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- Many 1940s movies dealt with the war and its aftermath, while others aimed to provide entertainment and distraction from everything going on. The best of these movies from this decade still hold up all these decades later, and can be appreciated not just for their historical value, but also for simply being very good films.
collider.com › 1940s-movies-ranked
Jan 6, 2024 · A list of the best films from the decade that saw World War II and its aftermath, featuring classics from Hitchcock, Chaplin, Ford, and more. From dark comedies to fantasy adaptations, these...
- Jeremy Urquhart
- Senior Author
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- Georgia May
- Citizen Kane (1941) Directed by Orson Welles. Starring Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore. Drama, Mystery (1h 59m) 8.3 on IMDb — 99% on RT. Citizen Kane isn't just Orson Welles's most famous movie.
- Casablanca (1942) Directed by Michael Curtiz. Starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid. Drama, Romance, War (1h 42m) 8.5 on IMDb — 99% on RT.
- It's a Wonderful Life (1946) Directed by Frank Capra. Starring James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore. Drama, Family, Fantasy (2h 10m) 8.6 on IMDb — 94% on RT.
- The Third Man (1949) Directed by Carol Reed. Starring Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli. Mystery, Noir, Thriller (1h 33m) 8.1 on IMDb — 99% on RT. Orson Welles was one of the most prolific filmmakers of the 1940s, even causing quite the stir with his all-too-realistic radio broadcast of H. G. Wells's 1898 novel The War of the Worlds.
- Citizen Kane (1941) Directed by: Orson Welles. Starring: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore, Everett Sloane, William Alland, Agnes Moorehead.
- Jigsaw (1949) Directed by: Fletcher Markell. Starring: Franchot Tone, Jean Wallace, Marc Lawrence, Myron McCormick, Headley Rainnie, John Garfield. Runtime: 1 hr 12 mins.
- The Lady Confesses (1945) Directed by: Sam Newfield. Starring: Mary Beth Hughes, Hugh Beaumont, Claudia Drake, Edmund MacDonald, Carol Andrews, Emmett Vogan.
- Casablanca (1942) Directed by: Michael Curtiz. Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Peter Lorre, Claude Rains, Madeleine Lebeau. Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins.
Searches related to Are 1940s movies worth watching?
- 13 'Casablanca'
- 12 'It's A Wonderful Life'
- 11 'Notorious'
- 10 'The Third Man'
- 9 'The Lady Eve'
- 8 'Pinocchio'
- 7 'Double Indemnity'
- 6 'La Belle et La Bête' Aka 'Beauty and The Beast'
- 5 'The Best Years of Our Lives'
- 4 'The Lost Weekend'
Directed by Michael Curtiz
Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman are cinema's most famous romantic pairing in Michael Curtiz's Oscar-winning masterwork. The ever-quoted, snappy and dramatically potent script by Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein and Howard Koch is widely considered the best screenplay ever written. Casablanca is nearly 80 years old, and its ability to thrill and to tug at the heartstrings remains intact. In the central love triangle exists three good people with desires that simply aren't all possible....
Directed by Frank Capra
The gold standard for holiday films wasn't a huge hit in its day, but over time, Frank Capra's romantic fantasy dramedy has become widely recognized as perhapsthe ultimate feel-good, inspirational film. It's hardly fluff though, with a dark plot inspired by Dickens that sees a good-natured everyman (Jimmy Stewart) rethinking suicide after a supernatural encounter. Co-starring Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore and Henry Travers, It's a Wonderful Life ultimately boils down to this simple universal t...
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Casablanca is certainly the romantic 1940s movie Ingrid Bergman is best known for, but thisAlfred Hitchcock stunner is another crown jewel in the Hollywood icon's legacy. In Notorious, Bergman plays the infamous daughter of a Nazi, seeking to clear her notorious rep by infiltrating a web of remnant conspirators in South America. Notorious is Hitchcock's most romantic movie, and easily one of his top-shelf greatest. Bergman's romantic chemistry with Cary Grant is psychologically gripping, and...
Directed by Carol Reed
Carol Reed's thriller stars Joseph Cotten as a pulp novelist examining a mysterious death in post-war Vienna. Alida Valli co-stars as a grieving girlfriend, about a decade before the Polish-Italian star made a memorable appearance in French horror film Eyes Without a Face. It's something of a cinephile in-joke thatThe Third Man is sometimes credited to Orson Welles in the same way Poltergeist is mistakenly credited to Steven Spielberg. Welles didn't make The Third Man, though he is unforgetta...
