After criticizing some of the popular music of the early 1950s, here are some of the good movies of the early 1950s. Listening to the radio might have been painful but we had a lot of great movies to choose from at theaters. Here are some:
Released in 1950:
Sunset Boulevard (Paramount) William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olsen
Harvey (Universal) James Stewart, Victoria Horne, Cecil Kellaway, Josephine Hull
The Asphalt Jungle (MGM) Sterling Hayden, Louis Calhern, Sam Jaffee, John McIntire, Marilyn Monroe
D.O.A. (Harry Popkin Productions) Edmund O'Brien, Pamela Britton, Luther Adler, Beverly Garland
Winchester '73 (Universal) James Stewart, Shelly Winters, Dan Duryea, Stephen McNally
Father of the Bride (MGM) Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Bennett
Cinderella (Disney) Ilene Woods, Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton, Mike Douglas, William Phipps
Released in 1951: A banner year for good movies
A Streetcar Named Desire (Warner Brothers) Vivien Leigh, Marlon Brando, Kim Hunter, Karl Malden
Strangers on a Train (Warner Brothers) Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, Leo G. Carroll
An American in Paris (MGM) Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron, Oscar Levant, Nina Foch
A Place in the Sun (Paramount) Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth, Taylor, Shelly Winters, Raymond Burr
Detective Story (Paramount) Kirk Douglas, Eleanor Parker, William Bendix
The African Queen (Horizon Pictures) Humphrey Bogart, Katherine Hepburn, Robert Morley
Ace in the Hole (Paramount) Kirk Douglas, Jan Sterling, Richard Benedict
When Worlds Collide (Paramount) Barbara Rush, Richard Derr, Peter Hansen, Rachel Ames
The Thing from Another World (RKO) Kenneth Tobey, Margaret Sheridan, James Arness
The Day the Earth Stood Still (29th Century Fox) Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe
Alice in Wonderland (Disney) Kathryn Beaumont, Ed Wynn, Sterling Holloway, Jerry Colonna
Released in 1952: Another banner year
High Noon (Stanley Kramer Productions) Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Lloyd Bridges, Lon Chaney, Jr.
The Snows of Kilimarjaro (20th Century Fox) Gregory Peck, Susan Hayward, Ava Gardner
Carrie (Paramount) Jennifer Jones, Laurence Olivier, Eddie Albert)
Against All Flags (Universal International) Errol Flynn, Maureen O'Hara, Anthony Quinn
The Crimson Pirate (Warner Brothers) Burt Lancaster, Nick Cravat, Eva Bartok, Dana Winter
Deadline – USA (20th Century Fox) Humphrey Bogart, Ethel Barrymore, Kim Hunter
Singin' in the Rain (MGM) Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Jean Hagen
Viva Zapata! (20th Century Fox) Marlon Brando, Jean Peters, Anthony Quinn
Released in 1952: Now this was a year for movies
From Here to Eternity (Columbia) Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, Montgomery Clift, Donna Reed, Frank Sinatra, Ernest Borgnine
Shane (Paramount) Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin, Brandon De Wilde, Jack Palance
How To Marry a Millionaire (20th Century Fox) Lauren Bacall, Betty Grable, Marilyn Monroe
House of Wax (Warner Brothers) Vincent Price, Frank Lovejoy, Sue Allen, Carolyn Jones, Charles Bronson
Mogambo (MGM) Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly
The Robe (20th Century Fox) Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Michael Rennie
Roman Holiday (Paramount) Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck, Eddie Albert
Stalag 17 (Paramount) William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger, Robert Strauss
The War of the Worlds (Paramount) Gene Barry, Ann Robinson, Les Tremayne, Cedric Hardwicke
The Wild One (Stanley Kramer Productions) Marlon Brando, Mary Murphy, Robert Keith, Lee Marvin
Peter Pan (Disney) Bobby Driscoll, Kathryn Beaumont, Hans Conried
This is a subjective list. There were many other good movies I did not list.
