/r/classicfilms

Photograph via snooOG

A community for classic cinema enthusiasts who engage in discussions, share insights, and celebrate films from the early 20th century to the mid-1960s. Members appreciate the rich history, themes, techniques, and cultural significance of classic movies.

For the purposes of this sub, we define classic film as the era ending in the early to mid 1960s, when the studio system collapsed.

So please keep this in mind when posting and try to remain on topic.

UPDATE: Due to an influx of reports, posts linking to streaming movies need to be in the public domain and/or are clearly licensed to be streamed at the site.**

++ Please do not post spoilers when posting synopsis :) ++

CLASSIC FILMS is a subreddit founded by Stroud and monoglot for discussing and recommending films in the Golden Age of Cinema, Film Noir, Black & White (Classic) films. It is moderated by them with the help of Jaxspider for CSS development.

  • Secondarily, some classic genres like for example, the noir genre, has several permutations and may be added to the subreddit.

  • Lastly, Period-era Films should be submitted to: Period-Era Films

Reddit Pre-1990 Films Top 250

Subreddits of Interest:

Others:

External Links:

/r/classicfilms

53,914 Subscribers

50

Happy New Year from Norma

0 Comments
2024/12/31
19:13 UTC

10

What is your list of the 100 best movies of all time?

This is beyond the scope of this sub, but who cares? This is gonna be fun!

Here's my own list, in alphabetical order:

  1. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Richard Fleischer, 1954)
  2. A Fish Called Wanda (Charles Crichton, 1988)
  3. A Hard Day's Night (Richard Lester, 1964)
  4. A Matter of Life and Death (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1946)
  5. Advise & Consent (Otto Preminger, 1962)
  6. All About Eve (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1950)
  7. Amadeus (Milos Forman, 1984)
  8. Amarcord (Federico Fellini, 1973)
  9. Anatomy of a Murder (Otto Preminger, 1959)
  10. Annie Hall (Woody Allen, 1977)
  11. Automn Tale (Éric Rohmer, 1998)
  12. Barry Lyndon (Stanley Kubrick, 1975)
  13. Beauty and the Beast (Jean Cocteau, 1946)
  14. Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942)
  15. Charade (Stanley Donen, 1963)
  16. Chimes at Midnight (Orson Welles, 1965)
  17. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941)
  18. City Lights (Charles Chaplin, 1931)
  19. Crimes and Misdemeanors (Woody Allen, 1989)
  20. Divorce Italian Style (Pietro Germi, 1961)
  21. El Pisito (Marco Ferreri, 1958)
  22. El Sur (Víctor Erice, 1983)
  23. F for Fake (Orson Welles, 1973)
  24. Fort Apache (John Ford, 1948)
  25. Gaslight (George Cukor, 1944)
  26. General Della Rovere (Roberto Rossellini, 1959)
  27. Gone with the Wind (Victor Fleming, 1939)
  28. Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese, 1990)
  29. High and Low (Akira Kurosawa, 1963)
  30. His Girl Friday (Howard Hawks, 1940)
  31. I Walked with a Zombie (Jacques Tourneur, 1943)
  32. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (Steven Spielberg, 1989)
  33. It Happened in Broad Daylight (Ladislao Vajda, 1958)
  34. It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)
  35. Jeremiah Johnson (Sydney Pollack, 1972)
  36. Johnny Guitar (Nicholas Ray, 1954)
  37. Kramer vs. Kramer (Robert Benton, 1979)
  38. La Ronde (Max Ophüls, 1950)
  39. La Strada (Federico Fellini, 1954)
  40. Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962)
  41. Le plaisir (Max Ophüls, 1952)
  42. Little Big Man (Arthur Penn, 1970)
  43. Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2003)
  44. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (Peter Weir, 2003)
  45. Notorious (Alfred Hitchcock, 1946)
  46. Once Upon a Time in the West (Sergio Leone, 1968)
  47. Out of the Past (Jacques Tourneur, 1947)
  48. Paths of Glory (Stanley Kubrick, 1957)
  49. Plácido (Luis García Berlanga, 1961)
  50. Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, 1994)
  51. Radio Stories (José Luis Sáenz de Heredia, 1955)
  52. Rear Window (Alfred Hitchcock, 1954)
  53. Rififi (Jules Dassin, 1955)
  54. Rio Bravo (Howard Hawks, 1959)
  55. Roman Holiday (William Wyler, 1953)
  56. Rosemary's Baby (Roman Polanski, 1968)
  57. Sansho the Bailiff (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1954)
  58. Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954)
  59. Shane (George Stevens, 1953)
  60. Silence (Martin Scorsese, 2016)
  61. Singin' in the Rain (Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly, 1952)
  62. Strangers When We Meet (Richard Quine, 1960)
  63. Sunset Blvd. (Billy Wilder, 1950)
  64. Sweet Smell of Success (Alexander Mackendrick, 1957)
  65. The Adventures of Robin Hood (Michael Curtiz, 1938)
  66. The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)
  67. The Band Wagon (Vincente Minnelli, 1953)
  68. The Best Years of Our Lives (William Wyler, 1946)
  69. The Big Country (William Wyler, 1958)
  70. The Big Lebowski (Joel Coen, 1998)
  71. The Bridges of Madison County (Clint Eastwood, 1995)
  72. The Dead (John Huston, 1987)
  73. The Godfather (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972)
  74. The Last Picture Show (Peter Bogdanovich, 1971)
  75. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (Powell & Pressburger, 1943)
  76. The Naked Spur (Anthony Mann, 1953)
  77. The Night of the Hunter (Charles Laughton, 1955)
  78. The Outlaw Josey Wales (Clint Eastwood, 1976)
  79. The Party (Blake Edwards, 1968)
  80. The Purple Rose of Cairo (Woody Allen, 1985)
  81. The Quiet Man (John Ford, 1952)
  82. The Red Shoes (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1948)
  83. The Remains of the Day (James Ivory, 1993)
  84. The River (Jean Renoir, 1951)
  85. The Searchers (John Ford, 1956)
  86. The Shawshank Redemption (Frank Darabont, 1994)
  87. The Shop Around the Corner (Ernst Lubitsch, 1940)
  88. The Spirit of the Beehive (Víctor Erice, 1973)
  89. The Thief of Bagdad (Ludwig Berger, Michael Powell & Tim Whelan, 1940)
  90. The Train (John Frankenheimer, 1964)
  91. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (John Huston, 1948)
  92. The Truman Show (Peter Weir, 1998)
  93. The Vikings (Richard Fleischer, 1958)
  94. The Wings of Eagles (John Ford, 1957)
  95. To Be or Not to Be (Ernst Lubitsch, 1942)
  96. To Have and Have Not (Howard Hawks, 1944)
  97. To Kill a Mockingbird (Robert Mulligan, 1962)
  98. Tokyo Story (Yasujirō Ozu, 1953)
  99. Top Hat (Mark Sandrich, 1935)
  100. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958)

