MOVIES OF THE 1930s POLL

Further to the post of 17th October, please leave your choices for Best Films of the 1930s here in the form of comments. Remember, only 25 choices permitted (any more and numbers 26 and below will be ignored).

65 Comments »

65 Responses

on October 17, 2008 at 9:00 pm | Reply Allan Fish

OK, I suppose it should be one of us who goes first…

1. Bringing up Baby (US…Howard Hawks)
2. La Règle du Jeu (France…Jean Renoir)
3. The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums (Japan…Kenji Mizoguchi)
4. City Lights (US…Charles Chaplin)
5. The Music Box (US…James Parrott)
6. M (Germany…Fritz Lang)
7. La Grande Illusion (France…Jean Renoir)
8. Only Angels Have Wings (US…Howard Hawks)
9. Trouble in Paradise (US…Ernst Lubitsch)
10. Earth (Russia…Alexander P.Dovzhenko)
11. Mr Thank You (Japan…Hiroshi Shimizu)
12. Love Me Tonight (US…Rouben Mamoulian)
13. Duck Soup (US…Leo McCarey)
14. The Goddess (China…Wu Yonggang)
15. Limite (Brazil…Mario Peixoto)
16. L’Atalante (France…Jean Vigo)
17. The Scarlet Empress (US…Josef Von Sternberg)
18. The Bride of Frankenstein (US…James Whale)
19. Le Roman d’un Tricheur (France…Sacha Guitry)
20. The 39 Steps (UK…Alfred Hitchcock)
21. L’Âge d’Or (France/Spain…Luis Buñuel)
22. The Adventures of Robin Hood (US…Michael Curtiz, William Keighley)
23. It’s a Gift (US…Norman Z.McLeod)
24. Les Misérables: Parts I, II & III (France…Raymond Bernard)
25. Oh Mr Porter! (UK…Marcel Varnel)

I shall begin a series of reviews starting tomorrow in reverse order of my top 25 choices. Of course, I have already covered no 8 and shall go straight from 8 to 6 come the time.
on October 17, 2008 at 10:14 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Well, colleague, a great great list, and one whose contents I can largely agree with. However the differences in selections and order are still glaring.

1. City Lights (US…..Charles Chaplin)
2. La Regle du Jeu (France….Jean Renoir)
3. Story of the Late Chrysanthemums (Japan…Kenji Mizoguchi)
4. Earth (Russia…..Alexander Dovzhenko)
5. Modern Times (US…..Charles Chaplin)
6. M (Germany…..Fritz Lang)
7. The Wizard of Oz (US….Victor Fleming)
8. La Grande Illusion (France…Jean Renoir)
9. Trouble in Paradise (US…Ernst Lubitsch)
10.Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (US….Frank Capra)
11.Les Miserables (France…..Raymond Bernard)
12.Wuthering Heights (US….William Wyler)
13.All Quiet on the Western Front (US…….Lewis Milestone)
14.The Music Box (US…..James Parrott)
15.Gone With the Wind (US…Victor Fleming)
16.L’Atalante (France……Jean Vigo)
17.Love Me Tonight (US..Rouben Mamoulian)
18.Duck Soup (US…Leo McCarey/Marx Brothers)
19.Goodbye Mr. Chips (UK/US…Sam Wood)
20.Adventures of Robin Hood (US….Michael Curtiz, William Keighley)
21.The Bride of Frankenstein (US…James Whale)
22.Oh! Mr. Porter (UK….Marcel Varnel)
23.Humanity and Paper Balloons (Japan….Sadao Yamanaka)
24.Un Partie de Campagne (France….Jean Renoir)
25.March of the Wooden Soldiers (US…..Gus Meins, Charles Rogers)

I must say that it broke my heart not to be able to include:
The 39 Steps (UK…..Alfred Hitchcock)
Alexander Nevsky (Russia……..Sergei Eisenstein)
The Peach Girl (China)
L’Age d’Or (France/Spain)
The Scarlet Empress (US)
Mr. Thank You (Japan)
The Goddess (China)
Angels With Dirty Faces (US)
Enthusiasm (Russia)
Wife! Be Like A Rose! (Japan)
I Was Born…But (Japan)
King Kong (US)
Little Toys (China)
Lost Horizon (Capra)
Frankenstein (Whale)
The Mummy (Freund)
The Lady Vanishes (Hitchcock)
Le Jour se Leve (France)
La Chienne (France)
Vampyr (Germany)
I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang (US)
It’s A Gift (US)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (US)
The Informer (US)
Mayerling (France)

There are other great 30’s films, but the omission of the above 22 was very painful.
on October 17, 2008 at 10:18 pm | Reply Allan Fish

