These are great! I may be old, but I think there are many more great films in B&W than in color. Here are some of mine (in addition to the ones you highlighted) in no particular order: 1. Casablanca 2. Some Like It Hot 3. It's a Wonderful Life 4. It Happened One Night 5. Rashomon 6. The Seven Samurai 7. The Maltese Falcon 8. Arsenic and Old Lace 9. Roman Holiday 10. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington 11. The Big Sleep 12. His Girl Friday 13. My Man Godfrey 14. Bringing Up Baby 15. High Noon 16. The Philadelphia Story 17. The Hustler 18. The Apartment 19. Stagecoach 20. Dr. Strangelove (etc) 21. Harvey 22. The Manchurian Candidate (1962) 23. M 24. The 39 Steps 25. Witness for the Prosecution 26. Judgment at Nuremberg
No disagreement with any of these, as I’ve been fortunate enough to see most of them them either in new 35mm prints or in restored digital presentations. Of course, we can always add to lists like this. The first one that springs to my mind is Fort Apache. For my money, its black-and-white is as stunning as The Searchers’ color.
All great films in GLORIOUS Black and White. The director of cinematography and the film director had to know how to balance light and shadow, camera angles, lenses, film stock to create a great many scenes in these films. They will always look their best in black and white. It is sacrilege to colourize them. Looking forward to another set of these great films. There are so many more from around the world.
My Number One B/W film is Laura. Others in the Top dozen no particular order). 2: Each Dawn I Die: ( Cagney, Bogart and Raft). 3: Manhattan Melodrama ( Powell/Loy and Gabie) 3a: Liabled Lady ( Powell/ Loy, Tracy and Harlow) Ok so I am a Loy fan ( and she is super cool here), but the Trout scene involving Powell perhaps the funniest of the “Golden Age.” 4: 13 West St: Noir at its best 4a: I Wake Up Screaming: As is this one. 5: Ball Of Fire: Check out this talent involved: Cooper, Stanwyck, Duryea, Dana Andrews, written by Wilder Directed by Hawks. 6: Mr. Smith Goes To Washington ( I believe James Stewart’s best). 6a: It’s A Wonderful World: Stewart as a Bogart/Dick Powell type Detective. Co-starring Claudette Colbert. A film on my personal favorites list ( but probably no one else’s). 7: Foreign Correspondent ( My favorite Hitchcock). 8; Two Flags West: Flawless Western ( especially Linda Darnell). 9: Bus Stop ( Marilyn at her best). 10: Maltese Falcon (Maybe the best detective film ever?) 11: Murder My Sweet ( or is it this one? Dick Powell’s finest film)).
You are correct now that I think of it. I will substitute The Glass Key ( Ladd, Lake and Bendix version ( like The Maltese Falcon a rare remake superior to the original).).
One thing interesting about the Glass Key is how William Bendix ( Ladd remake) says everything almost word for word that Gunn “Big Boy” Williams ( George Raft original) says but is more effective. Why? The body language of Bendix is more frightening.
I disagree. Colour or 3D would ruin them. They were filmed with careful attention to the cinematography. What was done in black and white would not be as good seeing it in colour. The lighting and shadows used in the foregrounds and backgrounds would be lost.
Film Noir because of the atmosphere works best in B/W. No better example is 13 West St with John Payne. It has every element of Noir: The femme fatale, the better ( but far from perfect woman), the hero in peril, the enemies ( and there were two sets of them), the impossible odds and the bleak setting. Color would make this film less effective.
@@davidbrown386 I agree. Black and white makes the settings in many of these early films very bleak. One example A Christmas Carol with Alistair Sim. B&W takes you back to the time period of the film. The colourized version loses all the despair and bleakness of that time period.
The Most Dangerous Game ( Fay Wray, Leslie Banks Joel McCrea) is another example of this. The B/W dark jungle with Wray and McCrea being hunted down was so much better then the Widmark/Greer color remake.
@@davidbrown386 Apparently the 1932 version was colourized. Never saw the Widmark version so I did a look up and it was changed and loosely based upon the original.
Yes, yes, yes! Really enjoyed this video. Black and white is underrated. More please
These are great! I may be old, but I think there are many more great films in B&W than in color.
