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The 20 best films of Henry Fonda!

by drystyx • Created 12 years ago • Modified 12 years ago
The best, and the greatest films of an icon. He is best remembered as the man who loved justice, but many of his greatest roles were of men who battled justice within themselves. These 20 films show him in a myriad of characterizations, and will no doubt what will be remembered a hundred years from now.
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  • 20 titles
  • Shirley Temple and John Agar in Fort Apache (1948)

    1. Fort Apache

    19482h 8mApproved
    7.4 (21K)
    At Fort Apache, an honorable and veteran war captain finds conflict when his regime is placed under the command of a young, glory hungry lieutenant colonel with no respect for the local Indian tribe.
    DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneHenry FondaShirley Temple
    Although named Thursday, Fonda was clearly a George Custer character here. He was a villain with honor and dignity, who actually thought he was doing right in the cavalry classic of all time.
  • The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

    2. The Ox-Bow Incident

    19431h 15mApproved
    8.0 (26K)
    Walter Van Tilburg Clark's novel inspires an account of a lynch mob that seeks revenge for a rancher's murder.
    DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsHenry FondaDana AndrewsMary Beth Hughes
    An unlikely hero, if you can call him that. He and Morgan (Col Potter) are the central characters, but really blend into the background much the way you would expect Robert Duvall to do, in this classic about a lynch mob. He is brutish, a man of the times, but doesn't like lynch mobs. Meanwhile, he knows there is little he can do, but he does what he can.
  • James Cagney, Henry Fonda, Jack Lemmon, and William Powell in Mister Roberts (1955)

    3. Mister Roberts

    19552h 3mApproved72Metascore
    7.6 (19K)
    In the waning days of World War II, the cargo officer of a Navy supply ship chafes at its role far from the action in the Pacific's backwater areas, his frustration rising when its captain denies the crew liberty over petty irritations.
    DirectorsJohn FordMervyn LeRoyJoshua LoganStarsHenry FondaJames CagneyWilliam Powell
    One of his usual iconic roles, as the man who speaks up for the downtrodden. Set in the war, on a ship that sees no action, this is "scenic drama", with a hint of comedy, and a hint of pathos. It's hard to tell where "Mister Roberts" is coming from in today's world, as he is a bit gung ho during war. Still, this film reflects life in another era, and what people were like.
  • Henry Fonda, Martin Balsam, Jack Klugman, Lee J. Cobb, Ed Begley, Edward Binns, John Fiedler, E.G. Marshall, Joseph Sweeney, George Voskovec, Jack Warden, and Robert Webber in 12 Angry Men (1957)

    4. 12 Angry Men

    19571h 36mApproved97Metascore
    9.0 (938K)
    The jury in a New York City murder trial is frustrated by a single member whose skeptical caution forces them to more carefully consider the evidence before jumping to a hasty verdict.
    DirectorSidney LumetStarsHenry FondaLee J. CobbMartin Balsam
    Super script with a super cast is going to translate into a super movie. I never really liked "control freaks", which is what Fonda plays here, but this story, and this performance disguise the "control freak" nature of this juror perfectly. Personally, I always suspected Juror #8 was paid off to do this. It is great drama, though.
  • Henry Fonda, Charles Bronson, Dana Andrews, Pier Angeli, Telly Savalas, Robert Shaw, Ty Hardin, James MacArthur, George Montgomery, Robert Ryan, and Barbara Werle in Battle of the Bulge (1965)

    5. Battle of the Bulge

    19652h 47mApproved
    6.8 (19K)
    A dramatization of Nazi Germany's final Western Front counterattack of World War II.
    DirectorKen AnnakinStarsHenry FondaRobert ShawRobert Ryan
    Again, Fonda is a bit "gung ho" for combat, but this story revolves around many different people. Fonda's character is his usual "man who is always right when everyone else is wrong", but he is very convincing at it. A top notch war film.
  • Henry Fonda, Anthony Perkins, Neville Brand, and Michel Ray in The Tin Star (1957)

    6. The Tin Star

    19571h 33mApproved
    7.3 (7.2K)
    A cynical former sheriff turned bounty hunter helps a young, recently appointed acting sheriff with his advice, his experience and his gun.
    DirectorAnthony MannStarsHenry FondaAnthony PerkinsBetsy Palmer
    You have to have some Westerns, and Fonda was in some great ones in his early Westerns. Perkins steals the show here, but Fonda is great as the mentor character. He is in the backdrop in the great final showdown scene, easily one of the 5 greatest showdowns in film history, between Perkins and Brand, with the bold camera angles. This is a memorable Western
  • Firecreek (1968)

