The Best Films Ever Made - 1940s - Non-English
The rules: My rating x 3, 6 male/female rating ( 18, 30, 45), 1000 voters rating, US- and Non-US voters rating. Only films with a better rating than 7,00
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- DirectorVittorio De SicaStarsLamberto MaggioraniEnzo StaiolaLianella CarellIn post-war Italy, a working-class man's bicycle is stolen, endangering his efforts to find work. He and his son set out to find it.8,68
- DirectorMarcel CarnéStarsArlettyJean-Louis BarraultPierre BrasseurThe theatrical life of a beautiful courtesan in 1830s Paris and the four men who love her.8,54
- DirectorRoberto RosselliniStarsAnna MagnaniAldo FabriziMarcello PaglieroDuring the Nazi occupation of Rome in 1944, the Resistance leader, Giorgio Manfredi, is chased by the Nazis as he seeks refuge and a way to escape.8,48
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsChishû RyûShûji SanoShin SaburiA schoolteacher struggles to raise his son Ryohei by himself, having neither money nor future prospects.8,42
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsChôko IidaHôhi AokiEitarô OzawaA young boy follows Tashiro home to his tenement housing complex on the outskirts of Tokyo, the boy who was separated from his carpenter father somehow and somewhere in Kudan. All Tashiro knows is that the boy and his father came to town from Chigasaki that morning. Despite Tashiro's want to house the kid until they decide what to do more permanently, Tashiro's roommate, Tamekichi, the tenement's head, won't let the kid stay, not liking children and not wanting to get involved. So Tashiro foists the kid onto their neighbor, the widowed Tane, who too protests, she also not liking children and not wanting to get involved. Tane treats the boy with disdain, which only increases by the next morning due to an overnight incident. Amongst the tenement residents, Tane is charged with going to Chigasaki to see if she can find the father or find out what happened to him. On that trip, what she learns by putting the pieces of the story together is that the father purposefully abandoned the boy as he went off to look for work. This news does not change Tane's outlook or poor treatment of the boy. Nothing changes as the week progresses, however Tane's outlook takes a one hundred eighty degree turn when there is the possibility that she may never see the boy again.8,39
- DirectorLuchino ViscontiStarsClara CalamaiMassimo GirottiDhia CristianiGino, a drifter, begins an affair with inn-owner Giovanna, and they plan to get rid of her older husband.8,28
- DirectorGéza von RadványiStarsArtúr SomlayMiklós GáborZsuzsa BánkiA band of runaways and orphans of the war scour the countryside in search of food and shelter. They invade and then taken in by a musician and former concert pianist who's hiding out in a ruined castle. After the initial altercation between them the gang accepts his guidance and he wins their respect by protecting them from the elements. However, disgruntled townsfolk want to chase away the gang who has been - in their search for survival - laying waste to their crops. A battle ensues ending in the death of a little boy - and resolution.8,23
- DirectorRoberto RosselliniStarsEdmund MoeschkeErnst PittschauIngetraud HinzeA young German boy faces the problems of the tough life in the immediate post-WWII Berlin.8,23
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsChishû RyûSetsuko HaraYumeji TsukiokaSeveral people try to talk 27-year-old Noriko into marrying, but all she wants is to keep on caring for her widowed father.8,12
- DirectorJulien DuvivierStarsViviane RomanceMichel SimonMax DalbanAfter an elderly maid is murdered, opinions are manipulated, evidence is planted, violence erupts, and panic ensues.8,10
- DirectorVittorio De SicaStarsRinaldo SmordoniFranco InterlenghiAnnielo MeleTwo shoeshine boys in postwar Rome, Italy save up to buy a horse, but their involvement as dupes in a burglary lands them in juvenile prison; the experience take a devastating toll on their friendship.8,09
- DirectorGiuseppe De SantisStarsVittorio GassmanDoris DowlingSilvana ManganoTwo criminals on the run end up working in a rice field and decide to recruit other workers for their next robbery.8,08
