What is a blog?
Noun
A regularly updated website or webpage, typically run by an individual or small group, that is written in an informal or conversational style.
Verb (blogs, blogging, blogged), as examples:
It’s about a week since I last blogged.
Patrick blogged about the background to the video game release and the story quickly went viral.


My amendment to the definition: a blog is an online essay about something that may only be of interest to the writer.

 



Thirty or more years ago, one of our Pathology residents, knowing my interest in films, asked what my favorite movie was. I started to say “Casablanca” then hesitated, changing to “Gone with the Wind.” Then I hesitated again and considered “Lawrence of Arabia.” I wasn’t confident I could name a favorite. Instead, I told him I would put together a list of my fifty favorites. Even that wasn’t managable and I ended up with a list of more than a hundred pre-1990 motion pictures (see bottom of this blog).


As I’ve written before, I was born in 1939, often labeled the best year for films ever. My mother loved movies and passed that trait on to me. Growing up in the time of the Great Depression—she was 14 in 1929—she found relief from those stressful times in movie theaters. She introduced me to movies when I was very young—my first film was “Bambi” which I saw when I was four or five—and I immediately became entranced by the magic of cinema. The ten Academy Award winning films in 1939 have always seemed particularly significant, and wonderful, for me: “Gone With the Wind” (unequivocally my mother’s favorite movie), “The Wizard of Oz,” “Stagecoach” (the film that made John Wayne a star), “Ninotchka” (Garbo), “Goodbye, Mr. Chips” (one of the most touching films), “Of Mice and Men” from the classic Steinbeck novella, “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” (should be required viewing for candidates for Congress), “Dark Victory” (one of the great tear-jerkers) “Love Affair” (another tear jerker with Charles Boyer and the wonderful Irene Dunne, though my favorite of the four versions is the 1957 “An Affair to Remember,” with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr), and “Wuthering Heights” (the Bronte book with marvelous performances by the two stars—Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon—who couldn’t stand the other).


Among the excellent films that did not get nominated that year are “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “Drums Along the Mohawk,” “The Women,” “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes,” “Young Mr. Lincoln,” and “Intermezzo.”


What type of movie qualifies for my list? Thirty-plus-years ago, when I created the list, I didn’t think about specific criteria. Now, a film gets on my list if I have seen it more than once and can still look forward to seeing it again. In this age of movies on airplane flights and streaming on cable TV, I often have the opportunity to test that premise. If a film is scheduled to be shown on the Turner Classic Movie (TCM) channel at some time not convenient for me to watch, I record it in advance and see it when I can.


Another criterion is the actor. There are some actors who I will consider watching even if I know the film is really not that good. Among those who fall into this category (not in any special order) are: Bogart, Kathryn Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn, Robert Redford, Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Garbo, Marilyn Monroe, Meryl Streep, Alec Guinness, Gregory Peck, Elizabeth Taylor, James Earl Jones, Spencer Tracy (who was once called ‘the greatest film actor ever”), Jean Arthur, Debra Winger, Judy Garland, Alan Ladd, Greer Garson, Deborah Kerr, Streisand, Vivian Leigh, Brando, Montgomery Clift, Jodie Foster, Daniel Day-Lewis, Tom Hanks and, yes, I admit it, John Wayne, plus many, many more. I’ll watch a film directed by William Wyler, David Lean, Fred Zinneman, John Boorman, George Stevens (a great director and a heroic figure who was with the first wave of soldiers entering concentration camps and who filmed the horror) or Spielberg, as well as others.


Indeed, I can be satisfied even if I don’t have time to watch a whole movie and only get to watch a few minutes of an actor I enjoy. This afternoon, as example, while dressing to go out, as I put on my socks and shoes, I got to watch Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dancing – they were more than marvelous, they were often magical, even when I only watch a few minutes.


So here is my new list, somewhat shorter than the old one. I am not fond of horror movies. I have not seen very many animated films in the last 40-50 years, although I keep meaning to view some which I believe to be quite good (e.g. “Toy Story,” “Sleeping Beauty” and others).


