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The Best Movies of the 1940s

The 1940s ranked by our composite score across 20+ authoritative lists, awards and polls — not one critic's opinion, but the weight of the whole canon.

Citizen Kane (1941) leads with a composite score of 9.21. Top 100 of 369 films in our library.

  1. 1
    Citizen Kane1941 · Orson Welles · United States · drama, biography, mystery
    9.21

    AFI 100 (2007) #1 · Sight & Sound 2022 directors' poll #2 · AFI 100 (1998) #1

  2. 2
    The Third Man1949 · Carol Reed · United Kingdom · film-noir, mystery, drama
    6.08

    BFI Top 100 British films #1 · Palme d'Or winner 1949 · Cannes Grand Prix winner 1949

  3. 3
    Casablanca1942 · Michael Curtiz · United States · romance, war, drama
    5.29

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1943 · AFI 100 (2007) #3 · AFI 100 (1998) #2

  4. 4
    Bicycle Thieves1948 · Vittorio De Sica · Italy · drama
    4.78

    BAFTA Best Film winner 1950 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1950 #1 · Sight & Sound 2022 directors' poll #20

  5. 5
    The Best Years of Our Lives1946 · William Wyler · United States · war, drama
    4.31

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1946 · BAFTA Best Film winner 1948 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1948 #2

  6. 6
    Brief Encounter1945 · David Lean · United Kingdom · romance, drama
    4.30

    Palme d'Or winner 1946 · BFI Top 100 British films #2 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1948 #3

  7. 7
    It's a Wonderful Life1946 · Frank Capra · United States · comedy, romance, fantasy
    3.52

    AFI 100 (2007) #20 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1946 · Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #133

  8. 8
    The Red Shoes1948 · Emeric Pressburger, Michael Powell · United Kingdom · romance, drama, musical
    3.41

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #67 · Sight & Sound 2022 directors' poll #72 · BFI Top 100 British films #9

  9. 9
    Double Indemnity1944 · Billy Wilder · United States · crime, film-noir, drama
    3.11

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1944 · AFI 100 (2007) #29 · Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #196

  10. 10
    Late Spring1949 · Yasujirō Ozu · Japan · drama
    3.08

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1949 #1 · Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #21 · Sight & Sound 2022 directors' poll #62

  11. 11
    Hamlet1948 · Laurence Olivier · United Kingdom · drama
    3.00

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1948 · BAFTA Best Film winner 1949 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1949 #4

  12. 12
    Going My Way1944 · Leo McCarey · United States · comedy, drama, romance
    2.89

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1944 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1946 #1 · National Film Registry (inducted 2004)

  13. 13
    The Lost Weekend1945 · Billy Wilder · United States · drama, film-noir
    2.82

    Palme d'Or winner 1946 · Oscar Best Picture winner 1945 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1948 #8

  14. 14
    Rome, Open City1945 · Roberto Rossellini · Kingdom of Italy · drama
    2.82

    Palme d'Or winner 1946 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1950 #4 · Scorsese's 39 essential foreign films

  15. 15
    The Treasure of the Sierra Madre1948 · John Huston · United States · drama, western
    2.53

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1948 · AFI 100 (2007) #38 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1949 #8

  16. 16
    The Grapes of Wrath1940 · John Ford · United States · drama
    2.47

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1962 #3 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1940 · AFI 100 (2007) #23

  17. 17
    The Great Dictator1940 · Charlie Chaplin · United States · comedy, drama, war
    2.46

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1960 #1 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1940 · National Film Registry (inducted 1997)

  18. 18
    How Green Was My Valley1941 · John Ford · United States · drama
    2.39

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1941 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1951 #3 · National Film Registry (inducted 1990)

  19. 19
    Rebecca1940 · Alfred Hitchcock · United States · mystery, drama, romance
    2.35

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1940 · National Film Registry (inducted 2018) · Empire 500 (2008) #318

  20. 20
    Crossfire1947 · Edward Dmytryk · United States · film-noir, drama
    2.23

