Ten 1950 films now regarded as classics

Collider has published a list of 10 films from 1950 now considered classics, saying the year was a quiet but decisive turning point in film history as postwar optimism gave way to cynicism, introspection and new questions about truth and storytelling.

The selections span genres and national cinemas: John Ford’s Rio Grande, George Cukor’s Born Yesterday (featuring Judy Holliday), James Stewart in Harvey, Walt Disney’s Cinderella, John Huston’s influential heist film The Asphalt Jungle, Nicholas Ray’s In a Lonely Place with Humphrey Bogart, Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus (noted as an influence on filmmakers such as Akira Kurosawa and Andrei Tarkovsky), Kurosawa’s Rashomon (credited with challenging objective truth and expanding Japanese cinema’s global reach), All About Eve at No. 2, and Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard at No. 1.

The write-up highlights recurring themes across the list—moral ambiguity, identity, and Hollywood’s own cruelties—and supplies specific details for the top entry: Sunset Boulevard is listed with a release date of August 10, 1950, a runtime of 110 minutes, and director Billy Wilder (writers Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder and D.M. Marshman Jr.; stars William Holden and Gloria Swanson).

Key Topics

Culture, Sunset Boulevard, Rashomon, Cinderella, John Ford, Jean Cocteau