Yes, but in your patriotic zeal claiming The 39 Steps as American is a bit much…and Goodbye Mr Chips for that matter, that was made by MGM British…
on October 17, 2008 at 10:25 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

The mistake on “The 39 Steps” was a typo! I also agree with you on “Chips.” I will make the proper revisions.
on October 17, 2008 at 11:35 pm | Reply Tony D'Ambra

I can’t produce a list of 25 that I could in all honesty I could call fairly representative, but of the films I have seen, I think missing from Sam’s and Allan’s lists:

Blue Angel
42nd Street
Gold Diggers of 1933
It Happened One Night
A Night at the Opera
Ninotchka
Alexander Nevsky
La Bête Humaine
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
Pépé le Moko
The Thin Man
on October 18, 2008 at 8:41 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Tony, I actually considered most of these, especially “Alexander Nevsky” and “La Bete Humaine.” We will figure out a way to make your choices count with the weighted system, so there will be no problem at all. Thanks again.
on October 18, 2008 at 9:43 pm | Reply Allan Fish

Yes, all these titles are on the Movie Timeline and many more besides. My leaving them out is not to be negative about them, just that I found 25 better films than them.
on October 19, 2008 at 7:31 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

NOTE WELL:

I will now change my 25th choice, and I will push THE 39 STEPS down to the runner-up list. The added choice is none other than the beloved MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS….a.k.a. BABES IN TOYLAND, the 1934 Victor Herbert operetta with Laurel and Hardy, which I inexplicably omitted.
I will also add ALEXANDER NEVSKY and LA BETE HUMAINE to the runner-up list.
on October 19, 2008 at 8:23 pm | Reply Allan Fish

God, Sam, I’ll forgive you, but there’s nothing inexplicable about omitting Babes in Toyland…only inexplicable including it…
on October 19, 2008 at 8:32 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Ha! We will agree to disagree!!!
on October 19, 2008 at 11:38 pm | Reply Tony D'Ambra

Sam, I am with you on MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS. I first saw it as a kid and the movie holds magical memories for me. I recall it always in almost mystical terms – with nostalgia but also with a fond melancholy for the simple and joyous days of childhood forever lost…
on October 20, 2008 at 1:55 am | Reply Sam Juliano

Tony: I am on the same page with you on that observation. When you say “also with a fond melancholy for the simple and joyous days of childhood forever lost” you capture its allure and essence perfectly. The film was aired for many years every Thanksgiving morning, and I will never forget how as kids we would wait for weeks, even months to be caught up in it’s “magic” all over again. And that Herbert score is truly magnificent after all these years. My wife and kids adore it too.

Thanks for sharing that.
on October 20, 2008 at 7:20 am | Reply The editor.,

Hi! Sam Juliano,
I have never watched the film “March of the Wooden Soldier, but I have sent you an email pertaining to the Smithsonian Legendary Performers: The Best of Old Time Radio: Alfred Hitchcock
programs. That you mentioned over there on T.S.’s blog under his Lifeboat review.

dcd 😉
on October 20, 2008 at 7:22 am | Reply The editor.,

Oops!…I forgot to add the letter “s”
to the word Soldier.

dcd 😉
on October 20, 2008 at 12:00 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Got the email and responded DCD, thank you very much!

MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS is a childhood classic that has sustained itself over decades. It never fails to attract renewed adoration through new generations. It’s the most famous Laurel and Hardy film.
on October 20, 2008 at 12:17 pm | Reply Allan Fish

Far from it, Sam, it’s anything but the most famous Laurel and Hardy film…ask any Laurel and Hardy student they’ll say Sons of the Desert (their fan club is named after it, after all, Way Out West or any one of a dozen shorts, from The Music Box to Laughing Gravy). It isn’t in their top 12 but might make their top 20.
on October 21, 2008 at 4:17 pm | Reply Bill H.

Here’s my list, Sam:

1 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
2 Stagecoach
3 Alexander Nevsky
4 The 39 Steps
5 La Grande Illusion
6 Public Enemy
7 Gone With The Wind
8 It Happened One Night
9 The Wizard of Oz
10 The Adventures of Robin Hood
11 Les Miserables
12 City Lights
13 All Quiet on the Western Front
14 Modern Times
15 Duck Soup
16 Of Mice and Men
17 Rules of the Game
18 Angels With Dirty Faces
19 Freaks
20 The Most Dangerous Game
21 Scarface
22 Gunga Din
23 It’s A Gift
24 L’Age d’Or
25 The Invisible Man
on October 21, 2008 at 10:41 pm | Reply Douglas T. McCartney

Doug’s Top 25:

