The 10 Best Classic Black and White Movies Ever!

The 13 best Classics of all time!

What happened to the old classics from Hollywood? You know the ones with the great music, great acting, and tremendous story lines. Thanks to technology, they will never leave us!

I love the oldies on the silver screen don't you? Even though in 1939 movies turned to color, many movies were shot in black and white since. What does that tell you?

I hated to leave out The Midnight Hour, Random Harvest, Nosferatu, and so many others

This was a tough but fun list to make!

I hope you enjoy!

Baby!

13. The Grapes of Wrath- Henry Fonda- A farmer struggles in the depression. Can he and his wife hold the family

Here's looking at you

12.The Philidelphia Story- Catherine Hepburn, Gary Cooper, James Sterwart- *Spoiler Alert* you will see all three actors again. Can you guess which movies are coming next that stars at least one of them?

11. Pride of the Yankees- Babe Ruth, Gary Cooper,- Surprised? This was almost perfect. Coop was so much like Lou. He made the Babe look like a good actor, and jelled with the rest of the cast like a star should.

Tex Ritter

10. Psycho- Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh- A mamma's boy, a hotel, and a girl. Sounds safe enough, right? Wrong! This had one of the most famous scenes ever. With less than one minute of violence, Psycho shocked the world!

" ...the scene of
the crime". This motel also has as an adjunct an old house
which is, if I may say so, a little more sinister looking,
less innocent than the motel itself. And in this house, the
most dire horrible events took place." Alfred

9. Frankenstien- Boris Karloff- A long time ago, in a country far away, a brilliant young scientist forged ahead with an illeagal and very risky experiment. It went wrong, very, very, wrong. The result was too awful to talk about at this time!

8. Sabrina- Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart- Coop, Bogart and Stewart owned this list! However, Audrey Hepburn stole the show in this one!

Marlon makes the list!

7. On the Waterfront- Marlon Brando,- This was an great story about union bosses, and their corrupt way of controlling business and their workers. One boxer and a priest had enough and decided to fight back. It was bloody but so well done!

6. 12 Angry Men- One of the best dramas ever. Many would rank it higher, but I just saw 5 more as being a little better.

5. Casablanca- The one liners, the drama, the romance, it all came together and made this an unforgettable classic.

4. -Bringing up Baby- Catherine Hepburn, Cary Grant- They were awesome together and the story fit Catherine perfectly!

3. Its a Wonderful Life- James Stewart, Donna Reed. The best Christmas movie ever! Remember the story, the desperation, and the will to survive? Who could forget this moving account of the Christmas Spirit.

2. Citizen Kane- Orson Wells- This was a masterpiece that will never be duplicated. Orson Wells was an all time great and a legend. This was his best work by far! It was so good that many will "whack" me for not putting it at number one.

Have you guessed number one?

Here it is! NUMBER ONE-

This movie was about a story that lasted 85 minutes. That is exactly how long the movie was. That it considered one of the hardest things in movies to do today! The story was compelling and the cast was amazing together. The actor who played the lead was actually the 4th choice for this role. John Wayne said no, he thought the movie was unAmerican. Clark Gable thought that it was beneath him, and Dean Martin wanted to go in a different direction with his career. Then, they asked the man who was perfect! He and his supporting cast were awesome!

1. High Noon- Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, and Loyd Bridges.

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Comments

MikeSyrSutton (author) from An uncharted galaxy on November 15, 2016:

Thank you Cyndi! The Hepburns were irreplaceable. I hope you get to see High Noon!

Cynthia B Turner from Georgia on October 10, 2014:

Good choices. I tend to like any of the black and white that Audrey Hepburn starred in. It was hard for Katherine Hepburn to make a bad movie as well. I realize, however, that your choices reach a broader audience.

I've never seen High Noon, since I tend not to like Westerns, but I will give that one a look. Thanks for your list.

Carlo Giovannetti from Puerto Rico on October 09, 2014:

Some great choices, with others that I haven't seen. But good list overall.

A friendly note, some typos you might want to correct...

Marlon Brando's film is called On the Waterfront.

Orson Welles' film is called Citizen Kane

Voted Up!

oldiesmusic from United States on February 21, 2014:

Great list you have. Like you I also like those black and white films, but I have yet to see High Noon. Thanks for posting. :)

MikeSyrSutton (author) from An uncharted galaxy on August 29, 2013:

Thank you Betty! What are some of your favorites?

bettybarnesb from Bartlett, TN on August 29, 2013:

Truly love many of the old movies and I watch TCM on a regular basis. Great article!

MikeSyrSutton (author) from An uncharted galaxy on August 27, 2013:

Thanks! Now I know which movie you mean. It starred Julie Harris, Claire Bloom, Russ Tamblyn, and Richard Johnson. That was awesome too. Did you know that a lot of those cast members are still alive and still acting? Wow!

epigramman on August 26, 2013:

Hi Mike - I think the Vincent Price movie you're thinking of is The House on Haunted Hill - I am referring to The Haunting as directed by Robert Wise - you can find it on you tube

and yes I agree with you Psycho and Frankenstein belong in your list but The Haunting must be seen if you love black and white

When I'm here I will post your awesome hub tribute once again to my FB page

Colin

4:05pm

MikeSyrSutton (author) from An uncharted galaxy on August 26, 2013:

Thank you so much man!

I am going to do a modern black and white film soon. The Haunting with Vincent Price was good. i own that one and actually considered it. I just saw Psycho and Frankenstein as edging it out.

Thank you for the great comment!

mike

epigramman on August 26, 2013:

Great choices one and all my friend and a thumbs up from this big film buff - in terms of black and white I also like some modern films:

Rumble Fish by Francis Ford Coppola

The Last Picture Show 1971 I believe

The Haunting 1963

Young Frankenstein by Mel Brooks

This is most definitely a world class hub presentation because of your passionate and intelligent writing and your love and affection for this particular film genre.

I will madly and gladly post your awesome work and research here to my FB page for all to see and read.

Sending warm wishes to you from Colin and his cat crew at lake erie time ontario canada 9:11am

MikeSyrSutton (author) from An uncharted galaxy on August 12, 2013:

Thank you!

Thomas Silvia from Massachusetts on August 09, 2013:

Yep you are right those are all great b/w movies !

MikeSyrSutton (author) from An uncharted galaxy on August 09, 2013:

Wow! Thank you. I thought that I would get beat up for this list. LOL

Russ Moran - The Write Stuff from Long Island, New York on August 09, 2013:

Fun hub. Good research. Hard to disagree with your choices.