OBSCURE Films Ive Watched Pre 1980 - Noir, Sci Fi and B Movie List
A list of mostly obscure or lesser known movies I have seen in recent years pre 1980 My goal is to populate this with a lot of film noir and the more obscure sci fi and the ever so delicious crime,drama and horror B movies of the 40's,50's and 60's. Enjoy
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- DirectorWilliam GreféStarsFred PineroBabette SherrillBill MarcusA group of student archaeologists venture into the Florida Everglades to look for fossils, but come across an area cursed by a Native American witch doctor.
- DirectorRichard BrooksStarsHumphrey BogartEthel BarrymoreKim HunterWith his newspaper about to be sold, crusading editor Ed Hutcheson tries to complete an exposé on gangster Rienzi.
- DirectorWilliam AllandStarsPaul AnkaRuth RomanAlex NicolA teenager's parents finally realize how bad their home life is when their son is arrested for prowling.Paul Anka wearing a potato head perving on nubile teen neighbors
- DirectorCharles LaughtonStarsRobert MitchumShelley WintersLillian GishA self-proclaimed preacher marries a gullible widow whose young children are reluctant to tell him where their real dad hid the $10,000 he'd stolen in a robbery.I cant decide who can be creepier Mitchum or DeNiro
- DirectorAndrew L. StoneStarsJoseph CottenTeresa WrightJonathan HaleA Los Angeles bank assistant-manager devises a plan to steal money from the bank's vault and to flee to Brazil with his unsuspecting wife.Edge of your seat thriller
- DirectorAndré De TothStarsGene NelsonSterling HaydenPhyllis KirkReformed parolee Steve Lacey is caught in the middle when a wounded former cellmate seeks him out for shelter.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsAnne BaxterRichard ConteAnn SothernA telephone operator ends up drunk and at the mercy of a cad in his apartment. The next morning she wakes up with a hangover and the terrible fear she may have committed murder.Polyenesian Pearl Divers
- DirectorRichard FleischerWilliam Cameron MenziesStarsCharles McGrawMarie WindsorJacqueline WhiteA woman planning to testify against the mob must be protected against potential assassins on the train trip from Chicago to Los Angeles.
- DirectorKinji FukasakuStarsRobert HortonLuciana PaluzziRichard JaeckelAfter destroying a giant asteroid heading towards Earth, a group of scientists unknowingly bring back a strange green substance that soon mutates into a monster.
- DirectorFelix E. FeistStarsLee J. CobbJane WyattJohn DallA veteran homicide detective who has witnessed his socialite girlfriend kill her husband sees his newly-minted detective brother assigned to the case alongside him.
- DirectorJoseph H. LewisStarsJohn DallPeggy CumminsBerry KroegerTwo disturbed young people release their fascination with guns through a crime spree.
- DirectorJules DassinStarsBarry FitzgeraldHoward DuffDorothy HartA step-by-step look at a murder investigation on the streets of New York.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliStarsKatharine HepburnRobert TaylorRobert MitchumMiddle-aged bride Ann Hamilton soon begins to suspect that her charming husband is really a psychotic who plans to murder her.
- DirectorA. Edward SutherlandStarsRonald ReaganJoan PerryJames GleasonAn investigative crime reporter helps the cops solve the case of a missing tycoon who's later found dead in a cheap boarding house.
- DirectorMarcel CamusStarsBreno MelloMarpessa DawnLourdes de OliveiraA retelling of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth, set during the time of the Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro.
- DirectorOrson WellesStarsOrson WellesEdward G. RobinsonLoretta YoungAn investigator from the War Crimes Commission travels to Connecticut to find an infamous Nazi.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsRobert MitchumBarbara Bel GeddesRobert PrestonUnemployed cowhand Jim Garry is hired by his dishonest friend Tate Riling as muscle in a dispute between homesteaders and cattleman John Lufton.
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsFurankî SakaiHiroshi KoizumiKyôko KagawaAn expedition to Infant Island uncovers a native tribe and twin tiny fairy priestesses of a mythical deity, who sets out to rescue the pair after they are kidnapped by a greedy businessman.