Directed by Preston Sturges
The '30s and '40s were a golden age of sophisticated, sexy screwball comedies. Along with the brilliant likes ofIt Happened One Night, His Girl Friday and Trouble in Paradise, Preston Sturges' The Lady Eve is one of the very best. Barbara Stanwyck (at one time in the '40s the highest-paid woman in America) is at her best as a card shark who falls for a naive ale heir (Henry Fonda). Early in the film, a long, unbroken take of her running her hands through his hair, teasing him, then falling in...
Directed by Ben Sharpsteen and Hamilton Luske
Walt Disney's second animated feature had a lot to live up to in the wake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Follow-up Pinocchio is technically and artistically a superior film, with more confident storytelling and some of the finest hand-drawn animation ever. Pinocchio didn't initially see the same level of box-office success of its record-breaking predecessor due to its release at the dawn of World War II, but with time its reputation as one of Disney's crowning achievements has only grown...
Directed by Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder's taut, shadowy and lurid thriller is the ultimate film noir. Barbara Stanwyck(in a bad wig that actually adds to her character's trashy nature) is a ruthless femme fatale who seduces an insurance salesman (Fred MacMurray) in order to off her husband. This is the first mainstream Hollywood picture where the main characters are murderers. It's still an unsettling viewing experience. Other essential noirs of the decade include The Maltese Falcon, The Big Sleep and Out of the Past....
Directed by Jean Cocteau
A fantasy benchmark that had a significant impact on France's economy post-war. Jean Cocteau's La Belle et La Bête adapts Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve's book with extraordinary practical effects that won't age, eye-popping costumes and earnest heat. This is one of the most extraordinarily romantic films ever made, and the fantasy visuals have influenced everything from the work of Guillermo del Toro to, most recognizably, much of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. La Belle et La Bête ex...
Directed by William Wyler
The weight of war is examined the 1946 winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture. Upon returning from active service, William Wyler directed a human drama about three United States servicemen readjusting to civilian life. It's a deeply humane, quietly but profoundly moviing film full of top-notch performances. The cast includes Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Fredric March, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo and Harold Russell. The Best Years of Our Lives was an astounding box-office and critical succe...
Directed by Billy Wilder
As was previously stated on this list, Billy Wilder was a master of genres. A year after he made the defining noir crime film, he made a piercing alcoholism drama that was ahead of its time. This is a genuinely groundbreaking film, exploring a challenging but highly relevant topic with unprecedented depth and artistry for its time. In Academy Awards darling The Lost Weekend, Ray Milland stars as a writer who gets off the wagon and proceeds on a weekend of alcoholic demoralization. Jane Wyman...
- Editor
whatnerd.com · best-movies-set-in-1940s-rankedThe 10 Best Movies Set in the 1940s, Ranked - whatNerd
- Georgia May
- The Godfather (1972) Directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Starring Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan. Crime, Drama (2h 55m) 9.2 on IMDb — 97% on RT. Mario Puzo's novel The Godfather was on The New York Times Best Seller list for 67 weeks, but Paramount executives were still wary that a film adaptation wouldn't guarantee a hit.
- Pan's Labyrinth (2006) Directed by Guillermo del Toro. Starring Ivana Baquero, Ariadna Gil, Sergi López. Drama, Fantasy, War (1h 58m) 8.2 on IMDb — 95% on RT.
- Kill Your Darlings (2013) Directed by John Krokidas. Starring Daniel Radcliffe, Dane DeHaan, Michael C. Hall. Biography, Drama, Romance (1h 44m) 6.4 on IMDb — 76% on RT.
- Lolita (1997) Directed by Adrian Lyne. Starring Jeremy Irons, Dominique Swain, Melanie Griffith. Drama, Romance (2h 17m) 6.8 on IMDb — 69% on RT. Despite the fact that distribution was near-impossible in the US and Australia, most people still know Lolita and what it's about.
collider.com · movies-from-the-1940s-everyoneMovies From the 1940s Everyone Should See At Least Once
Mar 20, 2022 · Some films are released to a cavalcade of great reviews and plaudits and are instantly held up as classics of the medium. The 1940s is not without its share of these films.
Best 1940s Movies: Discover the unforgettable stories and iconic stars of the 40s with our collection of cinema classics from this decade.
