The Ladykillers - Ah, Ealing Comedies. The studio was responsible for some of the finest comedies to come out of the UK but none are better than The Ladykillers. It is a very British story (perfectly illustrated by the remake where even talented film-makers like the Coen brothers couldn't get it right) with a dark streak and wonderfully eccentric characters. It feels bad to single out individual performances as each one is perfect but Alec Guinness is sensational as the creepy and manipulative Professor Marcus. Likewise, Katie Johnson as the Old Lady plays the sweetness and toughness perfectly. This is the first of two Alexander Mackendrick films to make my '50s list but the two are very different but they both share a common element: timeless scripts. The Ladykillers balances slapstick comedy with smarter, darker wordplay quite brilliantly and even though Ealing have made other comedies centred around crime and murder (Kind Hearts and Coronets) tonally they are quite different. The perfect Sunday afternoon film no matter how many times you've seen it before.

8. Forbidden Games - Released in 1952 this René Clément war movie won the Venice Film Festival's main award but has subsided into obscurity as the years went by. It expertly manages to delight, move and repel in equal measures and whilst its controversial subject matter may not shock as it once did it is still quite unsettling. The film opens with a young girl, Paulette (played brilliantly by a then 5 year old Brigitte Fossey) fleeing Paris with her parents and dog as German bombers attack. Her entire family (including dog) are killed by machine gun fire as they try and escape over a bridge. Dazed and confused by what has happened she stumbles upon a nearby farm and makes friends with the youngest son, Michel. Struggling to come to terms with what has happened to her and her family she and Michel regress into their own little macabre world where they want to build their own miniature cemetery for dead animals. Whilst a touching tribute to her family that she was unable to say goodbye to their quest to complete this cemetery is also vaguely sinister as Paulette becomes a Lady Macbeth figure that Michel obeys unquestionably.

The film is very simple yet has many layers to it which reveal themselves after each viewing. It is also very economical, it doesn't bother to give a back story to the girl and her family and the ending is so abrupt it is as if there is a missing reel. But this bluntness works beautifully. You join the dots yourself and the ending is all the more powerful for its swift and emotionally charged conclusion. Unfortunately this isn't out on R2 DVD so you might have to seek out the Criterion DVD if you want to watch it but you won't be disappointed if you do. It is a great companion piece to Grave of the Fireflies as well.

9. Singin' in the Rain - Bar Dancer in the Dark there has been an absence in musicals in my lists so far. Whilst the von Trier film and Singin' in the Rain may share the same genre they couldn't be more different if they tried. Singin' in the Rain is the musical that everyone loves, even those that traditionally hate the genre. Along with Wizard of Oz it may even be the most universally loved film ever made and with good reason; it is pure, unadulterated fun. It has a wonderful cast, an interesting story (which can't always be said for the genre) and more standout moments than most people can manage in their entire careers.

10. Sweet Smell of Success – The second Alexander Mackendrick film of the '50s and here he ditches Britain and comedy for the bright lights of New York and the cut throat world of publicity. The story - Powerful but unethical Broadway columnist J.J. Hunsecker (Lancaster) coerces unscrupulous press agent Sidney Falco (curtis) into breaking up his sister's romance with a jazz musician. As good as the performances are (and they are great) or as assured as the direction is, the star is the sparkling dialogue and tight script. It is an immensely quotable film and whilst it may be a cliché they really don't make them live this any more.

11. Kiss Me Deadly – Arguably one of the strangest film noirs of the period if not the very finest. Robert Aldrich's story starts with heavy panting as a woman tries to flag down a car on a deserted road. When she finally manages to stop a car, and our 'hero' Mike Hammer, the opening credits begin to roll. Nothing too out of the ordinary for a noir until you realise the credits are rolling backwards. From this point, whilst still very much film noir, things are never what they seem as the audience is thrust, head first, into an apocalyptic tale of intrigue and one of the greatest MacGuffins in cinema. It is much better to go in as blind as possible when first watching the film but you will be rewarded with one of the most entertaining films of the decade.

12. Sleeping Beauty - Perhaps Disney's most visually stunning animation. Films like Bambi or Pinocchio may have more nuanced character animation but from an art direction standpoint the work Ken Anderson and Don DaGradi did here has never been bettered. But it isn't a film that solely relies on its looks (although, it would probably still make my final 20 even if it did) as the classic story is lovingly adapted here. The key element that makes the story work is the presence of one of Disney's most iconic villains, Maleficent. The studio has a history of scary antagonists but none are quite so menacing as Maleficent. The other pleasing thing, especially in the current age of animation, is that the story is lean and fat free. It is a simple story and rather than bloating it with needless subplots they keep the pace up.

