I’m still stunned. While visiting with a local book club,
I met someone who had never seen a black and white movie. He was 25 years old,
came with his mom, and was no dummy. He majored in English and writes copy for
an ad agency in NYC. To his credit, he handled the room reaction well and asked
for suggestions. When I think about how much reading books and watching films
have contributed to who I am as a human being, my world view, wow. And the idea
of missing B&W movies, many of which make up the Golden Age of Hollywood, a
golden age of storytelling and ideas, an age of filmmaking masters, wow-times-ten!
I narrowed my list down to 25 must-see B&W films (in
no particular order). If you have any additions or comments, please visit my
website at https://www.robertellis.net and
send me a note.
Casablanca (1942)
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Notorious (1946)
Stagecoach (1939)
The Hustler (1961)
On the Waterfront (1954)
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)
Sullivan’s Travels (1941)
The Treasure of Sierra Madre (1948)
Little Ceaser (1931)
It Happened One Night (1934)
My Man Godfrey (1936)
The Big Sleep (1946)
12 Angry Men (1957)
It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
Foreign Correspondent (1940)
Rebecca (1940)
Citizen Kane (1941)
Strangers on a Train (1951)
High Noon (1952)
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
The Philadelphia Story (1940)
His Girl Friday (1940)
I know. Where’s Shadow of Doubt, All Quiet on the Western
Front, Dr. Strangelove, How Green Was My Valley, The 39 Steps, Frankenstein or
even Young Frankenstein?
ROBERT ELLIS WRITERS BLOG
https://www.robertellis.net
04/13/2025