    Palme d'Or winner 1947 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1947 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  21. 21
    Children of Paradise1945 · Marcel Carné · France · romance, drama
    2.19

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1952 #3 · Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #136 · TIME All-TIME 100

  22. 22
    Paisà1946 · Roberto Rossellini · Italy · drama, war
    2.17

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1949 #1 · Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #196 · Scorsese's 39 essential foreign films

  23. 23
    My Darling Clementine1946 · John Ford · United States · western, drama
    2.17

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1947 #2 · Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #243 · National Film Registry (inducted 1991)

  24. 24
    Henry V1944 · Laurence Olivier · United Kingdom · drama
    2.13

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1948 #1 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1946 · BFI Top 100 British films #18

  25. 25
    The Maltese Falcon1941 · John Huston · United States · crime, mystery, film-noir
    2.11

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1941 · AFI 100 (2007) #31 · AFI 100 (1998) #23

  26. 26
    Dumbo1941 · Ben Sharpsteen, Norm Ferguson, Wilfred Jackson, Bill Roberts, Jack Kinney, Samuel Armstrong · United States · musical, fantasy, drama
    2.00

    Palme d'Or winner 1947 · National Film Registry (inducted 2017) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  27. 27
    Mrs. Miniver1942 · William Wyler · United States · war, drama, romance
    2.00

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1942 · National Film Registry (inducted 2009) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  28. 28
    A Matter of Life and Death1946 · Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger · United Kingdom · fantasy, drama, comedy
    1.99

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #78 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1950 #6 · BFI Top 100 British films #20

  29. 29
    The Damned1947 · René Clément · France · drama
    1.93

    Palme d'Or winner 1947 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1948 #4

  30. 30
    Suspicion1941 · Alfred Hitchcock · United States · mystery, romance, thriller
    1.84

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1947 #1 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1941 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  31. 31
    The Philadelphia Story1940 · George Cukor · United States · comedy, romance
    1.82

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1940 · AFI 100 (2007) #44 · AFI 100 (1998) #51

  32. 32
    Notorious1946 · Alfred Hitchcock · United States · thriller, film-noir, drama
    1.81

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #133 · TIME All-TIME 100 · National Film Registry (inducted 2006)

  33. 33
    Gentleman's Agreement1947 · Elia Kazan · United States · drama
    1.73

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1947 · National Film Registry (inducted 2017)

  34. 34
    Kind Hearts and Coronets1949 · Robert Hamer · United Kingdom · crime
    1.65

    BFI Top 100 British films #6 · Empire 500 (2008) #42 · TIME All-TIME 100

  35. 35
    His Girl Friday1940 · Howard Hawks · United States · comedy, drama, romance
    1.61

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #129 · TIME All-TIME 100 · Empire 500 (2008) #58

  36. 36
    Black Narcissus1947 · Emeric Pressburger, Michael Powell · United Kingdom · drama
    1.60

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #169 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1951 #10 · BFI Top 100 British films #44

  37. 37
    The Magnificent Ambersons1942 · Orson Welles · United States · drama
    1.53

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1942 · Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #169 · National Film Registry (inducted 1991)

  38. 38
    Yankee Doodle Dandy1942 · Michael Curtiz · United States · biography, musical, war
    1.50

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1942 · AFI 100 (2007) #98 · National Film Registry (inducted 1993)

  39. 39
    María Candelaria1944 · Emilio Fernández · Mexico · drama
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1946

  40. 40
    Torment1944 · Alf Sjöberg · Sweden · drama
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1946

  41. 41
    The Last Chance1945 · Leopold Lindtberg · Switzerland · war, drama
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1946

  42. 42
    The Red Meadows1945 · Bodil Ipsen, Lau Laritzen Jr. · Denmark · drama, war
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1946

  43. 43
    The Turning Point1945 · Fridrikh Ermler · Soviet Union · drama, war
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1946

  44. 44
    Ziegfeld Follies1945 · Roy Del Ruth, Vincente Minnelli, George Sidney, Charles Walters, Robert Lewis, Merrill Pye, Norman Taurog · United States · musical
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1947