1 Angels With Dirty Faces
2 Public Enemy
3 Mutiny on the Bounty
4 I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang
5 The Wizard of Oz
6 King Kong
7 The 39 Steps
8 Captain Blood
9 The Roaring Twenties
10 The Music Box
11 Petrified Forest
12 March of the Wooden Soldiers
13 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
14 Mystery of the Wax Museum
15 Hunchback of Notre Dame
16 Imitation of Life
17 The Lost Patrol
18 Charge of the Light Brigade
19 Sabotage
20 Showboat
21 Son of Frankenstein
22 Lost Horizon
23 Night at the Opera
24 Man on the Flying Trapeze
25 It Happened One Night
on October 21, 2008 at 11:18 pm | Reply Tony D'Ambra

Allan, we are talking personal favorites here, and MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS needs to be looked at from the perspective of its principal audience: children. Sam and I are looking at the film as a childhood experience. Granted as adults we may have a different view, but this does not lessen the childhood experience. Even that curmudgeon Halliwell gives it 2 stars and calls it “an eccentric minor classic”.
on October 21, 2008 at 11:46 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Perfectly stated there Tony. The memories of seeing this film every Thanksgiving morning actually defined my childhood and that of my brothers and sister and many friends.

But apart from the unbreakable bond I must admit that the film remains one of the iconic duo’s most lovable, and funniest (who could forget the “dunking,” the “unveiling” of the giant soldiers, and the face and reactions of Laurel when he’s told he must live with Barnaby because “he’s married to him.”
Victor Herbert’s songs are a vernerable mix of musical felicity and lyrical beauty. Song-arias like “Never Mind Bo-Beep,” “Go To Sleep (Slumber Deep) and “Castle in Spain” are astonishingly beautiful, and rather unbelievable to be included in a film that aspired to little outside of the teaming of the two comedians.
The screenplay is suffsued with an effervescent and endearing quality that takes it to the height of audience involvement and a number of priceless individual moments will last a lifetime.
on October 22, 2008 at 1:14 am | Reply Lucille Juliano

Lucille’s Top 25 of the 30’s

1 The Wizard of Oz
2 March of the Wooden Soldiers
3 Adventures of Robin Hood
4 Goodbye, Mr. Chips
5 Top Hat
6 Gone With The Wind
7 You Can’t Take It With You
8 King Kong
9 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
10 City Lights
11 Jezebel
12 Stagecoach
13 Wuthering Heights
14 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
15 The Awful Truth
16 Angels With Dirty Faces
17 Dark Victory
18 The Little Princess
19 It Happened One Night
20 Frankenstein
21 Bride of Frankenstein
22 Topper
23 Little Miss Broadway
24 Mr. Deeds Goes To Town
25 Hunchback of Notre Dame
on October 22, 2008 at 7:08 am | Reply Allan Fish

Lucille – we love you, but heaven help us. Little Miss Broadway, Topper, You Can’t Take it With You. If I was stranded on a desert island with some of those choices, I’d be reading Chapter 1 of “How to Make a Raft”

Bobby, glad to see you are an advocate of world cinema. Or does foreign in certain people’s definition mean “made outside my favourite studio”
on October 22, 2008 at 11:19 am | Reply Angelo D'Arminio

Sam – Here is my 30’s list.
1ANGELS WITH DIRTY FACES (1938)
2 THE INVISIBLE MAN (1933)
3 MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON (1939)
4 GOODBYE MR. CHIPS (1939)
5 COME AND GET IT (1936)
6 PUBLIC ENEMY (1931)
7 A TALE OF TWO CITIES (1935)
8 HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (1939)
9 THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (1938)
10 ROARING TWENTIES (1939)
11 THE INFORMER (1935)
12 KING KONG (1933)
13 LITTLE CAESAR (1930)
14 THEY WON’T FORGET (1937)
15 FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
16 WIZARD OF OZ, THE (1939)
17 YOUNG MR. LINCOLN (1939)
18 THE 39 STEPS (1935)
19 CRIME WITHOUT PASSON (1934)
20 MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY (1935)
21 ANTHONY ADVERSE (1936)
22 GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)
23 ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (1930)
24 MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS (1934)
25 A NIGHT AT THE OPERA (1935)
on October 22, 2008 at 11:29 am | Reply Allan Fish

Another trademark d’Arminio exercise in xenophobia. My congratulations!
on October 25, 2008 at 3:41 pm | Reply Joe

My own Top 25:

