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The following is a list of American films released in 1953.
Donald O'Connor and Frederic March co-hosted the 26th Academy Awards ceremony on March 25, 1954, held at the RKO Pantages Theatre in Hollywood. This was the ceremony's second year of being telecast, with viewership at an estimated 43,000,000.
The winner of the Best Motion Picture category was Columbia Pictures's From Here to Eternity. All of the big winners that year were black-and-white films.
The 11th Golden Globe Awards also honored the best films of 1953. That year, no award was given for Best Picture: Musical or Comedy.
Spencer Tracy won the Golden Globe for Best Actor - Motion Picture - Drama, for The Actress, while David Niven won Best Actor - Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy for The Moon is Blue. Audrey Hpeburn won Best Actress - Motion Picture - Drama for Roman Holiday, while Ethel Merman won for Best Actress - Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy for Call Me Madam. The Robe won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture.
| Title |
Director |
Cast |
Genre |
Notes |
| 99 River Street |
Phil Karlson |
John Payne, Evelyn Keyes |
Film noir |
|
| The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T |
Roy Rowland |
Tommy Rettig, Mary Healy |
Musical Fantasy |
Written by Dr. Seuss |
| Abbott and Costello Go to Mars |
Charles Lamont |
Abbott and Costello, Horace McMahon, Martha Hyer |
Comedy |
|
| Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde |
Charles Lamont |
Abbott and Costello, Boris Karloff |
Comedy] |
|
| Act of Love |
Anatole Litvak |
Kirk Douglas, Dany Robin |
Drama |
|
| The Actress |
George Cukor |
Jean Simmons, Spencer Tracy, Teresa Wright |
Drama |
Based on Ruth Gordon |
| All I Desire |
Douglas Sirk |
Barbara Stanwyck, Richard Carlson, Lyle Bettger |
Drama |
|
| All My Babies |
George C. Stoney |
|
Educational |
|
| All the Brothers Were Valiant |
Richard Thorpe |
Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger |
Adventure |
Remake of 1923 film |
| Arrowhead |
Charles Marquis Warren |
Charlton Heston, Jack Palance, Katy Jurado |
Adventure |
|
| Baby Butch |
|
|
Animated |
|
| The Band Wagon |
Vincente Minnelli |
Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Oscar Levant, Jack Buchanan |
Musical |
5 Oscar nominations |
| Battle Circus |
John Huston |
Humphrey Bogart, June Allyson, Keenan Wynn |
Drama |
|
| The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms |
Eugène Lourié |
Paula Raymond, Cecil Kellaway |
Science Fiction |
|
| Beat the Devil |
John Huston |
Humphrey Bogart, Jennifer Jones, Gina Lollobrigida, Peter Lorre |
Comedy |
Written by Truman Capote |
| Ben and Me |
Hamilton Luske |
|
Animation |
|
| Beneath the 12-Mile Reef |
Robert D. Webb |
Robert Wagner, Terry Moore, Gilbert Roland |
Adventure |
|
| The Big Heat |
Fritz Lang |
Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame, Lee Marvin |
Film noir |
|
| Big Leaguer |
Robert Aldrich |
Edward G. Robinson, Vera-Ellen |
Comedy |
|
| The Blue Gardenia |
Fritz Lang |
Ann Baxter, Richard Conte, Ann Sothern, Raymond Burr |
Film noir |
|
| Bully for Bugs |
Chuck Jones |
Looney Tunes |
Animation |
|
