Thanks to ongoing advancements in technology and resolution, modern films are more colourful than ever before. Yet there's something to be said for movies shot in black and white.
For proof, look no further than popular, recent films like "Malcolm & Marie," "The Lighthouse," and "Roma." Each used black and white to convey a range of moods and ideas.
Daniel Mainwaring adapted his own novel into this classic film noir. It stars Robert Mitchum as a private eye turned small-town gas station owner, who plunges back into the dangerous world he left behind. The film was remade in 1984 as "Against All Odds" with Jeff Bridges and James Woods. - Runtime: 126 minutes
Using black and white to evoke the atmosphere of the Great Depression, director Peter Bogdanovich brought this award-winning comedic drama to life. The film chronicles the misadventures of travelling grifter Moses Pray , who sells overpriced Bibles to unwitting marks. When a young girl who may or may not be his daughter insists on tagging along, the two form an unlikely partnership.
According to most cinephiles, Italian director Federico Fellini truly hit his stride with this 1954 drama. It tells the story of a travelling showman and his begrudging female captive , who helps with his act. In 1957, it won the inaugural Academy Award for Best Foreign Film.- Votes: 52,622Based on a popular German novel, this 1930 classic is considered the first major anti-war film of the sound era.
Grainy black and white footage brings the Depression era to life in this acclaimed adaptation of John Steinbeck's famous novel. It centers on the Joads, a poor family who move from Oklahoma to California after being forced off their land. Upon their arrival, the Joads realize that California is not the paradise they hoped it would be.
Chronicling the misadventures of an overstressed director, "La Dolce Vita" weaves reality, memory, and fantasy together in a vivid tapestry. Everyone from Woody Allen to Terry Gilliam has cited this film as an influence on their work.- Runtime: 130 minutes The big-screen adaptation of Dashiell Hammett's novel makes for one of cinema's most quintessential examples of film noir. It sees private detective Sam Spade taking on the case of a missing woman. Before long, Spade is embroiled in a plot involving dangerous men, a duplicitous dame, and a priceless statuette.- Votes: 10,870Based on a novel, this surrealist mystery finds a small Hungarian village losing its collective mind when the circus rolls into town.
Religious convictions—or lack thereof—threaten to tear a family apart in this Danish masterpiece. The film is based on a play by Kaj Munk, a Lutheran priest and famous martyr who died at the hands of the Gestapo. It won director Carl Theodor Dreyer the Golden Lion Award at the Venice Film Festival. - Runtime: 101 minutes
Depicting the brutal realities of post-war Italy, this drama follows an elderly Roman man and his dog as they struggle to survive on a government pension. Finding himself alone in a bleak and modern world, the man tries to retain a sense of personal dignity while attending to his most basic needs. It's all presented by Italian neorealist filmmaker Vittorio De Sica with documentary-like authenticity.
Based on the true story of the Scopes Monkey Trial, this Broadway play-turned-film includes lines lifted out of the actual courtroom transcripts. When a teacher is accused of teaching evolution to his class, two lawyers square off in a battle of science versus religion. Both the film and the play are also regarded as thinly veiled attacks on 1950s McCarthyism.- Runtime: 114 minutes
Master filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky loosely chronicles the life of 15th-century icon painter Andrei Rublev in this arthouse drama. Exploring themes of artistic freedom and religious faith amidst a turbulent backdrop, the movie plays out in a series of dreamlike sequences. Due to its negative political undertones, the film was censored in Russia for more than two decades.
Ingmar Bergman was in the hospital with poor health when he wrote this renowned drama about an aging professor who grapples with his own mortality. "Wild Strawberries" was inspired by the Swedish director's personal memories and fears.- Runtime: 95 minutes What begins as a trip to postwar Vienna becomes something far more sinister in this classic film noir. As a struggling novelist tries to find out why his friend Harry Lime was killed, he uncovers a much broader conspiracy. - Runtime: 124 minutes
Culling from a short story collection by Shūgorō Yamamoto as well as a novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky, this Japanese drama centers on the relationship between an honourable doctor and his arrogant new intern. As the two mean deal with a variety of difficult cases, the lives of their patients are explored in episodic fashion.- Runtime: 80 minutes
Charlie Chaplin's first feature-length film centers on his bumbling alter-ego, The Tramp. After taking an abandoned baby under his wing, The Tramp attempts to keep the child against all odds. Blending signature comedy with palpable emotion, the film is often regarded as Chaplin's most personal effort.- Runtime: 110 minutes
This Akira Kurosawa drama was so groundbreaking that it has an entire concept named after it, known as "the Rashomon effect." The film presents a gruesome crime from multiple perspectives, prompting viewers to wonder which version is the truth. It would influence a broad range of popular films over the following decades.- Runtime: 125 minutes
Based on a short story and a popular folk tale before it, this film takes place in medieval Japan. Years after an idealistic governor is banished to a far-off land, his family sets out to find him. Consisting of elaborate long shots, the award-winning film serves as a testament to the power of human perseverance in the face of numerous obstacles. - Runtime: 143 minutes
More than one of the best black and white films of all time, Orson Welles' timeless classic is also considered one of the best movies ever made. It chronicles the rise of newspaper magnate Charles Foster Kane, whose thirst for power seems unquenchable. Something of a commercial failure upon its release, the film is now universally acclaimed.
Representing the debut film from Indian director Satyajit Ray, this low-budget drama kicks off what later became known as the "Apu Trilogy." Set in the 1910s, the film depicts the struggles of young Apu and his impoverished family in a small Indian village. Sitar player Ravi Shankar provided the music. - Runtime: 87 minutes
A perfect script comes to life in this black and white masterpiece, which takes place during the early stages of WWII. Humphrey Bogart stars as nightclub owner Rick Blaine, who lives in Morocco and "sticks [his] neck out for nobody." When a former flame comes seeking help, it sends Blaine into a world of trouble. - Runtime: 109 minutes
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