Critics Poll: Best Films of the '40s?

It’s the new year which means our “Decade in Film” series will be back with another critics poll — the goal is still to go all the way back to the silent era. We’ve so far covered the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s.

A reader recently asked, when are the ‘40s going to be tackled? Well, how about this month? I’ll start sending out ballots to critics next week. This should be another interesting experiment for movie fans as this decade was filled with cinematic riches.

It’s fair to say that Welles’ “Citizen Kane” will probably win the poll, but what comes after it? Which films will end up in the top 10? This was a fairly unprecedented decade for film. It was at the height of the “Hays Code” in Hollywood. Half the planet was preoccupied by World War II, whilst the other half didn’t have the means to even make films.

“Citizen Kane” changed cinema forever. “Double Indemnity” popularized film noir. Bogart had several bangers this decade, including, and especially, “Casablanca.” If you can believe it, French masterpiece “Children of Paradise” was shot in France during the Nazi occupation.

My own list would include “Citizen Kane,” “Bicycle Thieves,” “Double Indemnity,” “The Best Years of Our Lives,” “Day of Wrath,” “Letter from an Unknown Woman,” “The Red Shoes,” “The Maltese Falcon,” “Grapes of Wrath,” “The Lost Weekend,” “To Be or Not to Be,” “The Lady Eve,” “Shadow of a Doubt,” “Casablanca,” “Treasure of the Sierra Madre,” and “Rope.”

The inevitable topic of “Citizen Kane” will no doubt come into the conversation. Do you agree with David Fincher and Park Chan-Wook in their belief that Welles’ film is overrated? For over 50 years it was topping Sight & Sound’s prestigious poll as the greatest film ever made. In the 2012 edition of the poll, Hitchcock’s “Vertigo” finally dethroned it, and in the 2022 edition it feel into third place.

I’m aiming for results of the ‘40s poll to be published during the first week of February. In the meantime, what in your opinion was the best film of the ‘40s?