Underrated '55 - Silver Screenings

R.A. Kerr is a classic movie blogger at http://silverscreenings.org/. She believes classic movies are good for you, like expensive chocolate or a trip to the spa.

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5. The Man with the Golden Arm (1955; Otto Preminger)

If someone tells you Frank Sinatra can’t act, then you need to (A) smack them up the back of the head, and (B) tell them to watch The Man with the Golden Arm. This is one of the first Hollywood films to examine drug addiction, and was nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Sinatra.

4. The Tender Trap (1955; Charles Walters)

Yes, this romantic comedy is hokey and packed full of retro 1950s zeitgeist, but it has a timeless message about committed relationships. It also offers some very funny lines and gorgeous Helen Rose costumes. Scene-stealingCeleste Holm is one of the best things about this film; she alone is worth the price of admission.

3. One Froggy Evening (1955; Chuck Jones)

When a labourer on a demolition site discovers a live,singing frog in a time capsule, he thinks he’ll become fabulously wealthy. Instead, the frog becomes the man’s ruin. This is an amusing and philosophical study in Knowing When To Quit. One Froggy Evening has been one of our favourite cartoons since childhood.

2. To Catch a Thief (1955; Alfred Hitchcock)

We feel this is one of Hitchcock’s most stylish films, a thriller bathed in the golden sun of the Riviera. Cary Grant, a former jewel thief, is the main suspect in some high-profile robberies. But with Edith Head’s stunning costumes and the palpable chemistry between Grant and Grace Kelly, who needs a plot?

1. Marty (1955; Delbert Mann)

We cannot say enough about Marty, the film that won four Oscars including Best Picture. Ernest Borgnine stars as agenerous, hard-working butcher who is unlucky in love – until he meets a lonely schoolteacher (Betsy Blair). Martyis a pared-down, unglamorous film that will make you cheer.