My Top 20 by Year - 1954
Under construction and always in progress.
The Best films from this year (according to IMDb) I've seen (so far).
Out of (only) 174 films 'seen' (ie rated at IMDb).
(Oct 2024)
Notes:
Cinema = cinema (big screen) viewing
TV = TV viewing
PC = download
OL = online viewing
VHS = VHS viewing
Yet to see (among many):
I oraia ton Athinon (The Beauty of Athens, Tsiforos, 1954)
Romeo and Juliet (Castellani, 1954)
The Country Girl (Seaton, 1954)
Cronache di poveri amanti (Chronicle of Poor Lovers, Lizzani, 1954)
The Long, Long Trailer (Minnelli, 1954)
Donne proibite (Angels of Darkness, G. Amato, 1954)
Bildnis einer Unbekannten (Portrait of an Unknown Woman, Käutner, 1954)
Bolshaya semya (A Big Family, Kheifits, 1954)
Carosello napoletano (Neapolitan Carousel, E. Giannini, 1954)
An Inspector Calls (G. Hamilton, 1954)
Hayat ou maut (Life or Death, El-Shaikh, 1954)
Raíces (Roots, Alazraki, 1954)
Siraa Fil-Wadi (The Blazing Sun, Chahine, 1954)
Maddalena (Genina, 1954)
About Mrs. Leslie (Dan. Mann, 1954)
Das fliegende Klassenzimmer (Flying Classroom, K. Hoffmann, 1954)
Dobu (The Ditch, Shindô, 1954)
The Best films from this year (according to IMDb) I've seen (so far).
Out of (only) 174 films 'seen' (ie rated at IMDb).
(Oct 2024)
Notes:
- Features, shorts, docs and TV movies eligible ("A film is a film is a film.").
- TV mini-series are NOT (unless stated otherwise).
- My humble rates added (for films with the same rate just once or twice though).
- Films with the same rate are ordered arbitrarily. Feel free to re-order them at your will.
- When I saw more than 20 excellent films (9/10 or above in my book) from a certain year I'll try and list them ALL. That would make some lists much longer but all the excellentia deserves to be mentioned.
Cinema = cinema (big screen) viewing
TV = TV viewing
PC = download
OL = online viewing
VHS = VHS viewing
Yet to see (among many):
I oraia ton Athinon (The Beauty of Athens, Tsiforos, 1954)
Romeo and Juliet (Castellani, 1954)
The Country Girl (Seaton, 1954)
Cronache di poveri amanti (Chronicle of Poor Lovers, Lizzani, 1954)
The Long, Long Trailer (Minnelli, 1954)
Donne proibite (Angels of Darkness, G. Amato, 1954)
Bildnis einer Unbekannten (Portrait of an Unknown Woman, Käutner, 1954)
Bolshaya semya (A Big Family, Kheifits, 1954)
Carosello napoletano (Neapolitan Carousel, E. Giannini, 1954)
An Inspector Calls (G. Hamilton, 1954)
Hayat ou maut (Life or Death, El-Shaikh, 1954)
Raíces (Roots, Alazraki, 1954)
Siraa Fil-Wadi (The Blazing Sun, Chahine, 1954)
Maddalena (Genina, 1954)
About Mrs. Leslie (Dan. Mann, 1954)
Das fliegende Klassenzimmer (Flying Classroom, K. Hoffmann, 1954)
Dobu (The Ditch, Shindô, 1954)
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- 26 titles
- DirectorKenneth AngerStarsSamson De BrierMarjorie CameronJoan WhitneyHistorical, biblical, and mythical characters gather in the pleasure dome and become part of a visual feast of superimposed images, hallucinations, and decadence.OL. 10/10.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTakashi ShimuraKeiko TsushimaFarmers from a village exploited by bandits hire a veteran samurai for protection, and he gathers six other samurai to join him.Cinema. 10/10.
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsKinuyo TanakaYoshiaki HanayagiKyôko KagawaIn medieval Japan, a compassionate governor is sent into exile. His wife and children try to join him, but are separated, and the children grow up amid suffering and oppression.PC. 9/10.
- DirectorFederico FelliniStarsAnthony QuinnGiulietta MasinaRichard BasehartA care-free girl is sold to a traveling entertainer, consequently enduring physical and emotional pain along the way.VHS.
- DirectorElia KazanStarsMarlon BrandoKarl MaldenLee J. CobbAn ex-prize fighter turned New Jersey longshoreman struggles to stand up to his corrupt union bosses, including his older brother, as he starts to connect with the grieving sister of one of the syndicate's victims.Cinema.
- DirectorVittorio De SicaStarsTotòLianella CarellPasquale CennamoA portrait of the people, the defects, and the peculiarities of Naples in six different vignettes.Cinema.