    7. Firecreek

    19681h 44mApproved65Metascore
    6.8 (4.3K)
    A peace-loving part-time Sheriff in the small town of Firecreek must take a stand when a gang of vicious outlaws takes over his town.
    DirectorVincent McEveetyStarsJames StewartHenry FondaInger Stevens
    Before "Straw Dogs", there was "Firecreek". Here, Fonda is a bad guy who leads a gang of mercenary gunmen. He finds a quiet town, and the appeal of the quiet life is set against the example he must set for the respect of his men, when one of them is accidentally killed by a mentally challenged young man.
  • Henry Fonda, Anthony Quinn, Richard Widmark, Dorothy Malone, and Dolores Michaels in Warlock (1959)

    8. Warlock

    19592h 1mApproved
    7.1 (7.5K)
    A famous gunman becomes the marshal of Warlock to end a gang's rampages, but is met with some opposition by a former gang member turned deputy sheriff who wants to follow only legal methods.
    DirectorEdward DmytrykStarsRichard WidmarkHenry FondaAnthony Quinn
    Another great Western in which Fonda's rock solid lawman is made to be upstaged not only by Widmark and Quinn, but even by Dr. McCoy. Fonda knew his role here meant to be upstaged, though. His character is one whose secret emotions are bottled up, and Fonda does it splendidly.
  • Michael Caine, Lance Percival, and Cliff Robertson in Too Late the Hero (1970)

    9. Too Late the Hero

    19702h 25mPG
    6.6 (4.2K)
    A reluctant hero, American Lieutenant Sam Lawson, is seconded to a motley British unit tasked with destroying a Japanese radio on a Philippine island.
    DirectorRobert AldrichStarsMichael CaineCliff RobertsonIan Bannen
    You aren't always the star. Here, his role is limited, but this is a classic war film with Fonda in an authority figure role. However, the film is about the "little guys" in the field, and decisions they must make, which is what makes this a classic.
  • Henry Fonda, John Carradine, Jane Darwell, Dorris Bowdon, Frank Darien, and Russell Simpson in The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

    10. The Grapes of Wrath

    19402h 9mApproved96Metascore
    8.1 (106K)
    An Oklahoma family, driven off their farm by the poverty and hopelessness of the Dust Bowl, joins the westward migration to California, suffering the misfortunes of the homeless in the Great Depression.
    DirectorJohn FordStarsHenry FondaJane DarwellJohn Carradine
    This isn't one of my favorites, but it will be remembered as a classic. I didn't like the arrogance of Fonda's character as he basically "bragged" to the driver who gave him a lift about being a "murderer". But that was his character. It would have been better if he was a regular guy, but for some reason, many people think a murderer is a "regular guy". He serves as "observor" in the events that follow.
  • Richard Burton, Henry Fonda, Robert Mitchum, John Wayne, Sean Connery, Sal Mineo, Eddie Albert, Richard Beymer, Red Buttons, Jeffrey Hunter, Roddy McDowall, Rod Steiger, Robert Wagner, Paul Anka, Arletty, Mel Ferrer, Steve Forrest, Gert Fröbe, Fabian, Jean-Louis Barrault, Bourvil, Ray Danton, Irina Demick, Leo Genn, Henry Grace, John Gregson, Paul Hartmann, Werner Hinz, Curd Jürgens, Alexander Knox, Peter Lawford, Christian Marquand, Kenneth More, Edmond O'Brien, Ron Randell, Madeleine Renaud, Robert Ryan, Tommy Sands, Richard Todd, Tom Tryon, Peter van Eyck, and Stuart Whitman in The Longest Day (1962)

    11. The Longest Day

    19622h 58mG75Metascore
    7.7 (61K)
    The events of D-Day, told on a grand scale from both the Allied and German points of view.
    DirectorsKen AnnakinAndrew MartonGerd OswaldStarsJohn WayneRobert RyanRichard Burton
    Probably never will be a cast this star studded ever again, so no performer really stands out. It is a lot of "little stories" together, that will be remembered.
  • Henry Fonda, Linda Darnell, and Victor Mature in My Darling Clementine (1946)

    12. My Darling Clementine

    19461h 37mApproved
    7.7 (27K)
    After their cattle are stolen and their brother murdered, the Earp brothers have a score to settle with the Clanton family.
    DirectorsJohn FordLloyd BaconStarsHenry FondaLinda DarnellVictor Mature
    While the events are historically false, no major OK Corral movie was very accurate, the closest probably being with Costner, but the characters are the truest here. With each later version, the characters became more and more modern day men in old time outfits. Here, you got the true feeling of the people of the old West, because there were some people who lived in it still alive, who were interviewed. Fonda's Wyatt is undeniably the most realistic to this day.
  • Henry Fonda, Katharine Hepburn, Jane Fonda, and Doug McKeon in On Golden Pond (1981)