Released in 1950:
Sunset Boulevard (Paramount) William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olsen
Harvey (Universal) James Stewart, Victoria Horne, Cecil Kellaway, Josephine Hull
The Asphalt Jungle (MGM) Sterling Hayden, Louis Calhern, Sam Jaffee, John McIntire, Marilyn Monroe
D.O.A. (Harry Popkin Productions) Edmund O'Brien, Pamela Britton, Luther Adler, Beverly Garland
Winchester '73 (Universal) James Stewart, Shelly Winters, Dan Duryea, Stephen McNally
Father of the Bride (MGM) Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Bennett
Cinderella (Disney) Ilene Woods, Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton, Mike Douglas, William Phipps
Released in 1951: A banner year for good movies
A Streetcar Named Desire (Warner Brothers) Vivien Leigh, Marlon Brando, Kim Hunter, Karl Malden
Strangers on a Train (Warner Brothers) Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, Leo G. Carroll
An American in Paris (MGM) Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron, Oscar Levant, Nina Foch
A Place in the Sun (Paramount) Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth, Taylor, Shelly Winters, Raymond Burr
Detective Story (Paramount) Kirk Douglas, Eleanor Parker, William Bendix
The African Queen (Horizon Pictures) Humphrey Bogart, Katherine Hepburn, Robert Morley
Ace in the Hole (Paramount) Kirk Douglas, Jan Sterling, Richard Benedict
When Worlds Collide (Paramount) Barbara Rush, Richard Derr, Peter Hansen, Rachel Ames
The Thing from Another World (RKO) Kenneth Tobey, Margaret Sheridan, James Arness
The Day the Earth Stood Still (29th Century Fox) Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe
Alice in Wonderland (Disney) Kathryn Beaumont, Ed Wynn, Sterling Holloway, Jerry Colonna
Released in 1952: Another banner year
High Noon (Stanley Kramer Productions) Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Lloyd Bridges, Lon Chaney, Jr.
The Snows of Kilimarjaro (20th Century Fox) Gregory Peck, Susan Hayward, Ava Gardner
Carrie (Paramount) Jennifer Jones, Laurence Olivier, Eddie Albert)
Against All Flags (Universal International) Errol Flynn, Maureen O'Hara, Anthony Quinn
The Crimson Pirate (Warner Brothers) Burt Lancaster, Nick Cravat, Eva Bartok, Dana Winter
Deadline – USA (20th Century Fox) Humphrey Bogart, Ethel Barrymore, Kim Hunter
Singin' in the Rain (MGM) Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Jean Hagen
Viva Zapata! (20th Century Fox) Marlon Brando, Jean Peters, Anthony Quinn
Released in 1952: Now this was a year for movies
From Here to Eternity (Columbia) Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, Montgomery Clift, Donna Reed, Frank Sinatra, Ernest Borgnine
Shane (Paramount) Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin, Brandon De Wilde, Jack Palance
How To Marry a Millionaire (20th Century Fox) Lauren Bacall, Betty Grable, Marilyn Monroe
House of Wax (Warner Brothers) Vincent Price, Frank Lovejoy, Sue Allen, Carolyn Jones, Charles Bronson
Mogambo (MGM) Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly
The Robe (20th Century Fox) Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Michael Rennie
Roman Holiday (Paramount) Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck, Eddie Albert
Stalag 17 (Paramount) William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger, Robert Strauss
The War of the Worlds (Paramount) Gene Barry, Ann Robinson, Les Tremayne, Cedric Hardwicke
The Wild One (Stanley Kramer Productions) Marlon Brando, Mary Murphy, Robert Keith, Lee Marvin
Peter Pan (Disney) Bobby Driscoll, Kathryn Beaumont, Hans Conried
This is a subjective list. There were many other good movies I did not list.
That's all for now.
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A great list, O'Neil, with some of my fave films on it. And sometimes I forget how many good movies there were in the 50s.
ReplyDeleteI love this kind of thing, O'Neil. Some on this list are among my all-time favorites, and--as Paul said--it's hard to remember how good some of these were.
ReplyDeleteA terrific list, O’Neil. I sometimes think of the ‘50s as one of my least- liked movie decades, but your list includes some of my fav films. Singin in the Rain. Sunset Boulevard. D.O.A. Harvey. Thanks for reminding me!
ReplyDeleteSunset Boulevard; Stalag 17; High Noon; The African Queen; A Place in the Sun; It really was a pretty good decade after all.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments. Some of those movies were so cool.
ReplyDeleteLiked the list overall (not that I've seen all of them; I didn't see any of them until the early 1960s, and I have generally skipped the biblical epic movies). But I never like Shane. At this point, since it more than 50 years since I first saw it and more than 40 since I last saw it, I couldn't tell you why. But it just rubbed me wrong...which probably says more about me than about the movie.
ReplyDelete