This list of movies, in alphabetical order, includes films I can happily sit through time after time after time – as I have for all of them. It’s not a particularly sophisticated list. Many of the greatest filmmakers are not represented. As I look over this somewhat eclectic list and compare it to the one I prepared three decades ago, the criteria I now use are not consistent from film to film. The story, certainly, and, of coure, it doesn’t have to be new to me as long as it is well told. Some bind me because of the performance, some because of the production, some because they tell me about my past and some for reasons I can’t completely articulate. Most have a combination of factors. It’s not because I don’t remember them and want to refresh my memory, it’s more because I clearly remember them and recall the pleasure I got from watching them before. Some specific reasons are listed below.


Do you have a similar selection of favorite movies? Are there films on this list that you don’t know? Although motion pictures were not invented in the United States (see Martin Scorcese’s wonderful film “Hugo” for some of that story), our country helped make cinema a great art form.


Adventures of Robin Hood, The
Erroll Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Basil Rathbone
Flynn’s and de Havilland’s charm never ends. The production is terrific. The sword fights are great. Even the music (Erich Wolfgang Korngold) is outstanding. This film reminds us of honesty, loyalty, courage and honor. Where is Robin Hood now when we need him?

African Queen, The
Bogart, Katherine Hepburn
Bogie and the great Kate. Unforgettable performances. Always fun and exciting to watch (especially the ride down the river and the ending on the lake). In the end, a wonderful and touching love story. Hepburn wrote a lovely book (“The Making of THE AFRICAN QUEEN”) about the whole experience of making this film.

An Unmarried Woman
Jill Clayburgh, Alan Bates, Michael Murphy
The story of a woman who finds out her husband has been two-timing her. She dumps him as quickly as possible, rebuilds her life and establishes her independence. One of the earliest, and best, of feminist films. Clayburgh, who was never fully appreciated, is at her best and Bates, always excellent, is strong, loving and charming.

Apocalypse Now
Marlon Brando, Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall, Laurence Fishbourne
I don’t really want to see this film again but it ensnares me. This is one of the greatest films ever made – production, performances, story, drama – and I can never resist. This is a war film a little bit about war but mostly about human frailty and fate. Best seen on a big screen.

A Star is Born
Judy Garland, James Mason
The Lady Gaga version was excellent, as was the original, with Janet Gaynor. Streisand was okay. But this is the one to see! Garland is magnificent. She should have gotten the Oscar for this! Sometimes, when I don’t have time to see the whole film, I will fast-forward to the “The Man Who Got Away” sequence – probably the best song and singing ever filmed. “I was born in a trunk” is unmatched.

Americanization of Emily, The
James Garner, Julie Andrews, Melvyn Douglas, James Coburn
Alternating wit and pathos, with a few gratuitous moments of slapstick, this is one of the great anti-war films. Another war film that is not about war. Garner’s soliloquoy about why he doesn’t celebrate war heroes should be shown in every school, to boys and girls. A decidedly undervalued movie!

Black Stallion, The
Kelly Reno, Mickey Rooney, Teri Garr
I loved Walter Farley’s Black Stallion books when I was young and this is a wonderful, inspiring, beautiful and thrilling film, based on the first book of the series, with some of the best cinematography ever. The scenes of the marooned boy and the great horse learning to trust each other on a deserted island beach are extraordinary, an amazing ballet set against the rolling waves and on the endless sand. I can watch it again and again and again. I suppose it’s a childrens’ movie but every adult with whom I’ve discussed it loved it also.

Casablanca
Bogart, Bergman, Paul Henreid
There is nothing to explain. I’ve watched this film over and over and over, and am still not tired of seeing it. If it were on today, I would watch it. If it is on my next flight, I will watch it. Courage, honor, right versus wrong, timeless love – all here, and more. You cannot tire of the scene when Victor Laszlo (Henreid) tells the orchestra to stop playing the Nazi song, “Die Wacht am Rhein,” and start playing “La Marseillaise.” Did you
notice how almost every scene has a suggestion of bars, as in prison bars, somewhere in the background. And how Bogie and Bergman wear similar clothes; e.g. striped tie and striped blouse. And when Laszlo tells Rick, “Somehow I know we’re going to win,” we know it also and it’s as if we knew nothing about history and we just heard it for the first time but didn’t know how the war ended. This is my favorite!