  45. 45
    La Symphonie Pastorale1946 · Jean Delannoy · France · drama
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1946

  46. 46
    Men Without Wings1946 · František Čáp · Czechoslovakia · drama, war
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1946

  47. 47
    Neecha Nagar1946 · Chetan Anand · British Raj · drama
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1946

  48. 48
    Antoine and Antoinette1947 · Jacques Becker · France · comedy, drama, romance
    1.50

    Palme d'Or winner 1947

  49. 49
    Great Expectations1946 · David Lean · United Kingdom · drama
    1.49

    BFI Top 100 British films #5 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1947 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  50. 50
    Sullivan's Travels1942 · Preston Sturges · United States · comedy, romance, drama
    1.49

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #243 · AFI 100 (2007) #61 · National Film Registry (inducted 1990)

  51. 51
    The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp1943 · Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger · United Kingdom · romance, war, drama
    1.47

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #196 · BFI Top 100 British films #45 · Empire 500 (2008) #80

  52. 52
    Meshes of the Afternoon1943 · Maya Deren, Alexandr Hackenschmied · United States · silent
    1.46

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #16 · Sight & Sound 2022 directors' poll #62 · National Film Registry (inducted 1990)

  53. 53
    Beauty and the Beast1946 · Jean Cocteau, René Clément · France · fantasy, drama
    1.45

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1948 #6 · Scorsese's 39 essential foreign films · Empire 500 (2008) #292

  54. 54
    Monsieur Verdoux1947 · Charlie Chaplin · United States · comedy, drama
    1.44

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1952 #1 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies · Criterion Collection spine #652

  55. 55
    Out of the Past1947 · Jacques Tourneur · United States · film-noir, crime, drama
    1.42

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #157 · TIME All-TIME 100 · National Film Registry (inducted 1991)

  56. 56
    To Be or Not to Be1942 · Ernst Lubitsch · United States · comedy, drama, war
    1.32

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #114 · National Film Registry (inducted 1996) · Letterboxd Top 250 #121

  57. 57
    The Heiress1949 · William Wyler · United States · drama, romance
    1.29

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1949 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1950 #10 · National Film Registry (inducted 1996)

  58. 58
    Drunken Angel1948 · Akira Kurosawa · Japan · drama, film-noir
    1.16

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1948 #1 · Criterion Collection spine #413

  59. 59
    Shadow of a Doubt1943 · Alfred Hitchcock · United States · thriller, film-noir, drama
    1.14

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1946 #3 · National Film Registry (inducted 1991) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  60. 60
    The Lady Eve1941 · Preston Sturges · United States · comedy, crime, romance
    1.13

    TIME All-TIME 100 · National Film Registry (inducted 1994) · Empire 500 (2008) #359

  61. 61
    A Letter to Three Wives1949 · Joseph L. Mankiewicz · United States · romance, drama, comedy
    1.12

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1950 #3 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1949 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  62. 62
    Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family1941 · Yasujirō Ozu · Japan · drama
    1.11

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1941 #1 · Rosenbaum's Essential Cinema

  63. 63
    Germany, Year Zero1948 · Roberto Rossellini · Italy / Germany / France · drama
    1.02

    Locarno Golden Leopard winner 1948 · Criterion Collection spine #499 · Rosenbaum's Essential Cinema

  64. 64
    Spring on Leper's Island1940 · Shirō Toyoda · Japan · drama
    1.00

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1940 #1

  65. 65
    Hawai Mare oki kaisen1942 · Kajirō Yamamoto, Motoyoshi Oda · Japan · war
    1.00

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1942 #1

  66. 66
    Morning for the Osone Family1946 · Keisuke Kinoshita · Japan · drama
    1.00

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1946 #1

  67. 67
    A Ball at the Anjo House1947 · Kōzaburō Yoshimura · Japan · drama
    1.00

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1947 #1

  68. 68
    Random Harvest1942 · Mervyn LeRoy · United States · romance, drama
    0.95

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1947 #3 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1942

  69. 69
    I Know Where I'm Going!1945 · Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger · United Kingdom · romance, drama, comedy
    0.95

