Welcome to the Cinema of the Swinging Sixties
The 1960s may be a thing of the distant past, but thanks to an enthralling, good old invention called Film, it will never be really gone.
Whenever you feel like traveling back in time to relive the glamours of the decade, all you have to do, is to watch one (or more) of its movies.
But which ones should you watch?
Well, if that’s the very question lurking in your mind right now, then you came to the right place. We’re just about to present 30 of the greatest cinematic gems of the 1960s.
However, if you’re not a first-timer, then there’s a fair chance you already saw most movies of this Top 30 List, and you may want to dive a little bit deeper. No worries!
In that case, you should go and check out the Top 100 List at the end of this article.
If this is your first ride on the time-travelling FrameTrek Wagon, here’s what this is all about:
We choose a topic, in this case: “Best Movies of the 1960s”, and we set sail for a journey, where the bricks of the trek are made of movie frames, and each stop represents a magnificent achievement in Film.
The Best Movies of the 1960s is an episode of FrameTrek’s Best Movies of All Time. A mega-journey dedicated to identify the greatest films of each decade, chronologically. It starts with the Silent Era and goes all the way to our ever moving present.
So what was Cinema like in the 1960s?
The 1960s was a decade of youth-driven cultural revolution, that emphasised modernity and fun-loving hedonism. This is when our rigid culture broke free of the social constraints of the previous age, and humanity adopted a more relaxed approach to life itself.
War was raging on in Vietnam, the Beatles were stealing everyone’s heart, Martin Luther King held inspiring speeches and the Space race between the Soviet Union and the United States was at its peak.
But let’s not get into history too much. Let’s just say, the 1960s were a decade of transformation, and this was vigorously reflected by the cinema of the time.
As part of the cultural revolution, the movies of the 1960s became increasingly dramatic, unbalanced and hectic. They began to break social taboos, such as sex, violence and racism.
This caused both controversy and fascination, but it also served as the foundation of a New Hollywood Era.
However, the Cinema of the 1960s covered more than just the cultural revolution of the decade.
Western movies remain unshakably popular, Disney released some if its greatest all-time classics, the first James Bond movie was released, the genre of horror and sci-fi was reinvented and Italian cinema had its moments too.
So yeah, there’s is plenty to talk about, when it comes to the Cinema of the 1960s, but this article concentrates on its Top 30 and Top 100 Films, so let’s cut to the chase, shall we?
After all, a cinematic era is as good as its greatest achievements. Thus, the finest way to explore a decade in film history, is through watching its best movies as a marathon.
Ready? Buckle up then, and let the best movies of the 1960s carry you to the Cinematic era they came from!
See FrameTrek's definition of 'Best' and the story behind this List (click to expand) ↴How to define ‘Best’?
That’s a pretty good question, since ‘Best’ is relative. A movie can be considered being among the best for multiple reasons, such as: Critical Acclaim, Audience Feedback, Box Office Performance, Awards and Nominations, Iconic Status, Popularity, Watchability, and even Personal Preference, or for being part of a famous list such as the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die or Roger Ebert’s The Great Movies list – or because that particular movie defined its era.
So how did we pick the Top 30 and Top 100 movies of the 1960s?
Well, it wasn’t simple, and it wasn’t easy! While composing the Best Films of the 1960s list, we tried to consider all of the factors mentioned in the ‘How to define Best’ paragraph above, and then some.
We believe that the movies that made the cut should not compete with one another any further, so we will just present them in the order they were released in.
We picked 10 movies from each year of the 1960s, thus created a Top 100 List, which can be found at the end of this article. We also highlighted three movies from each year of the decade, so there’s a Top 30 List too. Let’s start with that!
Presenting the Top 30 Films of the 1960s
Chronologically
– 3 movies from each year –
Psycho (1960)
Psychological horror-thriller film directed and produced by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Anthony Perkins.
Story: A Phoenix secretary embezzles forty thousand dollars from her employer’s client, goes on the run, and checks into a remote motel run by a young man under the domination of his mother. (IMDB)
Infamous for its shower scene, but immortal for its contribution to the horror genre. Because Psycho was filmed with tact, grace, and art, Hitchcock didn’t just create modern horror, he validated it.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Psycho among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ Selected for preservation by The Library of Congress at The National Film Registry.
✓ It set a new level of acceptability for violence, deviant behavior and sexuality in films, and is widely considered to be the earliest example of the slasher film genre.
Spartacus (1960)
Epic historical drama film directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Kirk Douglas.
Story: The slave Spartacus leads a violent revolt against the decadent Roman Republic. (IMDB)
Featuring terrific performances and epic action, Kubrick’s restored swords-and-sandals epic is a true classic.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Spartacus among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ The film won four Academy Awards and became the biggest moneymaker in Universal Studios’ history up to that point.
✓ Selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”
The Magnificent Seven (1960)
Western adventure film directed by John Sturges, starring Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen and Charles Bronson.
Story: Seven gunfighters are hired by Mexican peasants to liberate their village from oppressive bandits. (IMDB)
The Magnificent Seven transplants Seven Samurai into the Old West with a terrific cast of Hollywood stars – and without losing any of the story’s thematic richness.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Magnificent Seven among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Selected for the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
✓ Selected for the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
✓ One of the most popular movies of the 1960s, and an influential, all-time western classic.
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961)
Romantic comedy film directed by Blake Edwards and starring Audrey Hepburn.
Story: A young New York socialite becomes interested in a young man who has moved into her apartment building, but her past threatens to get in the way. (IMDB)
It contains some ugly anachronisms, but Blake Edwards is at his funniest in this iconic classic, and Audrey Hepburn absolutely lights up the screen.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Breakfast at Tiffany’s among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ Winner of 2 Academy Awards, and nominated for another three.