Caine Mutiny, The
Bogart, Van Johnson, Fred MacMurray, José Ferrer
One of the greatest of the World War II novels (by Herman Wouk) and one of the greatest films. Except it’s not about war, it’s about human frailty, patriotism, courage and the lack thereof. Bogie’s performance is mesmerizing. The rest of the cast is sterling, especially José Ferrer as Barney Greenwald, the defense attorney, and Johnson as Maryk, the reluctant hero.

Doctor Zhivago
Omar Sharif, Julie Christie, Rod Steiger
Love, Poetry and the Russian Revolution from the Nobel Prize winning novel by Boris Pasternak. Unmatched cinematography, whether it be the scenes of the Czar’s horsemen trampling the people, the war, the long, desolate, freezing walk home from battle or, especially, that scene of the train crossing the night time Siberian Winter (it was actually filmed in Finland) which has been imitated in many films, but never matched. That field of bright yellow jonquils as Spring bursts away the ice and snow, with Lara’s theme playing in the background. Impossibly handsome and noble and heroic Zhivago (Sharif) and unbelievably beautiful and courageous and tragic Lara (Christie). Zhivago writing poetry in the dead of winter with wolves howing outside. That scene near the end when Zhivago is on the trolley and sees Lara. The graveyard with the endless line of mourners. On and on and on … One of those films that should only be seen on a big screen.

Excalibur
Nigel Terry, Nicol Williamson, Helen Mirren
There have been many King Arthur films, but this is far and away the best. If you love the richness and complexity of the Arthurian legend, this is the one to see. From the night of Arthur’s conception, with no less than Wagner’s music booming in the background, to his death, no other motion picture follows the Sir Thomas Malory story better. Nicol Williamson IS Merlin. Nigel Terry IS Arthur. Excalibur IS Excalibur.

From Here to Eternity
Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, Montgomery Clift, Sinatra
Another magnificent World War II novel (James Jones) with an Oscar-winning film that more than does it justice. So many rich stories seamlessly interweaving. The prizefighter who will not fight (Clift, in one of his greatest performances). The Private with the wise mouth who can’t shut up when he must (Sinatra, earning an Oscar). The call-girl (Donna Reed) with the heart of gold. The experienced and wise Sergeant (Lancaster, at his finest) who inspires the men who serve under him, in peace and war, and who can’t give up the Army for a woman he loves. Kerr as the much-abused officer’s wife who struggles and fails to find happiness. Another magnificent World War II movie that is not really about war.

Gigi
Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jourdan, Hermione Gingold
I know this is a sappy film and I should never watch it again but … That scene with Chevalier and Hermione Gingold reminiscing about their youthful romance (“I remember it well”). Chevalier singing “Thank heaven for little girls.” Chevalier singing “I’m glad I’m not young anymore.” Chevalier. Plus watching Gigi (Caron) transform from a carefree little girl to a beautiful, enticing woman. Plus the delightful scenes at the Tuileries, at Trouville, at Maxim’s. Plus the beautiful costumes and sets. Plus Paris!

Gone with the Wind
Vivian Leigh, Clark Gable, Leslie Howard, Olivia de Havilland
Unmatchable in its splendor and sweep. The definitive film about the Civil War and the destruction of the Old South. Leigh’s inspired performance as Scarlett appropriately earned her the Academy Award. Honor is a key theme, both the obvious proclamations of commitment to honor by Ashley Wilkes (Howard) and the more subtle demonstration of honor by the great Gable as the atypical hero, Rhett Butler. Unmatchable and unforgettable scene after scene. The gaity before the war. The horror of the burning of Atlanta (still one of the greatest scenes in filmdom, often imitated but never matched) with Rhett driving the carriage safely though. The hospital scenes. Hattie McDaniel’s Oscar winning performance. Butterfly McQueen. The noble, inspirational Melanie (de Havilland). One of those films that should only be seen on a big screen. This is my favorite film!