- DirectorEarl McEvoyStarsEvelyn KeyesCharles KorvinWilliam BishopPolice seek a smuggler while doctors, unaware she's the same person, desperately comb unprotected New York for a smallpox carrier.
- DirectorElia KazanStarsRichard WidmarkPaul DouglasBarbara Bel GeddesA doctor and a policeman in New Orleans have only 48 hours to locate a killer infected with pneumonic plague.
- DirectorJack StarrettStarsTamara DobsonBernie CaseyBrenda SykesDuring the 1970s, U.S. Special Agent Cleopatra Jones proves to be an invaluable asset to the local police forces in the war on drugs.
- DirectorElia KazanStarsKarl MaldenCarroll BakerEli WallachAn immature, naive teenage bride holds her anxious husband at bay while flirting with an amorous Sicilian farmer.All around creepy well done Karl Malden
- DirectorGeorge MarshallStarsAlan LaddVeronica LakeWilliam BendixAn ex-bomber pilot is suspected of murdering his unfaithful wife.
- DirectorRoger CormanStarsSusan CabotAnthony EisleyBarboura MorrisThe head of a major cosmetics company experiments on herself with a youth formula made from royal jelly extracted from wasps, but the formula's side effects have deadly consequences.Perfect late 50's sci fi
- DirectorCecil B. DeMilleStarsKay JohnsonReginald DennyLillian RothAngela and Bob Brooks are an upper-class couple. Unfortunately, Bob is an unfaithful husband, but Angela has a plan to win back her husband's affections.Such an odd pre code film Very Art Deco
- DirectorSeth HoltBasil DeardenStarsGeorge NaderMaggie SmithBernard LeeIn London, a Canadian serving prison time for grand theft escapes prison and attempts to retrieve his loot, kept in a bank safety deposit box, but his accomplice takes the security key while he only has the pass code.
- DirectorGeorge BeckStarsFarley GrangerShelley WintersWilliam DemarestWhen a cute Welsh terrier follows Bill Denny home, little does he know that all gangland has its eye on that dog. Who will be bumbling Bill's undoing - the gangsters, the cops, or his suspicious mother-in-law?
- DirectorRichard BrooksStarsHumphrey BogartJune AllysonKeenan WynnSet in Korea and made during the war, this is the love story of a hard-bitten Army surgeon, and a new nurse ready to save the world.
- DirectorJerry SchatzbergStarsGene HackmanAl PacinoDorothy TristanAn ex-con drifter with a penchant for brawling is amused by a homeless ex-sailor, so they partner up as they head east together.Perfect roles for Hoffman and Hackman
- DirectorLewis SeilerStarsHumphrey BogartGale PageBilly HalopYouthful tough Johnnie Stone has fallen under the influence of petty crook Frank Wilson, who involves him and robbery and murder using his sister's boyfriend's stolen gun.
- DirectorVincent ShermanStarsGeorge BrentVirginia BruceBrenda MarshallAssistant District Attorney Stephen Forbes, an impressive orator with a long list of convictions, resigns when an innocent boy is convicted and the real murderer confesses too late. He opens a cheap law office and his secretary Joan Reed goes with him. Business is bad until he ties up with J.B. Roscoe, the contact man between city hall and the underworld. Forbes moves to a swanky office and adds two people to his staff - his younger brother John, who he helped through law school, and Celia Farraday. Celia helps John win his first case and the two fall in love. John realizes his brother's firm isn't honest and wants to break the underworld contact. He opens Steve's safe for federal authorities hunting evidence against Roscoe. But the latter plants enough circumstantial evidence against John that the latter is convicted of murder and sent to death row.
- DirectorTim WhelanStarsSpencer TracyJames StewartVirginia BruceWhen a crooked businessman is fatally shot, a hotshot New York newspaper reporter specializing in murder stories narrows in on the dead man's associate.
- DirectorVictor SchertzingerStarsMarian MarshReginald DennyRichard BennettSocialite banker Henry Judson maintains his extravagant lifestyle by embezzling from his bank, but is caught by sleazy assistant manager Waters and is blackmailed by him into continuing. Close to being found out, the two devise a scheme which sends Wally, the ex-con boyfriend of pretty hat check girl Rose Abbott, to death row.
