1950s Challenge (Official, April 2020)

[shugs]

Goal
Watch as many movies as you can from the 1950s. Anything that has a year from 1950 to 1959 on IMDb qualifies.

Rules
- A feature film (anything over 40 minutes) counts as one entry.
- A total of 60 minutes of short films counts as one entry.
- For Mini-Series/TV series (40 minute episodes or longer) each episode counts as an entry.
- For Mini-Series/TV series with shorter episodes, the 60 minute rule applies.
- Rewatches are allowed.
- Post the years of your watches.
- Do not edit posts to add new watches, just create a new one.

Official Lists
IMDb's 1950s Top 50

Unofficial Lists
ICM Forum's Top 250 Films of the 1950s

Participants

Ranking	Participant	Score
1	Obgeoff	125
2	allisoncm	85
3	flavo5000	81
4	blueboybob	74
5	sol	56
6	mathiasa	52
7	jdidaco	46
8	RogerTheMovieManiac88	45
9	jeroeno	31
10	peeptoad	30
11	ororama	27
12	AssonFire	22
13	AB537	21
13	OldAle1	21
15	St. Gloede	20
15	VincentPrice	20
17	Lonewolf2003	19
17	maxwelldeux	19
19	shugs	16
20	morrison-dylan-fan	15
21	cinephage	14
21	hurluberlu	14
23	blocho	13
23	burneyfan	13
25	Melvelet	11
26	sebby	9
27	vortexsurfer	8
28	Mochard	6
29	frbrown	4
29	zzzorf	4
31	Tarris1	2
31	jal90	2
33	Cinepolis	1
33	connordenney	1
33	nimimerkillinen	1

[St. Gloede]

I'll join in, will aim for 25, and hoping to find some recommendations here.

So far I'm thinking those recently subtitled Yûzô Kawashima films, and beyond that I'm drawing a blank.

[burneyfan]

I'll join in, will aim for 25, and hoping to find some recommendations here.

So far I'm thinking those recently subtitled Yûzô Kawashima films, and beyond that I'm drawing a blank.

I don't think you've seen these! Sorry they're mostly English-language titles (from US, England, and Australia), but you've seen most of my Japanese/Polish/German/Spanish/etc. favorites... You have some noir and western goodies in there...

Champagne for Caesar -- Whorf, 1950
Rawhide -- Losey, 1951
Storm Warning -- Heisler, 1951
Hellgate -- Marquis Warren, 1952
The Kidnappers -- Leacock, 1953
The Back of Beyond -- Heyer, 1954
Private Hell 36 -- Siegel, 1954
At Gunpoint -- Werker, 1955
Shack out on 101 -- Dein, 1955
Time Table -- Stevens, 1956
Yield to the Night -- Thompson, 1956 (proof that Diana Dors -- whom I usually dislike -- can ACT!)
The Admirable Crichton -- Gilbert, 1957
The Burglar -- Wendkos, 1957
Crime of Passion -- Oswald, 1957
Decision at Sundown -- Boetticher, 1957
Desk Set -- Lang, 1957 (not only sweet and funny, but it coincidentally shows the best description of what I do for work, only with a laptop)
No Down Payment -- Ritt, 1957
Le désordre et la nuit -- Grangier, 1958
Le dos au mur -- Molinaro, 1958
H-8... -- Tanhofer, 1958
L'opéra-mouffe -- Varda, 1958
Nowhere to Go -- Dearden & Holt, 1958 (love this British noir, so happy it made it onto a list)
No Name on the Bullet -- Arnold, 1959
Tiger Bay -- Thompson, 1959

[St. Gloede]

Thanks for the recs!

And you're quite right, and extremely fast.

[Tarris1]

Ive been quite busy with work etc this month, but going to try to watch more movies in April. Aiming to reach at least 200/250 on the top 250 list (177/250 now). The '50s is easily one of my favorite decades

[VincentPrice]

In

[St. Gloede]

Champagne for Caesar -- Whorf, 1950
Rawhide -- Losey, 1951
Decision at Sundown -- Boetticher, 1957
No Down Payment -- Ritt, 1957
Le dos au mur -- Molinaro, 1958
H-8... -- Tanhofer, 1958
Nowhere to Go -- Dearden & Holt, 1958
Tiger Bay -- Thompson, 1959

Not sure if I'll get around to all of the above as I will prioritize what I already have, but marking down these to remind myself of which interested me the most.

