It’s the beginning of a new decade. And honestly, this was a let down of a year. Not all the movies nominated this year were bad, but considering it had to follow up 1939, it doesn’t inspire confidence. Some of the films on this list are absolute classics, but they are the minority. Most of the films nominated were boring and pretty lifeless in terms of story and direction. While I didn’t hate this year for the nominations, it was a disappointment.
1.The Great Dictator (1940):
The film where Charlie Chaplin essentially plays Adolf Hitler is one of the funniest and most heartfelt films ever made. I wrote about this movie a while back and I still believe it to be not only one of Chaplin’s best, but also one of the best comedies of all time. It’s funny, dark, sad, and inspiring all in one movie. At a time when no one was taking pot shots at Hitler, Chaplin stood up and basically said enough is enough and took him down a peg. For that reason, it goes at the top of this list.
2.The Grapes of Wrath (1940):
This movie is a genuine classic. A family is forced from their home during the Great Depression and have to head west to California to find work and a new life. I really do love this film as it is a harrowing depiction of life during the Great Depression. You see the blood, sweat, and tears from the poor people who have lost everything due to both the Depression and the Dust Bowl hitting them all at once. The Joad family, the family we follow, are incredibly sympathetic. You want to see them find their happy ending, but this world is so cruel that all it does it take from them. With great acting, writing, and especially directing from John Ford, who got an Oscar for this film, it’s a sad, yet sometimes hopeful film that will stick with you thanks to its strong characters and compelling story.
3.Foreign Correspondent (1940):
This is a wartime thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock about a crime reporter sent over to Europe and gets sucked into a secret spy mission. This was Hitchcock’s first real American film as it isn’t too bad. It has all the usual Hitchcock hallmarks such as suspenseful moments, thrilling chases on top of tall buildings, and a mystery that only our hero can solve, even though he has no idea what he is doing. Like The Great Dictator, this was another movie that wasn’t afraid of telling Americans to get off their ass and participate in WWII, since it would eventually affect the whole world. It may not be the best Hitchcock film in the world, but it is a solid one.
4.Rebecca (1940):
Man, Hitchcock had a really good year didn’t he? This is a romantic thriller about two people who get married but the wife if really just a replacement for the mans previous wife, Rebecca. This movie won the Oscar and I honestly don’t know why. It’s just an ok movie with moments of interesting stuff going on. It’s really just an ok romantic movie with some suspenseful things happening in the background. The ending is really good, but it takes so long to get to that point that you start to mentally check out. The acting is really good, but when you have Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier you know you’re in for some good acting. I wish the film was more thrilling and crazy like the ending, but for what it is, this is just an ok film.
5.The Long Voyage Home (1940):
This was better than I expected it to be. It’s about a group of sailors who get drunk and just hang out with each other on their ship. It’s a charming movie with good characters and good acting to boot. I kind of wish it didn’t take a dark turn towards the end as it feels like it comes out of nowhere. I liked it better when they were drunk, flirting with women, and just goofing around. It’s a simple story, but the characters are what make it stand out. Too bad the ending ruins the fun I was having.
6.Kitty Foyle (1940):
This is the movie that won Ginger Rogers her Oscar and she is pretty good in it. I just wish the story of a woman in a love triangle was better. It’s one of those movies that is a romantic drama where the drama is the making of the leading lady. She has to choose between the rich guy she always loved, or the really nice doctor who she starts to fall in love with. It’s super obvious which man she will go for so you’re just waiting for her to choose him. It’s a very melodramatic story with ok characters and pretty good acting all around. I just wish these characters were in a better movie.
7.The Philadelphia Story (1940):
While I think the bottom three movies on this list are technically worse movies, I personally hate this movie the most. It’s a romantic comedy about a newly divorced woman getting married and her ex-husband and some journalist come over for the wedding. It’s an awful comedy with dated writing and bad characters. Katharine Hepburn is the lead and she is as bad as she always is. Her family is worse though as she has a little sister that never shuts the hell up, a creepy uncle who touches her ass at one point, an aloof mother trying to ignore the drama, and a father that does nothing in the story. Her ex-husband, played by Cary Grant is no better as he is a petty asshole who thinks that whatever he says is charming, when in reality he sounds like an asshole. The only character that I liked was James Stewart’s character because I feel sorry for him. He gets dragged into this petty family drama and you hope he gets together with his coworker and not Hepburn. I have a personal hatred for this movie, but at least I do feel something for it. The other movies below it are so much more dull and lifeless that I had no choice but to put this movie here. But if these movies did not exist, this would have been at the bottom for sure.
8.Our Town (1940):
This movie is based off of a famous play about the life of a family from the early 1900s. It certainly feels like a play as most of it takes place in this tiny town, a house, and that’s about it. The acting is nothing special and neither is the direction. Except for the ending which has a really cool dream sequence that is pretty well directed. But this really feels like a stage play as it has narration about the town and it’s people, and it primarily takes place in one or two settings. I found this movie to be pretty boring overall and not worth a watch.
9.The Letter (1940):
Another Bette Davis melodrama about a woman who kills a man, in what she claims as self defense, and during the trial an unflattering letter is presented. Making us believe she might have darker motives. This is a dull courtroom drama where I couldn’t really care about any of the characters. It’s an interesting concept, but it’s a film you can predict at every step of the way. There isn’t much to this film.
10.All This and Heaven Too (1940):
Another Bette Davis melodrama. This one is a period piece about two people who love each other but can’t be together because of reasons. I was so bored by this film. The drama is lame, the acting is just ok, the writing is dull, and the pacing is so slow. I don’t have much to say about this movie either. It was a tedious waste of time. I can’t wait until we go from ten nominations to five in a few more years. But the next list will have another ten nominations that I will have to suffer through.
Movies for 20 Somethings 