1940s Films: Best Movies, Directors And Trends
Wartime cinema, film noir, and Ealing and Powell and Pressburger doing Britain's best work.
Below: the films worth watching from the 1940s, the directors behind them, what was changing in cinema, and the year-by-year screen highlights from 1940 to 1949.
Useful for a film night, a themed party, a quiz round or working out what someone grew up watching.
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Best films of the 1940s
- The Great Dictator (1940).
- Citizen Kane (1941).
- Casablanca (1942).
- A Canterbury Tale (1944) and A Matter of Life and Death (1946), Powell and Pressburger.
- Brief Encounter (1945), David Lean.
- Great Expectations (1946), David Lean.
- It's a Wonderful Life (1946).
- Black Narcissus (1947).
- The Third Man (1949), Carol Reed.
- Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), Ealing.
Directors who defined the 1940s
- Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, the most ambitious British films ever made.
- David Lean, moving from Brief Encounter to Dickens.
- Carol Reed, with the best British thriller of the decade.
- Orson Welles, whose first film rewrote what a camera could do.
- Billy Wilder and the sharp end of Hollywood writing.
Cinema trends of the 1940s
- Wartime propaganda and morale films, then a harder, bleaker tone afterwards.
- Film noir, shaped partly by European directors who had fled to Hollywood.
- British cinema attendance peaks in 1946 at over 1.6 billion admissions.
- Ealing comedies begin at the end of the decade and define British screen humour for years.
- Location shooting increases because studios and money were both short.
Going to the pictures
- Cinemas stayed open through the war and were the main escape available.
- Adverts for the war effort ran before the feature.
- Queues round the block for a popular picture, often in the rain.
- Smoking throughout, so the projector beam was always visible.
Film and television, year by year
- 1940 - BBC television had closed in September 1939 and stayed off air.
- 1941 - 49th Parallel and Citizen Kane were released.
- 1942 - In Which We Serve was released.
- 1943 - The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp was released despite official disapproval.
- 1944 - Henry V, with Laurence Olivier, was released.
- 1945 - Brief Encounter was released in November.
- 1946 - BBC television returned on 7 June, London only.
- 1947 - Hue and Cry, often called the first Ealing comedy, was released.
- 1948 - Oliver Twist and The Red Shoes were released.
- 1949 - The Third Man and Passport to Pimlico were released, and Kind Hearts and Coronets the same year.
Years covered in the 1940s
- 1940 - Rationing, Dunkirk, Churchill and the Blitz - the year everything changed. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1940
- 1941 - The Blitz continued, clothes went on the ration and America entered the war. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1941
- 1942 - The Beveridge Report, soap on the ration and the first American troops arriving. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1942
- 1943 - The tide turned, the Dambusters flew and the country got used to going without. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1943
- 1944 - D-Day, the V-1s and the Education Act that changed school for everyone. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1944
- 1945 - VE Day, VJ Day, a landslide election and street parties on bomb-damaged roads. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1945
- 1946 - Television came back, bread went on the ration and the family allowance started. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1946
- 1947 - The worst winter in memory, a royal wedding and Indian independence. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1947
- 1948 - The NHS began, the Olympics came to London and the Windrush docked at Tilbury. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1948
- 1949 - Clothes rationing ended, the pound was devalued and the decade closed on austerity. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1949
- That is every 1940s year we have written up so far: 1940 to 1949.
How to use this
- Film night: one film from the decade, the matching party playlist before it, and a quiz round after.
- Quiz round: read a film and ask for the year, or read a director and ask for the film.
- Reminiscence: ask what the first film they saw at the cinema was, and who took them.
- Anyone born in 1940 turns 50 in 1990, 60 in 2000 and 70 in 2010.
Found your words? Now find the card
Shop prints and posters Look back to 1940 Look back to 1941 Look back to 1942
How to write it so it lands
- Check the UK release date as well as the year - plenty of American films reached Britain months later.
- For a themed night, pick the film from the year someone turned eighteen, not the year they were born.
- Ask what the first film they saw at the cinema was. It gets a better story than asking their favourite.
Where to shop next
- Look back to 1940
- Look back to 1941
- Look back to 1942
- Look back to 1943
- Look back to 1944
- Look back to 1945
- Look back to 1946
- Look back to 1947
- Look back to 1948
- Look back to 1949
- 1940s books, films and TV
- 1940s calendar: year by year
- 1940s trivia: fun facts
- 1940s music: albums, artists and songs
- 1940s shopping guide
- The 1940s: the whole decade
- Wartime and 1950s party games
- Traditional British party games
- Pen and paper games
- Card games your nan taught you
- Decade history: key events, politics and culture by era
- Decade books: best novels, authors and reading trends
- Decade films: best films and directors by era
- Decade guides: books, films and TV by era
- Decade shopping guides by era
- Decade tech: gadgets and computers by era
- Music by decade: albums, artists and songs
- Decade fashion: clothes, hair and accessories by era
- Decade calendar: every year from 1920
- Decade trivia: fun facts by era
- Decade trivia game: play for points
- Nostalgia gift shop
- Guess the year quiz
- Milestone birthday cards
- Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
- How to make a balloon arch
- Photo booth prop ideas
- Wedding cards
- Wedding cards guide
- Pin badges
- All guides
Frequently asked questions
What are the best films of the 1940s?
The Great Dictator (1940). The full list above names real films with their release years, from the 1940s.
Which directors defined the 1940s?
Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, the most ambitious British films ever made. The directors section above covers the rest.
What was cinema like in the 1940s?
Wartime propaganda and morale films, then a harder, bleaker tone afterwards. The trends and going-to-the-pictures sections above cover both the industry and the experience.
Do you sell films or DVDs?
No. We make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK. This page is free to read, print and copy for a quiz or a film night.