AB's Favorite Films of The Golden Age (1927-64):
The Golden Age (1927-1964) - The studio system, the Hays Code (enforced beginning in 1934), the happy endings, the snappy dialogue, the incredible scripts, technicolor, fascinating cinematography, genius directors, triple threat performers, and glamorous movie stars are just a short list of all the many things that make this my favorite period in film history:)
These are in reverse order by year. I'll usually keep a top favorite at the beginning of list.
PS Sunrise (1927) is the oldest movie and only silent film that I love. I tacked it onto the end of this list because I didn't want to make a list with only one silent film;)
These are in reverse order by year. I'll usually keep a top favorite at the beginning of list.
PS Sunrise (1927) is the oldest movie and only silent film that I love. I tacked it onto the end of this list because I didn't want to make a list with only one silent film;)
List activity
57K views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
331 titles
- DirectorGeorge StevensStarsJean ArthurJoel McCreaCharles CoburnDuring the World War II housing shortage in Washington, two men and a woman share a single apartment and the older man plays Cupid to the other two.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsGary CooperBarbara StanwyckOscar HomolkaA group of professors working on a new encyclopedia while living in a Manhattan mansion take in a mouthy nightclub singer who is wanted by the police to help bring down her mob boss lover.
- DirectorMichael PowellEmeric PressburgerStarsWendy HillerRoger LiveseyPamela BrownA young Englishwoman goes to the Hebrides to marry her older, wealthier fiancé. When the weather keeps them separated on different islands, she begins to have second thoughts.
- DirectorGeorge CukorStarsCary GrantKatharine HepburnJames StewartWhen a rich woman's ex-husband and a tabloid-type reporter turn up just before her planned remarriage, she begins to learn the truth about herself.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsGregory PeckAudrey HepburnEddie AlbertA bored and sheltered princess escapes her guardians and falls in love with an American newsman in Rome.
- DirectorH.C. PotterStarsCary GrantLaraine DayCharles BickfordA gambler has plans to swindle money from a charity program, but starts to have second thoughts when he falls for a rich society girl.
- DirectorLeo McCareyStarsIrene DunneCary GrantRalph BellamyA married couple file an amicable divorce, but find it harder to let go of each other than they initially thought.
- DirectorBlake EdwardsStarsCary GrantTony CurtisJoan O'BrienDuring World War II, a commander finds himself stuck with a decrepit (and pink) submarine, a con man executive officer, and a group of army nurses.
- DirectorHenry KosterStarsCary GrantLoretta YoungDavid NivenA debonair angel comes to Earth to help an Episcopalian bishop and his wife in their quest to raise money for the new church.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsWilliam PowellIrene DunneElizabeth TaylorA straitlaced turn-of-the-century father presides over a family of boys and the mother who really rules the roost.
- DirectorGarson KaninStarsGinger RogersDavid NivenCharles CoburnAn unemployed woman discovers an abandoned baby on the steps of an orphanage, and accepts an offer to take responsibility for the child in return for a job.
- DirectorRoy RowlandStarsMargaret O'BrienJames CraigMarsha HuntAlpha's been raised along scientific principles, and will make Mike Regan a great human interest story for his paper. But when his interview prompts Alpha to run away from the institute and ask him to show her some magic, Mike gets more responsibility than he bargained for. Especially since another story of his, one involving gangsters, has also come home to roost.
- DirectorRobert MulliganStarsGregory PeckJohn MegnaFrank OvertonAtticus Finch, a widowed lawyer in Depression-era Alabama, defends a Black man against an undeserved rape charge, and tries to educate his young children against prejudice.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliStarsJudy GarlandMargaret O'BrienMary AstorYoung love and childish fears highlight a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family.
- DirectorPeter GodfreyStarsBarbara StanwyckDennis MorganSydney GreenstreetA food writer who has lied about being the perfect housewife must try to cover her deception when her boss and a returning war hero invite themselves to her home for a traditional family Christmas.
- DirectorH.C. PotterStarsLoretta YoungJoseph CottenEthel BarrymoreAfter leaving her family's farm to study nursing in the city, a young woman finds herself on an unexpected path towards politics.
- DirectorMichael GordonStarsRock HudsonDoris DayTony RandallAn interior decorator and a playboy songwriter share a telephone party line and size each other up.