- DirectorRoberto RosselliniStarsCarmela SazioGar MooreWilliam TubbsAmerican military personnel interact warily with a variety of Italian locals over a year and a half in the push north during the Italian Campaign of WWII as German forces make their retreat.7,98
- DirectorRobert BressonStarsRenée FaureJany HoltSylvieAnne-Marie joins a Dominican convent as a novice where she knows Therese. After shooting a man for which she was imprisoned, Therese protests her innocence, reluctant to tell her secret.7,95
- DirectorJean CocteauRené ClémentStarsJean MaraisJosette DayMila ParélyA beautiful young woman takes her father's place as the prisoner of a mysterious beast, who wishes to marry her.7,93
- DirectorCarl Theodor DreyerStarsThorkild RooseLisbeth MovinSigrid NeiiendamThe young wife of an aging priest falls in love with his son amidst the horror of a merciless witch hunt in 17th-century Denmark.7,88
- DirectorRudolf JugertStarsHans SöhnkerHildegard KnefIrene von MeyendorffA screenwriter comes up with a story about an affair between a maid and her employer7,84
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTakashi ShimuraKeiko AwajiDuring a sweltering summer, a rookie homicide detective tries to track down his stolen Colt pistol.7,83
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTakashi ShimuraMiki SanjôA surgeon gets syphilis from a patient when he cuts himself during an operation. The doctor's life is destroyed, but unlike the patient, he doesn't destroy others along with him.7,82
- DirectorAlf SjöbergStarsStig JärrelAlf KjellinMai ZetterlingAn idealistic adolescent suffering under the thumb of a sadistic schoolmaster falls in love with a loose girl who is bullied and tormented by another lover.7,79
- DirectorWanda JakubowskaStarsWanda BartównaHuguette FagetTatyana GuretskayaFemale prisoners of various ethnic background struggle to survive the hardships of Auschwitz Concentration Camp.7,68
- DirectorJean-Pierre MelvilleStarsHoward VernonNicole StéphaneJean-Marie RobainIn occupied France, an elderly man and his niece are forced to give shelter to a German army lieutenant who seemingly loves their country and culture.7,68
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsKinuyo TanakaShûji SanoChieko MurataA man returns from World War II to find his desperate wife had resorted to one night of prostitution to pay for their son's hospital bills.7,67
- DirectorManoel de OliveiraStarsNascimento FernandesVital dos SantosAntónio PalmaThe story takes place in the old streets of Porto and by the banks of the Douro River. A gang of very young kids has just accepted a new member, Carlitos, a shy boy who has "played it tough" by stealing a doll in a shop. Carlitos soon has a crush on Terezinha, the only girl in the group. The trouble is that Eduardo, the gang boss, is also in love with the pretty girl. And he will not allow any rival to challenge him.7,63
- DirectorJulio BrachoStarsAndrea PalmaPedro ArmendárizAlberto GalánThe disaffected wife of a failed civil servant, is thrilled to re-encounter Octavio, a former lover who is now a union activist on the run from a corrupt politician. Hoping to help him, she descends into the Mexican underworld, where she finds a purpose-and a thrill-missing from her married life.7,62
- DirectorHelmut WeissStarsHeinz RühmannKarin HimboldtHilde SessakA successful writer, home-schooled in his youth, masquerades as a student at a secondary school to experience all the fun and pranks he missed out on.7,61
- DirectorWolfgang StaudteStarsHildegard KnefElly BurgmerErna SellmerAfter returning from a concentration camp, Susanne finds an ex-soldier living in her apartment. Together the two try to move past their experiences during World War II.7,60
- DirectorMu FeiStarsChaoming CuiWei LiYu ShiA lonely housewife finds her monotonous life altered when her childhood sweetheart returns to town.7,58
- DirectorLuchino ViscontiStarsLuchino ViscontiAntonio PietrangeliAntonio ArcidiaconoIn rural Sicily, the fishermen live at the mercy of the greedy wholesalers. One family risks everything to buy their own boat and operate independently.7,56