- DirectorTex AveryStarsTex AveryDaws ButlerGrace StaffordChilly Willy is freezing in his igloo home (he lives in Coldernell, Alaska) and burning everything he owns in the fireplace to keep warm. He notices an ad for the local fur factory and realizes that warmth is only a visit away. Unfortunately, it is guarded by a rather unexcitable watchdog who foils Chilly's attempts to steal the furs. Finally, he locks every fur in the storage bin but this doesn't stop Chilly who starts eyeing the watchdog's fur and makes various attempts to remove it from him.OL.
- DirectorsLindsay AndersonGuy BrentonStarRichard BurtonWon the Academy Award for the Best Documentary Short of 1954. The subject deals with the children at The Royal School for the Deaf in Margate, Kent. The hearing-handicapped children are shown painstakingly learning what words are through exercises and games, practicing lip-reading and finally speech. Richard Burton's calm and sometimes-poetic narration adds to the heartwarming cheerfulness and courage of the children.PC. 9/10.
- DirectorRoger TiltonStarsJimmy McPartlandPee Wee RussellWillie 'The Lion' SmithRoger Tilton wrote (what little there is in this mostly unrehearsed short), directed and produced this short subject shot in the Central Plaza Dance Hall in New York City. It is a frenzied, naturalistic study of people finding an outlet through jazz sessions. Some "Beat Generations" elements for those looking for such.OL. 8/10.
- DirectorLuchino ViscontiStarsFarley GrangerAlida ValliMassimo GirottiAn Italian Countess is allied with Nationalists during the Italian-Austrian war of unification. However, she risks betraying their cause when she falls in love with an Austrian lieutenant.Cinema.
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsKazuo HasegawaKyôko KagawaYôko MinamidaIshun is a wealthy but unsympathetic master printer who has wrongly accused his wife and best employee of being lovers. To escape punishment, the accused run away together, but Ishun is certain to be ruined if word gets out.TV.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsSetsuko HaraSô YamamuraKen UeharaAn ingratiating bride develops warm ties to her father-in-law while her cold husband blithely slights her for another woman.OL.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsHaruko SugimuraKen UeharaSadako SawamuraWhat is the life of a Geisha like once her beauty has faded and she has retired? Kin has saved her money, and has become a wealthy money-lender, spending her days cold-heartedly collecting debts. Even her best friends, Tomi, Nobu, and Tamae, who were her fellow Geisha, are now indebted to her. For all of them, the glamor of their young lives has passed; Tomi and Tamae have children, but their children have disappointed them. Kin has two former lovers who still pursue her; one she wants to see, and the other she doesn't. But even the one she remembers fondly, when he shows up, proves to be a disappointment.OL.
- DirectorLuis BuñuelStarsLilia PradoCarlos NavarroFernando SotoConfronted with the unfortunate news that their favorite streetcar, Number 133, will be decommissioned, two Municipal Transit workers get drunk and decide to "take 'er for one last spin."PC.
- DirectorRoberto RosselliniStarsIngrid BergmanGeorge SandersMaria MaubanAn unhappily married couple attempts to find direction and insight while vacationing in Naples.PC.
- DirectorDavid LeanStarsCharles LaughtonJohn MillsBrenda de BanzieWidower Henry Hobson refuses to let his three daughters get married because he doesn't want to pay settlements, so they'll just have to outsmart him.PC.
- DirectorHerbert J. BibermanStarsJuan ChacónRosaura RevueltasWill GeerMexican workers at a zinc mine call a general strike. It is only through the solidarity of the workers, and importantly the indomitable resolve of their wives, mothers, and daughters, that they eventually triumph.PC.
- DirectorLuis BuñuelStarsColumba DomínguezMiguel TorrucoJoaquín CorderoIn a backward village where members of two rival families have kept killing each other for generations, a young doctor is expected to avenge his father.PC.
- DirectorRoberto RosselliniStarsTotòVera MolnarNyta DoverA barber compelled by jealousy to commit murder spends 20 years in jail. But when he's released he cannot adapt to a changed world and the hypocrisy of his relatives, so he decides to return to prison.Cinema.
- DirectorHelmut KäutnerStarsMaria SchellBernhard WickiBarbara RüttingA German nurse gets sent to the front because she gives medical aid to a wounded Serbian partisan during World War II.OL.
- DirectorGeorge CukorStarsJudy GarlandJames MasonJack CarsonA fading matinee idol helps a young singer and actress find fame, even as age and alcoholism send his own career on a downward spiral.TV.
- DirectorHeinosuke GoshoStarsShûji SanoNobuko OtowaMitsuko MitoAn Inn at Osaka, rarely seen outside Japan, follows the story of an insurance company executive from Tokyo, Mr. Mito, who is demoted to the Osaka office. He takes a room at a small inn and tries to rebuild his life.OL.
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsKinuyo TanakaTomoemon OtaniYoshiko KugaYukiko's mother runs a lodging house for courtesans in Kyoto. When her fiance learns this, he ends their engagement. Yukiko despises what her mother does until one of her mother's clients shows interest in her and starts to woo her.OL.
- DirectorChuck JonesStarsMel BlancPaul JulianThe Coyote employs a series of devices to try to capture the Road Runner.OL.