1 The Rules of the Game
2 The Informer
3 M
4 Duck Soup
5 The Scarlet Pimpernel
6 Modern Times
7 The Adventures of Robin Hood
8 Island of Lost Souls
9 Bringing Up Baby
10 Mr. Deeds Goes To Town
11 Lost Horizon
12 Love Me Tonight
13 Alexander Nevsky
14 It’s A Gift
15 Wuthering Heights
16 City Lights
17 Gone With the Wind
18 The Wizard of Oz
19 Les Miserables
20 Grand Illusion
21 Only Angels Have Wings
22 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
23 Trouble in Paradise
24 The Scarlet Empress
25 The Blue Angel
on October 25, 2008 at 11:20 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Outstanding lists, both Angelo and Joe!
on October 26, 2008 at 9:15 pm | Reply Louis Aveta

Lou’s Top 25:

1 The Wizard of Oz
2 Angels With Dirty Faces
3 Stagecoach
4 March of the Wooden Soldiers
5 King Kong
6 Goodbye, Mr. Chips
7 Gone With The Wind
8 Adventures of Robin Hood
9 Captains Courageous
10 The Big Trail
11 Captain Blood
12 Frankenstein
13 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
14 City Lights
15 The Music Box
16 The Mummy
17 Scarface
18 Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde
19 I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang
20 Tarzan The Ape Man
21 Sons of the Desert
22 Public Enemy
23 The Black Cat
24 It’s A Gift
25 Dead End
on October 27, 2008 at 8:58 am | Reply Allan Fish

Louis, me old china, did you ever get that The Searchers DVD? If not, do so. Likewise The Big Trail, which is a proper film seen in its widescreen original.
on October 28, 2008 at 2:37 pm | Reply Anthony Francisco

Anthony’s list:

1 The Informer
2 Modern Times
3 The Rules of the Game
4 M
5 Kammeradschaft
6 The Black Cat
7 Zero de Conduite
8 Vampyr
9 The 39 Steps
10 The Blue Angel
11 City Lights
12 All Quiet on the Western Front
13 Earth
14 Story of the Late Chrysanthemums
15 A Nous la Liberte
16 Grand Hotel
17 Trouble in Paradise
18 A Night at the Opera
19 The Wizard of Oz
20 Wuthering Heights
21 Les Miserables–French
22 Top Hat
23 Gone With the Wind
24 Only Angels Have Wings
25 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
on October 28, 2008 at 2:55 pm | Reply Allan Fish

Tony, I’ll forgive you your no 1 spot (for shame!!!), because virtually all the rest of the list is top notch. I couldn’t quite find room for it, but a vote for Kameradschaft is always welcome.
on October 28, 2008 at 3:27 pm | Reply John R.

John’s list:

1 It’s A Gift
2 Trouble in Paradise
3 The Most Dangerous Game
4 Of Mice and Men
5 Les Miserables (1934)
6 M
7 Adventures of Robin Hood
8 Alexander Nevsky
9 Grand Illusion
10 Duck Soup
11 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
12 Gone With the Wind
13 The Bride of Frankenstein
14 The Music Box
15 Mutiny on the Bounty
16 Jezebel
17 Stagecoach
18 The Wizard of Oz
19 The Rules of the Game
20 A Night at the Opera
21 King Kong
22 A Fatal Glass of Beer
23 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
24 Goodbye, Mr. Chips
25 City Lights
on October 28, 2008 at 3:36 pm | Reply Allan Fish

Oh, John, The Fatal Glass of Beer…JOY! I would love to have included it, but only room for 25…I’ll just go outside and milk the elk!
on October 28, 2008 at 3:43 pm | Reply Maria

Maria’s 1930’s movie list:

1 Wuthering Heights
2 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
3 Goodbye, Mr. Chips
4 Gone With the Wind
5 Duck Soup
6 The Wizard of Oz
7 The Scarlet Pimpernel
8 The March of the Wooden Soldiers
9 The Blue Angel
10 Love Me Tonight
11 The Scarlet Empress
12 The Great Zigfeld
13 Of Human Bondage
14 The Lady Vanishes
15 Lost Horizon
16 City Lights
17 Jezebel
18 Les Miserables -1934-
19 M
20 Grand Illusion
21 The Music Box
22 It’s A Gift
23 You Can’t Take It With You
24 Babes in Arms
25 Dracula
on October 28, 2008 at 4:10 pm | Reply Allan Fish

Maria, for voting purposes, can I confirm that the Les Mis you mention is definitely the French 1933-34 version and not the Hollywood 1935.

Thanks

Allan
on October 30, 2008 at 7:13 pm | Reply Kenneth G

list.

