Top 10 of the Decade: The 1950s

[LoathedVermin72]

1. East of Eden
2. A Streetcar Named Desire
3. The Vikings
4. Man of the West
5. North by Northwest
6. The White Tower
7. The Searchers
8. The Night of the Hunter
9. Ashes and Diamonds
10. Winchester ‘73

Honorable Mentions: The Last Frontier, Smiles of a Summer Night, Paths of Glory, Suddenly Last Summer, The 400 Blows, Giant, The Last Wagon, The Trouble with Harry, On Dangerous Ground

[nyquillyn]

1. Rear Window
2. Touch of Evil
3. The Seventh Seal
4. Seven Samurai
5. East of Eden
6. Tokyo Story
7. Vertigo
8. Fires on the Plain
9. Rashomon
10. North by Northwest

[The Argonaut]

This was the most difficult list to do! Easily my longest shortlist, and it was very difficult to choose between the last few contenders.
1. Ikiru (Kurosawa)
2. Vertigo (Hitchcock)
3. Bigger than Life (Ray)
4. Umberto D. (De Sica)
5. Pickup on South Street (Fuller)
6. A Man Escaped (Bresson)
7. Ballad of Narayama (Kinoshita)
8. Wages of Fear (Clouzot)
9. Kanal (Wajda)
10. I Live in Fear (Kurosawa)
contenders: 400 Blows, Touchez pas au grisbi, Odds Against Tomorrow, Ordet, Rashomon, Human Condition, And God Created Woman, Singin' in the Rain, Les diaboliques, Strangers on a Train

[LoathedVermin72]

Man do we have different taste, Argo. You managed to pick my least favorite of Wajda's war trilogy and one movie I borderline hate (Narayama).

Bigger Than Life, Touchez pas au grisbi, and Singin' in the Rain were very close to making my honorable mention list, though.

[The Argonaut]

Man do we have different taste, Argo. You managed to pick my least favorite of Wajda's war trilogy and one movie I borderline hate (Narayama).

Bigger Than Life, Touchez pas au grisbi, and Singin' in the Rain were very close to making my honorable mention list, though.

I love so many things about Ballad of Narayama. I love the basic story and the music. It's an ending I will never forget: perfectly ambiguous. The sets manage to walk this line between bare-bones-theatre-style and stunningly beautiful. There are not a lot of films this beautiful that were made in a studio.
And Kanal? Kanal creates this weird world that I felt a part of. A movie about wandering lost around a dark sewer system sounds like it could be tedious, but it's able to keep me into it. I haven't actually seen any other Wajda, though. I'll look into that.

[LoathedVermin72]

Man do we have different taste, Argo. You managed to pick my least favorite of Wajda's war trilogy and one movie I borderline hate (Narayama).

Bigger Than Life, Touchez pas au grisbi, and Singin' in the Rain were very close to making my honorable mention list, though.

I love so many things about Ballad of Narayama. I love the basic story and the music. It's an ending I will never forget: perfectly ambiguous. The sets manage to walk this line between bare-bones-theatre-style and stunningly beautiful. There are not a lot of films this beautiful that were made in a studio.
And Kanal? Kanal creates this weird world that I felt a part of. A movie about wandering lost around a dark sewer system sounds like it could be tedious, but it's able to keep me into it. I haven't actually seen any other Wajda, though. I'll look into that.

I found Narayama really grating. I can't stand the music. The visuals are ineffective at best and annoying at worst. And the narrative and themes at its core don't interest me at all.

Kanal's not bad, but it never really hit me. It's visceral, but definitely nothing on Ashes and Diamonds or A Generation, both of which are awesome. Wajda's a good director, though a bit inconsistent.

[The Argonaut]

Ashes and Diamonds is Wajda? I didn't remember that. I didn't like that one, but I don't remember why.

[LoathedVermin72]

Ashes and Diamonds is Wajda? I didn't remember that. I didn't like that one, but I don't remember why.

[The Argonaut]

One more thing I appreciate about the Kinoshita version of Ballad of Narayama (Imamura made a version in the eighties that I havn't seen):
It is thoroughly kabuki, while still being thoroughly a movie. A lot of Japanese cinema incorporate elements of kabuki (Onibaba, Throne of Blood, and Kwaidan come to mind), but Ballad of Narayama is kabuki through and through---but also a piece of pure cinema. It is not a video of a stage performance at all. It belongs, equally and completely, to both worlds.

[LoathedVermin72]

One more thing I appreciate about the Kinoshita version of Ballad of Narayama (Imamura made a version in the eighties that I havn't seen):
It is thoroughly kabuki, while still being thoroughly a movie. A lot of Japanese cinema incorporate elements of kabuki (Onibaba, Throne of Blood, and Kwaidan come to mind), but Ballad of Narayama is kabuki through and through---but also a piece of pure cinema. It is not a video of a stage performance at all. It belongs, equally and completely, to both worlds.

That's probably part what I don't like about it. Kabuki kind of irritates me. Gimme Onibaba or Throne of Blood ANY day.

[LoathedVermin72]

There are not a lot of films this beautiful that were made in a studio.

By the way, have you seen Black Narcissus, by any chance?

[bada]

Bridge on the River Kwai
Searchers
Stalag 17
Quiet Man
Seven Samurai
Rio Bravo
Treasure Island
Big Country
Man from Laramie
Ben Hur

Honorable: Ten Commandments

[LoathedVermin72]

Big Country
Man from Laramie

I couldn't decide if I should have put those on my honorable list. I probably should have. What great movies.

[The Argonaut]

There are not a lot of films this beautiful that were made in a studio.

By the way, have you seen Black Narcissus, by any chance?

I love the Archers, but I haven't seen that one, yet.

[LoathedVermin72]

There are not a lot of films this beautiful that were made in a studio.

By the way, have you seen Black Narcissus, by any chance?

I love the Archers, but I haven't seen that one, yet.

Oooooh it's swoon-worthy. Their best work. And it has the single most gorgeous use of sets and matte paintings in film history. Possibly also the best cinematography and lighting. Goddamn that movie is something else.

[bada]

Big Country
Man from Laramie

I couldn't decide if I should have put those on my honorable list. I probably should have. What great movies.

I like your Vikings pick.

[epilogue]

1. Vertigo
2. Rear Window
3. From Here to Eternity
4. Some Like it Hot
5. North by Northwest
6. High Noon
7. A Street Car Named Desire
8. Alice in Wonderland
9. Harvey

EDIT: Turns out Bringing Up Baby is from the 30s. So....

I REALLY haven't seen many movies from the 50s either.

[Anders]

1. 12 Angry Men
2. The Searchers
3. Some Like It Hot
4. The African Queen
5. Rear Window
6. Witness For The Prosecution
7. Singin' in the Rain
8. North By Northwest
9. Nights Of Cabiria
10. The Big Country

Honorable memtions: Rio Bravo, Marty, Wild Strawberries, Anatomy Of Murder, Touch Of Evil

[Ms Harmless]

The Day The Earth Stood Still
A Streetcar Named Desire
The Seventh Seal
Rear Window
Singin' in the Rain
Vertigo
Alice in Wonderland
Lady and the Tramp
High Society
Hans Christian Andersen