13. Some Like it Hot – Certainly one of the most famous comedies of all time and whilst the humour may be gentle by modern standards it still manages to make you laugh, no matter how many times you see it. The three leads are all sensational and have great on-screen chemistry (even if off-screen it was supposedly quite different). Monroe has never been better or more beautiful but it is the partnership of Lemon and Curtis that really steal the show. The way the story unfolds and how the complications escalate is a real joy to watch (again and again). The script is littered with cracking lines, perhaps best illustrated by the iconic closing line of the film.

14. Rashomon – A film that has been copied many times but rarely bettered. Akira Kurosawa's multi-perspective narrative revolving around the murder of a samurai deftly reveals each viewpoint to create a rich and involving story. It was Kurosawa's breakout hit and still probably my favourite film of his (although trying to choose a favourite is an almost impossible task). It looks beautiful (sun glistening through the tree canopy etc.) and has fine performances from the cast. But it is the peeling away of the story that makes this an enduring movie and one that is still engaging on repeat viewings.

15. Rear Window – This Hitchcock film has been copied and referenced in cinema many times but few have captured the claustrophobia and paranoia as well as the master of suspense. James Stewart plays a wheelchair bound photographer who is confined to his apartment. Out of boredom and intrigue he spies on his neighbours only to be convinced he has witnessed a murder. Hitchcock builds the tension wonderfully as Stewart's restricted viewpoint builds the sense of paranoia. When he enlists the help of his girlfriend (the wonderful Grace Kelly) the stakes are raised and his sense of helplessness is palpable. It is a killer concept, which is why it has been copied so many times, but it takes a real master of his craft to fulfil the potential and none are better than Hitchcock when it comes to these types of high concept edge-of-your-seat experiences.

16. Eyes without a Face - A brilliant surgeon, Dr. Génessier, helped by his assistant Louise, kidnaps nice young women. He removes their faces and tries to graft them onto the head on his beloved daughter Christiane, whose face has been entirely spoiled in a car crash. All the experiments fail, and the victims die, but Génessier keeps trying. Georges Franju's film is essentially a horror movie, and perhaps if it was made in America it would be much easier to categorise as such, but he imbues it with a humanity that makes it much more than just a frightening concept. It does still tick all the horror boxes – mad scientist, dodgy experiments, foreboding mansion etc. but the motives for the murders make the surgeon strangely sympathetic. His crimes are still wrong but his motives are not out of pure evil which makes the film much more intriguing than usual. The performances are great, his daughter is creepy, sweet and tragic all at the same time and the black and white cinematography is beautiful.

17. Ordet – I am not a religious man but I am often drawn to films that deal with issues of faith (Winter Light by Bergman, for example). Carl Theodor Dreyer's Ordet is a film about faith, what it is and why do we believe? August 1925 on a Danish farm. Patriarch Borgan has three sons: Mikkel, a good-hearted agnostic whose wife Inger is pregnant, Johannes, who believes he is Jesus, and Anders, young, slight, in love with the tailor's daughter. The fundamentalist sect of the girl's father is anathema to Borgan's traditional Lutheranism; he opposes the marriage until the tailor forbids it, then Borgan's pride demands that it happen. Unexpectedly, Inger, who is the family's sweetness and light, has problems with her pregnancy. The rational doctor arrives, and a long night brings sharp focus to at least four views of faith. It is a film that will probably bore more people than it will enthral but it moved me greatly and I can not adequately express why. It is beautifully shot and the performances are great but the film touched me in a way I can not explain, which is all the stranger as I am not a man of faith. It is languid and largely uneventful but it was a magical experience for me and one that deserves its place in the final 20.

18. Bigger Than Life – Nicholas Ray's film about a family man given a miracle drug (Cortisone) to ease his illness only for him to become addicted to the drug and experience violent mood swings, is a ridiculously over the top and melodramatic movie about the dangers of drug addiction. By those terms the film is a bit of a failure, however the larger than life theatrics (the film title is very apt) really draw you into the film. The garish use of colour in the film is wonderful (Ray has a history of using bold colour to signify mood and themes in many of his films such as Johnny Guitar) as is James Mason's ridiculous unhinged performance. This is melodrama crossed with horror years before David Lynch started making films. In many ways you could see this film being a huge influence on Lynch as a film-maker as it reveals the underbelly of the happy American suburban family as something that is unwholesome and decaying from within. It might not treat the issue of addiction all that seriously but it is a powerful experience nonetheless.