- DirectorSamuel BischoffStarsHoward PhillipsPreston FosterGeorge E. StoneAn innocent man sentenced to death gets caught up in a prison riot.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsEdward G. RobinsonVivienne OsborneGuy KibbeeA condemned murderer, in the process of being executed, relives the events that led to his being sentenced to die in the electric chair.
- DirectorRoy Ward BakerStarsRichard WidmarkMarilyn MonroeAnne BancroftAfter being dumped by his girlfriend, an airline pilot pursues a babysitter in his hotel and gradually realizes she's dangerous.
- DirectorJack BernhardStarsPreston FosterBelitaPierre WatkinDespite her pleas of innocence, an honest cop arrests his own girlfriend for her alleged part in a jewel robbery and he keeps hounding her after her release from prison, even though he still loves her.
- DirectorRobert StevensonStarsJane RussellVictor MatureVincent PriceThe arrival in Las Vegas of a businessman and his glamorous wife creates a complex web of murder and deceit.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsJohn GarfieldPatricia NealPhyllis ThaxterAn otherwise moral captain of a charter boat becomes financially strapped and is drawn into illegal activities in order to keep up payments on his boat.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsDana AndrewsJoan FontaineSidney BlackmerA novelist aided by his future father-in-law conspires to frame himself for the murder of a burlesque dancer as part of an effort to ban capital punishment.
- DirectorNicholas RayStarsMel FerrerJoan FontaineRobert RyanA woman's attempt to appear innocent and sweet clashes with her lover, who sees through her act, and the wealthy man she tries to trick into marrying her.
- DirectorGeorges FranjuStarsPierre BrasseurAlida ValliJuliette MaynielA surgeon causes an accident which leaves his daughter disfigured and goes to extreme lengths to give her a new face.Hey Billy Idol
- DirectorGeorge CukorStarsJoan CrawfordMelvyn DouglasConrad VeidtA female blackmailer with a disfiguring facial scar meets a plastic surgeon who offers her the possibility of looking like a normal woman.
- DirectorArchie MayoStarsPaul MuniAnne BaxterClaude RainsThe Devil arranges for a deceased gangster to return to Earth as a well-respected judge to make up for his previous life.
- DirectorFrank BorzageStarsRobert TaylorRuth HusseyWalter PidgeonA rookie flyer, Ens. Alan Drake, joins the famous Hellcats Squadron right out of flight school in Pensacola. He doesn't make a great first impression when he is forced to ditch his airplane and parachute to safety when he arrives at the base but is unable to land due to heavy fog. On his first official outing, his poor shooting skills results in the Hellcats losing an air combat competition. His fellow pilots accept him anyway but they think he's crossed the line when they erroneously conclude that while their CO Bill Gary is away, Drake has a purported affair with his wife Lorna. Drake is now an outcast and is prepared to resign from the Navy but his extreme heroism in saving Bill Gary's life turns things around.
- DirectorClifford OdetsStarsRita HayworthAnthony FranciosaGig YoungCourtroom drama about an adulterous pair who is charged with murdering the outraged husband of the cheating woman.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsSteve BrodieAudrey LongRaymond BurrA young married couple flee both the police and a gangster out for revenge.
- DirectorRichard FleischerStarsWilliam LundiganDorothy PatrickJeff CoreyAn obsessed cop tracks an elusive serial killer who strangles his victims on rainy nights.
- DirectorGeorge PalStarsTony RandallBarbara EdenArthur O'ConnellA mysterious circus comes to a western town bearing wonders and characters that entertain the inhabitants and teach valuable lessons.
- DirectorGeorge MarshallStarsBob HopePhyllis DillerJonathan WintersA bank teller is suspected of embezzlement and goes on the run with his seven children.
- DirectorAnthony AsquithStarsIngrid BergmanRex HarrisonShirley MacLaineAnthology movie about three owners of a yellow Rolls-Royce. A British diplomat buys the car for his French wife. A mobster's girlfriend has an affair in Italy. An American woman drives a Yugoslavian partisan
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsRobert TaylorLana TurnerEdward ArnoldThe step-daughter of a district attorney falls in love with a gangster on parole who her father originally imprisoned.