    13. On Golden Pond

    19811h 49mPG68Metascore
    7.6 (37K)
    Curmudgeon Norman is estranged from his daughter Chelsea. Nevertheless, at Golden Pond he and his wife agree to look after Billy, the son of Chelsea's new boyfriend, and a most unexpected relationship blooms.
    DirectorMark RydellStarsKatharine HepburnHenry FondaJane Fonda
    A bit slow paced for me, but obviously iconic. It will come and go, and remain a mainstay drama, because someday it will be remade with another family of actors, and that will be compared to this, and then a third one, and so on.
  • Henry Fonda and Claudette Colbert in Drums Along the Mohawk (1939)

    14. Drums Along the Mohawk

    19391h 44mApproved
    7.0 (7.1K)
    Newlyweds Gil and Lana Martin try to establish a farm in the Mohawk Valley but are menaced by Indians and Tories as the Revolutionary War begins.
    DirectorJohn FordStarsClaudette ColbertHenry FondaEdna May Oliver
    Again, as with Clementine, we get the feel of real people of the past, and what they were like, instead of modern actors taking time off from their video games and board meetings to put on costumes.
  • Henry Fonda, Fred MacMurray, and Sylvia Sidney in The Trail of the Lonesome Pine (1936)

    15. The Trail of the Lonesome Pine

    19361h 42mApproved
    6.8 (1.5K)
    A railroad man from the city befriends a mountain girl in a Kentucky family feud.
    DirectorHenry HathawayStarsSylvia SidneyHenry FondaFred MacMurray
    It will come back, as classics do. It isn't heralded by the big shots, but is a story for common people.
  • Henry Fonda and Vera Miles in The Wrong Man (1956)

    16. The Wrong Man

    19561h 45mApproved83Metascore
    7.4 (34K)
    In 1953, an innocent man named Christopher Emanuel "Manny" Balestrero is arrested after being mistaken for an armed robber.
    DirectorAlfred HitchcockStarsHenry FondaVera MilesAnthony Quayle
    Can't go wrong with Hitch. Well, not usually. This is one of Htch's good ones.
  • In Harm's Way (1965)

    17. In Harm's Way

    19652h 45mApproved
    7.3 (11K)
    A Naval officer, reprimanded after Pearl Harbor, is later promoted to Rear Admiral and gets a second chance to prove himself against the Japanese.
    DirectorOtto PremingerStarsJohn WayneKirk DouglasPatricia Neal
    Most of the movie seems very routine, and predictaable. It is the climax that makes this something you don't expect.
  • Olivia de Havilland, Henry Fonda, Michael Caine, Richard Chamberlain, Patty Duke, José Ferrer, Slim Pickens, Katharine Ross, Richard Widmark, Bradford Dillman, Lee Grant, Ben Johnson, and Fred MacMurray in The Swarm (1978)

    18. The Swarm

    19781h 56mPG30Metascore
    4.5 (9.1K)
    Deadly African bees spread over Texas and kill thousands of people. Scientists led by Bradford Crane and Captain Helena Anderson try to find an antidote and destroy the swarm - against the advice of Army General Thalius Slater.
    DirectorIrwin AllenStarsMichael CaineKatharine RossRichard Widmark
    In the age of disaster films, some will stand out. This is one of the better ones, and the actors are one reason.
  • Henry Fonda, Don Ameche, and Loretta Young in The Story of Alexander Graham Bell (1939)

    19. The Story of Alexander Graham Bell

    19391h 38mApproved
    7.0 (1.2K)
    The story of how Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone.
    DirectorIrving CummingsStarsDon AmecheLoretta YoungHenry Fonda
    Very personable story, with Fonda in a supporting role. It is a "feel good" film, which is something that the wackos can't stand, which is why it is so rare.
  • Midway (1976)

    20. Midway

    19762h 12mPG48Metascore
    6.8 (23K)
    A dramatization of the battle that was widely heralded as a turning point of the Pacific Theatre of World War II.
    DirectorJack SmightStarsCharlton HestonHenry FondaJames Coburn
    Another that isn't among my personal choices, but the all star cast will keep this one as a mainstay if only for discussion and prosperity, and perhaps to compare to others (like "In Harm's Way")

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