It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World
Spencer Tracy, Sid Caesar, Mickey Rooney, Jimmy Durante, Buddy Hackett, Ethel Merman …
This won’t appeal to everyone, especially if you don’t know these long-gone comics but, for me, it is one of the three funniest films ever made. Jimmy Durante kicking the bucket. Mickey Rooney and Buddy Hackett trying to fly the two-engined plane. Sid Caesar and Eydie Gormé trapped in the hardware store basement. Milton Berle in almost any scene. Jonathan Winters (temporarily) restrained in the new gas station. And so much more … Best seen on a big screen but funny on any screen,

Horse’s Mouth, The
Alec Guinness
One reviewer in the U.K. described this movie as “quite probably the best film ever made about an artist.” I would guess that very few in the United States have seen this very witty movie which might possibly require a British sense of humor to appreciate, interspersed with periodic doses of slapstick. Alec Guinness, one of the finest film actors ever, is brilliant in his portrayal of Gully Jimson, a distinctly eccentric and mostly unsuccessful modern artist. Guinness (better known to American audiences as the Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi) wrote the screenplay from the novel by Joyce Cary.

It’s a Wonderful Life
James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Henry Travers, Ward Bond
Another film that might be labelled “sappy.” It overflows with sentiment and periodically requires a tissue or two to soak up the tears. I’ve seen it enough times to serve as a reliable narrator but, still, I periodically need another dose of the decency, warmth and good Christmas spirit to be found in this Frank Capra classic. How can you not feel better about life after seeing that last scene?

Judgement at Nuremberg
Spencer Tracy, Maximilian Schell, Judy Garland, Montgomery Clift, Burt Lancaster
Many marvelous, moving performances besides that of Tracy (arguably the greatest film actor ever): Maximillian Schell, Burt Lancaster, Judy Garland, Montgomery Clift, Richard Widmark, Werner Klemperer. The horror and great tragedy of World War II capsulized in gripping courtroom scenes.

King and I, The
Deborah Kerr, Yul Brynner
Yes, I know, everyone’s favorite is The Sound of Music, but this is the greatest film of a Rodgers and Hammerstein classic. Brynner is mesmerizing. The music is unmatchable. The costumes. The sets. The impossibly charming children. The parallel tragic love stories. Hammerstein’s songs against intolerance (a feature of all his shows).

Lawrence of Arabia
Peter O’Toole, Omar Sharif, Alec Guinness, Claude Rains, Anthony Quinn, José Ferrer
Has there ever been a greater production? This is David Lean’s masterpiece, first among his many masterpieces (“Brief Encounter,” “Passage to India,” “The Bridge on the River Kwai,” and others). The splendor, the drama and the intensity are always there. There is something new every time I see it. That first scene of Sharif approaching his well from a great distance is brilliant and amazing. And unforgettable. The trek across the desert leading to the surprise attack on Aqaba and the ensuing chaos. The legions of camels. The destruction of the village. The scene at the bar when Lawrence demands a lemon squash for his young Arab companion. The hints of homosexuality. The portraits of politicians playing with lives. The triumphant return to Cairo. Another of those films that should only be watched on a big screen. This is my favorite movie.

Laura
Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews, Clifton Webb, Vincent Price
Is this the best film noir movie ever made? I don’t know but it is the best I’ve seen.

Last Time I Saw Paris, The
Elizabeth Taylor, Van Johnson, Walter Pidgeon
Sappy, yes. Tear-jerker yes. But it’s Paris and unhappiness and love and that wonderful song …

Maltese Falcon, The
Bogart, Mary Astor, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre
Sam Spade at his best. Amazing story (Raymond Chandler) and amazing performances, both of which make this a film that never gets tired. Perhaps this is the best of film noir.

Mrs. Miniver
Greer Garson, Walter Pigeon, Teresa Wright, Dame May Whitty, Henry Travers
Another World War II movie that isn’t about war. It tells of Mrs. and Mr. Miniver, an otherwise undistinguished couple living in their modest country home in the early days of the potential invasion of Britain by Germany, when bombings started and people were killed. Set in a English village with its annual contest for the best rose, a subplot is the rescue of the soldiers trapped at Dunkirk by a flotilla of private boats, including that owned by Mr. Miniver (Pidgeon). But the focus is on Mrs. Miniver, a housewife called to acts of courage and inspiration, portrayed by the marvelous Greer Garson.


M*A*S*H*
Elliot Gould, Donald Sutherland
Has there ever been a funnier, or better, anti-war movie? Another marvelous war movie that is not about war. The television series was fine but this is real version.

