10 Best Movies of 1964, Ranked (original) (raw)
Published Aug 10, 2023, 11:01 AM EDT
Jeremy has more than 2500 published articles on Collider to his name, and has been writing for the site since February 2022. He's an omnivore when it comes to his movie-watching diet, so will gladly watch and write about almost anything, from old Godzilla films to gangster flicks to samurai movies to classic musicals to the French New Wave to the MCU... well, maybe not the Disney+ shows.
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1964 was the fifth year of the 1960s (1960 is like the Spanish Inquisition; you shouldn't forget about it), and it more or less represented the mid-point of the historically dramatic decade. The 1950s were long gone, and the rejuvenated American film industry of the 1970s was still a little while away. But between the epics of the prior decade, and the grittier, more provocative movies of the next one, every year within the 1960s still had plenty of distinct movies to offer.
There's an argument to be made that 1964 in particular had even more than its fellow years from the 60s, with classics that are still beloved today from all around the world, including the film industries of Italy, Japan, France, and the U.S.A. It was such a good year that some classics - including My Fair Lady, A Shot in the Dark, Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster, The Train, and Mary Poppins - have to settle for being honorable mentions. What follows are the best of the best 1964 releases, ranked below from great to greatest.
10 'A Fistful of Dollars'
Though it wasn't Sergio Leone's first movie, A Fistful of Dollars was his first really good film as a director, and also marked the first time he directed a Western. It was a similarly significant movie for its star, Clint Eastwood, given it helped establish him as a full-blown movie star several years after he'd already made a splash in the TV world for starring in most episodes of the eight-season-long show Rawhide.
The premise is essentially Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo but set in the Old West, and it doesn't quite reach the heights of later Leone + Eastwood collaborations (1965's For a Few Dollars More and 1966's The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly). Nonetheless, it's still a rock-solid and very engaging film, and a significant one for the development of the Spaghetti Western genre.
9 'Woman in the Dunes'
Image via Toho
Judging by ratings from users on Letterboxd, Woman in the Dunes is the best film of 1964. It's surprisingly beloved on the site, but perhaps not a film for everyone, given its experimental nature, slow pace, and odd plot about an entomologist (a person who studies insects) being held prisoner by villagers in a small coastal town.
It's a disquieting and leisurely-paced movie that unfolds over almost 2.5 hours, but proves hypnotic and able to leave a serious impact on those who give it a chance. It's certainly an arthouse movie more than it's traditional entertainment, but it does inevitably stand as one of the most acclaimed Japanese films of the decade.
8 'Goldfinger'
Image via United Artists
The third movie in the long-running James Bond series is Goldfinger, and to this day, it's still often regarded as one of the best entries in the entire franchise. It was also Sean Connery's third outing in the role of 007, and saw his character clashing with the titular foe and trying to prevent him from pulling off an ambitious heist of Fort Knox.
Everyone involved had settled into a groove after the series started strong with 1962's Dr. No, and then got a little better still with 1963's From Russia with Love. The momentum wasn't quite maintained post-1964, but at least fans of James Bond still got something as strong as Goldfinger, which delivers everything you'd want out of an old-school spy movie.
7 'Fight, Zatoichi, Fight'
Image via Daiei Film
Anyone looking for great samurai movies needs to check out the Zatoichi film series, with almost 30 movies contained within, and most being of surprisingly high quality. They're exciting and action-packed samurai adventure flicks, all following the titular character - a blind masseuse, master swordsman, and skilled gambler all in one - as he adventures around Japan during the early-to-mid 1800s.
These movies were pumped out at a rapid rate, to the point where there were four released in 1964 alone. Of those, Fight, Zatoichi, Fight is the best of the lot, making for a compelling eighth entry in the long-running series, with the plot here centering around Zatoichi caring for an infant and attempting to reunite it with its father after the mother's murdered.
6 'Band of Outsiders'
Anna Karina as Odile, Sami Frey as Franz, and Claude Brasseur as Arther in Band of Ousiders
Image via Columbia Pictures
Jean-Luc Godard was a boundary-pushing and often divisive filmmaker who rose to prominence during the French New Wave Movement, though some of his films prove quite easy to enjoy. One of these is Band of Outsiders, a stylish, effortlessly cool, and influential mash-up of the comedy, crime, and romance genres.
It focuses on a trio of aimless youngsters who love crime movies and want to replicate their favorite fictional characters, leading to the three undertaking a rather haphazard heist of their own. It's got a distinct feel and a relaxed, likable atmosphere, so even those who don't get into the characters or story will still find plenty to enjoy and appreciate here.
5 'A Hard Day's Night'
The Beatles in 'A Hard Day's Night'
Image via United Artists
It's not too bold a claim to say that A Hard Day's Night was the best movie The Beatles ever starred in during their short-lived yet impactful time together as a band. In this film, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr all play fictionalized versions of themselves, with the film being a loosely plotted "day in the life" style story about the Fab Four getting up to all sorts of mischief in London.
It's a movie that succeeds because of the chemistry between the members of the band (back before the infighting which led to the breakup), the silly humor throughout, and the strength of its songs. The soundtrack album of the same name is often considered the first truly great Beatles album for a reason, foreshadowing greater musical heights that were attained throughout the rest of the 60s.
4 'The Umbrellas of Cherbourg'
Between Mary Poppins, My Fair Lady, A Hard Day's Night, and now The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, it's safe to say that 1964 was a pretty great year for musicals. This French one's a little more downbeat, as far as music-heavy movies go, being a bittersweet story of young love that's challenged when one of the lovers is shipped off to fight in Algeria.
The Umbrellas of Cherbourg is also notable for being one musical where every single word is sung, rather than spoken, giving it the feeling of a continuous 93-minute-long song. It's an ambitious film where many of its risks pay off, and it's also one that provides plenty to admire visually, thanks to the film's style and use of color.
3 'Onibaba'
One could argue that most horror movies over a certain age stop being truly scary, thanks to technical limitations and changing times. Thankfully (or regrettably, depending on your liking of horror), Onibaba is not most horror movies, and certainly maintains a genuinely creepy and menacing feel almost 60 years on from release.
It's about a woman and her daughter-in-law making a living by killing samurai and looting their bodies, and what happens when the two start fighting over the affection of the same man. It has a unique setting (swamps have never been presented so scarily) and approach towards psychological horror, ensuring it still remains engrossing and impactful.
2 'Kwaidan'
Image via Toho
For as good as Onibaba is, there's one Japanese horror movie from 1964 that's arguably even better. That film is Kwaidan, which runs for three hours and tells four distinct horror/fantasy stories, all revolving around supernatural folk tales passed down throughout Japanese history.
It could well be the most consistent horror anthology movie of all time, with no segment of the four feeling weak or skippable compared to the others. Much of this is thanks to the assured direction of the legendary Masaki Kobayashi, as well as the film's talented cast, which includes great actors like Tatsuya Nakadai, TetsurÅ Tamba, and Takashi Shimura.
1 'Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'
George C. Scott in Dr. Strangelove (1964)
Image via Columbia Pictures
A compellingly acted and brilliantly written dark comedy about the end of the world, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is one of Stanley Kubrick's greatest filmmaking achievements. It expertly balances a strange tone throughout, being a serious look at the terror of atomic weapons and Cold War anxieties while also being extremely funny from start to (almost) finish.
It's well-paced, filled with quotable dialogue, and expertly shot, with the performances also being worthy of praise; particularly George C. Scott and Peter Sellers (the latter of whom skillfully plays three different roles). It's one of the greatest films of all time, and as such, also happens to stand out among other great 1964 movies as the best of its year.
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