1 Adventures of Robin Hood
2 King Kong
3 Mr. Deeds Goes To Town
4 Lost Horizon
5 Frankenstein
6 The Informer
7 M
8 Grand Illusion
9 Gone With the Wind
10 The Invisible Man
11 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
12 Les Miserables (French version)
13 The Wizard of Oz
14 Duck Soup
15 Mutiny on the Bounty
16 All Quiet on the Western Front
17 City Lights
18 Modern Times
19 The Good Earth
20 Angels With Dirty Faces
21 The Black Cat
22 Alexander Nevsky
23 Goodbye Mr. Chips
24 Captain Blood
25 The Mummy
on November 1, 2008 at 4:30 pm | Reply Frederick

Frederick’s Top 25 of the 1930’s:

1 Footlight Parade
2 Intermezzo
3 Madchen in Uniform
4 Tabu
5 Vampyr
6 The Last Flight
7 The Rules of the Game
8 City Lights
9 Love Me Tonight
10 All Quiet on the Western Front
11 Earth
12 Peter Ibbetson
13 The Wizard of Oz
14 Wuthering Heights
15 Freaks
16 Gone With the Wind
17 M
18 The Blue Angel
19 Goodbye Mr. Chips
20 Dodsworth
21 Modern Times
22 La Chienne
23 42nd Street
24 Adventures of Robin Hood
25 Trouble in Paradise
on November 1, 2008 at 4:46 pm | Reply Carol Ippolito

Top 25:

1. Les Miserables (1933-4; French)
2. Trouble in Paradise
3. The Scarlet Empress
4. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
5. Modern Times
6. Gone With the Wind
7. Goodbye Mr. Chips
8. Wuthering Heights
9. It’s A Gift
10. A Night at the Opera
11. The Wizard of Oz
12. The Good Earth
13. Jezebel
14. King Kong
15. The Informer
16. The Invisible Man
17. Dracula
18. The 39 Steps
19. March of the Wooden Soldiers
20. Mutiny on the Bounty
21. Lost Horizon
22. Of Human Bondage
23. Grand Illusion
24. The Blue Angel
25. You Can’t Take It With Tou
on November 3, 2008 at 4:35 pm | Reply Peter

Peter’s Top 25:

1 The Rules of the Game
2 City Lights
3 Earth
4 Trouble in Paradise
5 Wuthering Heights
6 The Wizard of Oz
7 It’s A Gift
8 Love Me Tonight
9 Gone With the Wind
10 The Informer
11 Duck Soup
12 Les Miserables (Bernard)
13 Modern Times
14 All Quiet on the Western Front
15 The Scarlet Empress
16 M
17 Grand Illusion
18 The 39 Steps
19 King Kong
20 Ruggles of Red Gap
21 Private Life of Henry VIII
22 Goodbye Mr. Chips
23 Lost Horizon
24 Stagecoach
25 Only Angels Have Wings
on November 3, 2008 at 4:44 pm | Reply Peter

Please put “Mr. Smith Goes To Washington” at Number 5, and eleiminate my 25th choice. Thanks, Peter
on November 5, 2008 at 5:57 pm | Reply Frank A.

Frank A.’s top 25……

1 Gone With the Wind
2 M
3 The Informer
4 Goodbye Mr. Chips
5 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
6 The Last Flight
7 City Lights
8 The Wizard of Oz
9 Only Angels Have Wings
10 Les Miserables (French)
11 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
12 Angels With Dirty Faces
13 It’s A Gift
14 The 39 Steps
15 March of the Wooden Soldiers
16 Trouble in Paradise
17 The Music Box
18 The Lady Vanishes
19 Love Me Tonight
20 The Scarlet Empress
21 The Rules of the Game
22 Stagecoach
23 The Adventures of Robin Hood
24 King Kong
25 Grand Illusion
on November 6, 2008 at 11:34 pm | Reply Kaleem Hasan

As always my list shouldn’t be taken in literal order beyond I guess the first four films:

1)Story of the Late Chrysanthemums (Mizoguchi)
2)Rules of the Game (Renoir)
3)Boudu Saved from Drowning (Renoir)
4)City Lights (Chaplin)
5)Grand Illusion (Renoir)
6)M (Lang)
7)39 Steps (Hitchcock)
8)Modern Times (Chaplin)
9)Alexander Nevsky (Eisenstein)
10)Enthusiasm (Vertov)
11)La Chienne (Renoir)
12)Vampyr (Dreyer)
13)Stagecoach (Ford)
14)Lady Vanishes (Hitchcock)
15)Partie de Campagne (Renoir)
16)Sabotage (Hitchcock)
17)Happiness (Medvedkin)
18)Earth (Dovzhenko)
19)Story of Floating Weeds (Ozu)
20)I was Born But (Ozu)
21)Testament of Dr Mabuse (Lang)
22)Bitter Tea of General Yen (Capra)
23)Humanity and Paper Balloons (Yamanaka)
24)Duck Soup (McCarey)
25)Age of Gold (Bunuel)
on November 7, 2008 at 9:21 pm | Reply Frank Gallo