Ninotchka
Garbo, Melvyn Douglas
This is a disingenuous choice; full disclosure requires me to note there are other Garbo films I can’t avoid watching again and again (Queen Christina, Grand Hotel, others).

On the Waterfront
Marlon Brando, Eva Marie Saint, Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger
Elia Kazan’s masterpiece. Brilliant background music by Leonard Bernstein. Brando in his greatest performance. Fantastic, gripping script (Budd Shulberg) about crime on the New York waterfront. Lee J. Cobb (magnificent actor, hardly known today), Steiger, Eva Marie Saint, Malden – all mesmerizing performances in one of the most vividly photographed black-and-white films.

Out of Africa
Meryl Streep, Robert Redford, Klaus Maria Brandauer
Best picture of the year for many reasons. Haunting music by John Barry plus the haunting clarinet piece by Mozart. The director Sydney Pollack’s best film. Based on the marvelous memoir of the same name by Karen Blixen/Isak Dinesen. The magnificent Streep at her most magnificent as Blixen. Redford in his best performance as Denys Finch Hatton, a heroic and doomed figure. An almost impossibly beautiful work of art with Kenya immortalized by extraordinary cinemaphotography.

Paths of Glory
Kirk Douglas, Adolph Menjou
Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece (not 2001, not Clockwork Orange, not Strangelove, not Lolita, not Spartacus, not Full Metal Jacket – another great anti-war film). The greatest anti-war film ever made. Douglas’ finest, and extraordinary, performance. Chilling and terrifying, courageous and inspirational. Hard to watch but well worth it.

Producers, The
Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder, Dick Shawn, Kenneth Mars
Is this the funniest film ever made? The great Zero with Wilder more than holding his own. Mel Brooks’ masterpiece.

Roman Holiday
Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, Eddie Albert
Another version of the Queen Christina story: royalty trying to get away from all the pomp and circumstance for just one day. But what a lovely day it turns out to be with charming and elegant performances by Peck and Hepburn. Wonderful fun. Rome.

Shane
Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Brandon de Wilde, Van Heflin, Jack Palance
Hope, courage, dignity, comradery, honor, the inevitability of fate – all in the greatest Western every made. Alan Ladd (who I especially liked when I was young because I thought my father looked like him) in a great performance as the gunslinger. Brandon de Wilde brilliant as the boy who idolizes him, providing the unforgettable (possibly slightly misquoted) last lines: “Shane. Come back, Shane. Mother wants you. And Dad has work for you to do.” Jean Arthur beyond beautiful and endearing as the homesteader’s wife. Heflin as sturdy as the tree that binds him with Shane. And Palance as Wilson, evil personified.

Third Man, The
Orson Welles, Joseph Cotton, Valli, Trevor Howard
A close contender for ‘my favorite movie ever.’ An extraordinary script written by Graham Greene. Arguably the best black-and-white cinematography ever. About evil, intrigue, honor, justice, in the setting of post-World War II Vienna. Acting at its best, particularly Valli whose portrayal of sadness is remarkable. And then that sinister theme music, by Anton Karas, played on the zither, which drives the paranoia.

Twelve O’Clock High
Gregory Peck, Gary Merrill, Dean Jagger
This gripping war movie is a lot about war but, again, it’s mostly not about war. Mostly, it portrays the stress born by the airmen, and their officers, during the daylight bombing forays over Germany that led to the end of World War II. It’s hard for me to identify the very best of Gregory Peck’s many marvelous performances (“To Kill a Mockingbird” generally earns that designation) but this is a close second.

Tunes of Glory
Alec Guinness, John Mills
I have not met very many people who know this great movie. Guinness (familiar to us as Obi-Wan Kenobe, discussed above with The Horse’s Mouth) was a brilliant British actor who portrays Jock Sinclair, a senior officer in a historic Scottish bagpiping regiment during World War II. The regiment is back in Scotland after a tour of duty in North Africa. Jock is the acting commander who is relieved by the arrival of the new commander, Lieutenant Colonel Basil Barrow (Mills), an officer not previously a part of the regiment. Old versus new, good old ‘Jock’ versus the Colonel, tradition and comradery versus rules and regulations. A riveting battle of two mighty forces. The interaction between Guinness and Mills is mesmerizing.

