IRAS The Best Films of the 1930s Rough Draft
My top film from each year:
1939 -- The Rules Of The Game
1938 -- The Adventures Of Robin Hood
1937 -- Make Way For Tomorrow
1936 -- Swing Time
1935 -- The Bride Of Frankenstein
1934 -- The Thin Man
1933 -- Duck Soup
1932 -- Trouble In Paradise
1931 -- M
1930 -- The Blue Angel
TOP FILMS OF 1930s/EARLY SOUND ALPHABETICAL LIST
The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes
Alexander NevskyAll Quiet On The Western Front
Angels With Dirty Faces
L’Atalante
The Bride Of Frankenstein
1934
The Thin Man
L’Atalante
It Happened One Night
It’s A Gift
L’Atalante
The Awful Truth
The Baker's Wife
Bed of RosesLa Bete Humaine
The Blue Angel
BombshellThe Bride Of Frankenstein
Bringing Up Baby
Captain Blood
The Crime Of Monsieur LangeDavid Copperfield
Dead End
Duck SoupFanny
Fury
Grand HotelGunga Din
King Kong
The Lady Vanishes
Little Caesar
The Little Princess
Little Women
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Holiday
The Hound Of The Baskervilles
The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
I’m No AngelThe Informer
It Happened One NightIt’s A Gift
Jewel RobberyKing Kong
The Lady Vanishes
Little Caesar
The Little Princess
Little Women
M
Make Way For TomorrowThe Man Who Knew Too Much
Midnight
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
My Man Godfrey
Nothing Sacred
A Nous La LiberteThe Novel Of Werther
The Thin Man
Top Hat
Treasure Island
Trouble In Paradise
Twentieth Century
Olympia
Only Angels Have Wings
Pepe Le MokoPort Of Shadows
The Prisoner Of Zenda
Public Enemy
The Roaring Twenties
Rules of The Game
Scarface
Shanghai Express
A Star Is BornScarface
Shanghai Express
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Stagecoach Tarzan And His Mate
The Testament Of Dr. MabuseThe Thin Man
Three Comrades
The 39 StepsTop Hat
Treasure Island
Trouble In Paradise
Twentieth Century
The Wizard Of Oz
The Women
TOP FILMS OF 1930s BY YEAR AND IN ROUGH ORDER OF IMPORTANCE
(not all films make the cut and are listed above)
1939
Rules of The Game
Stagecoach
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
Rules of The Game
Stagecoach
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
The Wizard Of Oz
The Hound Of The Baskervilles
Midnight
The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
The Roaring Twenties
Only Angels Have Wings
The Women
Gunga Din
The Little Princess
Love Affair
The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes
The Little Princess
Love Affair
The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes
Drums Along The Mohawk
Young Mr. Lincoln
Goodbye Mr. Chips
Gone With The Wind
1938
The Adventures Of Robin Hood
Olympia
The Lady Vanishes
Holiday
Young Mr. Lincoln
Goodbye Mr. Chips
Gone With The Wind
1938
The Adventures Of Robin Hood
Olympia
The Lady Vanishes
Holiday
The Baker's Wife
Port Of Shadows
La Bete Humaine
Port Of Shadows
La Bete Humaine
Bringing Up Baby
Test Pilot
Boys Town
Angels With Dirty Faces
Jezebel
Alexander Nevsky
Three Comrades
The Novel Of Werther
1937
Make Way For Tomorrow
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Pepe Le Moko
Shall We Dance
Test Pilot
Boys Town
Angels With Dirty Faces
Jezebel
Alexander Nevsky
Three Comrades
The Novel Of Werther
1937
Make Way For Tomorrow
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Pepe Le Moko
Shall We Dance
The Awful Truth
Dead End
The Prisoner Of Zenda
Nothing Sacred
Dead End
The Prisoner Of Zenda
Nothing Sacred
A Day At The Races
Captains Courageous
Topper
Topper
A Star Is Born
1936
Swing Time
1936
Swing Time
After The Thin Man
My Man Godfrey
My Man Godfrey
Fury
Libeled Lady
Secret Agent
Follow The Fleet
Libeled Lady
Secret Agent
Follow The Fleet
Dodsworth
Modern Times
The Crime Of Monsieur Lange
1935
The Bride Of Frankenstein
Top Hat
The 39 Steps
Captain Blood
Modern Times
The Crime Of Monsieur Lange
1935
The Bride Of Frankenstein
Top Hat
The 39 Steps
Captain Blood
David Copperfield
Lives Of A Bengal Lancer
Mutiny On The Bounty
The Informer
Lives Of A Bengal Lancer
Mutiny On The Bounty
The Informer
A Tale Of Two Cities
Alice Adams
Triumph Of The Will
Triumph Of The Will
1934
The Thin Man
L’Atalante
It Happened One Night
It’s A Gift
Tarzan And His Mate
The Gay Divorcee
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Twentieth Century
Treasure Island
Gambling Lady
The Man Of Aran
The Gay Divorcee
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Twentieth Century
Treasure Island
Gambling Lady
The Man Of Aran
The Scarlet Empress
1933
Duck Soup
King Kong
I’m No Angel
The Testament Of Dr. Mabuse
Bed of Roses
Little Women
Bombshell
The Invisible Man
42nd Street
Wild Boys Of The Road
1933
Duck Soup
King Kong
I’m No Angel
The Testament Of Dr. Mabuse
Bed of Roses
Little Women
Bombshell
The Invisible Man
42nd Street
Wild Boys Of The Road
Zero For Conduct
1932
Trouble In Paradise
Scarface
I Was Born, But...
