Auteurs in the Hollywood Studio System of the 50s

By: David Huxley

The Fifties, what a wonderful era for films! “The Greatest Show on Earth”, “The Ten Commandments”, “White Christmas”, “From Here to Eternity”, “Shane” and “The King and I”. WRONG! While American filmgoers were rushing to fill the seats to see these blockbusters, there were filmakers creating personal visions that subverted the iconic images of post-war America. Almost all of these films were made under the noses of studio executives who probably had no idea what the hell they were releasing to an unsuspecting public. And the public stayed away in droves. Most of these films were made by top-shelf directors, among them Alfred Hitchcock, Orson Welles, along with mavericks Nicholas Ray and Samuel Fuller. In creating this list, I hope others will re-examine their beliefs about Hollywood films of the Fifties.

• 01
  Strangers on a Train
  Alfred Hitchcock
• 02
  Ace in the Hole
  Billy Wilder
• 03
  The Steel Helmet
  Samuel Fuller
• 04
  Beat the Devil
  John Huston
• 05
  Johnny Guitar
  Nicholas Ray
• 06
  Magnificent Obsession
  Douglas Sirk
• 07
  The Night of the Hunter
  Charles Laughton
• 08
  Kiss Me Deadly
  Robert Aldrich
• 09
  Invasion of the Body Snatchers
  Don Siegel
• 10
  Sweet Smell of Success
  Alexander Mackendrick
• 11
  Touch of Evil
  Orson Welles
• 12
  Vertigo
  Alfred Hitchcock