Best Movies: 1939

The 10 Best Movies of 1939

1.  The Wizard of Oz. Directed by Victor Fleming. Starring Judy Garland. Timeless enchantment, a film so marvelously directed and acted that it has earned its spot as not only one of the great fantasies, but one of the greatest films of all time. It is so wonderful to see Garland before her personal demons took their tolls and it reminds me, at least, of a simpler, happier time, before I experienced the pains of lost family, friends and loved ones. Don't we all wish we could go somewhere over the rainbow? This gets the top rating on this list for one simple reason: It is the only one all three generations of my household marvel at.

2.  Gone With the Wind. Directed by Victor Fleming. Starring Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh. Certainly not the best movie of all time, but one of the most loved. It is soap opera, but, oh, what a lavish production and I guess there's a lesson to be learned here - never repress your passions or you'll wind up with the wrong lover. The movie should not be mistaken for an accurate historical document, but if you hit the pause button on the DVD at almost any time during the film's running time, you will see a piece of art you wouldn't mind hanging in your home.

(Note: The two movies above list Fleming as their director, but he had plenty of help on both films: George Cukor and Sam Wood directed major segments of GWTW and Richard Thorpe, King Vidor and Cukor directed parts of Wizard.)

3.  Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Directed by Frank Capra. Starring Jean Arthur and James Stewart. The moral of this splendid tale is that evil permeates political life when honest men fail to act, but that an ordinary everyman can thwart the march of corruption. Idealistic? Sure. But this film deals with the human element so honestly, it never becomes over-bearing and Stewart gives the performance that made him a star and should have earned him an Oscar. (The Academy gave him a make-up trophy the very next year.)

4.  Wuthering Heights. Directed by William Wyler. Starring Merle Oberon and Laurence Olivier. This is the film to see if you want to watch Olivier at his romantic peak. It's a shame that Oberon didn't have the chops to match his passion. Gregg Toland's photography perfectly re-creates the mood of Emily Bronte's novel, although the period was moved up so that Oberon could legitimately wear fancier clothes. Unfortunately, a DVD of this film is difficult to locate for home viewing.

5.  Ninotchka. Directed by Ernst Lubitsch. Starring Greta Garbo and Melvyn Douglas. The appeal of this film lies in the fact that the movie-going public of the late 1930s had placed Garbo on a pedestal and Lubitsch does a brilliant job of having Garbo voluntarily stepping down from it. It's farcial, romantic and satirical but still features Garbo's unrivaled intensity.

6.  Midnight. Directed by Mitchell Leisen. Starring Claudette Cobert, Don Ameche and John Barrymore. This marvelous screwball comedy is one of the more shamefully overlooked films of the year. This is, without question, Leisen's best film, a well-paced comedy that holds up perfectly today. In my estimation, Cobert is even better here than she was in her 1934 Oscar-winning performance in It Happened One Night.

7.  The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Directed by William Dieterle. Starring Charles Laughton, Cedric Hardwicke, Thomas Mitchell, Maureen O'Hara and Edmond O'Brien. Laughton is absolutely majestic as the misshapen title character who falls in love with the beautiful gypsy girl and Dieterle's direction creates the perfect moody atmosphere for the story.

8.  The Women. Directed by George Cukor. Starring Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Paulette Goddard and Joan Fontaine. I'm betting hard-core feminists hate this film because it seems to claim that all women are interested in is gossip and men, but I like it because it really shows how important female bonding can be.

9.  The Four Feathers. Directed by Zoldan Korda. Starring John Clements and Ralph Richardson. Another one of the all-time great adventure films. This story has been filmed six times, but this is easily the best version. I loved the way Korda directed this film, especially the battle scenes. I also loved the way the movie respects the traditions of military service while taking the opportunity to question them.

10. Stagecoach. Directed by John Ford. Starring Claire Trevor and John Wayne. Ford's best western, the western that made all those that came before it seem immature, the one that influenced most of those that followed it and the movie that made John Wayne a star. What more needs to be said?