Grand Hotel
Tarzan The Ape Man
Shanghai Express
Jewel Robbery
Fanny
1932
Trouble In Paradise
Scarface
I Was Born, But...
Grand Hotel
Tarzan The Ape Man
Shanghai Express
Jewel Robbery
Fanny
Horse Feathers
1931
M
1931
M
City Lights
Monkey Business
Frankenstein
Monkey Business
Frankenstein
Public Enemy
Tabu: A Story Of The South Seas
The Front Page
Little Caesar
Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde
The Champ
A Nous La Liberte
1930
The Blue Angel
Little Caesar
Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde
The Champ
A Nous La Liberte
1930
The Blue Angel
Earth
City Girl
Animal Crackers
All Quiet On The Western Front
Animal Crackers
All Quiet On The Western Front
People On Sunday
Under The Roofs Of Paris
Under The Roofs Of Paris
Her Man
WATCH OR REWATCH LIST:
L’Age d’Or (Luis Buñuel, 1930)
Alexander Nevsky
Alice Adams (George Stevens, 1935)
American Madness (Frank Capra, 1932)
Angel (Ernst Lubitsch, 1937)
Angèle (1934; Marcel Pagnol)
The Baker's Wife
La Bete Humaine
The Big Trail
The Black Cat (Edgar G. Ulmer, 1934)
The Blue Angel
Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife (Ernst Lubitsch, 1938) Bombshell
Boudou Saved From Drowning (1932; Jean Renoir)
Cesar
Counsellor-at-Law (William Wyler, 1933) The Crime Of Monsieur Lange
David Copperfield
Design for Living (1933; Ernst Lubitsch)
Desire (Frank Borzage, 1936)
Dracula
FannyFifth Avenue Girl (Gregory La Cava, 1939)
Fury
Grand HotelGunga DinHallelujah, I’m a Bum (Lewis Milestone, 1933)
History Is Made at Night (Frank Borzage, 1937)
Hôtel du Nord (Marcel Carné, 1939)
Imitation of Life (John Stahl, 1934)
I’m No Angel
It’s A Gift
Jewel RobberyLittle Man, What Now? (Frank Borzage, 1934)
Love Me Tonight (1932; Rouben Mamoulian)
A Man’s Castle (1933; Frank Borzage)
The Man Who Knew Too MuchMarius (1931; Alexander Korda)
Morocco (Josef von Sternberg, 1930)
The Mummy (1932; Karl Freund)
A Nous La LiberteThe Novel Of Werther
One Way Passage (1932; Tay Garnett)
Our Daily Bread (King Vidor, 1934)
Pilgrimage (1933; John Ford)
Port Of Shadows
Pygmalion (Anthony Asquith, 1938)
Quality Street (George Stevens, 1937)
Safe in Hell (1931; William Wellman)
She Married Her Boss (Gregory La Cava, 1935) Sisters of the Gion (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1936)
The Smiling Lieutenant (1931; Ernst Lubitsch)
Sylvia Scarlet (1935; George Cukor)
The Testament Of Dr. Mabuse
Three Comrades
The Threepenny Opera (1931)
Toni (Jean Renoir, 1935)
Vivacious Lady (George Stevens, 1938)
Westfront 1918 (G.W. Pabst, 1930)
The Women
Young and Innocent (Hitchcock)
Young Mr. Lincoln (John Ford, 1939)
6 comments:
Of course, these might not have made the cut but, in optimism I submit the following for your consideration: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), Topper (1937), You Can’t Take It With You (1938), and Ninotchka (1939). In the late 80s, we lived a block away from a theater dedicated to classics and art films. It was always a good time. I watched so many Frank Capra films, I still have a crush on Jean Arthur. And Billy Wilder was one of the screenwriters for Ninotchka - solid bonafides.
