Top Movies of the 1950s

This page offers lists of the top movies of the decade as determined by two different metrics. The first list is based on box office and the second is based on critics’ picks.

Box Office: Top 20 of the 1950s These are the top 20 movies of the decade as determined by worldwide box office gross adjusted for inflation. The first number indicates dollars made in millions. See sources for box office figures here.

1) 3731.10: The Ten Commandments (1956) 2) 2970.20: Ben-Hur (1959) 3) 1575.00: Cinderella (1950) 4) 1326.00: The Robe (1953) 5) 1278.20: Quo Vadis? (1951) 6) 664.86: Sleeping Beauty (1959) 7) 591.12: Around the World in 80 Days (1956) 8) 548.90: The Greatest Show on Earth (1952) 9) 519.40: From Here to Eternity (1953) 10) 509.88: Lady and the Tramp (1955) 11) 497.67: The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) 12) 481.70: Giant (1956) 13) 462.28: House of Wax (1953) 14) 460.66: Rear Window (1954) 15) 417.38: Peter Pan (1953) 16) 406.07: The Caine Mutiny (1954) 17) 293.90: Gigi (1958) 18) 231.20: A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) 19) 219.90 :On the Waterfront (1954) 20) 202.90: An American in Paris (1951)

Critics’ Picks: Top 25 of the 1950s These are the top 25 movies of the decade as determined by a combination of the movies’ ratings points and awards points.

1) All About Eve (1950) 2) The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) 3) On the Waterfront (1954) 4) Ben-Hur (1959) 5) Singin’ in the Rain (1952) 6) Sunset Boulevard (1950) 7) 12 Angry Men (1957) 8) From Here to Eternity (1953) 9) Rear Window (1954) 10) Some Like It Hot (1959) 11) A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) 12) Vertigo (1958) 13) The Seven Samurai (Schichinin no Samurai) (1954) 14) North by Northwest (1959) 15) Touch of Evil (1958) 16) Rashômon (1950) 17) An American in Paris (1951) 18) Tokyo Story (Tôkyô Monogatari) (1953) 19) High Noon (1952) 20) The Searchers (1956) 21) Paths of Glory (1957) 22) Gigi (1958) 23) The Ten Commandments (1956) 24) The Night of the Hunter (1955) 25) Marty (1955)

Resources: Dave’s Movie Database: Eras Dave’s Movie Database: Movies of the Year Dave’s Movie Database: Box Office Dave’s Movie Database: Awards Page Dave’s Movie Database: Ratings Page Originally posted 3/8/2025.

 

War Movies: Top 25

image from Apocalypse Now

Top 25 War Movies These are the top 25 war movies of all time, as determined by aggregating multiple lists (see resources at bottom of page) and factoring in the films’ overall status in Dave’s Movie Database. 1. Apocalypse Now (1979) 2. Saving Private Ryan (1998) 3. The Hurt Locker (2009) 4. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957): 5. The Great Escape (1963) 6. Paths of Glory (1957) 7. Platoon (1986) 8. Full Metal Jacket (1987) 9. The Boat (Das Boot) (1981) 10. The Deer Hunter (1978) 11. Patton (1970) 12. Schindler’s List (1993) 13. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) 14. The Thin Red Line (1998) 15. Lawrence of Arabia (1962) 16. The Dirty Dozen (1967) 17. Inglourious Basterds (2009) 18. Casablanca (1942) 19. Dunkirk (2017) 20. The Battle of Algiers (La Battaglia di Algeria) (1966) 21. Grand Illusion (La Grande Illusion) (1937) 22. Ran (1985) 23. M*A*S*H (1970) 24. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) 25. Black Hawk Down (2001) Resources: Dave’s Movie Database: Genre Lists BusinessInsider.com (9/4/2018). “The 45 best war movies of all time, according to critics” CulturedVultures.com (6/5/2019). “20 Best War Movies of All Time” DigitalTrends.com (5/28/2018). “The 10 best streaming war movies” Esquire.com (7/4/2017). “The Best War Films Ever Made” BBC Channel 4 (2005). “100 Greatest War Films of all-time” GamesRadar.com (2/23/2018). “The 25 best war movies – from Dunkirk to Downfall (and everything in between)” GearMoose.com “The 25 Best War Movies of All Time” TheGuardian.com (10/19/2010). “The 25 best action and war films of all time” Guinness Book of Film (1999). “The Top 100 Films by Genre Type” (includes top 5 war movies) Internet Movie Database (5/9/2017). “Top 25 Greatest War Movies of All Time (The Ultimate List)” LiveAbout.com (7/3/2019). “The Top 10 War Movies of All TIme” Newsweek (9/4/2018). “The Greatest War Films Ever Made, According to Critics and Audiences” Norman, Barry (1993). “100 Greatest Films of All Time” (includes top 10 war movies) Paste (5/7/2017). “The 100 Greatest War Movies of All Time” Ranker.com “The Best War Movies Ever” RottenTomatoes.com “100 Best War Movies of All Time” ShortList.com (5/28/2013). “The 30 greatest war films ever” Time Out (2017). “The 50 best war movies of all time” Originally posted 9/4/2019; last updated 5/25/2023.

50 years ago: The Bridge on the River Kwai, winner of 7 Oscars, released

The Bridge on the River Kwai Released: December 14, 1957 Studio: Columbia Genre: war epic Box Office (numbers in millions): Domestic: 27.20 Worldwide: ? Adjusted for Inflation: Domestic: 533.72 Worldwide: ?

Directing: David Lean Screenwriting: Pierre Boulle, Carl Foreman, Michael Wilson Starring: Alec Guinness, William Holden, Sessue Hayakawa, Jack Hawkins Review: Screenwriters Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson were blacklisted in Hollywood for “alleged communist associations” MSN so they wrote “this epic World War II action film,” MSN an “outstanding, psychologically complex adaptation of Pierre Boulle’s 1952 novel,” FS in secret. Boulle – who spoke no English – was originally credited as the sole screenwriter. In 1984, Foreman and Wilson were awarded screenwriting Oscars posthumously. MSN The story is about American and English soldiers in a Japanese prison camp who are ordered by camp commander Colonel Saito (Hayakawa) to build a bridge in the Asian jungle of Burma which will transport Japanese troops. “A tremendously antagonistic battle of wills ensues” FS between Saito and Nicholson (Guinness), “the rigid British officer who refuses to bow to torture.” A07 The latter colonel develops “a twisted sense of pride” FS in overseeing the construction of the bridge. His obsession with using “this exercise to show the Japanese as inferior humans and soldiers” VD blinds him to the reality that he is aiding the enemy. Holden is an American who escapes from the camp, only to be tasked with leading a mission back to destroy “the bridge.” A07 The film does “just as well showing the psychological battle of wills as the more epic scenes of military conflict.” BFI Sources: A07 American Film Institute (2007). “AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movies – 10th Anniversary Edition” BFI British Film Institute. (1999) “The BFI 100: A Selection of the Favourite British Films of the 20th Century” FS Filmsite.org “100 Greatest Films” MSN MSN Entertainment (7/19/2018). “100 Best Movies” by Shahnaz Mahmud T95 Time Out (1995). “Centenary Top One Hundred Films” VD Video Detective (1997). “Top 100 Films of

Awards/Honors/Lists: Dave’s Movie Database Lists: Dave’s Movie Database Genre Lists: Box Office: Oscars: Wins: 7 – including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Guinness), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Score, Best Film Editing Nominations: 8 – including Best Supporting Actor (Hayakawa) Notable Awards: Other Lists/Honors: First posted 5/30/2023.