[Obgeoff]

Looking forward to this.

[Obgeoff]

1-2. Collection of Shorts [121 minutes]
One Froggy Evening (1955, Jones) 8 7m
What's Opera, Doc? (1957, Jones) 8 7m
Ali Baba Bunny (1957, Jones) 7 7m
Rabbit of Seville (1950, Jones) 8 7m
Duck Dodgers in the 24 1/2th Century (1953, Jones) 7 7m
Feed the Kitty (1952, Jones) 7 7m
Rabbit Seasoning (1952, Jones) 9 7m
Rabbit Fire (1951, Jones) 7 7m
Duck! Rabbit, Duck! (1953, Jones) 7 7m
Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954, Anger) 7 38m
Eaux d'artifice (1953, Anger) 7 12m
Neighbours (1952, McLaren) 9 8m

[flavo5000]

I'll be jumping back and forth between this one and Doubling the Canon this month. Got a few lists I need to whittle down.

[nimimerkillinen]

1. Nära livet (1958)

[VincentPrice]

1. Revolt at Fort Laramie-1957: 7/10

[blueboybob]

1. Caged (1950)
2. Rio Grande (1950)
3. The Tingler (1959)
4. A King in New York (1957)
5. Miss Oyu (1951)

[AB537]

1. Winchester '73 (Anthony Mann, 1950) 7.5/10

[Obgeoff]

3-4. Shorts [121 minutes]
Free Radicals (1958, Lye) 7 5m
The Tell-Tale Heart (1953, Parmalee) 8 8m
Window Water Baby Moving (1959, Brakhage) 9 13m
Pull My Daisy (1959, Frank/Leslie) 6 30m
Blinkity Blank (1955, McLaren) 7 5m
Hotel des Invalides (1952, Franju) 6 22m
Statues Also Die (1953, Cloquet/Marker/Resnais) 9 30m
Gerald McBoing-Boing (1950, Cannon/Hubley) 6 8m
5. Anticipation of the Night (1958, Brakhage) 7
6. Sleeping Beauty (1959, Geronimi et al.) 7
7. A Face in the Crowd (1957, Kazan) 8
8. Marty (1955, Mann) 8

[blueboybob]

6. Bitter Victory (1957)
7. Higanbana (1958)
8. There's Always Tomorrow (1956)

[sol]

1. One Good Turn (1955)



This Norman Wisdom comedy may be extremely episodic, but it is also incredibly funny and a great testament to the power of persistence to achieve results. Hilarious extended gags include trouble at a public pay phone, a wasp attack in a crowded train carriage, and some of the best comedic boxing this side of City Lights. While the lack of Edward Chapman is disappointing (his co-star in The Square Peg et al), Wisdom himself is very entertaining.

[peeptoad]

1. Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958) The Hidden Fortress 8
2. A Killer Walks (1952) 6

[sol]

Fifties Shades of Grey

1. One Good Turn (1955)

2. Tea for Two (1950)



It sounds a lot like Yes Man as the female protagonist here bets her uncle that she can go for 48 hours saying "no" to every question, but the wager is not introduced until 40 minutes in, and even then, the focus is on elaborate dance routines and musical numbers. S.Z. Sakall is at least his usual fun self in support, but for an actress who can be so funny, it is a shame how little Doris Day has to do here, and her love interest is a better dancer than charmer.

[vortexsurfer]

1. Gun Crazy (Joseph H. Lewis, 1950)

[peeptoad]

Hmmmm. April 30 is National Bugs Bunny Day. I know what I'll be watching...

[morrison-dylan-fan]

Thanks for hosting Shugs:



FTV:1:My Sister and I (1950) (Sweden.)7.

Playing not one, but two members of the family, Sickan Carlsson gives hilarious sparkling turns as “sisters” Katarina and Birgitta Hassel,as she fools everyone thanks to Carlsson giving Birgitta a feisty, sarcastic streak, which runs in the other direction of the refine, regal manner Carlsson has Hassel hold Katarina up in,in order to present the image her family desires.