- DirectorDelbert MannStarsGlenn FordGeraldine PageAngela LansburyBubbly, middle-aged Evie Jackson has been single and alone for quite some time. When she attends a postmasters' convention at a New York City hotel, she meets rakish greeting card salesman Harry Mork and falls in love.
- DirectorDelbert MannStarsCary GrantDoris DayGig YoungA rich businessman and a young woman are attracted to each other, but he only wants an affair while she wants to save herself for marriage.
- DirectorAndrew V. McLaglenStarsJohn WayneMaureen O'HaraPatrick WayneWealthy rancher G. W. McLintock uses his power and influence in the territory to keep the peace between farmers, ranchers, land-grabbers, Indians and corrupt government officials.
- DirectorMitchell LeisenStarsBarbara StanwyckFred MacMurrayBeulah BondiLove blooms between a sympathetic attorney and the comely shoplifter he has taken home for the Christmas holiday.
- DirectorBilly WilderStarsHumphrey BogartAudrey HepburnWilliam HoldenA playboy becomes interested in the daughter of his family's chauffeur, but it's his more serious brother who would be the better man for her.
- DirectorNorman JewisonStarsDoris DayJames GarnerArlene FrancisA homemaker's sudden rise to fame as a soap spokesperson leads to chaos in her home life.
- DirectorRobert Z. LeonardStarsGinger RogersLana TurnerWalter PidgeonThe misadventures of a group of diverse guests at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Manhattan.
- DirectorDon HartmanStarsRobert MitchumJanet LeighWendell CoreyA young widow is torn between a boring attorney and a romantic ne'er-do-well.
- DirectorSam WoodStarsJean ArthurRobert CummingsCharles CoburnA tycoon goes undercover to ferret out agitators at a department store, but gets involved in their lives instead.
- DirectorHenry KingStarsJeanne CrainGlenn LanganLynn BariA woman reminisces about her teenage years in the 1920s, when she fell in love with her teacher.
- DirectorIrving ReisStarsCary GrantMyrna LoyShirley TempleA high school girl falls for a playboy artist, with screwball results.
- DirectorJoseph L. MankiewiczStarsGene TierneyRex HarrisonGeorge SandersIn 1900, a young widow finds her seaside cottage is haunted and forms a unique relationship with the ghost.
- DirectorVictor FlemingStarsSpencer TracyFreddie BartholomewLionel BarrymoreA spoiled brat who falls overboard from a steamship in the 1920s gets picked up by a New England fishing boat, where he's made to earn his keep by joining the crew in their work.
- DirectorJean NegulescoStarsMarilyn MonroeBetty GrableLauren BacallThree women set out to find eligible millionaires to marry, but find true love in the process.
- DirectorRobert Z. LeonardStarsMyrna LoyMelvyn DouglasRaymond WalburnA single magazine editor pretends to be married in order to avoid advances from male colleagues, but complications ensue when she meets a potential suitor.
- DirectorLewis MilestoneStarsRonald ColmanGinger RogersJack CarsonTwo strangers share a sweepstakes ticket and then embark on an "imaginary" honeymoon with their "winnings".
- DirectorFrank CapraStarsClark GableClaudette ColbertWalter ConnollyA rogue reporter trailing a runaway heiress for a big story joins her on a bus heading from Florida to New York and they end up stuck with each other when the bus leaves them behind at one of the stops along the way.
- DirectorHenry KosterStarsDeanna DurbinCharles LaughtonRobert CummingsIn order to please his dying father, a man convinces a hat-check girl to impersonate his fiancée, but complications arise when the father's health suddenly improves.
- DirectorRobert Z. LeonardStarsGreer GarsonLaurence OlivierMary BolandThe arrival of wealthy bachelors in town causes an uproar when families with single daughters aggressively seek engagements, including the Bennet family, with five eligible daughters.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsCary GrantRosalind RussellRalph BellamyA newspaper editor uses every trick in the book to keep his ace reporter ex-wife from remarrying.
- DirectorGarson KaninStarsIrene DunneCary GrantRandolph ScottMissing for seven years and presumed dead, a woman returns home on the day of her husband's second marriage.
- DirectorGeorge StevensStarsCary GrantJean ArthurRonald ColmanAn escaped prisoner has to prove his innocence to a stuffy law professor with the help of a spirited school teacher.
- DirectorFred ZinnemannStarsAudrey HepburnPeter FinchEdith EvansAfter leaving a wealthy Belgian family to become a nun, Sister Luke struggles with her devotion to her vows during crisis, disappointment, and World War II.