19. Sunset Blvd. – As with the other noir on my list, Kiss Me Deadly, this too has a killer opening. A dead body floats face first in a swimming pool. The body belongs to Joe, a struggling scriptwriter, how he got there we do not know but we soon will. Joe narrates the film from the grave and explains the events that lead up to his watery death. Many film noirs have great opening hooks but quite a few then fail to deliver a compelling story, not so with this Billy Wilder classic. The story, set in '50s Hollywood, focuses on Norma Desmond, a silent-screen goddess whose pathetic belief in her own indestructibility has turned her into a demented recluse. The crumbling Sunset Boulevard mansion where she lives with only her butler, Max who was once her director and husband has become her self-contained world. Norma dreams of a comeback to pictures and she begins a relationship with Joe Gillis, a small-time writer who becomes her lover, that will soon end with murder and total madness. It is a dreamy, woozy and dark noir that has some very strange elements in it (especially the bit with the monkey). Gloria Swanson as Norma just devours the screen with her presence. She is a fascinating character and one you could watch for hours.

20. The Unmailed Letter - The film is based on the eponymous book by Valery Osipov. Four geologists are searching for diamonds in the wilderness of Siberia. After a long and tiresome journey they manage to find their luck and put the diamond mine on the map. The map must be delivered back to Moscow. But on the day of their departure a terrible forest fire wreaks havoc, and the geologists get trapped in the woods. Whilst the thought of a Russian propaganda film may put you off please reconsider because some of the best films ever made have been under the guise of agitprop. The story is a simple one of human will overcoming overwhelming odds. The story is simple and the way it is told is equally as direct but it is all the better for it. Whilst the four characters are rather crudely drawn we learn everything we need to know about them whilst being able to project ourselves into their place. What makes this film truly stand out though is the cinematography. When the fires do come you'd be hard pressed to find a more impressive looking black and white film. The smoke and fire shrouds the silhouetted figures and charcoal trees beautifully and I'm still not sure how they achieved some of the shots without putting the actors in potential danger (although it being a Soviet film from the '50s probably means they were in danger, constantly).

[Chocky]

1)Singin In The Rain

2)Seven Samurai

3)Hidden Fortress

4)An American In Paris

5)Some Like It Hot

[CandyBob]

Have been looking forward to this one.

1. Seven Samurai

2. Paths of Glory

3. The Seventh Seal

4. The Night of the Hunter

5. Rashomon

6. Tokyo Story

7. Throne of Blood

8. Diabolique

9. Stalag 17

10. Ikiru

11. Umberto d

12. The 400 Blows

13. Invasion of the Body Snatchers

14. Bridge on the River Kwai

15. 12 Angry Men

16. On the Waterfront

17. Them!

18. The Thing from Another World

19. Les Yeux sans visage

20. Night of the Demon

[Quest]

So glad to see Harvey at such a high position on LC's list. Hopefully it'll do alright in the overall results.

[Wiper]

Oh boy. This is a decade I'm not even sure I'll get to 10 in. Of Lord Cookie's list, I've seen only three films (including his top two, at least), and there're another two I've been meaning to watch for years. Hopefully this will spur me into watching them.

Oh, I guess I've probably seen Sleeping Beauty when I was too little to remember it, as well. It is one of my friends' favourite films, but that appears mostly to be because she thinks Maleficent is hot, which has never really been enough of a motivator for me to seek it out...

[Paradigm]

Oh boy. This is a decade I'm not even sure I'll get to 10 in. Of Lord Cookie's list, I've seen only three films (including his top two, at least), and there're another two I've been meaning to watch for years. Hopefully this will spur me into watching them.

Oh, I guess I've probably seen Sleeping Beauty when I was too little to remember it, as well. It is one of my friends' favourite films, but that appears mostly to be because she thinks Maleficent is hot, which has never really been enough of a motivator for me to seek it out...

Loads of '50s stuff on over Chrimbo.

[Wiper]

I have no control over what TV gets watched in this house

[Mr Do 71]

1. The Day the Earth Stood Still

2. North by Northwest

3. Some Like It Hot

4. The Ladykillers

5. The Lavender Hill Mob

6. Vertigo

7. Rear Window

8. The Dam Busters

9. Genevieve

10. On the Beach

11. The Fly

12. When Worlds Collide

13. Invasion of the Body Snatchers

14. Forbidden Planet

[Graham S]

One of the best decades!

