Suggestions for movies from the 30's, 40's, 50's

Dark Donnie

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Im doing a research paper for my American Cinema class and I need to write a 5-7 page paper on an American Film from the 30's, 40's, or 50's. Im not really familiar with alot of old films besides the obvious ones. The paper has to deal with Production History, artisitic importance, and the intent of the director. Can anyone give me some suggestions?
 
Well here's the films the Directors did in the 40's:

George Cukor: THE PHILADELPHIA STORY, KEEPER OF THE FLAME, GASLIGHT, A DOUBLE LIFE, ADAM'S RIB, EDWARD, MY SON.

John Ford: THE GRAPES OF WRATH, THE LONG VOYAGE HOME, TOBACCO ROAD, HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY, DECEMBER 7TH (among other wartime documentaries); THEY WERE EXPENDABLE, MY DARLING CLEMENTINE, FORT APACHE, THREE GODFATHERS, SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON.

Alfred Hitchcock, REBECCA, FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT, SUSPICION, SHADOW OF A DOUBT, LIFEBOAT, SPELLBOUND, NOTORIOUS, ROPE.
 
I can give you some scifi movies from those eras: Day the earth stood still, Forbidden Planet, Invasion from Mars, The first Godzilla movie; the Haunting and House on Haunting Hill were originally done the 30's, The Thing, 4D Man, Man with X-ray Eyes, The Blob, Both Invisible Man movies, King Kong, War of the Worlds, This Island Earth, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Rodan, Mothra, Incredible Shrinking Man, The Fly, Journey to the Center of the Earth, When World's Collide. This is all I can think of had big impact in cinema and artisitic importance.
 
John Huston made some good movies in the 40's:

THE MALTESE FALCON, THE TREASURE OF SIERRA MADRE, and KEY LARGO.
 
I recommend charting those decades while stressing the studio system and the individual studios they spawned. MGM, Warner Bros., Paramount, 2oth Century Fox, RKO and Columbia. Each had its own stable of stars, directors and composers, and each had a distinct "personality". The studio system or "factory" was when all these films cited were made.
 
Citizen Kane :up:

Yeah, I'm sure everyone is gonna write their paper on that. :o I say go for John Ford's The Searchers. There's A LOT to write about that film. Go rent it and you'll see what I'm talking about.
 
Out of the Past (1947), The Killers (1946), The Asphalt Jungle. I love all of the noir classics of those decades. You should buy the DVD collection and watch them all.
 
A too long list to post here. But i would put titles like citizen kane, casablanca, gone with the wind, the 40s film noir, the classic wesnterns by ford or hawks, the comic cinema by chaplin , keaton , lloyd, laurel and hardy and the marx brothers.

Also the capra films, the epic films like ben hur or spartacus, the universal horror films, hitchcock films, and a long etc.

To name important films from those four decades would need like a post of 50 pages to do it justice.
 
Thanks for the suggestion guys...really appreciate it. Hunter had suggested Dial M for Murder, what does everyone think of that?
 
It was great, but for my personal opinion, not Hitch's best. But a great suspense movie, for sure. The fight scene between grace Kelly and the killer is hig tension at the higest level.
 
By Hitch, i would recomend you some titles like psycho, the birds, shadow of a doubt, rebecca, vertigo, north bynorthwest, notorius or rear window before dial m for a murder.
 
Thanks for the suggestion guys...really appreciate it. Hunter had suggested Dial M for Murder, what does everyone think of that?

If you're going for Hitchcock then go for Vertigo. Or Strangers on a Train.
 
Yes , strangers in a train its a masterpiece too.

I would recomend you the david lean films. Because it was a very original way to mix the epic cinema with the more touching and innermost cinema. Titles like doctor zhivago, lawrence of arabia, bridge on the river kwai, or ryan's daughter. Very interesting.
 
-Casablanca
-Gone with the Wind
-Bridge on the River Kwai
-Guns of the Navarone
-To Kill a Mockingbird
-The Maltese Falcon
-The Third Man
-The Thin Man
-Key Largo
-Some Like It Hot
-King Kong
-Dracula
-Frankenstein
-The Bride of Frankenstein
-The Wolf Man
-It's a Wonderful Life
-Rear Window
-Rope
-Shadow of a Doubt
-Notorious
-The Adventures of Robin Hood
-North by Northwest
-The Man Who Knew Too Much (both versions)
-Singin' in the Rain
-Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
-Show Boat (both versions)
-All Quiet on the Western Front
-Double Idemnity
-Sunset Bolouvard
-The Searchers
-She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
-Apache Pass
-My Darling Clementine
-The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence
-Arsenic and Old Lace
-Mr. Smith oes to Washington
-Breakfast at Tiffany's
-Charade
-Top Hat
-Swing Time
-Holiday Inn
-Miracle on 34th Street
-Rebecca
-Citizen Kane
-Zulu
-Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

And I'm sure there are many others but that was just free-flowing off the top of my head though.
 
great list, crowe.

I think that Billy Wilder films have a big cinema value also. Titles like some like it hot, the apartment, double idemnity, sunsent boulevard,the front page, the cookie fortune. Pure gold.
 
If you want early, early Hitch, check out his silent - The Lodger. That was his first big hit. 1927, though, so maybe a little earlier than what you want.
 
Laura

Classic noir stuff right there.
 

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