| By the Light of the Silvery Moon |
David Butler |
Doris Day, Gordon MacRae |
Musical |
On Moonlight Bay sequel |
| Title |
Director |
Cast |
Genre |
Notes |
| The Caddy |
Norman Taurog |
Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Donna Reed |
Comedy |
Debut of song That's Amore |
| Calamity Jane |
David Butler |
Doris Day, Howard Keel |
Musical |
|
| Call Me Madam |
Walter Lang |
Ethel Merman, Donald O'Connor, Vera-Ellen, Billy de Wolfe |
Musical |
|
| Canadian Mounties vs Atomic Invaders |
Franklin Adreon |
Bill Henry |
Western |
|
| Captain John Smith and Pocahontas |
Lew Landers |
Anthony Dexter, Jody Lawrance |
Historical |
|
| Cat-Women of the Moon |
Arthur Hilton |
Sonny Tufts, Victor Jory |
Science Fiction |
|
| Cat-Tails for Two |
Robert McKimson |
Looney Tunes |
Animation |
|
| Catty Cornered |
|
|
|
|
| Cease Fire! |
Owen Crump |
|
War |
|
| The Charge at Feather River |
Gordon Douglas |
Guy Madison, Vera Miles |
Western |
|
| City Beneath the Sea |
Budd Boetticher |
Robert Ryan, Anthony Quinn, Mala Powers |
Adventure |
|
| City That Never Sleeps |
John H. Auer |
Gig Young, William Talman, Mala Powers, Chill Wills |
Thriller |
|
| Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe |
|
|
Serial |
|
| Confidentially Connie |
Edward Buzzell |
Van Johnson, Janet Leigh, Louis Calhern |
Comedy |
|
| Title |
Director |
Cast |
Genre |
Notes |
| Dance Hall Racket |
Phil Tucker |
Lenny Bruce |
Drama |
|
| Dangerous Crossing |
Joseph M. Newman |
Jeanne Crain, Michael Rennie, Carl Betz |
Mystery |
Based on the play Cabin B-13 |
| The Desert Rats |
Robert Wise |
Richard Burton, James Mason, Robert Newton |
War |
|
| The Desert Song |
H. Bruce Humberstone |
Kathryn Grayson, Gordon MacRae |
Musical |
Based on the operetta |
| Designs on Jerry |
Hanna Barbera |
Tom and Jerry |
Animation |
|
| Destination Gobi |
Robert Wise |
Richard Widmark, Don Taylor |
Drama |
|
| Don's Fountain of Youth |
Jack Hannah |
|
Animation |
|
| Donovan's Brain |
Felix E. Feist |
Lew Ayres, Nancy Davis |
Horror |
Davis later became Nancy Reagan |
| Dream Wife |
Sidney Sheldon |
Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Walter Pidgeon |
Comedy |
|
| Duck Dodgers |
|
Looney Tunes |
Animation |
|
| Duck! Rabbit, Duck! |
|
Looney Tunes |
Animation |
|
| East of Sumatra |
Budd Boetticher |
Jeff Chandler, Anthony Quinn, Marilyn Maxwell |
Adventure |
|
| The Farmer Takes a Wife |
Henry Levin |
Betty Grable |
Musical comedy |
Remake of 1934 play, 1935 film |
| Fear and Desire |
Stanley Kubrick |
Frank Silvera, Paul Mazursky |
Drama |
|
| From Here to Eternity |
Fred Zinnemann |
Montgomery Clift, Deborah Kerr, Burt Lancaster, Frank Sinatra, Donna Reed, Ernest Borgnine |
War, Drama |
based on the novel by James Jones; won 8 Academy Awards |
| Gentlemen Prefer Blondes |
Howard Hawks |
Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell |
Musical comedy |
Based on 1949 Broadway show |
| The Girl Who Had Everything |
Richard Thorpe |
Elizabeth Taylor, Fernando Lamas, William Powell |
Drama |
|
| The Girls of Pleasure Island |
F. Hugh Herbert |
Don Taylor, Elsa Lanchester |
Comedy |
|
| Give a Girl a Break |
Stanley Donen |
Debbie Reynolds, Marge Champion, Gower Champion |
Musical comedy |
|
| The Glass Wall |