1. Rio Bravo

2. Vertigo

3. Singin' in the Rain

4. In a Lonely Place

5. Rebel Without a Cause

6. Sweet Smell of Success

7. Tokyo Story

8. The Tall T

9. The Searchers

10. Mr. Hulot's Holiday

11. North By Northwest

12. Touch Of Evil

13. Sansho the Bailiff

14. Ugetsu

15. Ikiru

16. Ace in the Hole

17. Kiss Me Deadly

18. East of Eden

19. The Seventh Seal

20. Paths of Glory

Anatomy of a Murder

Baby Doll

Bigger Than Life

Bitter Victory

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Gun Crazy

Lola Montes

On the Waterfront

Pickup On South Street

Seven Samurai

Some Came Running

Some Like It Hot

Strangers on a Train

The 400 Blows

The Asphalt Jungle

The Band Wagon

The Big Combo

The Killing

The Ladykillers

The Night of the Hunter

The Red Balloon

[Sabreman]

1. Seven Samurai

2. Rear Window

3. Sunset Boulevard

4. Vertigo

5. North by Northwest

6. Singin' in the Rain

7. 12 Angry Men

8. All About Eve

9. Tokyo Story

10. Night of the Hunter

11. To Catch a Thief

12. Bad Day at Black Rock

13. Anatomy of a Murder

14. Forbidden Planet

15. The Searchers

16. Paths of Glory

17. Rio Bravo

18. Mister Roberts

19. Bell, Book and Candle

20. Ice Cold in Alex

A very strong decade for me, populated by many of my favourite artists doing some of their best and most entertaining work. Thanks to the magic of Technicolour everything just looks so damn good too. Whenever I watch American films from the 50s I desperately want to travel back and live there. Perhaps the last decade when guys were guys and dames were dames. Everything started to get a bit... grubby from here onwards.

Hitchcock dominates the list, with Rear Window and Vertigo being my favourites of his films. North by Northwest and To Catch a Thief are confections, but when confections contain Cary Grant they're irresistable. My love for Seven Samurai runs way back into childhood, early viewings merging with Shogun to cement a fascination with feudal Japan. Another film that only improves as I get older and revisit it. Bad Day at Black Rock is a superb exercise in tension as a modern-day western. A handicapped and therefore seemingly powerless stranger arrives in a town with a deadly secret, and is woefully underestimated by the villainous residents.

Aside from some permanent and unwavering entries this list could easily change day by day. I find a lot of 50s films hugely enjoyable time and again, lots of easygoing entertainment featuring a whole range of actors I admire and enjoy immensely.

[Hulot]

01. Sansho the Bailiff (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1954)

02. Ordet (The Word, Carl Th. Dreyer, 1955)

03. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958)

04. Mon oncle (My Uncle, Jacques Tati, 1958)

05. Early Summer (Yasujiro Ozu, 1951)

06. The Music Room (Satyajit Ray, 1958)

07. All That Heaven Allows (Douglas Sirk, 1955)

08. Diary of a Country Priest (Journal d'un curé de campagne, Robert Bresson, 1951)

09. Meshi (Repast, Mikio Naruse, 1951)

10. No Greater Love (Europa '51 | Europe '51, Roberto Rossellini, 1952)

11. Forty Guns (Samuel Fuller, 1957)

12. Orphée (Orpheus, Jean Cocteau, 1950)

13. The Band Wagon (Vincente Minnelli, 1953)

14. Nights of Cabiria (Le notti di Cabiria, Federico Fellini, 1957)

15. Man of the West (Anthony Mann, 1958)

16. The Cranes Are Flying (Mikhail Kalatozov, 1957)

17. The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz (Ensayo de un crimen | Assay of a Crime, Luis Buñuel, 1955)

18. The Browning Version (Anthony Asquith, 1951)

19. Anatahan (Josef von Sternberg, 1953)

20. Forbidden Planet (Fred M. Wilcox, 1956)

[Goose]

I simply haven't seen enough films made in the 50s, or I don't remember the ones I have seen, hence this list being a fair few short.

1. 12 Angry Men - An absolutely blinding film. There's not a wasted moment or a weak performance. The editing is as tight as anything you'll see and even though it's essentially a one location film, it never feels stagy or boring. Henry Fonda was perfect as the one jury member who just wanted to give the kid an hour of discussion. They way the other members are turned around is superb and never feels forced. The analysis of all the information, the prejudices that blind and the moments of realisation make the film for me every time. I've seen it a lot, I think I even spent one week just watching it once a night, every night. I also love the weather creates tension, daft as it sound. You're burning up with them, and feel relieved when the rain finally comes. And for shocks, the knife in the table still takes some beating. I will never tire of this film.