Here are some of mine (in addition to the ones you highlighted) in no particular order:
1. Casablanca
2. Some Like It Hot
3. It's a Wonderful Life
4. It Happened One Night
5. Rashomon
6. The Seven Samurai
7. The Maltese Falcon
8. Arsenic and Old Lace
9. Roman Holiday
10. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
11. The Big Sleep
12. His Girl Friday
13. My Man Godfrey
14. Bringing Up Baby
15. High Noon
16. The Philadelphia Story
17. The Hustler
18. The Apartment
19. Stagecoach
20. Dr. Strangelove (etc)
21. Harvey
22. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
23. M
24. The 39 Steps
25. Witness for the Prosecution
26. Judgment at Nuremberg
All classics, all great movies.
No disagreement with any of these, as I’ve been fortunate enough to see most of them them either in new 35mm prints or in restored digital presentations. Of course, we can always add to lists like this. The first one that springs to my mind is Fort Apache. For my money, its black-and-white is as stunning as The Searchers’ color.
Where is Casablanca. It won best picture academy award.
All great films in GLORIOUS Black and White. The director of cinematography and the film director had to know how to balance light and shadow, camera angles, lenses, film stock to create a great many scenes in these films. They will always look their best in black and white. It is sacrilege to colourize them. Looking forward to another set of these great films. There are so many more from around the world.
My Number One B/W film is Laura. Others in the Top dozen no particular order).
2: Each Dawn I Die: ( Cagney, Bogart and Raft).
3: Manhattan Melodrama ( Powell/Loy and Gabie)
3a: Liabled Lady ( Powell/ Loy, Tracy and Harlow) Ok so I am a Loy fan ( and she is super cool here), but the Trout scene involving Powell perhaps the funniest of the “Golden Age.”
4: 13 West St: Noir at its best
4a: I Wake Up Screaming: As is this one.
5: Ball Of Fire: Check out this talent involved: Cooper, Stanwyck, Duryea, Dana Andrews, written by Wilder Directed by Hawks.
6: Mr. Smith Goes To Washington ( I believe James Stewart’s best).
6a: It’s A Wonderful World: Stewart as a Bogart/Dick Powell type Detective. Co-starring Claudette Colbert. A film on my personal favorites list ( but probably no one else’s).
7: Foreign Correspondent ( My favorite Hitchcock).
8; Two Flags West: Flawless Western ( especially Linda Darnell).
9: Bus Stop ( Marilyn at her best).
10: Maltese Falcon (Maybe the best detective film ever?)
11: Murder My Sweet ( or is it this one? Dick Powell’s finest film)).
While I also enjoy Bus Stop, it was in color :)
You are correct now that I think of it. I will substitute The Glass Key ( Ladd, Lake and Bendix version ( like The Maltese Falcon a rare remake superior to the original).).
@@davidbrown386 👍
One thing interesting about the Glass Key is how William Bendix ( Ladd remake) says everything almost word for word that Gunn “Big Boy” Williams ( George Raft original) says but is more effective. Why? The body language of Bendix is more frightening.
What about the last picture show?
All good films, but there should have been more discussion about why they are better in B&W. These classics would have been good in B&W, color, or 3D.
I disagree. Colour or 3D would ruin them. They were filmed with careful attention to the cinematography. What was done in black and white would not be as good seeing it in colour. The lighting and shadows used in the foregrounds and backgrounds would be lost.
Film Noir because of the atmosphere works best in B/W. No better example is 13 West St with John Payne. It has every element of Noir: The femme fatale, the better ( but far from perfect woman), the hero in peril, the enemies ( and there were two sets of them), the impossible odds and the bleak setting. Color would make this film less effective.
@@davidbrown386 I agree. Black and white makes the settings in many of these early films very bleak. One example A Christmas Carol with Alistair Sim. B&W takes you back to the time period of the film. The colourized version loses all the despair and bleakness of that time period.
The Most Dangerous Game ( Fay Wray, Leslie Banks Joel McCrea) is another example of this. The B/W dark jungle with Wray and McCrea being hunted down was so much better then the Widmark/Greer color remake.
@@davidbrown386 Apparently the 1932 version was colourized. Never saw the Widmark version so I did a look up and it was changed and loosely based upon the original.
CASABLANCA