Maxwell Shane |
Vittorio Gassman, Gloria Grahame |
Drama |
|
| Glen or Glenda |
Ed Wood |
Dolores Fuller |
Drama |
|
| The Glenn Miller Story |
Anthony Mann |
June Allyson, Jimmy Stewart |
Biographical |
Based on life of Glenn Miller |
| The Golden Blade |
Nathan Juran |
Rock Hudson, Piper Laurie, Gene Evans |
Adventure |
|
| The Great Sioux Uprising |
Lloyd Bacon |
Jeff Chandler, Faith Domergue, Lyle Bettger |
Western |
|
| Gun Fury |
Raoul Walsh |
Rock Hudson, Donna Reed, Philip Carey |
Western |
|
| Title |
Director |
Cast |
Genre |
Notes |
| The Hitch-Hiker |
Ida Lupino |
Edmond O'Brien, William Talman, Frank Lovejoy |
Film Noir |
|
| Hondo |
John Farrow |
John Wayne, Geraldine Page, Ward Bond, James Arness |
Western |
|
| Houdini |
George Marshall |
Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh |
Biographical |
story of Harry Houdini |
| House of Wax |
Andre De Toth |
Vincent Price, Carolyn Jones, Phyllis Kirk |
Horror |
|
| How to Marry a Millionaire |
Jean Negulesco |
Lauren Bacall, Betty Grable, Marilyn Monroe, William Powell |
Comedy |
|
| I Confess |
Alfred Hitchcock |
Montgomery Clift |
Drama |
|
| I Love Lucy |
Edward Sedgwick |
Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz |
Comedy |
Feature-length version of TV show |
| I, the Jury |
Harry Essex |
Biff Elliot |
Drama |
Based on book by Mickey Spillane |
| Inferno |
Roy Ward Baker |
Robert Ryan, Rhonda Fleming |
Thriller |
|
| Invaders from Mars |
William Cameron Menzies |
Helena Carter |
Science Fiction |
|
| Island in the Sky |
William Wellman |
John Wayne, Lloyd Nolan, James Arness |
Drama |
|
| It Came from Outer Space |
Jack Arnold |
Richard Carlson, Barbara Rush |
Science Fiction |
|
| Jeopardy |
John Sturges |
Barbara Stanwyck, Barry Sullivan, Ralph Meeker |
Thriller |
|
| Johann Mouse |
|
|
|
|
| Julius Caesar |
Joseph L. Mankiewicz |
Marlon Brando, James Mason, John Gielgud, Greer Garson, Deborah Kerr, Louis Calhern, Edmond O'Brien |
Drama |
based on William Shakespeare play; 5 Oscar nominations |
| Jungle Drums of Africa |
Fred C. Brannon |
Phyllis Coates |
Adventure |
12-part serial |
| Kansas Pacific |
Ray Nazarro |
Sterling Hayden |
Western |
|
| King of the Khyber Rifles |
Henry King |
Tyrone Power, Terry Moore, Michael Rennie |
Historical |
|
| Kiss Me, Kate |
George Sidney |
Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, Ann Miller |
Musical |
Based on 1948 Broadway show |
| Knights of the Round Table |
Richard Thorpe |
Robert Taylor, Ava Gardner, Mel Ferrer |
Adventure |
|
| Title |
Director |
Cast |
Genre |
Notes |
| Latin Lovers |
Mervyn LeRoy |
Lana Turner, Ricardo Montalban, John Lund |
|
|
| Law and Order |
Nathan Juran |
Ronald Reagan, Dorothy Malone |
Western |
|
| The Lawless Breed |
Raoul Walsh |
Rock Hudson, Julie Adams, Hugh O'Brian |
Western |
|
| Let's All Go to the Lobby |
|
|
|
|
| Let's Do It Again |
Alexander Hall |
Jane Wyman, Ray Milland, Aldo Ray |
Musical comedy |
|
| Life with Tom |
Hanna Barbera |
Tom and Jerry |
Animated |
|
| Lili |
Charles Walters |
Leslie Caron, Mel Ferrer, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Zsa Zsa Gabor |
Musical |
5 Oscar nominations |
| The Limping Man |
Cy Endfield |
Lloyd Bridges, Moira Lister |
Drama |
|
