20 Great Years of Movies, Part 8: 1945

1. Dead of Night (director: Charles Crichton): An utterly amazing horror film done in the portmanteau style with a variety of people discussing the strange dreams and situations they'd been in. Some of them are utter classics in the spine-tingling genre. The section with the ventiloquist's dummy has received the most attention, but it's all fantastic.
2. The Lost Weekend (director: Billy Wilder): This depiction of a man grappling with alcoholism succeeds thanks to Ray Milland's great perfomane and Wilder's careful direction, particularly the nightmare sequence.
3. And Then There Were None (director: René Clair): A great adaptation of Agatha Christie's novel. In spite of the changes this is the best film of its kind as a group of strangers realized they've been summoned together in order to be picked off one at a time.
4. The Bells of St. Mary's (director: Leo McCarey): An excellent sequel to Going My Way with Ingrid Bergman as a nun who is determined to obtain a better property for her students.
5. Story of G.I. Joe (director: William A. Wellman): A great look at journalist Ernie Pyle, one of the most celebrated World War II correspondents, who unfortunately died before the movie came out. Burgess Meredith is great as Pyle and if you've read Pyle's articles you'll appreciate seeing them brought to life on film.
6. The Body Snatcher (director: Robert Wise): An adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson story, albeit considerably lengthened (the original story is covered in about 10 minutes at the climax). But Boris Karloff is great as the titular body snatcher.
7. Mildred Pierce (director: Michael Curtiz): Another fine James M. Cain novel adaptation, this one features a fractured mother-daughter relationship which compels the mother to attempt murder.
8. Isle of the Dead (director: Mark Robson): An odd and atmospheric film - lumped in with horror movies but really just doing its own thing. It was inspired by the painting of the same name.
9. Hangover Square (director: John Brahm): An interesting thriller about a composer who suffers from blackouts in which he commits murder. Laird Cregar is so good in the lead role that it makes the picture worth seeing.
10. Spellbound (director: Alfred Hitchcock): The nightmare sequence designed by Salvador Dalli is utterly amazing. The rest of movie ain't too bad either -- the solution to the problem is not that great, but the tension of whether Gregory Peck is the protagonist or the killer is handled well.