- DirectorJacques BeckerStarsRoger PigautClaire MafféiNoël RoquevertWorking class couple Antoine and Antoinette dream of a better life. In the midst of constantly fending off the unwanted attention of men, especially the grocer Monsieur Roland, Antoinette purchases a winning lottery ticket. But when Antoine loses their ticket out of poverty, their dreams seem like they'll remain just that.7,55
- DirectorHenri DecoinStarsMichel SimonJany HoltJean WallAn alcoholic doctor accidentally kills someone and manages to make the death look like an accident. The episode triggers a sense of confidence and he resolves to correct the miseries of his life.7,53
- DirectorRoberto GavaldónStarsDolores Del RíoAgustín IrustaVíctor JuncoDolores Del Rio plays a dual role as identical twins - one good and one bad.7,53
- DirectorJacques TatiStarsJacques TatiGuy DecomblePaul FrankeurA village postman with no sense of humour delivers his mail via bicycle on the day the travelling fair comes to town. He is disrupted by a short film about US speed and efficiency and the playful teasing of the village folk.7,53
- DirectorVittorio De SicaStarsEmilio CigoliLuciano De AmbrosisIsa PolaFour-year-old Pricò becomes the subject of emotional folly by his capricious parents and negligent relatives.7,53
- DirectorJuan Bustillo OroStarsCantinflasJoaquín PardavéSara GarcíaThe boyfriend (Cantinflas) of the servant of a rich industrial man, gets into the house in order to kill a mad dog. Suddenly this man appears so the servant tells him that Cantinflas is his wife's brother (Leonardo), who had been lost for years. The rich man then remembers that his father in law's testament could only be paid when all brothers get together, so treats Cantinflas, a real bum, as a king.7,50
- DirectorChristian-JaqueStarsMicheline PresleBerthe BovyLouise ConteTen people fleeing Rouen invaded by the Prussians, Rousset nicknamed ball of tallow among them, give to a Prussian to save other passengers who still despise. However, on later nobody could underestimate her being how brave .7,49
- DirectorMarcel CarnéStarsPierre BrasseurSerge ReggianiYves MontandIt's Paris in the winter after its liberation. A tramp who may also be Destiny predicts that Jean Diego will fall in love with a beautiful girl. That same evening, Jean meets Malou.7,49
- DirectorPietro GermiStarsMassimo GirottiCharles VanelJone SalinasA young, by-the-book judge is appointed to a Sicilian village controlled by corrupt leaders and the Mafia.7,48
- DirectorMaurice TourneurStarsPaul MeurisseSimone SignoretMarcel HerrandStage actress Marianne has decided to give up her career to marry wealthy nobleman Marquis Antoine de Fontaines. As a wedding present, Antoine gives his future wife a precious diamond necklace, which is coveted by a gang of crooks. Jean, one of them, is given the mission to approach Marianne and steal the necklace from her. The only trouble is that when he meets her, she recognizes him as the man she once loved.7,48
- DirectorHenri-Georges ClouzotStarsLouis JouvetSimone RenantBernard BlierA flirtatious wife runs off to meet an older man and the husband closes in with intend to murder him, but finds the deed already done.7,47
- DirectorHelmut KäutnerStarsHannelore SchrothCarl RaddatzGustav KnuthTwo barge skippers fall in love with the same woman.7,46
- DirectorHenri-Georges ClouzotStarsPierre FresnayGinette LeclercMicheline FranceyA French village doctor becomes the target of poison-pen letters sent to village leaders, accusing him of affairs and practicing abortion.7,45
- DirectorRobert BressonStarsPaul BernardMaría CasaresElina LabourdetteA society lady engineers a marriage between her lover and a cabaret dancer who is essentially a prostitute.7,45
- DirectorYves AllégretStarsBernard BlierSimone SignoretMarcello PaglieroDedee is a prostitute who works in Monsieur Rene's nightclub on Antwerp's harbour. The porter is Marco, her pimp. Dedee is not happy until she meets Francesco, an Italian sailor. They fall in love and Dedee starts to dream about escaping her daily dull grind.7,41
- DirectorHelmut KäutnerStarsHans AlbersIlse WernerHans SöhnkerThe film tells the story of the blond "singing sailor" Hannes Kröger who works in a St. Pauli club on the Große Freiheit 7, and falls in love with a girl. But she prefers his rival Willem and Hannes returns to the sea.7,40