- DirectorElia KazanStarsVivien LeighMarlon BrandoKim HunterDisturbed Blanche DuBois moves in with her sister in New Orleans and is tormented by her brutish brother-in-law while her reality crumbles around her.
- DirectorAlexander HallStarsLoretta YoungRay MillandReginald GardinerA best-selling author of women's issues and a medical academic find it is to their mutual advantage to falsely claim that they are married.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsRonald ColmanGreer GarsonPhilip DornAn amnesiac World War I veteran falls in love with a music hall star, only to suffer an accident which restores his original memories but erases his post-war life.
- DirectorStuart HeislerStarsGary CooperLoretta YoungWilliam DemarestA good-natured saddle tramp traveling with his sidekick is mistaken for a ruthless outlaw with a price on his head.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsHumphrey BogartIngrid BergmanPaul HenreidA cynical expatriate American cafe owner struggles to decide whether or not to help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape the Nazis in French Morocco.
- DirectorDelbert MannStarsRita HayworthDeborah KerrDavid NivenThe stories of several people are told as they stay at a seaside hotel in Bournemouth which features dining at "Separate Tables."
- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneJeffrey HunterVera MilesAn American Civil War veteran embarks on a years-long journey to rescue his niece from the Comanches after the rest of his brother's family is massacred in a raid on their Texas farm.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliStarsSpencer TracyJoan BennettElizabeth TaylorShortly after coming to terms with his daughter's marriage, a father faces the prospect of becoming a grandfather.
- DirectorDelbert MannStarsRock HudsonDoris DayTony RandallA series of misunderstandings leaves an advertising executive with a campaign for a product which has not yet been invented, while he romances his rival in the guise of its inventor.
- DirectorMitchell LeisenStarsOlivia de HavillandJohn LundMary AndersonAn unwed mother, forced to give up her child to avoid scandal, follows her son's life from afar even as she prospers in business.
- DirectorCharles VidorStarsGrace KellyAlec GuinnessLouis JourdanWhen a crown prince visits, the princess's mother tries to push the prince into marrying her daughter by presenting a "rival" at the ball - her children's handsome tutor.
- DirectorW.S. Van DykeHerbert KlineStarsRobert YoungLaraine DayFay BainterJohn Davis, a married American newspaper reporter in London, covers the story of a home for children displaced by the war and meets two kids who grow attached to him.
- DirectorFrank TashlinStarsDick PowellDebbie ReynoldsAnne FrancisA Hollywood screenwriter takes in a runaway girl who's more woman than he can handle.
- DirectorRobert Z. LeonardStarsJoan CrawfordRobert TaylorGreer GarsonA successful novelist falls in love with her married publisher, to the consternation of her boyfriend, who arranges for her to meet the publisher's wife.
- DirectorGeorge SeatonStarsEdmund GwennMaureen O'HaraJohn PayneAfter a divorced New York mother hires a nice old man to play Santa Claus at Macy's, she is startled by his claim to be the genuine article. When his sanity is questioned, a lawyer defends him in court by arguing that he's not mistaken.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliStarsSpencer TracyJoan BennettElizabeth TaylorThe father of a young woman deals with the emotional pain of her getting married, along with the financial and organizational trouble of arranging the wedding.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsJune AllysonPeter LawfordMargaret O'BrienThe four daughters of a New England family fight for happiness during and after the Civil War.
- DirectorDon HartmanStarsCary GrantBetsy DrakeFranchot ToneA willful woman concocts an elaborate scheme to trap a handsome pediatrician into marriage.
- DirectorVictor FlemingGeorge CukorSam WoodStarsClark GableVivien LeighThomas MitchellA sheltered and manipulative Southern belle and a roguish profiteer face off in a turbulent romance as the society around them crumbles with the end of slavery and is rebuilt during the Civil War and Reconstruction periods.
- DirectorGeorge SidneyStarsClark GableLoretta YoungFrank MorganTwo mayors meet at a convention and, despite their contrasting personalities and views, find themselves attracted to one other.
- DirectorRoy RowlandStarsEdward G. RobinsonMargaret O'BrienJames CraigA Norwegian farmer lovingly raises his daughter in rural World War II-era Benson Junction, Wisconsin.
- DirectorWalter LangStarsClifton WebbMyrna LoyJeanne CrainMyrna Loy plays the wife of the persnickety father of her 12 children, Clifton Webb, who has uniquely humorous methods for dealing with the ordeals such an unwieldy family undoubtedly encounters.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliStarsRex HarrisonKay KendallJohn SaxonWhile visiting her father, an American teenage girl is thrown into London society during its "Debutante Season."