Of course, I've missed a ton of movies that I probably should have added. But there are countless classics that I have yet to view, and many others that I watched long ago and can't really remember. I think it's a pretty good list, though. Anyway, a movie list is a conversation starter, not a last word.

Looking forward to read yours!

15 Comments
2024/12/31
18:42 UTC

7

Does Anyone Love the Goofy Pre-Code Movie, “Naughty Flirt”?

It seems to me that years later, Mel Blanc and/or producer/artists etc took Alice White’s character for one of Bugs Bunny’s goofy characters.

I find these pre-code movies to be a lot of fun to watch.

1 Comment
2024/12/31
14:36 UTC

36

Which are the best* Billy Wilder movies?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Wilder_filmography

*so far I've only seen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Indemnity and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Some_Like_It_Hot but liked them both.

Thanks for any input.

***************************************************************************************************************

Really touched by the number of interesting replies and suggestions. This must be the kindest subreddit!

***************************************************************************************************************

94 Comments
2024/12/31
14:21 UTC

18

King of the Underworld

Earlier tonight, I saw King of the Underworld. Starring Humphrey Bogart as this dumb yet dangerous gang lease Joe Gurney who, when a local doctor helped mend one of Joe’s goons, has him on the hook to be an on-call doctor for whenever he or his boys need to get patched up.

One night, the doctor is mending one of Joe’s buddies when the cops do a raid on the place. Gunfire rings out and the doctor’s dead. The doctor’s wife (who’s also a doctor) ends up being on the hook to Joe, an arrangement where, though she does enjoy the payment, she’s not exactly thrilled about but can’t do anything about…at least for the moment.

It’s a little-known film in Bogart’s iconic filmography but if you have an hour to kill it’s a nice crime film to check out. Plus, Bogart’s performance is funny yet sinister when it needs to be.

For those of you who have seen this film, what did you think?

