Best Movies of the 1940s: Top 20 Films Ranked

Ranked

What Are the Best Movies of the 1940s?

Citizen Kane and The Third Man follow Casablanca. Drama is the most common genre in the top 20 (15 films). George Cukor and John Ford each have 2 films on the list. Ranked by a blend of Metascore and IMDb/Letterboxd user ratings (Echo Scores start with 2017 releases).

1. Casablanca 100 Metascore (Metascore 100 out of 100 (18 critic reviews))

1943 · Drama, Romance · 1h 42m

Dir. Michael Curtiz No Echo Score: ranked 96/100 on critics & audiences
2. Citizen Kane 100 Metascore (Metascore 100 out of 100 (19 critic reviews))

1941 · Drama, Mystery · 1h 59m

No Echo Score: ranked 94/100 on critics & audiences
3. The Third Man 97 Metascore (Metascore 97 out of 100)

1949 · Mystery, Thriller · 1h 44m

Dir. Carol Reed No Echo Score: ranked 93/100 on critics & audiences
3. The Maltese Falcon 97 Metascore (Metascore 97 out of 100)

1941 · Mystery, Film-Noir · 1h 40m

No Echo Score: ranked 93/100 on critics & audiences
5. Gone with the Wind 97 Metascore (Metascore 97 out of 100 (19 critic reviews))

1940 · Drama, History · 3h 58m

Dir. George Cukor No Echo Score: ranked 92/100 on critics & audiences
6. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre 98 Metascore (Metascore 98 out of 100)

1948 · Adventure, Drama · 2h 6m

No Echo Score: ranked 92/100 on critics & audiences
7. Double Indemnity 95 Metascore (Metascore 95 out of 100 (18 critic reviews))

1944 · Drama, Mystery · 1h 47m

Dir. Billy Wilder No Echo Score: ranked 92/100 on critics & audiences
8. The Grapes of Wrath 96 Metascore (Metascore 96 out of 100)

1940 · Drama, History · 2h 9m

Dir. John Ford No Echo Score: ranked 91/100 on critics & audiences
9. The Shop Around the Corner 96 Metascore (Metascore 96 out of 100)

1940 · Drama, Comedy · 1h 39m

Dir. Ernst Lubitsch No Echo Score: ranked 91/100 on critics & audiences
10. The Best Years of Our Lives 93 Metascore (Metascore 93 out of 100)

1946 · Drama, Romance · 2h 50m

Dir. William Wyler No Echo Score: ranked 90/100 on critics & audiences
10. Going My Way 90 Metascore (Metascore 90 out of 100 (6 critic reviews))

1944 · Drama, Comedy · 2h 6m

Dir. Leo McCarey No Echo Score: ranked 90/100 on critics & audiences
10. The Lady Eve 96 Metascore (Metascore 96 out of 100)

1941 · Comedy, Romance · 1h 34m

Dir. Preston Sturges No Echo Score: ranked 90/100 on critics & audiences
13. The Philadelphia Story 96 Metascore (Metascore 96 out of 100)

1940 · Comedy, Romance · 1h 52m

Dir. George Cukor No Echo Score: ranked 89/100 on critics & audiences
14. It's a Wonderful Life 89 Metascore (Metascore 89 out of 100 (17 critic reviews))

1947 · Drama, Fantasy · 2h 10m

Dir. Frank Capra No Echo Score: ranked 89/100 on critics & audiences
15. Notorious 100 Metascore (Metascore 100 out of 100 (17 critic reviews))

1946 · Drama, Thriller · 1h 41m

Dir. Alfred Hitchcock No Echo Score: ranked 87/100 on critics & audiences
16. Meet Me in St. Louis 94 Metascore (Metascore 94 out of 100 (18 critic reviews))

1945 · Drama, Comedy · 1h 53m

Dir. Vincente Minnelli No Echo Score: ranked 87/100 on critics & audiences
16. Brief Encounter 92 Metascore (Metascore 92 out of 100 (16 critic reviews))

1946 · Drama, Romance · 1h 26m

Dir. David Lean No Echo Score: ranked 87/100 on critics & audiences
18. White Heat 89 Metascore (Metascore 89 out of 100)

1949 · Action, Drama · 1h 54m

Dir. Raoul Walsh No Echo Score: ranked 87/100 on critics & audiences
19. Pinocchio 99 Metascore (Metascore 99 out of 100)

1940 · Fantasy, Comedy · 1h 28m

Dir. Ben Sharpsteen No Echo Score: ranked 86/100 on critics & audiences
19. They Were Expendable 86 Metascore (Metascore 86 out of 100)

1945 · Drama, War · 2h 15m

Dir. John Ford No Echo Score: ranked 86/100 on critics & audiences

Year by year

The 1940s Year by Year: Releases and Best Picture

1940 has the most releases on the site (578). 6 Best Picture winners of the 1940s are recorded, starting with Gone with the Wind (1940). Box office records of this era are mostly later re-releases, so no grosses are quoted. Each year links to its own ranking.

