After The War, Before TV

It's a new year. I don't mean 2020.  I mean Jesse Walker is now looking at the films of 1949.

The title says "before TV," but in fact, TV was already starting to spread across America.  Let's say 1949 was the last year the studios could ignore the threat.  Meanwhile, Europe and Japan were climbing out of the rubble, making fascinating new films.

Here's his top ten:

1,  The Third Man
2.  Stray Dog
3.  White Heat
4.  Little Rural Riding Hood
5.  Kind Hearts And Coronets
6.  Passport To Pimlico
7.  Thieves' Highway
8.  The Reckless Moment
9.  Jour De Fete
10.  The Set-Up

The Third Man is one of the most overrated movies of all time. Outside of the stuff with Orson Welles (who's not in most of it) it's a mannered, annoying film.

I'm not sure if Stray Dog is top tier Kurosawa, but it should probably make this list.

White Heat is an interesting return to the gangster film for Cagney. One of his best.

"Little Rural Riding Hood" is a fine cartoon short.

Kind Hearts And Coronets and Passport To Pimlico are two British comedies that probably deserve to be on this list, even if their reputations (particular for the former) may outstrip their quality.

Thieves Highway, The Reckless Moment and The Set-Up are all decent film noirs (or films noir), with the last being the most formally interesting.

Jacques Tati made four classic comedy features, each one special in its own way.  Jour De Fete is the first, and also the only one where he doesn't play Hulot.

Honorable mentions:

11.  Bad Luck Blackie
12.  Long-Haired Hare
13.  I Was A Male War Bride
14.  Blood Of The Beasts
15.  Senor Droopy
16.  D.O.A.
17.  Twelve O'Clock High
18.  The Queen Of Spades
19.  Flamingo Road
20.  The Heiress

There are a few cartoon shorts in here.  Sure, it was a good time for cartoons, but they shouldn't be on the same list as features.

As much as I love Howard Hawks, and Cary Grant, and Howard Hawks' films with Cary Grant, 13 is not a great comedy.

Never seen 14 or 18. 16 is okay.  I'm not much of a fan of 17.  19 (which I just saw again last week) isn't much.  20 is Hollywood's idea of a class picture, but I consider it okay at best.

Other films that would make my top ten or twenty:

The Big Steal

Whisky Galore 
 


Other films I like:

Abbott And Costello Meet The Killer Boris Karloff, The Barkleys Of Broadway, I Shot Jesse James, Champion, In The Good Old Summertime, The Inspector General, A Letter To Three Wives, My Friend Irma, Neptune's Daughter, Take Me Out To The Ballgame, It Happens Every Spring, On The Town, Sorrowful Jones


Other films of the year:

All The King's Men, Africa Screams, It's A Great Feeling, Intruder In The Dust, Jigsaw, Jolson Sings Again, The Beautiful Blonde From Bashful Bend, The Fighting Kentuckian, The Fountainhead, Mighty Joe Young, The Stratton Story, Adam's Rib, Criss Cross, Edward My Son, Home Of The Brave, Pinky, Sands Of Iwo Jima, The Secret Garden, She Wore A Yellow Ribbon, Samson And Delilah, Battleground, Little Women, Look For The Silver Lining, The Accused, Adam's Rib, Any Number Can Play, Beyond the Forest, The Big Cat, The Blue Lagoon, Border Incident, The Bribe, Bride For Sale, Canadian Pacific, Christopher Columbus, Colorado

Territory, A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court, Dancing In The Dark, A Dangerous Profession, Eastside Westside, Easy Living, Father Was A Fullback, The Great Gatsby, The Hasty Heart, Holiday Affair (TCM treats this film as if it's a classic), House Of Strangers, Johnny Stool Pigeon, Knock On Any Door, Late Spring, Love Happy (the worst Marx Brothers film, if it is a Marx Brothers film), The Lucky Stiff, Lust For Gold, Ma And Pa Kettle, Madame Bovary, The Man From Colorado, Manhandled, Manon, Night Unto Night, No Way Back, Obsession, The Passionate Friends, Prince Of Foxes, The Quiet Duel, The Reckless Moment, The Red Pony, Rope Of Sand, Run For Your Money, Le Silence De La Mer, Shockproof, The Small Back Room, Streets Of Laredo, The Suns Come Up, Take One False Step, Tension, That Dangerous Age, We Were Strangers, Whirlpool, Without Honor, You're My Everything, The Window