2 Comments
2024/12/31
06:04 UTC

403

Double Indemnity(1944)

I just watched this for the very first time. OH. MY. GOSH. One of the best crime films I’ve ever seen, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Great acting, great soundtrack, great screenplay. What a film, what a film.

59 Comments
2024/12/31
03:12 UTC

36

Lee Remick & James Garner

5 Comments
2024/12/31
01:37 UTC

102

This still of the “Preacher” from Night of the Hunter struck me as oddly resembling the profile pic of virtually every young man trying to be edgy on social media.

I mean look at it. The forward leaning posture, folded hands showing off knuckle tattoos, raised eyebrows and the “I’m tough” stare. I’ve never seen the movie; I’d have thought the character was a gangster, instead of a religious fanatic according to my Google search. It doesn’t look at all like any 1950s figure I’ve seen: even the mobsters are usually polished in the noir kind of way instead of looking like a stereotypical rapper.

Is this coincidental? Does anyone know whether Night of the Hunter has had much real-world cultural influence, particularly regarding men’s self-image?

Or maybe it’s just because a particular mindset or personality tends to manifest similarly.

Thoughts?

16 Comments
2024/12/31
01:35 UTC

71

The big sleep (1946)

I’ve seen hundreds of film noir and films from the 40s/50s before anyone says anything. I found the big sleep very slow, very complicated and quite hard to follow. The action is very good and Bogart was great. Bacall is a bit wooden. Is it just me who founds this film to hard to follow and keep up, I felt like I was 2 scenes behind. I’m not sure if I liked it, maybe there was too make side characters,anyone else feel this way?

58 Comments
2024/12/30
20:53 UTC

64

Johnny Russell, Child Star of Old Hollywood, Dies at 91

John R. Countryman, who was featured in a number of Hollywood films alongside stars like Shirley Temple and Barbara Stanwyck in the 1930s and 1940s while using the stage name Johnny Russell, has died. He was 91.

2 Comments
2024/12/30
20:03 UTC

0

alright everyone, many of you talk about famous actors and actresses but i have to bring up someone who also had a movie career. The 40th U.S. President Ronald Reagan. What’s your favorite movie of his.

9 Comments
2024/12/30
14:07 UTC

12

Another "Restoration" I Did

Hello. Here's another "Restoration" I Did With AI. (oops I said the magic word)

So this film could be safe because it doesn't have much fuzz on the picture and the audio But of course they (the copyright company that owns this film) didn't want to spend money to restore it because the officials say"this film is racist". And before you comment anything No, this film isn't racist. It's about a malay man who felt in love with an Indian girl (from Malaysia ofc) No, it doesn't have blackface or anything like that. Idk what's racist about it. It's a sweet film. The ending is also sweet (this is the ending scene btw)

Still, I use ai for enhancing the footage (it's meh.) I only remaster the audio (not by ai) So the audio you're listening is my remastered version. It's basically the original with no hissing sounds. I also did the colour correction. Should I do more?

4 Comments
2024/12/30
08:20 UTC

28

Sam Peckinpah (in shades) on the Wild Bunch set

1 Comment
2024/12/30
06:59 UTC

112

Russ tamblyn turns 90

Tamblyn played the younger Bart Tare (played as an adult by John Dall) in the film noir Gun Crazy (1950) and Elizabeth Taylor's younger brother in Father of the Bride (also 1950) and its sequel, Father's Little Dividend (1951) at MGM. He appeared in Captain Carey, U.S.A. (1950), The Gangster We Made (1950), As Young as You Feel (1951), Cave of Outlaws (1951), Retreat, Hell! (1952), and The Winning Team (1952).

His first role under the contract was as a young soldier in boot camp in Take the High Ground! (1953), directed by Richard Brooks.His training as a gymnast in high school, and abilities as an acrobat, prepared him for his breakout role as Gideon, the youngest brother, in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954). Tamblyn was one of many studio contract players in the musical Deep in My Heart (1954). He played Eleanor Parker's brother in the Western Many Rivers to Cross (1955), and was one of several young MGM actors (others included Jane Powell and Debbie Reynolds) in the musical Hit the Deck (1955).

Tamblyn supported older actors in two Westerns: Robert Taylor and Stewart Granger in The Last Hunt (1956), a flop; and Glenn Ford and Broderick Crawford in The Fastest Gun Alive (1956), a big hit, where he performed an extraordinary "shovel" dance at a hoe-down early in the film. He served (uncredited) as a choreographer for Elvis Presley in 1957's Jailhouse Rock. MGM loaned Tamblyn to Allied Artists for his first star role, The Young Guns (1957). Back at MGM he supported Glenn Ford and Gia Scala in Don't Go Near the Water (1957), a comedy set among members of the U.S. Navy.