- DirectorBlake EdwardsStarsAudrey HepburnGeorge PeppardPatricia NealA young New York socialite becomes interested in a young man who has moved into her apartment building, but her past threatens to get in the way.
- DirectorWalter LangStarsSpencer TracyKatharine HepburnGig YoungTwo extremely strong personalities clash over the computerization of a television network's research department.
- DirectorCharles VidorStarsIrene DunneCharles BoyerCharles CoburnA prim and proper widow who has succeeded him as mayor of a provincial Vermont town hires a worldly New York sculptor for her husband's statue.
- DirectorPeter TewksburyStarsRod TaylorJane FondaCliff RobertsonOn a Sunday, Eileen Tyler, still a virgin, leaves Albany to visit her airline pilot brother in New York but a chance encounter with a man on a city bus threatens to derail her upcoming marriage to boyfriend Russ.
- DirectorFred M. WilcoxStarsMargaret O'BrienHerbert MarshallDean StockwellA girl is sent to live with her uncle on his estate when her parents die. There she discovers much intrigue, family history and secrets and personal baggage. In particular, a screaming child and...a secret garden.
- DirectorRaoul WalshStarsErrol FlynnAlexis SmithJack CarsonAs bare-knuckled boxing enters the modern era, brash extrovert, Jim Corbett, uses new rules and dazzlingly innovative footwork to rise to the top of the top of the boxing world.
- DirectorNorman Z. McLeodStarsConstance BennettBrian AherneAlan MowbrayDizzy society matron Emily Kilbourne has a habit of hiring ex-cons and hobos as servants. Her latest find is a handsome "tramp" who shows up at her doorstep and soon ends up in a chauffeur's uniform. He also catches the eye of her pretty Geraldine.
- DirectorAlfred SantellStarsBarbara StanwyckHerbert MarshallGlenda FarrellTexan debutante Valentine Ransome tries to reform a bankrupt playboy.
- DirectorAlexander HallStarsFredric MarchLoretta YoungRobert BenchleyA playwright attempts to stop his wife from retiring so she can star in his next play.
- DirectorHenry LevinStarsGlenn FordEvelyn KeyesRon RandellMan tries to help a woman trap a husband so she can adopt a child, but he falls for her himself.
- DirectorIrving RapperStarsBette DavisPaul HenreidClaude RainsA frumpy spinster blossoms under therapy and becomes an elegant, independent woman.
- DirectorAlexander HallStarsRosalind RussellBrian AherneJanet BlairTwo sisters move from Ohio to New York with hopes of stardom.
- DirectorHoward HawksArthur RossonStarsJohn WayneMontgomery CliftJoanne DruDunson leads a cattle drive, the culmination of over 14 years of work, to its destination in Missouri. But his tyrannical behavior along the way causes a mutiny, led by his adopted son.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsJames CagneyJoan LeslieWalter HustonThe life of the renowned musical composer, playwright, actor, dancer, and singer George M. Cohan.
- DirectorWilliam A. SeiterStarsFred AstaireRita HayworthAdolphe MenjouIn Buenos Aires, a man who has decreed that his daughters must marry in order of age allows an American dancer to perform at his club under the condition that he play suitor to his second-oldest daughter.
- DirectorJack ConwayRobert Z. LeonardStarsRonald ColmanElizabeth AllanEdna May OliverA pair of lookalikes, one a former French aristocrat and the other an alcoholic English lawyer, fall in love with the same woman amidst the turmoil of the French Revolution.
- DirectorAlexander HallStarsJoan CrawfordMelvyn DouglasRoland YoungDivine Crawford who gives all - in this really funny comedy , she donated all her salary from this movie to the Red Cross after Carole Lombard's plane crashed .
- DirectorJohn G. BlystoneStarsMiriam HopkinsJoel McCreaCharles WinningerFormer millionaire B.J. Nolan is useless with money, having lost most of his fortune on crazy schemes. His son, Kenneth, has the opposite problem thanks to good sense and a large inheritance bequeathed by his mother. In order to raise the cash for a housing project, B.J. enlists the help of young architect Virginia Travis to con the money out of Kenneth. At the same time Kenneth is being pursued by a pair of small-time hucksters and chaos results when they all end up in staying in B.J.'s house.
