The Best Movies of the 1960s (Readers Poll)

Find out which movies were the best in a stacked decade

This list proved to me that the 1960s was a better decade for film than I remembered. I always think of this period as simply being the “decade of musicals” but this was also the era that Ingmar Bergman, Akira Kurosawa, and Stanley Kubrick were putting out some of their best work.

Check out the results below!

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50. Yojimbo (dir. Akira Kurosawa)

49. It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (dir. Stanley Kramer)

“The granddaddy of screwball comedies: a large-scale road trip/treasure hunt film with an underlying social commentary about the effects of greed on human nature. Boasting the best ensemble cast in Hollywood history, along with the most memorable (and daring) car chase sequences captured on film.”

48. Bonnie & Clyde (dir. Arthur Penn)

47. The Hustler (dir. Robert Rossen)

“More than just a standard sports drama, the film is an engaging morality play about the cost of ambition, acceptance of personal failure, and the drive for excellence in a young man’s quest for glory. The film is a must-see for its blend of free-form jazz, neo-noir cinematography, and tour-de-force performances.”

46. Z (dir. Costa-Gavras)

45. The Jungle Book (prod. Walt Disney)

44. Bullitt (dir. Peter Yates)

43. Goldfinger (dir. Guy Hamilton)

42. Where Eagles Dare (dir. Brian G. Hutton)

41. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (dir. John Ford)

40. True Grit (dir. Henry Hathaway)

39. The Manchurian Candidate (dir. John Frankenheimer)

“This quintessential political thriller/satire has effected every movie of its kind afterwards. Angela Lansbury, shockingly, plays one of the greatest villains of the movies.”

38. Becket (dir. Peter Glenville)

“Brilliantly written and acted, Becket memorably dramatizes the spiritual awakening and death of the English martyr.”

37. Doctor Zhivago (dir. David Lean)

36. Days of Wine and Roses (dir. Blake Edwards)

“Blake Edwards’ sobering depiction of a marriage torn by the cycle of addiction is an underrated masterpiece of kitchen-sink realism graced by the chameleon-like prowess of versatile comic actor Jack Lemmon, who balances polished wit with tragic pathos to deliver a hard-hitting performance for the ages.”

35. The Innocents (dir. Jack Clayton)

“One of the eeriest, coolest ghost stories out there. Shockingly modern in its horror ‘language’.”

34. The Miracle Worker (dir. Arthur Penn)

33. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (dir. Jacques Demy)

32. Night of the Living Dead (dir. George Romero)

31. Persona (dir. Ingmar Bergman)

“One of the most enigmatic art house films ever made, Persona touches on every topic and then some with care and intelligence.”

30. The Reluctant Saint (dir. Edward Dmytryk)

“The Reluctant Saint embodies humble Franciscan spirituality in just about every aspect: acting, production values, filmmaking technique, etc.”

29. The Magnificent Seven (dir. John Sturges)

28. A Fistful of Dollars (dir. Sergio Leone)

27. Oliver! (dir. Carol Reed)

26. The Longest Day (dir. Ken Annakin, Andrew Marton, Bernhard Wicki)

25. Lilies of the Field (dir. Ralph Nelson)

“One of the best Catholic movies ever and an all-time great performance from Poitier”

24. Cool Hand Luke (dir. Stuart Rosenberg)

“Paul Newman delivers one of the most iconic and spectacular performances in an anti authority film that shaped generations. Cool Hand Luke's iconic score and star studded cast all work together in one of the greatest films of the 1960s.”

23. The Music Man (dir. Morton DaCosta)

22. Once Upon a Time in the West (dir. Sergio Leone)

21. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (dir. George Roy Hill)

“From the era of countercultural cynicism comes the last great film about America’s treasured myth: the Old West. Ridiculously entertaining and exceptionally crafted, the film succeeds as both a tribute and a revisioning of the genre not only through the charismatic presence of its iconic leads, but also its brilliant, character-driven script, penned by the legendary William Goldman.”

20. A Hard Day’s Night (dir. Richard Lester)

“One cannot imagine the 1960s without The Beatles, as they were not only the decade’s most influential rock band, but also its biggest cultural touchstone. Richard Lester’s zany nouvelle vague mockumentary is a satisfying cinematic portrait of the Fab Four that will leave a cheeky grin on viewers’ faces with its dry humor, joyous music, and gorgeous cinematography.”

