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Top Films by Year (1950-1954)

**--Won Academy Award for Best Picture.
*--Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.

1950

Rank Title Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Sunset Blvd.* Billy Wilder 34
2 All about Eve** Joseph L. Mankiewicz 35
3 Rashômon Akira Kurosawa 91
4 Los Olvidados Luis Buńuel 303
5 Gun Crazy Joseph H. Lewis 434
6 In a Lonely Place Nicholas Ray 453
7 Orpheus Jean Cocteau 470
8 Born Yesterday* George Cukor 541
9 The Asphalt Jungle John Huston 557
10 Harvey Henry Koster 602
11 Cinderella Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske 919
12 Winchester '73 Anthony Mann 939
13 La Ronde Max Ophüls 955
14 D.O.A. Rudolph Maté 988
15 Father of the Bride* Vincente Minnelli 1096
16 The Gunfighter Henry King 1115
17 Night and the City Jules Dassin 1934
18 Rio Grande John Ford 1985
19 The Flowers of St. Francis Roberto Rossellini 2038
20 Cyrano de Bergerac Michael Gordon 2118
21 King Solomon's Mines* Compton Bennett and Andrew Marton 2142
22 The Men Fred Zinnemann 2338
23 Annie Get Your Gun George Sidney 2400

1951

Rank Title Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 The African Queen John Huston 71
2 A Streetcar Named Desire* Elia Kazan 99
3 An American in Paris** Vincente Minnelli 169
4 Strangers on a Train Alfred Hitchcock 220
5 The Day the Earth Stood Still Robert Wise 240
6 A Place in the Sun* George Stevens 313
7 The Thing from Another World Christian Nyby 482
8 Diary of a Country Priest Robert Bresson 519
9 The Lavender Hill Mob Charles Crichton 653
10 Scrooge Brian Desmond Hurst 748
11 The Big Carnival Billy Wilder 830
12 The Man in the White Suit Alexander Mackendrick 908
13 The River Jean Renoir 1238
14 The Red Badge of Courage John Huston 1284
15 Quo Vadis* Mervyn LeRoy 1317
16 Alice in Wonderland Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske 1433
17 The Steel Helmet Samuel Fuller 1953
18 Miracle in Milan Vittorio De Sica 2041
19 Angels in the Outfield Clarence Brown 2180
20 Show Boat George Sidney 2226
21 Royal Wedding Stanley Donen 2372
22 Death of a Salesman László Benedek 2455

1952

Rank Title Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Singin' in the Rain Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly 5
2 High Noon* Fred Zinnemann 45
3 The Quiet Man* John Ford 236
4 Ikiru Akira Kurosawa 316
5 Umberto D. Vittorio De Sica 334
6 Forbidden Games René Clément 597
7 The Life of Oharu Kenji Mizoguchi 954
8 Pat and Mike George Cukor 1024
9 The Bad and the Beautiful Vincente Minnelli 1172
10 Limelight Charles Chaplin 1227
11 Casque d'Or Jacques Becker 1349
12 The Greatest Show on Earth** Cecil B. DeMille 1459
13 Othello Orson Welles 1500
14 Viva Zapata! Elia Kazan 1911
15 The Narrow Margin Richard Fleischer 1946
16 Le Plaisir Max Ophüls 1949
17 Europa '51 Roberto Rossellini 2126
18 Bend of the River Anthony Mann 2510

1953

Rank Title Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Tokyo Story Yasujiro Ozu 130
2 Shane* George Stevens 146
3 From Here to Eternity** Fred Zinnemann 152
4 Ugetsu Kenji Mizoguchi 250
5 The Wages of Fear Henri-Georges Clouzot 285
6 The Earrings of Madame De… Max Ophüls 293
7 Mr. Hulot's Holiday Jacques Tati 321
8 Roman Holiday* William Wyler 330
9 The Band Wagon Vincente Minnelli 335
10 Stalag 17 Billy Wilder 508
11 The Big Heat Fritz Lang 558
12 Pickup on South Street Samuel Fuller 656
13 The War of the Worlds Byron Haskin 682
14 Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Howard Hawks 717
15 Peter Pan Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske 1031
16 Genevieve Henry Cornelius 1302
17 El Luis Buńuel 1323
18 I Vitelloni Federico Fellini 1360
19 The Naked Spur Anthony Mann 1406
20 The 5000 Fingers of Dr. T Roy Rowland 1441
21 Kiss Me Kate George Sidney 1526
22 The Golden Coach Jean Renoir 1574
23 The Robe* Henry Koster 1606
24 I Confess Alfred Hitchcock 1692
25 House of Wax André De Toth 1710
26 The Cruel Sea Charles Frend 1724
27 Beat the Devil John Huston 1792
28 Julius Caesar* Joseph L. Mankiewicz 2009
29 The Wild One László Benedek 2013
30 Calamity Jane David Butler 2030
31 Invaders from Mars William Cameron Menzies 2244
32 Niagara Henry Hathaway 2351
33 Lili Charles Walters 2394

1954

Rank Title Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 On the Waterfront** Elia Kazan 29
2 Rear Window Alfred Hitchcock 30
3 The Seven Samurai Akira Kurosawa 36
4 La Strada Federico Fellini 209
5 A Star Is Born George Cukor 224
6 Sansho the Bailiff Kenji Mizoguchi 459
7 Seven Brides for Seven Brothers* Stanley Donen 555
8 The Caine Mutiny* Edward Dmytryk 577
9 Johnny Guitar Nicholas Ray 619
10 20,000 Leagues under the Sea Richard Fleischer 654
11 Sabrina Billy Wilder 1016
12 Voyage in Italy Roberto Rossellini 1041
13 Senso Luchino Visconti 1079
14 Carmen Jones Otto Preminger 1085
15 Salt of the Earth Herbert J. Biberman 1228
16 Creature from the Black Lagoon Jack Arnold 1385
17 Godzilla Ishirô Honda 1405
18 Dial M for Murder Alfred Hitchcock 1409
19 Them! Gordon Douglas 1471
20 The Barefoot Contessa Joseph L. Mankiewicz 1627
21 White Christmas Michael Curtiz 1638
22 Samurai 1: Musashi Miyamoto Hiroshi Inagaki 1716
23 Brigadoon Vincente Minnelli 1950
24 French Cancan Jean Renoir 1979
25 Magnificent Obsession Douglas Sirk 1997
26 The Bridges at Toko-Ri Mark Robson 2168
27 The Belles of St. Trinian's Frank Launder 2444
28 Hobson's Choice David Lean 2508

**--Won Academy Award for Best Picture.
*--Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.

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This page was last modified on April 5, 2008