Getting wrapped round her little finger, Gunnar Bjornstrand gives a wonderful dead-pan performance as Stenwall, whose push/pull between the “sisters” allows Bjornstrand to leave Stenwall flustered.

Wearing some of The Prince and the Pauper robes in adapting the Ralph Benatzky operetta/ Georges Berr and Louis Verneuil’s play,Solve Cederstrand wonderfully plays on Hassel’s card trick double identity,slipping and sliding towards her having to rush to change between Birgitta and Katarina before Stenwall catches on. Contrasting the two persona’s of Hassel, director Schamyl Bauman lights a stark contrast between each “sister”, giving Birgitta a normal, down to earth appearance, crystallised by the shimmering regal lighting for the other sister.

[Mochard]

1. One Good Turn (1955)

This Norman Wisdom comedy may be extremely episodic, but it is also incredibly funny and a great testament to the power of persistence to achieve results. Hilarious extended gags include trouble at a public pay phone, a wasp attack in a crowded train carriage, and some of the best comedic boxing this side of City Lights. While the lack of Edward Chapman is disappointing (his co-star in The Square Peg et al), Wisdom himself is very entertaining.

I remember watching Norman Wisdom films on tv with my sisters when I was a kid. We would laugh and laugh. Good times! He lived a long life, close to 100 I think, proving laughter is the best medicine.

[shugs]

1. The Bigamist (Ida Lupino, 1953) - 7/10

Great chemistry between Ida Lupino and Edmond O'Brien.

[Tarris1]

1. Woman They Almost Lynched (1953) 7/10
2. Nachts, wenn der Teufel kam (1957) 7/10

[Obgeoff]

9. The Lavender Hill Mob (1951, Crichton) 8
10. Lady and the Tramp (1955, Geronimi et al.) 6
11. Forty Guns (1957, Fuller) 8

Spoiler

1-2. Collection of Shorts [121 minutes]
One Froggy Evening (1955, Jones) 8 7m
What's Opera, Doc? (1957, Jones) 8 7m
Ali Baba Bunny (1957, Jones) 7 7m
Rabbit of Seville (1950, Jones) 8 7m
Duck Dodgers in the 24 1/2th Century (1953, Jones) 7 7m
Feed the Kitty (1952, Jones) 7 7m
Rabbit Seasoning (1952, Jones) 9 7m
Rabbit Fire (1951, Jones) 7 7m
Duck! Rabbit, Duck! (1953, Jones) 7 7m
Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954, Anger) 7 38m
Eaux d'artifice (1953, Anger) 7 12m
Neighbours (1952, McLaren) 9 8m
3-4. Shorts [121 minutes]
Free Radicals (1958, Lye) 7 5m
The Tell-Tale Heart (1953, Parmalee) 8 8m
Window Water Baby Moving (1959, Brakhage) 9 13m
Pull My Daisy (1959, Frank/Leslie) 6 30m
Blinkity Blank (1955, McLaren) 7 5m
Hotel des Invalides (1952, Franju) 6 22m
Statues Also Die (1953, Cloquet/Marker/Resnais) 9 30m
Gerald McBoing-Boing (1950, Cannon/Hubley) 6 8m
5. Anticipation of the Night (1958, Brakhage) 7
6. Sleeping Beauty (1959, Geronimi et al.) 7
7. A Face in the Crowd (1957, Kazan) 8
8. Marty (1955, Mann) 8
9. The Lavender Hill Mob (1951, Crichton) 8
10. Lady and the Tramp (1955, Geronimi et al.) 6
11. Forty Guns (1957. Fuller) 8

[maxwelldeux]

1. Beat the Devil (1953)
This was not Bogey at his best... the film felt odd and clunky, and I just never connected with this. 5/10

2. Pillow Talk (1959)
There was a lot to like about this, as well as a lot to dislike. I really appreciated the editing, mostly when they were on the phone, which conveyed a sense of intimacy that's hard to generate when people aren't next to each other. The writing had a lot of cleverness, too, and was laugh-out-loud funny at moments. But the whole relationship based on a lie thing is both a) tiresome, and b) aromantic. All in all, a good-not-great 7/10 for me.