| A Lion Is in the Streets |
Raoul Walsh |
James Cagney, Barbara Hale |
Drama |
|
| Little Boy Lost |
George Seaton |
Bing Crosby, Claude Dauphin |
Drama |
|
| Little Fugitive |
3 directors |
Richie Andrusco |
Drama |
|
| The Living Desert |
|
|
Documentary |
Academy Award: Best Documentary |
| The Lost Planet |
Spencer Bennet |
Judd Holdren |
Science Fiction |
|
| The Magnetic Monster |
Curt Siodmak |
Richard Carlson, King Donovan |
Sci-Fi |
|
| Man in the Attic |
Hugo Fregonese |
Jack Palance |
Drama |
|
| Man in the Dark |
Lew Landers |
Edmund O'Brien, Audrey Totter |
Thriller |
Remake of 1936 film |
| Man on a Tightrope |
Elia Kazan |
Fredric March, Terry Moore, Gloria Grahame |
Thriller |
|
| Martin Luther |
Irving Pichel |
Niall MacGinnis, Pierre Lefevre |
Biopic |
|
| Mesa of Lost Women |
Ron Ormond, Herb Tevis |
Jackie Coogan, Richard Travis |
Science Fiction |
|
| Miss Sadie Thompson |
Curtis Bernhardt |
Rita Hayworth, José Ferrer, Aldo Ray |
Musical |
|
| The Missing Mouse |
Hanna Barbera |
Tom and Jerry |
Animated |
|
| The Mississippi Gambler |
Rudolph Maté |
Tyrone Power, Piper Laurie, Julie Adams |
Adventure |
|
| Mogambo |
John Ford |
Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly |
Adventure |
|
| Money from Home |
George Marshall |
Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis |
Comedy |
10th Martin and Lewis film |
| The Moon Is Blue |
Otto Preminger |
William Holden, David Niven, Maggie McNamara |
Romantic comedy |
|
| Mouse for Sale |
|
|
Animation |
|
| The Naked Spur |
Anthony Mann |
James Stewart, Janet Leigh, Robert Ryan |
Western |
|
| The Neanderthal Man |
Ewald Andre Dupont |
Robert Shayne, Beverly Garland |
Science Fiction |
|
| Neapolitan Mouse |
|
|
|
|
| Never Let Me Go |
Delmer Daves |
Clark Gable, Gene Tierney |
Adventure |
|
| Niagara |
Henry Hathaway |
Marilyn Monroe, Jean Peters, Joseph Cotten |
Suspense |
|
| Title |
Director |
Cast |
Genre |
Notes |
| One Girl's Confession |
Hugo Haas |
Cleo Moore |
Drama |
|
| Pardon My Backfire |
|
Three Stooges |
Comedy |
|
| Peter Pan |
Clyde Geronimi |
voices of Hans Conried, Bobby Driscoll, Kathryn Beaumont |
Animated |
from J.M. Barrie story |
| Pickup on South Street |
Samuel Fuller |
Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, Thelma Ritter |
Thriller |
|
| Plunder of the Sun |
John Farrow |
Glenn Ford, Diana Lynn, Francis L. Sullivan |
Adventure |
|
| Pony Express |
Jerry Hopper |
Charlton Heston, Rhonda Fleming, Forrest Tucker |
Western |
|
| The President's Lady |
Henry Levin |
Susan Hayward, Charlton Heston, John McIntire |
Biopic |
story of Andrew Jackson |
| Project Moonbase |
Richard Talmadge |
Ross Ford |
Science Fiction |
|
| Pup on a Picnic |
|
|
|
|
| Puppy Tale |
|
|
|
|
| The Redhead from Wyoming |
Lee Sholem |
Maureen O'Hara, Alex Nicol, Dennis Weaver |
Western |
|
| Ride, Vaquero! |
John Farrow |
Robert Taylor, Ava Gardner, Howard Keel, Anthony Quinn |
Western |
|
| Rob Roy, the Highland Rogue |
Harold French |
Richard Todd |
Adventure |
|
| The Robe |
Henry Koster |
Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Richard Boone |
Drama |
5 Oscar nominations |
| Robot Monster |
Phil Tucker |
George Nader, Selena Royle |
Science Fiction |
|
| Roman Holiday |
William Wyler |
Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck |
Romantic comedy |
Academy Award for Hepburn |
| Salome |
William Dieterle |
Rita Hayworth, Stewart Granger, Judith Anderson, Charles Laughton |
Drama |
|
| Scared Stiff |
George Marshall |
Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Carmen Miranda |
Comedy |
8th Martin and Lewis film |
| The Seafarers |
Stanley Kubrick |
|
|
30-minute short |
| Second Chance |
Rudolph Mate |
Robert Mitchum, Jack Palance, Linda Darnell |
Thriller |
|
| Seminole |
Budd Boetticher |
Rock Hudson, Anthony Quinn, Barbara Hale |
Western |
|
| Serpent of the Nile |
William Castle |
Rhonda Fleming, Raymond Burr, William Lundigan |
Adventure |
|
| Shane |
George Stevens |
Alan Ladd, Van Heflin, Jean Arthur, Brandon De Wilde, Jack Palance |
Western |
|
| The Simple Things |
|
Mickey Mouse |
Animation |
|
| So Big! |
Robert Wise |
Jane Wyman, Sterling Hayden, Steve Forrest, Nancy Olson |
Drama |
|
| Southern Fried Rabbit |
|
|
|
|
| Spaceways |
Terence Fisher |
Howard Duff, Eva Bartok |
Science Fiction |
|
| Spooks! |
|
|
|
|
| Stalag 17 |
Billy Wilder |
William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger |
P.O.W. |
|
| The Stooge |
Norman Taurog |
Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Polly Bergen |
Comedy |
7th Martin and Lewis film |
| The Story of Three Loves |
Vincente Minnelli |
Pier Angeli, Kirk Douglas, Leslie Caron, Ethel Barrymore |
Romance |
|
| The Sun Shines Bright |
John Ford |
Charles Winninger, Arleen Whelan, Stepin Fetchit |
Comedy |
|
| The Sword and the Rose |
Ken Annakin |
Glynis Johns, Richard Todd, James Robertson Justice |
Adventure |
|
| Title |
Director |
Cast |
Genre |
Notes |
| Take the High Ground! |
Richard Brooks |
Richard Widmark, Karl Malden, Russ Tamblyn |
War |
|
| The Tell-Tale Heart |
Ted Parmelee |
|
Animation |
Based on Poe story |
| Terminal Station |
Vittorio De Sica |
Jennifer Jones, Montgomery Clift |
Drama |
|
| Thunder Bay |
Anthony Mann |
James Stewart, Dan Duryea, Joanne Dru |
Drama |
|
| Thunder Over the Plains |
André de Toth |
Randolph Scott, Lex Barker, Phyllis Kirk |
Western |
|
| Titanic |
Jean Negulesco |
Barbara Stanwyck, Clifton Webb, Robert Wagner |
Biopic |
|
| Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom |
|
|
Animated short |
Disney educational film |
| Torch Song |
Charles Walters |
Joan Crawford, Michael Wilding, Gig Young |
Drama |
|
| Trouble Along the Way |
Michael Curtiz |
John Wayne, Donna Reed |
Comedy |
|
| The Twonky |
Arch Oboler |
Hans Conreid, Gloria Blondell |
Comedy |
|
| Vicki |
Harry Horner |
Jeanne Crain, Jean Peters, Richard Boone |
Crime drama |
I Wake Up Screaming remake |
| War Arrow |
George Sherman |
Jeff Chandler, Maureen O'Hara, John McIntire |
Western |
|
| The War of the Worlds |
Byron Haskin |
Gene Barry, Ann Robinson |
Science Fiction |
Based on H.G. Wells novel |
| White Witch Doctor |
Henry Hathaway |
Robert Mitchum, Susan Hayward |
Adventure |
|
| The Wild One |
Laszlo Benedek |
Marlon Brando, Lee Marvin |
Drama |
|
| Working for Peanuts |
Jack Hannah |
|
Animated |
Chip and Dale cartoon |
| Young Bess |
George Sidney |
Jean Simmons, Deborah Kerr, Charles Laughton |
Biopic |
story of Elizabeth I |
[edit] External links