- DirectorWolfgang LiebeneinerStarsDieter HornHilde KrahlSylvia SchwarzA young man and a woman about to commit suicide by jumping into a river, recount to each other their experiences of the Second World War and the struggles of the immediate post-war situation.7,39
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsIsao NumasakiChieko NakakitaAtsushi WatanabeDuring a Sunday trip into war-ravaged Tokyo, despairing Yuzo and optimistic Masako look for work and lodging, as well as affordable entertainments to pass the time.7,38
- DirectorMario SoldatiStarsFolco LulliEnrico OlivieriRosi MirafioreA former Fascist takes his son and escapes across the border into France, where he tries to avoid being recognized and having to pay for his wartime crimes.7,38
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsTakashi ShimuraToshirô MifuneReizaburô YamamotoA drunken doctor with a hot temper and a violence-prone gangster with tuberculosis form a quicksilver bond.7,33
- DirectorEmilio FernándezStarsMaría FélixPedro ArmendárizFernando FernándezDuring the Mexican Revolution, a macho rebel general falls in love with the independent-minded daughter of an aristocrat in the town he is occupying.7,32
- DirectorEmilio FernándezStarsMarga LópezMiguel InclánRodolfo AcostaMercedes (Marga Lopez) dances for money with the clients of Salon Mexico, a famous cabaret in Mexico City. Her younger sister Beatriz (Derbez) studies in an expensive private school, paid by Mercedes. Obviously, young Beatriz doesn't know about her sister's job. Troubles begin when Mercedes wins a danzon contest with Paco (Acosta), her pimp. Paco refuses to share the prize with Mercedes, so she steals the money when he's sleeping.7,29
- DirectorKôzaburô YoshimuraStarsSetsuko HaraYumeko AizomeOsamu TakizawaAfter Japan's loss in the war, the wealthy, cultured, liberal Anjo family have to give up their mansion and their way of life. They hold one last ball at the house before leaving. The seemingly cold, cynical son secretly grieves for his defeated father and the values that the war destroyed, while the daughter tries to prevent father from taking his life and to find her own place in the new Japan.7,29
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsSetsuko HaraSusumu FujitaDenjirô ÔkôchiThe daughter of a politically disgraced university professor struggles to find a place for herself in love and life, in the uncertain world of Japan leading into WWII.7,28
- DirectorHenri-Georges ClouzotStarsPierre FresnaySuzy DelairJean TissierInspector Wens moves into a Paris boarding house to catch a serial killer.7,28
- DirectorAleksander FordStarsMieczyslawa CwiklinskaJerzy LeszczynskiWladyslaw GodikThe story of Polish and Jewish families living side by side in one Warsaw street. Everything changes once and for all with the Nazi invasion.7,25
- DirectorYuli RaizmanStarsValentina KaravayevaMikhail KuznetsovD. PankratovaIn 1939, as the air raid sirens sound over Moscow, a young man, Alyosha, falls in love with a telegraph operator called Mashenka.7,25
- DirectorRoberto GavaldónStarsMaría FélixArturo de CórdovaRosario GranadosA artist model who leads the ever hapless Arturo de Córdova away from the arms of his innocent, blue-eyed wife and down, down, down into the ecstatic depths of degradation which include a stop at seedy Panamanian nightclub.7,24
- DirectorRoberto RosselliniStarsAnna MagnaniFederico FelliniPeparuoloIn part one, a heartbroken woman talks to her ex-lover on the phone. In part two, a pregnant woman believes she is carrying the child of Saint Joseph.7,23
- DirectorYves AllégretStarsBernard BlierSimone SignoretJacques BaumerAfter spending all his money to fulfill the smallest wish of his wife Dora, Robert is still madly in love with her. Now she is in agony, and her mother comes. She will reveal to Robert how he has been fooled. Flashbacks show the story through Robert's or his mother-in-law's eyes. Through some flashbacks, we will see the story through Robert's or his mother-in-law's eyes. A very misogynous movie.7,23
- DirectorJean DelannoyStarsMadeleine SologneJean MaraisJean MuratThis is a retelling of Tristan and Isolde, set in 1940s France. The script was written by Jean Cocteau.7,23
