Thanks for the comment.
I don't specifically dislike movies for being black and white, it is just that mainstream films of that era are too simplistic and obvious for my taste. They don't touch on anything offensive or even remotely controversial, and were usually just ways for the big studios to suck money out of their contract players, most of whom were crap for actors.
It isn't any different now, with pathetic actors starring in big budget films, but the difference is that for every big studio film released, there are 10-20 independent films, all of which reach pretty wide exposure and distribution over the years with DVD, the internet, etc..
On that topic, I just saw John Frankenheimer's The Train, wow, that is a fantastic film, and probably the best mainstream black and white film I've ever seen, surely my favorite. The camera work is truly amazing, seeming like Steadicam work 15 years earlier, and Paul Scofield is an amazing actor.
Back to my point, John Frankenheimer's The Train was from 1964.
1964!!! That is just three years away from The Graduate! Another favorite.
You won't find something like The Graduate, Midnight Cowboy, The Landlord, or A Clockwork Orange made in black and white and starring Shirley Temple and Cary Grant, trust me on that.
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vinidici
14 years ago
You won't find something like The Graduate, Midnight Cowboy, The Landlord, or A Clockwork Orange made in black and white and starring Shirley Temple and Cary Grant, trust me on that.
Hmmm? Well, I'll agree that "The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer" co-stars Grant and Temple weren't in the films you listed, but Grant flicks like Alfred Hitchcock's "Suspicion," "Notorious" and especially (shot in color) "North by Northwest" still pack a powerful punch even today.
You're also forgetting that "Paper Moon" and the iconic "The Last Picture Show" were also (and deliberately) filmed in black and white.
And I take it you're not impressed by "Citizen Kane?" Maybe Orson Wells should have peppered the dialogue with a few, choice four-letter words!
I'd also recommend: "I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang" (1932); "M" (1931; a German film starring Peter Lorre); "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" (1948); "The Third Man" (1948); "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1962); and the 1967 version of "In Cold Blood." All great examples (from among many) of black and white/older movies that, if given a fair shot by those who ordinarily eschew b&w flicks, are more than worth the viewing with their compelling themes and gripping subject matter.
Secret Message, HERE!-->CONGRATULATIONS!!! You've discovered the Secret Message!
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mail-2775
14 years ago
Thanks for the reply vinidici, and thanks especially for taking the time to make such a nice list of black and white films. There are a few I haven't seen, but I will see them when I can.
I've seen most of them. I'd read In Cold Blood ten more times before watching any of the film versions of it, they are all garbage.
Paper Moon is one of my all-time favorites, and I didn't forget it, when I was talking about "black and white...films of that era" I wasn't talking about 70s films, Paper Moon is as morally bankrupt as Midnight Cowboy.
Citizen Kane is one of the greatest films of all time, though really old timey. I actually refer to it as the greatest film of all time when talking about Orson Welles, a talented guy so full of himself that when he was snubbed at a dinner party...he just went out and made the greatest film of all time!
To Kill a Mockingbird is a good film, but I think only really strong in its time. Sorry, again, things from that era really lack realism and presence.
Like courtroom drama? Most any episode of Boston Legal smashes it. Haven't seen every episode? Don't comment on that.
Black and white doesn't help with realism and presence, either, since none of us see in black and white. That's why I was somewhat puzzled by L'Enfant sauvage being in black and white. I love that movie, I just couldn't figure how they chose black and white. It took place hundreds of years ago, sure, but they could see in color then! Black and white, if it is to give a feeling, gives the feeling of 1920s-1940s, doing a biography of King Tut in black and white would be pointless.
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vinidici
14 years ago
Well, there's no changing someone else's own, sovereign opinions and preferences, but the "In Cold Blood" that starred Robert Blake isn't dismissed as "garbage" by most film buffs.
There's still such a thing as black and white photography (stills) and even occasional cinema ventures (case in point: "Shindler's List"). While it's true that the vast majority of older pictures were done in black and white (either before the technology for color photography/cinematography was yet available or because, once introduced, the process was still considered too much of a strain on the budget for most films), there is an undeniable starkness and artistic flair among the best examples of b&w stills and films. Some folks know this and still prefer color (like yourself), which is all well and good; while others are just philistines who wouldn't know broadmindedness, intellectual versatility, and brilliant motion picture craftsmenship if those three qualities marking what's best about older pictures bit said philistines *where they sit*!
"To Kill a Mockingbird" isn't exactly a courtroom drama. The whole story, in and out of court, is seen though the eyes of a little girl. There was never any intent to make it the measuring stick by which all future courtroom dramas could be compared, so I suppose it would only make sense that TV shows like "Boston Public," "Law and Order," and so on would have a greater appeal to modern day audiences than the courtroom theatrics of Atticus Finch. It's the human drama in a Depression-era, Deep South town that keep "Mockingbird" as fresh today as if it were filmed only yesterday; and many agree that the b&w cinematography enhances the film and evokes the kind of mood and atmosphere the filmmaker had intended for this picture.
Guess a shorter way to say the above is that "realism" does not necessarily a better movie make, and that black and white can succeed (in some artistic levels) where color doesn't.
Secret Message, HERE!-->CONGRATULATIONS!!! You've discovered the Secret Message!
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koonz
14 years ago
You are depriving yourself of some of the greatest movies ever made.
And Shirley Temple is nowhere to be found.
This is just a short list off the top of my head
The Treasure of the Sierra Made
A Place in the Sun
Manhattan
La Strada
Two Women
Psycho
Lolita
The Defiant Ones
A Streetcar Named Desire
America, America
A Hard Day's night
Anatomy of a Murder
Room at the Top
The Servant
The Last Picture Show
Dr. Strangelove
Sunset Boulevard
Raging Bull
Jules and Jim
Breathless
The Apartment”
Some Like it Hot
The Miracle Worker
The Yearling
On the Waterfront
All about Eve
From Here to Eternity
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mail-2775
14 years ago
Thanks for the reply.
This has turned out to be a really good string!
I've seen all but a few on that list and, except for Dr. Strangelove, they don't really suit my taste.
I was overlooking Dr. Strangelove before, that is one of my all-time favorites, and, probably by accident, just about the most accurate depiction of the cold war that I've seen.
I'm the OP here, and since I started this string, I've seen a few black and whites that I liked.
Two that I liked a lot were Captain's Courageous and A Thousand Clowns. I can see why Captain's Courageous was black and white, but doing A Thousand Clowns in black and white was pointless and idiotic, it didn't add anything to the film. Compare it to The Landlord, which is set in nearly the same time and place, and see what is missing without the color!
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marbleann
12 years ago
I think Fail Safe is another B&W movie that was underrated. I saw that movie when it first came out and it scared me to death. It did not help that I lived in NY.
One last thing I think Curtis was excellent in this movie along with Sinatra.
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groovinstein
8 years ago
The Grapes of Wrath
Stagecoach
Ikiru
Stalag 17
Goodbye Mr. Chips
Variety Lights
Il Surpasso
Red River
The Misfits
Witness for the Prosecution
Bride of Frankenstein
The Seven Samurai
Angel and the Badman
Blue Angel
Metropolis
Best Years of our Lives.
The Expendables
Detective Story
The Paths of Glory
Abbott and Costello meet the Mummy
Yojimbo
Sanjuro
La Dolce Vita
Come on now.
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