2. North By Northwest - A film of big set pieces and small moments. Everyone seems to be taking the situation so seriously except for Cary Grant, who while not actually in on it all, seems like he is. The dialogue is great and James Mason makes a wonderful villain. What was also great was Eva Marie Saint, not only beautiful but matching Grant every step of the way. It's like a bizarre action, mystery, conspiracy comedy, but my goodness it works well.

3. Singing In The Rain - Pure feel good movie magic. From the opening red carpet sequence (complete with flashback) to the final 'showdown' after the premier of the Dancing Cavalier, the film is just a delight. Gene Kelly gets (and deserves) a lot of credit for the production but I think Donald O'Connor steals pretty much every scene he's in - and that's just based on his wisecracks - his "make them laugh" scene has to be my favourite in the whole movie. Credit too, must go to Jean Hagen as Lina Lamont, whose nails-on-a-blackboard voice is equally as funny as her reactions to Debbie Reynolds turning up.

4. Anatomy of a Murder - I saw this by accident. I had one of those free books with Empire, that listed the Top Ten of each genre. I think this was no.1 in the court room dramas or something such like. It's a long film, and for the time, the subject matter and some of the language was daring ('Sperm'!) but it's fantastic film. James Stewart plays an Everyman lawyer, but someone who should not be underestimated. You can't miss out Lee Remick and Ben Gazzara, the later being fairly creepy/nasty. Great finale too.

5. Rear Window - It's essentially a one set thriller, but it's a huge set and each window (and its goings on) is like its own little set, with its own self-contained drama. Again, James Stewart ropes it all in and is ably supported by Grace Kelly, who is about as stunning as it's possible to be. Hitchcock keeps things fairly simple - was their a murder? but ratchets so much tension out of the situation, especially during the scene in which Stewart is watching Kelly break into the potential killer's apartment, that you can barely contain your breath. A superior thriller that stands up as well as North By Northwest.

6. Vertigo - I've only ever seen this film once but it remains affecting. What I like about it is that James Stewart sort of plays against type, as the obsessive Scottie Ferguson. It was more a shock than it should have been because I'd only ever seen him play the great all-round guy. Here he was flawed, dangerous. When Novak reappears it kind of threw me and I started to wonder if Ferguson was dreaming or even inventing the situations. I think it's as good as anything Hitchcock ever made but it's not the kind of film I want to see again because it left me feeling slightly unsure of Stewart, and that simply wouldn't do!

7. The War of the World - When I was kid I was terrified of alien invaders. I think this might have been the film that put the seed in my head. The FX works for the time was really good and the situation was genuinely frightening. This was devastation on a level I'd never witness before. We never stood a chance and it was only purely luck that got us out of the situation. Perhaps not as well remembered or influential as a lot of other sci-fi over the years, but a decent flick none the less.

8. The 7th Voyage of Sinbad - What's not to love? Sinbad battles all manner of Harryhausen created beasts, including what must surely be a test for the big skeleton battle in Jason & the Argonauts. Not only do you get a shrunken princess but you also get a memorable sorcerer/villain. There's a multi-armed dancers, a cyclops Vs dragaon battle and a two headed vulture thing. Wonderful escapist fare!

9. Carry on Sergeant - This isn't the greatest of the Carry On films but it is the first. Without the success in those early films there'd be no Carry On series. It set in stone at least four major Carry-On players in the guise of Hattie Jacques, Charles Hawtrey, Kenneth Williams and Kenneth Connor. It wasn't yet the bawdy comedy that would symbolise the Carry On film, but the seeds had been sewn.

[Fitzcarraldo]

1. Witness For the Prosecution (1957, Billy Wilder)

2. The Sweet Smell of Success (1957, Alexander MacKendrick)

3. Seven Samurai (1954, Akira Kurosawa)

4. The Earrings of Madame De... (1953, Max Ophüls)

5. Vertigo (1958, Alfred Hitchcock)

6. Some Like it Hot (1959, Billy Wilder)

7. Ugetsu (1953, Kenji Mizoguchi)

8. Paths of Glory (1957, Stanley Kubrick)

9. Fanfan La Tulipe (1952, Christian-Jaque)

10. Touch of Evil (1958, Orson Welles)

11. La Strada (1954, Federico Fellini)

12. Gun Crazy (1950, Joseph H. Lewis)

13. Rear Window (1954, Hitchcock)

14. Pather Panchali (1955, Satyajit Ray)

15. Wages of Fear (1953, Henri-Georges Clouzot)

16. Los Olvidados (1950, Luis Bunuel)

17. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953, Howard Hawks)

18. The 400 Blows (1958, François Truffaut)

19. Gervaise (1956, René Clément)

20. The Seventh Seal (1957, Ingmar Bergman)

Billy Wilder.