Way We Were, The
Barbra Streisand, Robert Redford
Another wonderful Sydney Pollack movie. Sappy and sentimental, but this is about the time I grew up in the place in which I grew up. I can’t avoid it. Streisand is at her best and Redford is, as usual, irresistably handsome and charming. And then there’s the music by Marvin Hamlisch.

Young Lions, The
Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, Dean Martin
From Irwin Shaw’s great World War II novel of the same name, this film is not really about war but focuses on three soldiers, two Americans from decidedly different backgrounds (Clift, a magnificent performance, as always, and Martin, excellent in the role of a Broadway denizen) and a German, the great Brando, whose dissatisfaction with Naziism grows before our eyes.


So there you have it: a list of films I cannot help but watch every time I have the chance. But, alas, I am not being completely candid. Last night, on TCM, “The Best Years of Our Lives” was showing and I couldn’t turn it off (for the nth time). Others (“The Great Escape,” “Goodbye, Mr. Chips,” “The Misfits,” “Lion in Winter,” “A Man for All Seasons,” “The Man who killed Liberty Valance,” “The Searchers,” “The Natural,” “Field of Dreams,” etc, etc, etc are films I tell myself I don’t ever have to see again but, somehow, I do.

 

Here is that old list:

Favorite Old Films (most favorite in italics):

Abe Lincoln in Illinois (Raymond Massey, Ruth Gordon)
African Queen (Humphrey Bogart, Katherine Hepburn)
All the President’s Men (Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford)
The Americanization of Emily (Julie Andrews, James Garner)
An Affair to Remember (Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr)
Anastasia (Ingrid Bergman, Yul Brynner)
Annie Hall (Woody Allen, Diane Keaton)
A Place in the Sun (Montgomery Clift, Shelly Winters, Elizabeth Taylor)
Apocalypse Now (Marlon Brando, Martin Sheen)
Becket (Richard Burton, Peter O’Toole)
The Best Years of Our Lives (Frederic March, Myrna Loy)
The Black Stallion (Mickey Rooney, Kelly Reno)
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard)
The Bridge on the River Kwai (Alec Guinness, William Holden)
The Caine Mutiny (Humphrey Bogart, Van Johnson, Jose Ferrer)
Captain’s Paradise (Alec Guinness, Yvonne DeCarlo)
Casablanca (Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid)
Chariots of Fire (Ben Cross, Ian Charleston, Ian Holm)
Citizen Kane (Orson Wells, Joseph Cotton)
Command Decision (Clark Gable, Walter Pidgeon)

The Country Girl (Grace Kelly, Big Crosby, William Holden)

The Deer Hunter (Robert DeNiro, Christopher Walken

Doctor Zhivago (Omar Sharif, Julie Christie)

A Duet for One (Julie Andrews, Alan Bates)

East of Eden (James Dean, Julie Harris, Raymond Massey)

The Electric Horseman (Robert Redford, Jane Fonda)

Everybody’s All American (Dennis Quaid, Jessica Lange)

Excalibur (Nigel Terry, Nicol Williamson)

A Field of Dreams (Kevin Costner, James Earl Jones)

The French Lieutenant’s Woman (Meryl Streep, Jeremy Irons)

For Whom the Bell Tolls (Gary Cooper, Ingrid Bergman)

From Here to Eternity (Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Frank Sinatra)

Gentleman’s Agreement (Gregory Peck, Dorothy Maguire)

Giant (Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean)

Gigi (Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jourdan)

Godfather Trilogy (Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, Marlon Brando)

Gone With the Wind (Clark Gable, Vivian Leigh, Leslie Howard)

The Graduate (Dustin Hoffman, Ann Bancroft)

The Greatest Show on Earth (Charlton Heston, James Stewart)

The Gunfighter (Gregory Peck)

Hannah and her Sisters (Woody Allen, Mia Farrow)

Henry V (Laurence Olivier)

Here Comes Mr. Jordan (Robert Montgomery, Evelyn Keyes)

The Horse’s Mouth (Alec Guinness)

How Green was my Valley (Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O’Hara)

Inherit the Wind (Spencer Tracy, Frederic March)

Intermezzo (Ingrid Bergman, Leslie Howard)

In Which We Serve (Noel Coward, Leslie Howard)

