Classic Cinema Starter Pack: 4 Pre-1950 Movies for Beginners
Still from Charlie Chaplin’s 1917 short film The Immigrant
The 1910s to 1940s was a golden age of cinema, producing a treasure trove of movies, yet it is an era of film that often gets overlooked nowadays. I, however, have always loved this period of cinema. Well, perhaps always is a bit of a stretch.
I grew up watching old movies with my mom and sister, and I’ll admit that it wasn’t love at first watch for me. As a child, I was bored by their predominantly black-and-white color schemes and put off by the actors’ strange Mid-Atlantic accents, and as for silent films, not even my mother, an ardent lover of classic cinema, could be coaxed into watching them. It was not until my later teenage years that I gained an appreciation for those films that I had grown up watching, and it is only within the last few years that I have come to enjoy silent pictures.
All that is to say, I get it if you have a dismissive, or at best, indifferent attitude toward these movies. I just hope that you can give them a second chance, like I did. And on that note, if you are ready to dip your toes into the early days of the silver screen, here are my recommendations.
It Happened One Night (1934)
©Columbia Pictures/MovieStillsDB
This is one of my favorite movies not just from this period but of all time. Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert dazzle in this Frank Capra classic about a spoiled heiress and pull-no-punches journalist, who despite their best efforts, fall in love. Banter, laughs, and a chemistry-filled romance: It Happened One Night has it all.
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
©Warner Bros. Pictures/MovieStillsDB
Arsenic and Old Lace, which was also directed by Frank Capra (and is another one of my all-time favorite films), is a dark, screwball comedy that features Cary Grant at his comedic height. Grant plays Mortimer Brewster, a self-proclaimed-but-recently-reformed bachelor, who upon visiting his elderly aunts to tell them of his nuptials, discovers a dead body squirreled away in their window seat. He soon learns that the corpse is the handiwork of his aunts, and to make matters worse, it is just one of many. Add to that some unwelcome houseguests, and Mortimer soon finds himself in quite the pickle. With his expressive face and comical mannerisms, Grant shines in this role and will have you in stitches throughout the movie’s entirety.
The Shop around the Corner (1940)
©Metro-Goldwyn Mayer/MovieStillsDB
I couldn’t make a classic movie list without including at least one Jimmy Stewart film, and the one I chose is my favorite of his: The Shop around the Corner. This movie was the inspiration for the 1998 romcom classic You’ve Got Mail, and just like in that film, the plot of The Shop around the Corner revolves around two rivals who are unwittingly one another’s pen pals. It is a charming love story with humor, heart, and of course, a happy ending.
The Immigrant (1917)
This final movie is the one that I spent the most time thinking about. I knew that I wanted to include at least one silent film on this list, and I knew that I wanted it to be a comedy (I find that to be the most accessible type of silent picture). So, with that in mind, I settled on Charlie Chaplin’s short film The Immigrant. At just a hair over 20 minutes, it is a great introduction to those new to silent films; you can dip your toes into the genre without having to commit to an hour-plus-long movie. As for the premise, it follows Chaplin’s trademark character, the Tramp, as he crosses the Atlantic and later, arrives in America. Chaplin’s mastery of visual comedy is on full display in this movie, and you, much like the century-worth of viewers who have come before you, will be left laughing.
And that’s a wrap for my pre-1950, classic cinema starter pack. Have you seen any of these films? If so, let me know in the comments section below!