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #196 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies · Criterion Collection spine #94

  70. 70
    The Shop Around the Corner1940 · Ernst Lubitsch · United States · comedy, romance, drama
    0.94

    TIME All-TIME 100 · National Film Registry (inducted 1999) · Empire 500 (2008) #384

  71. 71
    Roman Polanski: Odd Man Out1947 · Carol Reed · United Kingdom · drama, film-noir
    0.94

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1951 #5 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies · Criterion Collection spine #754

  72. 72
    The Little Foxes1941 · William Wyler · United States · drama, romance
    0.91

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1941 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1954 #10 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  73. 73
    Pinocchio1940 · Ben Sharpsteen, Hamilton Luske, Norm Ferguson, T. Hee, Wilfred Jackson, Jack Kinney, Bill Roberts · United States · fantasy, musical, animation
    0.90

    TIME All-TIME 100 · National Film Registry (inducted 1994) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  74. 74
    Detour1945 · Edgar G. Ulmer · United States · crime, drama, film-noir
    0.89

    TIME All-TIME 100 · National Film Registry (inducted 1992) · Criterion Collection spine #966

  75. 75
    The Human Comedy1943 · Clarence Brown · United States · drama, comedy
    0.88

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1943 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1947 #4

  76. 76
    Fantasia1940 · James Algar, Samuel Armstrong, Ford Beebe Jr., Norm Ferguson, Jim Handley, T. Hee, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, Bill Roberts, Paul Satterfield, Ford Beebe, Ben Sharpsteen · United States · musical, fantasy, action
    0.87

    AFI 100 (1998) #58 · National Film Registry (inducted 1990) · Vatican film list

  77. 77
    Letter from an Unknown Woman1948 · Max Ophüls · United States · drama, romance
    0.85

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #169 · National Film Registry (inducted 1992) · Edgar Wright's 1,000 favorite movies

  78. 78
    Sergeant York1941 · Howard Hawks · United States · war, biography, drama
    0.84

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1941 · National Film Registry (inducted 2008) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  79. 79
    The Pride of the Yankees1942 · Sam Wood · United States · drama, biography
    0.84

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1942 · National Film Registry (inducted 2024) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  80. 80
    The Ox-Bow Incident1943 · William A. Wellman, James Tinling · United States · western, drama
    0.84

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1943 · National Film Registry (inducted 1998) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  81. 81
    Gaslight1944 · George Cukor · United States · thriller, crime, film-noir
    0.84

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1944 · National Film Registry (inducted 2019) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  82. 82
    Miracle on 34th Street1947 · George Seaton · United States · fantasy, drama, comedy
    0.84

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1947 · National Film Registry (inducted 2005) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  83. 83
    Twelve O'Clock High1949 · Henry King · United States · war, drama
    0.84

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1949 · National Film Registry (inducted 1998) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  84. 84
    In Which We Serve1942 · Noël Coward, David Lean · United Kingdom · drama, war
    0.84

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1943 · BFI Top 100 British films #92 · Criterion Collection spine #604

  85. 85
    Mildred Pierce1945 · Michael Curtiz · United States · drama, film-noir
    0.84

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1945 · National Film Registry (inducted 1996) · Criterion Collection spine #860

  86. 86
    Foreign Correspondent1940 · Alfred Hitchcock · United States · thriller, crime, film-noir
    0.83

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1940 · Criterion Collection spine #696 · Edgar Wright's 1,000 favorite movies

  87. 87
    The Big Sleep1946 · Howard Hawks · United States · crime, film-noir, drama
    0.81

    National Film Registry (inducted 1997) · Kurosawa's 100 favorite films · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  88. 88
    Aoi sanmyaku1949 · Tadashi Imai · Japan · drama
    0.81

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1949 #2 · Kurosawa's 100 favorite films

  89. 89
    The Bank Dick1940 · Edward F. Cline · United States · comedy
    0.80

    National Film Registry (inducted 1992) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies · Criterion Collection spine #78