Throughout the 1970s, Tamblyn appeared in several exploitation films and worked as a choreographer in the 1980s. In 1990, he starred as Dr. Lawrence Jacoby in David Lynch's television drama Twin Peaks, reprising the role during its 2017 revival.

Tamblyn's best-known musical role came as Riff, the leader of the Jets street gang in West Side Story (1961). He then appeared in two MGM Cinerama movies, The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm, again for Pal, and How the West Was Won (both 1962).

36 Comments
2024/12/30
04:58 UTC

0

Who is the beautiful actress who appeared in the picture ?

My friends could you please help me to find who is the beautiful actress who appeared in the picture ?

I think the actor in the picture is Rock Hudson right?

Someone know what is the name of the movie?

https://preview.redd.it/b3yc397usw9e1.jpg?width=684&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=831c1cf0dd055556069074bf41ef5b43675df8e2

1 Comment
2024/12/30
03:57 UTC

10

Who is the beautiful actress who appeared in the picture ?

My friends could you please help me to find who is the beautiful actress who appeared in the picture ?

I think the actor in the picture is Rock Hudson right?

Someone know what is the name of the movie?

https://preview.redd.it/b3yc397usw9e1.jpg?width=684&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=831c1cf0dd055556069074bf41ef5b43675df8e2

6 Comments
2024/12/30
03:57 UTC

7

One of my favourites from the 50s. Telepathic Yetis

2 Comments
2024/12/30
03:51 UTC

94

Moviegoers in line to see F. W. Murnau’s SUNRISE at the Liberty Theatre on 42nd Street West of Broadway in 1927. The attraction across the street is THE GAUCHO starring Douglas Fairbanks.

7 Comments
2024/12/30
01:42 UTC

19

Bebe Daniels in SEÑORITA (1927) a spoof of THE MARK OF ZORRO

0 Comments
2024/12/29
23:36 UTC

17

What Did You Watch This Week?

https://preview.redd.it/3id9q514rf3b1.jpg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dd89760000acc70d6bf72374ae3629a947d9a219

In our weekly tradition, it's time to gather round and talk about classic film(s) you saw over the week and maybe recommend some.

Tell us about what you watched this week. Did you discover something new or rewatched a favourite one? What lead you to that film and what makes it a compelling watch? Ya'll can also help inspire fellow auteurs to embark on their own cinematic journeys through recommendations.

So, what did you watch this week?

As always: Kindly remember to be considerate of spoilers and provide a brief synopsis or context when discussing the films.

91 Comments
2024/12/29
21:00 UTC

36

Four Los Angeles area movie filming locations, then and now, 1929/1930 vs today. More details at the bottom of the photo.

0 Comments
2024/12/29
20:18 UTC

0

"Citizen Kane" | Rap Song

0 Comments
2024/12/29
20:16 UTC

135

Leslie Caron in a publicity portrait for 𝑮𝒊𝒈𝒊 (1958)

10 Comments
2024/12/29
15:11 UTC

72

Time to check the sidebar?

Just throwing this out here

I've just checked the sidebar for this sub and found a 14yr old poll plus 2 links on where to watch classic films that are broken, in light of the approaching New Year, does anyone else feel it could be an idea to refresh these and/or fix any other problems there

Obviously a Mod with time and willingness would be required.

7 Comments
2024/12/29
12:13 UTC

40

Joan Crawford promo shot for No More Ladies (1935)

1 Comment
2024/12/29
12:08 UTC

0

So which era in Hollywood started to get more bigger and changed a lot and begin a new era compare to the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s?

Was it 1970s or 1980s it actually begin well any suggestions you guys when you look at films and TV shows well.

4 Comments
2024/12/29
11:34 UTC

56

How Many Contemporary References Have I Missed?

I was watching the Laurel And Hardy movie "Way Out West" and there's a scene where Stan is trying to hitch hike and can't get anybody to stop until he pulls his pant leg up - and a car screeches to a halt. Audiences at the time of it's release would've immediately caught the reference to "It Happened One Night" which came out three years before.

It made me wonder about how many similar references to contemporary events in classic movies I've missed. Can anybody think of examples of films where the original audience would've gotten the joke but it goes over the heads of modern audiences? I suspect the Marx Brothers movies are examples of this.

61 Comments
2024/12/29
11:19 UTC

Back To Top