[Wiper]

Well, best post my list, horribly short though it is - again, having seen few films from the decade, and being cursed to dislike one of the major genres/directors of the era doesn't help (thrillers/Hitchcock - a logical crossover, I suppose).

So, here's my top five six:

1. Twelve Angry Men

2. Seven Samurai

3. Harvey

4. Rashomon

5. Night of the Hunter*

6. Bridge on the River Kwai

List is still susceptible to reordering, and may increase if I have time to watch a few other films from the period I've been wanting to watch for years (notably the Seventh Seal and, er, Singin' in the Rain)

*finally got around to seeing this, having put it off for too long because it just sounded too dark. I should've focussed on the fact it had Mitchum in and let that sway me, really, as I've loved him since seeing him in the brilliant Crossfire

[Michael J Glocks]

Les Yeux Sans Visage/Eyes Without a Face was 1960, no?

Great contribution to the thread, I know!

[lordcookie]

Balls, it is 1960s. It was finished in 1959 though. I better add a new film to my list.

[Fitzcarraldo]

The '40s is going to be hell.

[Wiper]

The '40s is going to be great

(if extremely limited in genre, in my case)

[Mr Do 71]

It's a Wonderful Life

[Wiper]

Casablanca

[Mr Do 71]

I think we should converge the 20's, 30's & 40's together into one (far stronger) top 20, as I'm struggling to find more than five films for my 1940's top 20.

[lordcookie]

No, that would be a bad idea for a number of reasons:

1. There are plenty of great films from those decades that deserve to get a mention and by combining them into a mega list you are just going to end up with the same old films in everybody's list.

2. The '30s and '40s are full of wonderful films, plenty to come up with a good 10 or more films from.

3. I've already written up my lists and I ain't changing them.

[Wiper]

And 4. You'd have people like me who have seen a fair few '40s films, a couple of '30s films and, er, one '20s film* making the list heavily geared towards the later periods.

*my '20s list will be something to see (and utterly predictable), clearly

[bowser123]

I think we should converge the 20's, 30's & 40's together into one (far stronger) top 20, as I'm struggling to find more than five films for my 1940's top 20.

Please don't do this. There's been so many films I've watched on the basis of reading about them in these threads that it'd be a shame to miss out on something great. I know other places have best of lists but this place has been miles more right than wrong in regards to my personal taste in it's recommendations.

[Mr Do 71]

Please don't do this. There's been so many films I've watched on the basis of reading about them in these threads that it'd be a shame to miss out on something great. I know other places have best of lists but this place has been miles more right than wrong in regards to my personal taste in it's recommendations.

It was a silly idea, and it'll be interesting to read the Cookie's write ups on the films.

[Fitzcarraldo]

The '40s is the greatest decade in cinema so it absolutely needs its own thread.

[Hawkeye]

1.Scrooge (1951)

2.North by Northwest (1959)

3.Calamity Jane (1953)

4.Rear Window (1954)

5.The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

6.Vertigo (1958)

7.Harvey (1950)

8.12 Angry Men (1957)

9.Lady and the Tramp (1955)

10.The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)

11.Paths of Glory (1957)

12.Dial M for Murder (1954)

13.The Ladykillers (1955)

14.20000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)

15.Peter Pan (1953)

16.Strangers on a Train (1951)

17.Ice-Cold in Alex (1958)

18.Stalag 17 (1953)

19.To Catch a Thief (1955)

20.The Searchers (1956)

I think my general lack of knowledge and viewing of films from this era is show as my list is a tad Hitchcock-tastic! That said there are a few high profile films from this era that I really dislike, such as Singing in the Rain.

[Wiper]

Wait, The Bridge on the River Kwai was made in the '50s? Ahh, brilliant guy, you've made my list slightly longer

[tonymg]

1. 12 Angry Men

2. North by Northwest

3. Guys and Dolls

4. Rashomon

5. Some Like It Hot

6. Seven Samurai

7. Singin' in the Rain

8. Alice In Wonderland