1 All Quiet on the Western Front
2 The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums
3 The Rules of the Game
4 The 39 Steps
5 Trouble in Paradise
6 City Lights
7 The Wizard of Oz
8 Goodbye Mr. Chips
9 Les Miserables 1933
10 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
11 Gone With The Wind
12 Wuthering Heights
13 Grand Illusion
14 Duck Soup
15 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
16 Alexander Nevsky
17 The Bride of Frankenstein
18 It’s A Gift
19 Tabu
20 The Informer
21 The Adventures of Robin Hood
22 M
23 The Scarlet Empress
24 Testament of Dr. Mabuse
25 Lost Horizon
on November 8, 2008 at 12:02 am | Reply Bobby McCartney

Bobby’s list:

1 The Wizard of Oz
2 Goodbye, Mr. Chips
3 Gone With The Wind
4 Mutiny on the Bounty
5 Of Human Bondage
6 La Grande Illusion
7 The Bride of Frankenstein
8 I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang
9 Mystery of the Wax Museum
10 Alexander Nevsky
11 Wuthering Heights
12 A Night at the Opera
13 Anthony Adverse
14 Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde
15 City Lights
16 The Scarlet Pimpernel
17 Lost Horizon
18 The Mummy
19 King Kong
20 Angels With Dirty Faces
21 Gunga Din
22 42nd Street
23 Public Enemy
24 They Drive By Night
25 It Happened One Night
on November 9, 2008 at 4:44 pm | Reply MovieMan0283

I’ve tried several times to take the bait and I can’t do it. Too many values come into conflict and I haven’t seen a lot of these films in a while (or many of them at all). Maybe for another decade, I’d have enough solid-gold favorite masterpieces to make it easy (say, with the 60s). With the 30s it’s too ambiguous. Too many clashes between head, heart, gut…Sorry.
on November 9, 2008 at 4:50 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Hello Movie Man! We are honored you have come over to WitD, and I personally thank you for giving this poll some thought. The 20’s and 30’s are admittedly difficult decades, but I assure you we will be doing the 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80s, 90’s and 00’s in succession, so you’ll have other options. I can well understand exactly what you are saying about the ‘clashes between head, heart and gut.’ It’s daunting.

Thanks again Movie Man.
on November 9, 2008 at 4:57 pm | Reply Mike B.

Mike’s list:

1 Earth
2 All Quiet on the Western Front
3 The Story of the Late Chrysanthmums
4 Stagecoach
5 Mutiny on the Bounty
6 The Rules of the Game
7 It’s A Gift
8 Duck Soup
9 Trouble in Paradise
10 Gone With the Wind
11 The Scarlet Empress
12 The Wizard of Oz
13 The Informer
14 Les Miserables 1934
15 Wuthering Heights
16 Ruggles of Red Gap
17 Hunchback of Notre Dame
18 The Bride of Frankenstein
19 The Adventures of Robin Hood
20 The Blue Angel
21 I Was Born, But
22 Goodbye Mr. Chips
23 Public Enemy
24 Scarface
25 The Front Page
on November 9, 2008 at 8:48 pm | Reply Ara Hallajian

1 Alexander Nevsky
2 The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums
3 Only Angels Have Wings
4 Trouble in Pradise
5 Private Life of Heny VIII
6 Vampyr
7 Lost Horizon
8 City Lights
9 King Kong
10 M
11 Mr. Smith Goes To washington
12 Gone With the Wind
13 All Quiet on the Western Front
14 The Informer
15 The Wizard of Oz
16 Goodbye Mr. Chips
17 The Good Earth
18 Frankenstein
19 Wuthering Heights
20 Robin Hood
21 Captain Blood
22 Modern Times
23 Bringing Up Baby
24 The Mummy
25 Music Box
on November 10, 2008 at 6:05 pm | Reply Kaleem Hasan

Having just revisited Young Mr Lincoln I have now decided to change #25 on my list from Age of Gold to this Ford masterwork.