- DirectorEmilio FernándezStarsPedro ArmendárizMaría Elena MarquésFernando WagnerThe discovery of a perfect pearl forever changes the lives of a poor Mexican fisherman and his family.7,22
- DirectorRené ClairStarsMaurice ChevalierFrançois PérierMarcelle Derrien1910. A friend leaves his daughter, Madeleine, with Emile a French film producer. Emile falls in love with her. Problems starts when his young friend Jacques returns from military service complaining his misfortune with women. Once he follows Emile's advice to have an affair, he meets Lucette and falls in love with her instead.7,20
- DirectorHenri-Georges ClouzotStarsSerge ReggianiMichel AuclairCécile AubryA classic tale about bitter relationships between a frivolous girl and a soldier is adapted for the post-World War II time.7,18
- DirectorEmilio FernándezStarsDolores Del RíoPedro ArmendárizAlberto GalánIn Xochimilco 1909, María Candelaria and Lorenzo Rafael long for getting married but the odds are against them. María Candelaria is segregated for being a prostitute's child and the couple faces the greed of Mr. Damian, the town's shop owner who secretly desires María. When María falls sick with Malaria, Lorenzo Rafael steals a quinine bottle from Damian's shop, unleashing tragedy for the lovers.7,16
- DirectorMarcel PagnolStarsRaimuFernandelJosette DayA rural maiden's two suitors go off to war, leaving her pregnant.7,15
- DirectorRené ClémentStarsMarcel BarnaultJean ClarieuxJean DaurandRecounts the courageous efforts by French railroad workers who were part of an organized resistance during German World War II occupation.7,15
- DirectorChristian-JaqueStarsLouis JouvetGaby MorlayFrançois PérierA ballet producer returns to his native town and schemes to avenge himself on the family who tried to murder him 20 years before.7,13
- DirectorKurt MaetzigStarsPaul KlingerIlse SteppatAlfred BalthoffIn Nazi Germany actor Hans refuses to divorce his Jewish wife Elisabeth. He is threatened to be drafted and sent to the front while she will be deported to a concentration camp. Desperate, Hans decides that suicide is their only way out.7,13
- DirectorJacques BeckerStarsDaniel GélinBrigitte AuberNicole CourcelHopes and love and ambitions and friendship in a group of young jazz-loving Parisians.7,13
- DirectorSergei EisensteinStarsNikolay CherkasovLyudmila TselikovskayaSerafima BirmanDuring the early part of his reign, Ivan the Terrible faces betrayal from the aristocracy and even his closest friends as he seeks to unite the Russian people.7,11
- DirectorRobert A. StemmleStarsGert FröbeTatjana SaisUte SielischAfter he has luckily survived the war, Otto tries to build up his new life in the remains of Berlin.7,11
- DirectorJacques BeckerStarsFernand LedouxGeorges RollinBlanchette BrunoyIn a lost French village, an old woman is killed and her savings stolen. Several members of her family, all called "Goupi", are suspected.7,11
- DirectorWolfgang StaudteStarsPaul EsserIrene KorbKarl Heinz DeickertThe life of the worker Hans Behnke and his family from 1925 to 1945 in Berlin. Hans ultimately does join the Nazi party, but still shows signs of disagreement with their ideology.7,09
- DirectorLuigi ZampaStarsAldo FabriziGar MooreMirella MontiThe peaceful, almost idyllic life of an Italian village is interrupted during the war by the appearance of two American soldiers who keep hiding in the house of one of the villagers.7,09
- DirectorLuigi ZampaStarsAnna MagnaniNando BrunoAve NinchiA rowdy woman is so forceful that she outdoes her husband in a loud cry against speculators who refuse poor people entrance to a block of new apartments, built after WW2. Without noticing it, she starts a people's movement, and leads a march to the capital. She returns to her village a winner, an honourable MP. Yet, she is still the same simple, fiery woman, able to get in a hair-pulling brawl with the local barmaid for the affection of her man.7,08
- DirectorGiuseppe De SantisStarsVivi GioiAndrea ChecchiCarla Del PoggioImmediately after the war, bandits attack a truck that is transporting newlyweds Michele and Giovanna and the accountant of an agricultural cooperative charged with bringing four million lire into office.7,06
- DirectorIngmar BergmanStarsBarbro KollbergBirger MalmstenGösta CederlundYoung love confronts stupidity and boredom of society.7,01