  90. 90
    There Was a Father1942 · Yasujirō Ozu · Japan · drama
    0.79

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (Japanese) 1942 #2 · Criterion Collection spine #526

  91. 91
    A Day in the Country1946 · Jean Renoir · France · drama, romance
    0.79

    Sight & Sound 2022 critics' poll #136 · Empire 500 (2008) #165 · Criterion Collection spine #746

  92. 92
    Here Comes Mr. Jordan1941 · Alexander Hall · United States · comedy, romance, fantasy
    0.78

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1941 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies · Criterion Collection spine #819

  93. 93
    Spellbound1945 · Alfred Hitchcock · United States · mystery, film-noir, drama
    0.78

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1945 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies · Criterion Collection spine #136

  94. 94
    The Naked City1948 · Jules Dassin · United States · crime, mystery, documentary
    0.77

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1949 #5 · National Film Registry (inducted 2007) · Criterion Collection spine #380

  95. 95
    Shoeshine1946 · Vittorio De Sica · Italy · crime, drama
    0.77

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1950 #7 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies · Criterion Collection spine #1272

  96. 96
    Meet Me in St. Louis1944 · Vincente Minnelli · United States · musical, drama
    0.77

    TIME All-TIME 100 · National Film Registry (inducted 1994) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  97. 97
    White Heat1949 · Raoul Walsh · United States · crime, film-noir, mystery
    0.77

    TIME All-TIME 100 · National Film Registry (inducted 2003) · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

  98. 98
    The Yearling1946 · Clarence Brown · United States · drama
    0.75

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1946 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1949 #9

  99. 99
    And Then There Were None1945 · René Clair · United States · crime, mystery, drama
    0.75

    Locarno Golden Leopard winner 1946

  100. 100
    Man About Town1947 · René Clair · France / United States · drama, comedy, romance
    0.75

    Locarno Golden Leopard winner 1947

No decade's list quarrels with itself quite like this one. The 1940s open with the American studio system at the summit of its power and close with a 1948 antitrust ruling that would begin to break it apart — and in between, the war rerouted what films were for, who was allowed to make them, and where the medium's next ideas would come from. The order below is our composite score, not chronology, so a bombed Roman street and a Hollywood soundstage can sit a few ranks apart.

The studio system at its peak — and its crack

The list's upper reaches are the Hollywood machine at full tilt. Citizen Kane (1941), Orson Welles's debut of matte paintings, miniatures and optical trickery, tops not only the decade but ranks second across our whole library at a score of 9.21 — the highest mark any 1940s film reaches, and by a clear margin. Below it the studio virtues line up: Casablanca (1942), Michael Curtiz's wartime romance; The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), William Wyler's drama of returning veterans that won nine Academy Awards and was the decade's biggest hit; Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life (1946); Alfred Hitchcock's American debut, Rebecca (1940). These were built inside a system that the Supreme Court's 1948 Paramount decision would force to sell off its theaters — as weekly attendance began the long slide, from ninety million toward fifty, that ended the boom.

Shadow and rubble

Two darker currents run beneath the studio gloss, and both rank high with us. Film noir — the war's fatalism hardened into a style of deep shadow and cornered men — surfaces in Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity (1944) and John Huston's The Maltese Falcon (1941), and reaches the decade's very summit in Carol Reed's The Third Man (1949), which scores 6.08 as our ninth film overall. The other current pulled the opposite way: Italian neorealism took the camera out of the studio and into the street, and Roberto Rossellini's Rome, Open City (1945) and Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves (1948) both score into the decade's front rank — evidence that some of the era's cheapest films have outlasted many of its most expensive.

How to read our list

Membership is mechanical: a film appears because its release year falls between 1940 and 1949, and it is then re-ranked by composite score, so nothing here preserves any outside list's order. The interesting placements are the disagreements. Yasujirō Ozu's Late Spring (1949) and much of the decade's world cinema sit far below Hollywood on raw score — not because they are lesser, but because our sources, weighted toward the Anglophone canon, reached them late. The number measures accumulated attention, not settled worth. Read the top as consensus, and the long tail as the canon still doing its arithmetic.