[blueboybob]

9. Stars in My Crown (1950)
10. Sound of the Mountain (1954)
11. Lust of the Vampire (1956)

[peeptoad]

3. Tôkaidô Yotsuya kaidan (1957) Ghost of Yotsuya 8

wig chops

1. Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958) The Hidden Fortress 8
2. A Killer Walks (1952) 6

[morrison-dylan-fan]

Repeat viewing:2:El Monstruo Resucitado (1953) 6

[Mochard]

1. Wagon Master (1950) - 6.5/10

Two young drifters guide a Mormon wagon train to the San Juan Valley and encounter cutthroats, Indians, geography, and moral challenges on the journey.

[sebby]

01 Pillow Talk (1959)
02 The Tall T (1957)
03 Ride Lonesome (1959)
04 There's Always Tomorrow (1955)

Spoiler

01 Pillow Talk (1959)
02 The Tall T (1957)
03 Ride Lonesome (1959)
04 There's Always Tomorrow (1955)

[peeptoad]

shorts (64min)
4a. Un Chant D'Amour (1950) 26min 8
4b. Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954) 38min 7

wig chops

1. Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958) The Hidden Fortress 8
2. A Killer Walks (1952) 6
3. Tôkaidô Yotsuya kaidan (1957) Ghost of Yotsuya 8

[flavo5000]

1. Bitter Victory (1957)
2. Bellissima (1951)
3. Sommarlek a.k.a. Summer Interlude (1951)
4. Penny Points to Paradise (1951)

Cool Cats

1. Bitter Victory (1957)
2. Bellissima (1951)
3. Sommarlek a.k.a. Summer Interlude (1951)
4. Penny Points to Paradise (1951)

[blueboybob]

12. Madame Freedom (1956)
13. Love in the Afternoon (1957)
14. Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple (1955)
15. Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island (1956)

[morrison-dylan-fan]

FTV:3:Skadeskutt (1951) (Norway.)6.




Opening the door and panning towards the character Dr.Lunde speaking directly to the viewer about the events about to be shown, director Edith Carlmar & cinematographer Per Jonson sea-saw between treating the subject of mental health problems with a professionalism in following Dr. Lunde and the nurses talking to each “Forgotten” patient daily in a warm, respectful manner, strangely contrasted by Carlmar and Jonson with abrasive turns into Horror/Thriller territory,covering Dr.Lunde in low-lighting as if he is from a “Mad Scientist” flick,and Einar losing all hope in a final chase.

Sensitively having Dr.Lunde say to Else/the viewer that there is nothing wrong/should not be a stigma of having to commit a person to a mental health ward, the screenplay by Otto Carlmar goes through similar mood swings as Carlmar’s directing. Compassionately presenting Einar as a kind, but troubled manner with deep concerns about mental health issues in his family history, Carlmar goes from one moment having Einar go into in-depth discussions with Dr. Lunde, to Einar being chased to a table for shock therapy.

[maxwelldeux]

A decade that produced my parents

1. Beat the Devil (1953)
2. Pillow Talk (1959)

3. Suddenly (1954)
Really interesting to see Sinatra as the villain... I liked it actually.

4. A Night to Remember (1958)
Weird to focus on this, but the opening credits were awesome. It made me just a little queasy reading the credits with the rocking of the ocean in the background.

[Obgeoff]

12. The Naked Spur (1953, Mann) 7
13. Witness for the Prosecution (1957, Wilder) 9
14. Night and the City (1950, Dassin) 8
15. Cinderella (1950, Geronimi et al.) 7

[Obgeoff]

16. La Ronde (1950, Ophuls) 8

[jdidaco]

Thank you for hosting, shugs!

(Screenshots from 'Kiiroi karasu' & 'Sekishunchô'),



1. Olet mennyt minun vereeni (You've Gone Into My Blood, Teuvo Tulio, 1956) 9/10
2. Qivitoq (Erik Balling, 1956) 8/10
3. Kiiroi karasu (Yellow Crow, Heinosuke Gosho, 1957) 8/10
4. Hotarubi (Firefly Light, Heinosuke Gosho, 1958) 8.5/10
5. Sekishunchô (Farewell to Spring, Keisuke Kinoshita, 1959) 8.5/10
6. Raggare! (Blackjackets, Olle Hellbom, 1959) 8/10