- DirectorCurtis BernhardtStarsJoan CrawfordVan HeflinRaymond MasseyAfter being found wandering the streets of Los Angeles, a severely catatonic woman tells a doctor the complex story of how she wound up there.
- DirectorFrank McDonaldStarsGlenda FarrellBarton MacLaneWini ShawFemale reporter Torchy Blane teams with her cop boyfriend Lt. Steve McBride to solve the killing of an investor who just bought a popular local nightclub.
- DirectorJack WebbStarsJack WebbDon DubbinsJackie LougheryA no-nonsense Drill Instructor is convinced that he can make a recruit, that is haunted by his family combat history and who falters under pressure, into a Marine.
- DirectorLloyd BaconByron HaskinRaoul WalshStarsHumphrey BogartRaymond MasseyAlan HaleAn American tanker is sunk by a German U-boat, and the survivors spend 11 days at sea on a raft. Their next assignment - bound for Murmansk through the sub-stalked N. Atlantic.
- DirectorTay GarnettStarsRobert TaylorGeorge MurphyLloyd NolanIn 1942, in the Bataan peninsula of the Philippines, a ragtag American unit commanded by Sergeant Bill Dane attempts to blow-up a bridge in order to slow the Japanese advance.
- DirectorEdward DmytrykStarsJohn WayneAnthony QuinnBeulah BondiIn 1942, after the fall of the Philippines to the Japanese, U.S. Army Col. Joseph Madden stays behind to organize the local resistance against the Japanese invaders.
- DirectorJohn FordRobert MontgomeryStarsRobert MontgomeryJohn WayneDonna ReedA Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II.
- DirectorJulien DuvivierStarsCharles BoyerRita HayworthGinger RogersA formal tailcoat that gets passed from one owner to another affects each life in a significant way.
- DirectorEdward DmytrykStarsArthur FranzAdolphe MenjouGerald MohrA sniper kills young brunettes as the police attempt to grapple with the psychology of the unknown assailant.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsEdward G. RobinsonJoan BennettRaymond MasseyWhen a conservative middle aged professor engages in a relationship with a femme fatale, he's plunged into a nightmarish world of blackmail and murder.
- DirectorAlfred SantellStarsBarbara StanwyckHerbert MarshallGlenda FarrellTexan debutante Valentine Ransome tries to reform a bankrupt playboy.
- DirectorEdwin L. MarinStarsRobert MontgomeryRosalind RussellReginald OwenRare booksellers Joel and Garda Sloane are engaged to find who is stealing rare books from a private library.
- DirectorStanley KubrickStarsSterling HaydenColeen GrayVince EdwardsCrook Johnny Clay assembles a five-man team to plan and execute a daring racetrack robbery.
- DirectorArchie MayoStarsTyrone PowerAnne BaxterDana AndrewsA submarine lieutenant and his commander fall in love with the same girl.
- DirectorDavid BradleyStarsGeorge MurphyNancy ReaganBilly GrayIn an idyllic setting, a likable but dangerously volatile twelve-year-old boy tries to settle a score with his disagreeable, mysterious neighbor.
- DirectorDon HartmanStarsRobert MitchumJanet LeighWendell CoreyA young widow is torn between a boring attorney and a romantic ne'er-do-well.
- DirectorNorman TaurogStarsCary GrantBetsy DrakeLurene TuttleNew Jersey couple Anna and Poppy Rose become foster parents to several kids born into less fortunate circumstances, including a desperately unhappy 13-year-old girl and a physically handicapped boy with a penchant for getting into serious trouble.
- DirectorAllan DwanStarsDana AndrewsJane PowellDon DubbinsTwo 19th-century sailors jump ship only to discover their tropical paradise is a cannibal stronghold.
- DirectorDan MilnerStarsTod AndrewsTina CarverLinda WatkinsA wrongfully accused South Seas prince is executed, and returns as a walking tree stump.Any movie with live trees as characters in it are creepy
- DirectorIrving PichelErnest B. SchoedsackStarsJoel McCreaFay WrayLeslie BanksA psychotic big game hunter deliberately strands a luxury yacht on a remote island, where he begins to hunt its passengers for sport.