19. Harakiri (dir. Masaki Kobayashi)

“A masterpiece of world cinema, Harakiri is somber and highly rewatchable critique of the Bushido code and history. Mystery, action, and tragedy all surround this must see tale.”

18. The Apartment (dir. Billy Wilder)

“Part comedy, part drama, part romance, part satire; The Apartment is all this and more in one greatly entertaining package.”

17. Planet of the Apes (dir. Franklin J. Schaffner)

16. The Birds (dir. Alfred Hitchcock)

15. My Fair Lady (dir. George Cukor)

“The music and performances are simply irresistible. Also the colors: a quintessential ‘why can’t they make movies look like this nowadays’ movie.”

14. Charade (dir. Stanley Donen)

13. The Great Escape (dir. John Sturges)

12. West Side Story (dir. Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins)

“The undisputed crown jewel of American musicals: visually dazzling and technologically ambitious; emotionally violent and musically beautiful; tenderly romantic and unforgettably tragic. From its nearly silent prologue to its devastating finale, West Side Story is a true masterpiece of American cinema that continues to cross the boundaries from first-rate entertainment to historic excellence.”

11. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (dir. Stanley Kubrick)

“Endlessly quotable and off-the-wall bonkers. The wildest ending of the decade.”

10. High and Low (dir. Akira Kurosawa)

“Akira Kurosawa's drama is both an engrossing police procedural and an exploration of class that rebukes a simplistic ‘eat the rich’ mentality.”

“The stakes are high and the costs are real in Akira Kurosawa’s excellent crime thriller about a menacing kidnapper and the wealthy tycoon he mercilessly torments. Aside from being an engrossing cop drama, it is a thought-provoking moral drama that offers profound insight into the value of human dignity, the authentic nature of justice, and the interior vices that consume the human soul.”

9. Andrei Rublev (dir. Andrei Tarkovsky)

“Tarkovsky's masterpiece, and cinema as high art. Everything in this movie builds to one of the most stunning conclusions in film history.”

“Andrei Rublev is a profound meditation on the nature of art and how it can touch the divine. The extraordinary conclusion is literally iconic.”

8. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (dir. Sergio Leone)

“Perhaps the most referenced and recognizable Western of all time, Leone's almost 3 hour epic flies by like a high quality whiskey: smooth and strong. Morricone delivers one of the most famous scores in cinema history in a must-see film for everyone.”

7. To Kill a Mockingbird (dir. Robert Mulligan)

“Robert Mulligan’s screen adaptation of the beloved Harper Lee novel is an American classic for a reason: not only is it thematically gripping in its depiction of Southern mores and legal ethics, but it is also a sentimental portrait of a long-gone childhood innocence. Featuring one of the great scores by the legendary Elmer Bernstein and a gentle, lordly performance by the one-and-only Gregory Peck.”

6. Mary Poppins (prod. Walt Disney)

“Movie magic at its most magical! It’s so good that they made a movie about the making of the movie!”

5. Lawrence of Arabia (dir. David Lean)

“The scale and scope of Lawrence of Arabia is breathtaking, but it ultimately serves as a historical and aesthetic backdrop to one of the most fascinating character studies of all time.”

4. Psycho (dir. Alfred Hitchcock)

“The greatest and one of the most influential of all horror films. The best twisted ending of cinema. Simply put, Psycho is the most thrilling movie ever made.”

3. 2001: A Space Odyssey (dir. Stanley Kubrick)

“Nothing more to be said about this film. Truly one of the most monumental achievements in cinema.”

“Encapsulates nothing less than the millennia-spanning evolution of mankind within two and a half hours. Amazing, profound, transcendent.”

2. A Man for All Seasons (dir. Fred Zinneman)

“Faithfully adapted from Robert Bolt’s stage play, Fred Zinnemann’s dramatization of St. Thomas More’s martyrdom is Hollywood’s finest hagiography. Avoiding a paste-and-cardboard approach to a saint’s life, the film succeeds as an engaging, dialogue-driven period piece that doesn’t shy away from the trifold relationship between conscience, religious liberty, and the natural law, and their necessity towards ensuring the survival of Western civilization.”

1. The Sound of Music (dir. Robert Wise)

”It’s the best movie musical, one of the best Catholic movies, and (sneakily) one of the best WWII thrillers. It’s without flaw and breathtakingly beautiful from start to finish. It’s the best movie of the 1960s.”