Young Mr Lincoln is a film that continues to intrigue. I have revisited it more than a few times over in recent years. Being also a Lincoln aficionado (isn’t everyone?!) I am also fascinated by the idea that Ford (and Fonda by way of possibly his best performance) delivers a very enigmatic Lincoln to us and one befitting the legend. It is easily among the best shot of Ford’s films (one that Eisenstein apparently loved) but leaving this aside I am particularly interested in the way Lincoln is framed at certain points in the picture. I forget the critic who suggested that part of the film treated Lincoln in the ‘hokey’ manner of legend while other parts in the same film deconstructed, as it were, this popular representation by revealing a darker figure. I would disagree a touch here and also extend part of the observation. I think that even where Ford is a bit ‘hokey’ Fonda’s performance certainly isn’t and the film (and lead character) retains its mysterious quality. But specially towards the end when Lincoln emerges victorious from the courtroom he is framed using low angle shots and Fonda walks a bit like an automaton here, in rather slow, awkward steps. This moment and some of the following ones remind me of nothing so much as Frankenstein! Lincoln’s frame, his black suit and top hat, the framing of those shots, the lighting, all establish a set of atmospherics that are somewhat eerie and the Frankenstein parallel is suggested in a rather strange sense. The film ends with Lincoln walking alone on a country road. It’s all a bit spooky. There have been hints of such an ambience earlier on in the film as well. It seems to me that there is a direct link from Fonda’s Lincoln to his own chilling ‘villain’ in Once Upon a Time in the West. The film also remains a bit enigmatic because one is not entirely sure what Ford’s intentions here were. Certainly these were other than mere canonization. Perhaps Ford unites the Northern and Southern perspectives in his film. He was hero and ‘ogre’ at the very same time for the nation. To this day there are parts of the country where Lincoln remains a bit of a ‘dirty’ word. But also Ford chose to focus on a pre-Civil War Lincoln when the epic sensibility in the director would seem to be the perfect fit for such a subject. Why did the director then evade the richest period of Lincoln’s life? Or did he? Is there something about the trial at the heart of the film that is a metonymy for the war to come? These questions can be multiplied but it seems to me at the end that this might be Ford’s most ‘challenging’ film.

Incidentally a brilliant fictional treatment of Lincoln’s that also preserves the enigma and even more profoundly is of course Vidal’s extraordinary Lincoln.
on November 10, 2008 at 6:09 pm | Reply Kaleem Hasan

The other Ford film incidentally that was once very underrated, even dismissed, but has seen an upsurge in its fortunes in the last decade or two is his late Cheyenne Autumn. This film is really the perfect complement to the Searchers. The connections are deep. But leaving this aside I would venture that the film is critical to Ford entire cinematic project.
on November 16, 2008 at 2:04 pm | Reply darkcitydame

Hi! Sam and Allan,
Here goes the list…before the deadline end this evening!

1939….
1. The Women
2.The Wizard of Oz
3.The Hound of the Baskerville
4.Bachelor Mother
5. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
6. Son of Frankenstein
7. The Roaring Twenties

1938….
8. They Drive By Night
9. The Lady Vanishes…Hitch of course!
10. Bringing Up Baby
11. The Adventures of Robin Hood

1937….
12. The Prisoner of Zenda
13. History is Made at Night
14. Dead End

1936….
15. Sabotage
16. Modern Times
17. Libeled Lady

1935….
18. A Night at the Opera
19. The 39 Steps…Hitch of course!

1934….
20. The Thin Man…Hammett of course!
21. The Gay Divorcee
22. Of Human Bondage

1932….
23. The Mummy

1931
24. City Lights
25. Dracula
on November 16, 2008 at 2:06 pm | Reply Allan Fish

I have posted dcd’s list above as she posted it in the wrong section. Angelo, it seems she doesn’t want to give an ordered list, so just give everything a mark equivalent to a 12th place (near as dammit to half way mark).
on November 16, 2008 at 2:44 pm | Reply darkcitydame

(Laughter) ha!ha!… Allan, I am so sorry! …Oh! boy…I am sooo… embarassed ( A blushing smiley is need here!)

dcd 🙂
on November 16, 2008 at 2:46 pm | Reply darkcitydame

Oops!….I meant to say a (A blushing smiley is needed here immediately!)

dcd 😉
on November 16, 2008 at 4:47 pm | Reply Henry Killat

Henry’s Top 25 choices:

1 The Adventures of Robin Hood
2 All Quiet on the Western Front
3 The Good Earth
4 Gone With the Wind
5 The Music Box
6 Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
7 Wuthering Heights
8 Grand Illusion
9 The Wizard of Oz
10 The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums
11 A Night at the Opera
12 City Lights
13 Modern Times
14 Goodbye, Mr. Chips
15 The Informer
16 Les Miserables (French)
17 M
18 March of the Wooden Soldiers
19 Stagecoach
20 Angels With Dirty Faces
21 King Kong
22 Mutiny on the Bounty
23 The Private Life of Henry VIII
24 Scarface
25 Frankenstein
on November 16, 2008 at 7:39 pm | Reply darkcitydame

Hey! Allan,
Can I correct my mistake and quickly post an “upgraded” or ordered list? and can you delete the other list once I have completed the “upgraded” or ordered list? hmmm…
Tks,
dcd 😉
on November 16, 2008 at 7:42 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Dark City Dame:

It’s Sam here…………by all means go for that upgraded list. That would be great!………much appreciated!!!
on November 16, 2008 at 7:43 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Dark City Dame:

It’s Sam here…………by all means go for that upgraded list. That would be great!………much appreciated!!!
on November 16, 2008 at 7:51 pm | Reply Eric Barnett

Eric’s listing.

