Recently a friend of mine asked me to recommend some classic movies so that he could further his informal film education over the summer. I compiled this list in the hopes of giving a broad overview of classic Hollywood cinema and genres, with a focus on Alfred Hitchcock (my friend asked for him specifically). Some of this films are quite old (1930s) and some are much more recent (1990s). I was pretty pleased with the level of inclusion of my list, so I decided I would share it here too. Happy summer movie watching!

 Hitchcock:
1. Strangers on a Train
2. North by Northwest
3. Rear Window
4. The Birds
5. Psycho
6. The Trouble With Harry (comedy)
7. Notorious
8. The Lady Vanishes

Suspense/ Thrillers (not by Alfred Hitchcock):
9. Charade
10. Wait Until Dark
11. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
12.The Shining

Hollywood Classic comedies/ romances:
13. Arsenic and Old Lace
14. Young Frankenstein
15. How to Steel a Million
16. The Philadelphia Story
17. Singing in the Rain
18. Some Like it Hot
19. It Happened One Night
20. To Have and to Have Not

Film Noir/ Gangster movies:
21, 22.The Godfather I and II
23. Double Indemnity
24. Touch of Evil
25. Chinatown
26. The Maltese Falcon
27. The Big Sleep

War Films/ Westerns:
28. The Deer Hunter
29. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
30. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
31. The Searchers
32. Apocalypse Now
33. Unforgiven
34. Blazing Saddles (comedy)

Classic Science Fiction:
35. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
36. Dr. Strangelove (comedy)
37. 2001: A Space Odyssey
38. A Clockwork Orange
39. Blade Runner
40. Alien
41. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

Classic dramas:
42. Citizen Kane
43. The Bicycle Thieves
44. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
45. Casablanca
46. To Kill a Mockingbird
47. 12 Angry Men
48. M
49. Sophie’s Choice
50. Schindler’s List