- DirectorMichael CarrerasLeslie NormanStarsEric PorterHildegard KnefSuzanna LeighThe captain, crew, and passengers of an old freighter-all of them with dark secrets to keep-find themselves adrift in a mysterious land full of monsters, conquistadors, and killer seaweed.
- DirectorFrank BorzageStarsClark GableJoan CrawfordIan HunterConvicts escaping from Devil's Island come under the influence of a strange Christ-like figure (Ian Hunter).
- DirectorAlfred E. GreenStarsWilliam BendixDennis O'KeefeBarbara BrittonAn insurance company investigator goes to a small town to probe into a case of supposed suicide. The natives are not very cooperative and some turn hostile, leading to suspicion of foul play.
- DirectorKen AnnakinStarsLeslie PhillipsStanley BaxterWilfrid Hyde-WhiteForsdyke, a pathological petty thief subjects himself to a strict correction course run by a wealthy ex-con Widdowes and his Crooks Anonymous organization. Forsdyke's young and innocent girlfriend Babette, holds the hopes for his recovery and promises that she'll marry him if he'll reform. However, Forsdyke loses control when he's locked in a department store over Christmas.
- DirectorRobert MontgomeryStarsRobert MontgomeryAudrey TotterLloyd NolanThe lady editor of a crime magazine hires Phillip Marlowe to find the wife of her boss. The private detective soon finds himself involved in murder.
- DirectorCharles DavidStarsDeanna DurbinRalph BellamyDavid BruceIn New York, a woman who partially witnesses a killing from a train window seeks the aid of a crime novelist to solve the murder.
- DirectorCarol ReedStarsOrson WellesJoseph CottenAlida ValliPulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, Harry Lime.
- DirectorGeorge StevensStarsCary GrantJoan FontaineVictor McLaglenIn 19th century India, three British soldiers and a native waterbearer must stop a secret mass revival of the murderous Thuggee cult before it can rampage across the land.
- DirectorJules DassinStarsRichard ConteValentina CorteseLee J. CobbA war veteran turned truck driver attempts to avenge the crippling and robbing of his father at the hands of an amoral produce scofflaw.
- DirectorMaury DexterStarsBobby VintonPatricia MorrowJackie DeShannonA young girl travels to California with a couple of friends in order to visit her brother. After they arrive it doesn't take long for them to get into the swing of things and also to attract the attention of the local police sergeant.
- DirectorRené CardonaStarsJosé Elías MorenoCesáreo Quezadas 'Pulgarcito'José Luis Aguirre 'Trotsky'With Merlin's aid, Santa Claus must defeat the evil machinations of the devil Pitch to ruin Christmas.
- DirectorNicholas RayIda LupinoStarsIda LupinoRobert RyanWard BondRough city cop Jim Wilson is disciplined by his captain and is sent upstate, to a snowy mountain town, to help the local sheriff solve a murder case.
- DirectorEugene FordeStarsLloyd NolanLynn BariMary Beth HughesMike Shayne tries to distinguish criminals from red herrings as he escorts a surprise witness via rail to a high profile trial in San Francisco.
- DirectorLloyd BaconStarsMerle OberonDennis MorganRita HayworthA married reporter's assignments carry him all over the world, which gives him ample opportunity to put the moves on the local females. He's in Lisbon attempting his latest "conquest" when he gets word that his wife back home has found another man and is divorcing him. Panicking, he heads back to the US to try to patch things up, but the girl from Lisbon follows him back, determined to take advantage of the situation.
- DirectorRoy Del RuthStarsDon DeForeAnn HardingCharles RugglesTwo homeless men move into a mansion while its owners are wintering in the South.Comfort food movie Overlooked Christmas flick
- DirectorFrank TashlinStarsDick PowellDebbie ReynoldsAnne FrancisA Hollywood screenwriter takes in a runaway girl who's more woman than he can handle.
- DirectorMaury DexterStarsRon FosterMerry AndersRichard CraneAn architect and his wife encounter bizarre occurrences as they survey a mansion built by an eccentric heiress.