Every year of the 1940s: releases on the site and the Oscar Best Picture winner released that year
Year	Releases	Best Picture winner
1940	Releases: 578	Best Picture winner Gone with the Wind Oscars 1940
1941	Releases: 572	Best Picture winner How Green Was My Valley Oscars 1942
1942	Releases: 566	None recorded
1943	Releases: 508	Best Picture winner Casablanca Oscars 1944
1944	Releases: 466	Best Picture winner Going My Way Oscars 1945
1945	Releases: 453	None recorded
1946	Releases: 436	Best Picture winner The Best Years of Our Lives Oscars 1947
1947	Releases: 503	None recorded
1948	Releases: 559	Best Picture winner Hamlet Oscars 1948
1949	Releases: 571	None recorded

#1 of each year

The Best-Rated Movie of Every Year, 1940–1949

Gone with the Wind (1940), Citizen Kane (1941), The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) and 7 more years: the best-rated film of each year of the 1940s. Ranked by a blend of Metascore and IMDb/Letterboxd user ratings (Echo Scores start with 2017 releases).

Awards

The Most-Awarded Movies of the 1940s

Going My Way (1944) leads the 1940s with 10 wins from 13 nominations, ahead of Gone with the Wind (9 wins). Films of the decade won 102 awards in all.

Going My Way 10 / 13
1944 · Drama, Comedy · 10 wins from 13 nominations Won at Golden Globes, Oscars
Gone with the Wind 9 / 14
1940 · Drama, History · 9 wins from 14 nominations Won at Oscars
Hamlet 8 / 13
1948 · Drama · 8 wins from 13 nominations Won at BAFTA, Oscars
The Best Years of Our Lives 8 / 8
1946 · Drama, Romance · 8 wins from 8 nominations Won at Golden Globes, Oscars
How Green Was My Valley 5 / 10
1941 · Drama, Family · 5 wins from 10 nominations Won at Oscars
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre 5 / 7
1948 · Adventure, Drama · 5 wins from 7 nominations Won at Oscars
Miracle on 34th Street 5 / 5
1947 · Drama, Comedy · 5 wins from 5 nominations Won at Golden Globes, Oscars
The Naked City 4 / 7
1948 · Drama, Mystery · 4 wins from 7 nominations Won at Oscars

Genres

What Genres Defined the 1940s?

Comedy is the biggest genre of the 1940s with 1,944 films (37% of the decade's films), then Drama (36%) and Romance (17%). A film can have several genres, so the shares add up to more than 100%.

Directors

Who Directed the Most Films of the 1940s?

Michael Curtiz made 19 notable films in the 1940s, the best-rated being Casablanca; Raoul Walsh follows with 18. Counted over feature films with ratings, box office or awards.

Michael Curtiz 19 films
Best: Casablanca (1943)
Raoul Walsh 18 films
Best: White Heat (1949)
Sam Wood 12 films
Best: Gone with the Wind (1940)
Alfred Hitchcock 11 films
Best: Notorious (1946)
Robert Siodmak 11 films
Best: The Killers (1946)
George Cukor 10 films
Best: Gone with the Wind (1940)
John Ford 10 films
Best: The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
Mervyn LeRoy 10 films
Best: Waterloo Bridge (1940)

Every decade

Best Movies by Decade

10 decades ranked, from the 1930s to the 2020s. Each has its year-by-year table and its own top films.

FAQ

Best Movies of the 1940s: Questions & Answers

Quick answers about the 1940s' best-rated films and Best Picture winners, from the lists above.

What is the best movie of the 1940s?

Casablanca (1943) is the best-rated film of the 1940s on What's After the Movie, with a rank value of 96/100 from critics and audiences. Citizen Kane (1941) is second and The Third Man (1949) third. Ranked by a blend of Metascore and IMDb/Letterboxd user ratings (Echo Scores start with 2017 releases).

About Casablanca

Which 1940s movies won Best Picture?

Gone with the Wind (1940), How Green Was My Valley (1941), Casablanca (1943), Going My Way (1944), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) and Hamlet (1948); the site has no Best Picture winner recorded for 1942, 1945, 1947 and 1949.

Which 1940s film won the most awards?

Going My Way (1944), with 10 wins from 13 nominations recorded on the site.

How many movies from the 1940s are on the site?

5,212 films released from 1940 to 1949, the most in 1940 (578). 114 of them are ranked.

How are the best movies of the 1940s ranked?

Ranked by a blend of Metascore and IMDb/Letterboxd user ratings (Echo Scores start with 2017 releases). Only feature films count (60 minutes or longer, no concert recordings), and a film needs enough ratings, box office or award attention to be ranked.

Best Movies of the 1940s: Top Films Year by Year