It’s a very comprehensive list you’ve created and I thank you for creating a handy reference.
Hi Dr. Wu! Thanks for reading. I hope you saw my complete list for films for every year, not just the 1930s. I'm trying to remember why I did this decade breakdown...and failing. However I have an unsatisfying response to all the movies you suggest. They're all worthy and most would be included by many others so you're right to say, "What the heck? Why aren't these on the list?" Mr Deeds Goes to Town/You Can't Take It With You -- as you can see on my complete list, I love Frank Capra and think he's wrongly derided as sentimental cornpone. He's actually a very hard-headed realist. He can see and hope for the best in people but he can also see them at their worst. I absolutely love Mr. Smith Goes To Washington and It's A Wonderful Life and Meet John Doe and the underrated State of the Union. They all rank high on my lists for their years. But for me Mr. Deeds and esp You Can't Take It With You. The Mr. Deeds needling of the world is mild and You Can't has for me tiresome whimsy, despite Jimmy Stewart. They just don't work. Topper is a treat thanks to Cary Grant and Constance Bennett but they elevate very modest material. And Oh Ninotchka. I agonized over Ninotchka, which was on the list but every time I re-watched it it went down a little in my estimation until I reluctantly agreed it was merely good and not great. Garbo is great! But the plot sags later in the film. I'll share my link to the best movies complete list. I'm sure other films you love are wrongly missing on that too, but it's fun to discuss. And I'll share a link to my 1939 list which includes my tortured thoughts on Ninotchka. Billy Wilder is a god, FYI and many of his films on my list too. Thanks again.
https://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2015/05/best-movies-of-year-master-list.html
https://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2011/10/1939-greatest-year-for-movies.html
NINOTCHKA *** -- Finally saw Ninotchka again after many years, on New Year’s Eve. As I vaguely remembered, it’s a little creaky but saved by Greta Garbo’s hilarious turn as a dour Soviet emissary extraordinaire. She arrives in Paris to clean up the mess of three bumbling emissaries very ordinaire – Buljanoff, Iranoff and Kopalski. Their mission is to sell the crown jewels of Russian royalty for much needed funds. But Melvyn Douglas is the Countess’s lover and convinces the fellows to live it up and have fun and split the proceeds fifty/fifty rather than face a long court battle (not a bad deal, actually). One scene indicative of the wit of Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett and Walter Reisch’s script simply shows us the door to their hotel suite. As waiters come in with food, roars of approval can be heard. Champagne? Bigger roars. Cigarette girls? The loudest roar of all. Then comes Garbo, grim, determined, beautiful. Melvyn Douglas falls hard even before knowing she might spoil his fun. Their battle of wills – communism vs capitalism, but really joy and pleasure vs duty and abstinence – is the heart of the film. Garbo deploys a hilarious dead pan delivery of her lines for almost half the movie. But the story goes on quite a bit, with a drawn out section back in Moscow as Garbo pines for her man but returns to duty with vigor. It’s all a bit labored as the movie struggles to arrange a happy ending. Frankly, my original four stars out of five was a little generous. Melvyn Douglas is no William Powell though he’s certainly never more appealing than here, the best work in his prime. But seeing Garbo melt at the sight of a silly French hat makes this worth watching again. Opened October 6, 1939.
Thank you for sharing your lists as I hadn’t seen them. I’ve got so much catching up to do - the cooler weather provides more opportunity. Had already scheduled to commence tonight vice MNF as both The Awful Truth and Sullivan’s Travels are scheduled to leave Prime after today. While I have both on DVD, streaming is so convenient. I’ve seen many of the films on your lists - especially the comedies of the thirties and forties. Looking forward to watching the new suggestions and rewatching many of the others - very much appreciate the guidance.
I admit my shared suggestions were as much based on sentimentality as critical analysis. I haven’t seen Ninotchka in nearly 40 years. Recall it playing very well in a small, crowded theater - and as you rightly mention, Wilder is a god.
I find myself watching a lot of Capra (another god) - and Ken Burns documentaries - during election seasons. Both provide me with hope.
Looking forward to reading more on Popsurfing. Thanks again and all the best! :)
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