1. L’Age d’Or
2. Trouble in Paradise
3. Earth
4. The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums
5. Love Me Tonight
6. Dinner At Eight
7. The Rules of the Game
8. L’Atalante
9. It’s A Gift
10. Les Miserables (French)
11. The Informer
12. The Wizard of Oz
13. Duck Soup
14. Mr. Deeds Goes To Town
15. Grand Hotel
16. Modern Times
17. The Adventures of Robin Hood
18. Wuthering Heights
19. City Lights
20. La Chienne
21. Gone With the Wind
22. Of Mice and Men
23. Lost Horizon
24. Freaks
25. The Most Dangerous Game
on November 16, 2008 at 8:02 pm | Reply darkcitydame

Hi! Sam and Allan,
Allan, here goes the “Upgraded” ordered list…before the deadline end this evening!
dcd’s List

1.The Lady Vanishes…(Hitch of course!)
2.The Hound of the Baskerville
3.The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
4.Bachelor Mother
5.The 39 Steps…(Hitch of course!)

6.Sabotage
7.They Drive By Night
8.The Roaring Twenties
9.The Adventures of Robin Hood
10. The Women

11.The Wizard of Oz
12.The Prisoner of Zenda
13. History is Made at Night
14. Dead End
15.Bringing Up Baby

16. Son of Frankenstein
17. Modern Times
18. Libeled Lady
19.The Thin Man…Hammett of course!
20. The Gay Divorcee

21. Of Human Bondage
22. City Lights
23. A Night at the Opera
24.The Mummy
25. Dracula
on November 16, 2008 at 8:08 pm | Reply John Riley

John’s List:

1 The 39 Steps
2 Stage Door
3 Bringing Up Baby
4. Swing Time
5. The Blue Angel
6. The Scarlet Empress
7. Queen Christina
8. The Lady Vanishes
9. M
10. Horse Feathers
11. The Goddess
12. Zoo in Budapest
13. Desire
14. Libeled Lady
15. Footlight Parade
16. Fire Over England
17. Testament of Dr. Mabuse
18. Tabu
19. 42nd Street
20. Love Me Tonite
21. Lady For A Day
22. Wuthering Heights
23. Jezebel
24. The Women
25. Gone With the Wind
on November 16, 2008 at 8:14 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

THANKS FOR THAT DCD!!!!

Fabulous list!!!

And to all the last-day submissions (John, Eric and Henry) thanks so much!!!!!
on November 16, 2008 at 9:56 pm | Reply Angelo D'Arminio

Great response to our first web poll. I expect some interesting results.
on November 16, 2008 at 11:14 pm | Reply John Villianella

1 A Night at the Opera
2 Modern Times
3 Horse Feathers
4 The Bride of Frankenstein
5 The Most Dangerous Game
6 The Music Box
7 The Adventures of Robin Hood
8 Grand Hotel
9 Lost Horizon
10 David Copperfield
11 The Informer
12 Alexander Nevsky
13 L’Age d’Or
14 M
15 The March of the Wooden Soldiers
16 Gone With the Wind
17 It’s A Gift
18 The Wizard of Oz
19 City Lights
20 The Invisible Man
21 Wuthering Heights
22 Angels With Dirty Faces
23 It Happened One Night
24 A Farewell To Arms
25 Goodbye Mr. Chips
on November 19, 2008 at 12:14 am | Reply darkcitydame

Hi! Sam Juliano,

I didn’t know where else to post this….
A FYI moment…I think Fletch, from over there at blogcabins is collecting all the blogs that linked to him at the link below… I think the No#
passed 112…I see …Tony D’Ambra, at N0#100 …T.S., Dean, Rick are already on the list and I just emailed Alexander, and asked him to link his Alphabet Meme back to Fletch’s blog.
S.J., If you want to participate just list your 26 films here on your blog and at the bottom of the list the 5 people that you tagged. And click on the link below and leave your blog address with your 26 film choices ( and 5 tags ) in Fletch’s comment box.
Tks,
dcd 😉

http://blogcabins.blogspot.com/2008/11/alphabet-meme-now-i-know-my-abcs-waaaay.html
on November 19, 2008 at 12:56 pm | Reply Sam Juliano

Thanks very much for that, Dark City Dame!

I will sort it out today.