I Remember Mama (Irene Dunne, Barbara Bel Geddes)

It Happened One Night (Clark Gable, Claudette Colbert)

It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (Sid Caesar, Spencer Tracy)

The Jolson Story (Larry Parks, Evelyn Keyes)

Judgement at Nuremberg (Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster)

Kind Hearts and Coronets (Alec Guinness)
The King and I (Deborah Kerr, Yum Brynner)

Kramer versus Kramer (Dustin Hoffman, Meryl Streep)

Laura (Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews, Clifton Webb)

Lawrence of Arabia (Peter O’Toole)

A Letter to Three Wives (Linda Darnell, Jeanne Crain)

The Lion in Winter (Katherine Hepburn, Peter O’Toole)

Lonely are the Brave (Kirk Douglas)

Los Horizon (Ronald Colman, Jane Wyatt)

Lust for Life (Kirk Douglas)

The Maltese Falcon (Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor)

A Man for All Seasons (Paul Scofield, Wendy Hiller)

The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit (Gregory Peck, Jennifer Jones)

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (James Stewart, John Wayne)
M*A*S*H* (Elliot Gould, Donald Southerland)

Moulin Rouge (José Ferrer)

The Natural (Robert Redford, Glenn Close)

Ninotchka (Greta Garbo, Melvyn Douglas)

Notorious (Ingrid Bergman, Cary Grant)

Odd Man Out (James Mason, Robert Newton)

Of Human Bondage (Leslie Howard, Bette Davis)

On the Waterfront (Marlon Brando, Eva Marie Saint)

Out of Africa (Meryl Streep, Robert Redford)

Paths of Glory (Kirk Douglas)

Plenty (Meryl Streep)

Pride and Prejudice (Greer Garson, Laurence Olivier)

The Producers (Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder)

Rebecca (Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine)

Red River (John Wayne, Montgomery Clift)

Reds (Warren Beatty, Diana Keaton)

The Red Shoes (Moira Shearer)

Ride the High Country (Randolph Scott, Joel McCrea)

Robin and Marion (Sean Connery, Audrey Hepburn)

Sabrina (Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn, William Holden)

The Search (Montgomery Clift)

Shane (Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur)

The Song of Bernadette (Jennifer Jones)

Sophie’s Choice (Meryl Streep)

Stagecoach (John Wayne, Claire Trevor)

Stalag 17 (William Holden, Peter Graves)

A Star is Born (Judy Garland, James Mason)

Star Wars – Episode IV – A New Hope (Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher)

Terms of Endearment (Shirley Maclaine, Debra Winger)

The Man Who Would be Kind (Sean Connery, Michael Caine)

The Third Man (Joseph Cotton, Orson Welles)

The Thomas Crown Affair (Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway)

To Kill a Mockingbird (Gregory Peck)

Tom Jones (Albert Finney)

Treasure of the Sierra Madre (Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston)

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Dorothy Maguire, Peggy Ann Garner)

Tunes of Glory (Alec Guinness, John Mills)

The Turning Point (Anne Bancroft, Shirley Maclaine)

Twelve O’CLock High (Gregory Peck, Gary Merrill)

2001: A Space Oddysey (Kerr Dullea)

Two Women (Sophia Loren)

An Unmarried Woman (Jill Clayburgh, Alan Bates)

Viva Zapata (Maron Brando)

Waterloo Bridge (Vivian Leigh, Robert Taylor)

The Way We Were (Barbra Streisand, Robert Redford)

Will Penny (Charlton Heston, Joan Hackett)

Witness of the Prosecution ( Marlene Dietrich, Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power)

The Wizard of Oz (Judy Garland)

It’s a Wonderful Life (James Stewart, Donna Reed)

A Woman Under the Influence (Gina Rowlands, Peter Falk)

Wuthering Heights (Laurence Olivier, Merle Oberon)

The Young Lions (Montgomery Clift, Marlon Brando)

Z (Yves Montand)

 

 

 

 

Addendum – March 22, 2023:

Two weeks ago we saw Casablanca on a big screen, at an AMC movie theater, and last night, we saw Lawrence of Arabia on a big screen, at the David Geffen theater of the Museum of the Academy of Arts and Science. They are each my favorite movie!