- DirectorRoy Del RuthStarsDon DeForeAnn HardingCharles RugglesTwo homeless men move into a mansion while its owners are wintering in the South.
- DirectorGeorge SidneyStarsWalter PidgeonIlona MasseyJosé IturbiThe U.S. Ambassador's (Walter Pidgeon) daughter falls for a Mexican pianist (Jose Iturbi) old enough to be her grandfather.
- DirectorGeorge B. SeitzStarsMaureen O'SullivanJoel McCreaLewis StoneJust after a jury finds Ann Grey guilty of murder, the car carrying her to prison crashes into another auto. Ann escapes and ends up in the vehicle of Tony Baxter, a lawyer who has eyes for her.
- DirectorRichard BoleslawskiStarsIrene DunneMelvyn DouglasThomas MitchellThe author of a controversially racy best-selling book tries to hide her celebrity status from her provincial small-town neighbors, who would be scandalized if they knew.
- DirectorJack ConwayStarsJean HarlowWilliam PowellMyrna LoyWhen a socialite sues a big paper for libel, the editor responsible calls in the help of his ignored fiancée and a former employee to frame her and make the false story seem true.
- DirectorClarence BrownStarsClark GableBarbara StanwyckAdolphe MenjouA former war hero and midget car racer meets his match in a feisty reporter who blames his reckless tactics for an accidental racing death.
- DirectorGeorge CukorStarsJudy HollidayJack LemmonPeter LawfordWhen a young woman with dreams of fame rents a billboard to advertise herself, her life changes overnight.
- DirectorJoseph L. MankiewiczStarsBette DavisAnne BaxterGeorge SandersA seemingly timid but secretly ruthless ingénue insinuates herself into the lives of an aging Broadway star and her circle of theater friends.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsCary GrantJean ArthurRita HayworthAt a remote South American trading port, the manager of an air-freight company is forced to risk his pilots' lives in order to win an important contract as a traveling American showgirl stops in town.
- DirectorKurt NeumannStarsJoel McCreaDean StockwellChill WillsA cowboy finds the spoiled son of a railroad magnate lost in the deserted hills and teaches him survival skills and hard work values.
- DirectorJohn CromwellEdward F. ClineTay GarnettStarsClaudette ColbertJennifer JonesJoseph CottenWith her husband away to fight in World War II, a housewife must care for their two daughters alone.
- DirectorCharles WaltersStarsFrank SinatraDebbie ReynoldsDavid WayneSuccessful theater agent Charlie Reader lives a playboy's life in New York City. When his childhood friend shows up with a desire to leave his wife, the two are awestruck by each other's lifestyle.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsVivien LeighRobert TaylorLucile WatsonMyra and Roy meet and fall in love on Waterloo Bridge during an air raid. Their love will be one of the war's unspoken casualties.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsGary CooperDorothy McGuireAnthony PerkinsThe pacifist attitude of a Quaker family is tested as a result of the American Civil War.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsSpencer TracyJeffrey HunterDianne FosterFrank Skeffington is an old Irish-American political boss, running for re-election as mayor of a U.S. town for the last time.
- DirectorRichard QuineStarsLauren BacallTony CurtisNatalie WoodA womanizing reporter for a sleazy tabloid magazine impersonates his hen-pecked neighbor in order to get an expose on renowned psychologist Helen Gurley Brown.
- DirectorH.C. PotterStarsCary GrantMyrna LoyMelvyn DouglasA man and his wife decide they can afford to have a house in the country built to their specifications. It's a lot more trouble than they think.
- DirectorDavid LeanStarsJohn MillsValerie HobsonTony WagerA humble orphan boy in 1810s Kent is given the opportunity to go to London and become a gentleman, with the help of an unknown benefactor.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsLana TurnerRicardo MontalbanJohn LundNora Taylor has $37,000,000 but thinks every man she meets prefers her bankbook figure to her own, and that includes her current fiancé, Paul Chevron, who has $48,000,000 of his own. Paul goes to Brazil to play some polo, and Nora follows along. There, she meets and falls for Roberto Santos, whom she thinks has no money, who is really overjoyed when he discovers she has a lot of money. This depresses her somewhat. But, this being a big-budget MGM film, which means that the two top-billed characters have to end up together, winds up with Metro-plot-218 that says Roberto has a few potatoes (or bananas) of his own and is just pleased to find out she isn't a gold digger after his money. The rich get richer and the poor need not apply.