- DirectorGeorge CukorStarsSpencer TracyKatharine HepburnRichard WhorfJournalist Steve O'Malley (Spencer Tracy) wants to write a biography of a national hero who died when his car ran off a bridge. Steve receives conflicting reports and tales that make him question what the truth about the hero is.
- DirectorDelmer DavesStarsVictor MatureSusan HaywardMichael RennieIn first-century Rome, Christian slave Demetrius is sent to fight in the gladiatorial arena and Emperor Caligula seeks Jesus' robe for its alleged magical powers.
- DirectorWilliam DieterleStarsBette DavisDonald WoodsMargaret LindsayThe lifestyles of Arlene and Valkyr Bradford, half-sisters from a respected San Francisco family, diverge markedly as Arlene takes up with criminals.
- DirectorJohn CromwellStarsDorothy McGuireRobert YoungHerbert MarshallA plain maid and a wounded war veteran are transformed by their love for each other while residing in an enchanted honeymoon cottage.
- DirectorRobert Ellis MillerStarsAlan ArkinSondra LockeChuck McCannWhen deaf-mute Singer moves to a new town to be near his hospitalized friend, he makes an indelible impression on the lives of those around him.
- DirectorNicholas RayStarsHumphrey BogartGloria GrahameFrank LovejoyA potentially violent screenwriter is a murder suspect until his lovely neighbor clears him. However, she soon starts to have her doubts.
- DirectorFred ZinnemannStarsVan HeflinRobert RyanJanet LeighAn embittered, vengeful POW stalks his former commanding officer who betrayed his men's planned escape attempt from a Nazi prison camp.
- DirectorRicardo CortezStarsJean RogersRaymond WalburnMarjorie RambeauNew York store clerk (Ford) joins a hobo (Conte) and an illegal immigrant (Rogers) heading for his newly bought land in Arizona.
- DirectorArchie MayoStarsBenny GoodmanBenny Goodman and His OrchestraLinda DarnellAfter their annual free concert at Chicago's Dearborn Settlement, Benny Goodman and his band are packing up to move on to their next engagement at a military camp, when a kid, Tony Birch, steals Goodman's clarinet. Goodman and Popsie pursue him to a tenement flat where he has led them to hear his brother, Johnny Birch, play the trombone. Goodman offers him a job, over Popsie's protest, with the band. Aboard the train, Johnny accidentally enters the compartment of the band's singer, Pat Sterling, and gets his face slapped. At the military camp, which turns out to be a boy's military academy (which accounts for juvenile players such as Dickie Moore and Harry McKin running around with such titles as General and Major), Goodman finds a real audience in the jive-mad, jitterbug kids. Masquerading as a sweet, 16-year-old girl friend of one of the cadets who is, in reality, her nephew, Trudy Wilson meets her old friend Goodman who introduces her to Johnny, whose music she admired. However, Johnny brushes her off, thinking she is just a kid. Months later, while practicing for their opening at the exclusive Leopard Room in NYC, Johnny runs into Trudy, and is furious that she has followed him to New York. Pat tells Johnny that Trudy is the débutante daughter of Norman Wilson, who runs the symphony association. Johnny decides she is out of his league but they fall for each other when he invites her to a jam session. At a swank party at Trudy's house, where Goodman plays the Mozart Quintet, one of the snobbish guests makes a remark when Johnny's brother Tony, sister Helen and his mother suddenly appear. A brawl ensues and Johnny, feeling he has disgraced himself in front of Trudy, flings his resignation at Goodman and stalks out. Pat's manager gets her to break with Goodman, sets up Johnny as a name band, and hires the Goodman band to join.
- DirectorJohn SturgesStarsBurt LancasterKirk DouglasRhonda FlemingLawman Wyatt Earp and outlaw Doc Holliday form an unlikely alliance which culminates in their participation in the legendary Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliStarsTony CurtisDebbie ReynoldsPat BooneWomanizing Charlie is shot by an angry husband and falls in the sea. He arrives home after his memorial as a cute, amnesic woman. His old friend helps her/him.