✓ Deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.
One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)
Animated family film produced by Disney.
Story: When a litter of Dalmatian puppies are abducted by the minions of Cruella de Vil, the parents must find them before she uses them for a diabolical fashion statement. (IMDB)
With plenty of pooches and a memorable villain (Cruella De Vil), this is one of Disney’s most enduring, entertaining animated films.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is One Hundred and One Dalmatians among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Received critical acclaim from critics and audiences, most of whom hailed it as one of the studio’s best releases.
✓ One of the most popular and most successful movies of the 1960s, and a timeless Disney classic.
The Hustler (1961)
CinemaScope sport-drama film starring Paul Newman and Jackie Gleason.
Story: An up-and-coming pool player plays a long-time champion in a single high-stakes match. (IMDB)
Paul Newman and Jackie Gleason give iconic performances in this dark, morally complex tale of redemption.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Hustler among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ Winner of 2 Oscars, and nominee for another 7, including the ‘Best Picture of the Year’ Academy Award.
✓ Ranked #6 on the American Film Institute’s list of the 10 greatest films in the genre “Sports”.
✓ This film started a national resurgence in the popularity of pool.
To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
Crime drama film starring Gregory Peck.
Story: Atticus Finch, a lawyer in the Depression-era South, defends a black man against an undeserved rape charge, and his children against prejudice. (IMDB)
To Kill a Mockingbird is a textbook example of a message movie done right – sober-minded and earnest, but never letting its social conscience get in the way of gripping drama.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is To Kill a Mockingbird among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ Winner of 2 Oscars, and nominee for another 5, including the ‘Best Picture of the Year’ Academy Award.
✓ The American Film Institute ranked this as the #25 Greatest Movie of All Time and as the #2 Most Inspiring Movie of All Time.
✓ Added to the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress .
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
British epic historical drama film directed by David Lean, starring Alec Guinness and Anthony Quinn.
The story of T.E. Lawrence, the English officer who successfully united and led the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes during World War I in order to fight the Turks. (IMDB)
The epic of all epics, Lawrence of Arabia cements director David Lean’s status in the filmmaking pantheon with nearly four hours of grand scope, brilliant performances, and beautiful cinematography.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Lawrence of Arabia among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ Nominated for ten Oscars and winning seven, including Best Picture and Best Director.
✓ Widely recognized as one of the greatest and most influential films in the history of cinema.
Lolita (1962)
Comedy-drama film directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring James Mason, Shelley Winters and Sue Lyon.
Story: A middle-aged college professor becomes infatuated with a fourteen-year-old nymphet. (IMDB)
Kubrick’s Lolita adapts its seemingly unadaptable source material with a sly comedic touch and a sterling performance by James Mason that transforms the controversial novel into something refreshingly new without sacrificing its essential edge.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Lolita among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ It polarized contemporary critics, but is overwhelmingly well-received by modern critics.
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ One of the most popular and most successful movies of the 1960s, and an all-time classic.
The Great Escape (1963)
Epic war adventure film directed by John Sturges and starring Steve McQueen.
Story: Allied prisoners of war plan for several hundred of their number to escape from a German camp during World War II. (IMDB)
With its impeccably slow-building story and a cast for the ages, The Great Escape is an all-time action classic.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Great Escape among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ One of the most popular and most successful movies of the 1960s, and a timeless classic with a significant influence on pop culture.
✓ Notable for its motorcycle chase scene and famous jump scene, which is considered one of the best stunts ever made.
8½ (1963)
Italian surrealist comedy-drama film directed by Federico Fellini.
Story: A harried movie director retreats into his memories and fantasies. (IMDB)
Inventive, thought-provoking, and funny, 8 1/2 represents the arguable peak of Federico Fellini’s many towering feats of cinema.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is 8½ among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ Won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, also widely acknowledged as an avant-garde film and a highly influential classic.
✓ Selected by the Vatican in the “art” category of its list of 45 “great films”.
The Pink Panther (1963)
Comedy crime film directed by Blake Edwards and starring Peter Sellers.
Story: A bumbling inspector travels to Rome to catch a notorious jewel thief known as “The Phantom” before he conducts his most daring heist yet: a princess’ priceless diamond with one slight imperfection, known as “The Pink Panther”. (IMDB)
Peter Sellers is at his virtuosically bumbling best in The Pink Panther, a sophisticated caper blessed with an unforgettably slinky score by Henry Mancini.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Pink Panther among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Selected to be preserved by the Library of Congress as part of its National Film Registry, being deemed “culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant”.
✓ One of the most popular and most successful movies of the 1960s, and a timeless comedy classic, with a noteworthy influence on pop culture.
Goldfinger (1964)
British spy film directed by Guy Hamilton and starring Sean Connery.
Story: While investigating a gold magnate’s smuggling, James Bond uncovers a plot to contaminate the Fort Knox gold reserve. (IMDB)
Goldfinger is where James Bond as we know him comes into focus – it features one of 007’s most famous lines (“A martini. Shaken, not stirred”) and a wide range of gadgets that would become the series’ trademark.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Goldfinger among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ It was the fastest grossing movie in movie history when it was released. It was so popular, that some theaters were holding showings twenty-four hours a day to meet demand.
✓ Ranked #70 on the British Film Institute’s 100 Greatest British Films of the 20th Century.
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
Black comedy film directed, produced, and co-written by Stanley Kubrick, starring Peter Sellers.
Story: An insane general triggers a path to nuclear holocaust that a War Room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop. (IMDB)
Stanley Kubrick’s brilliant Cold War satire remains as funny and razor-sharp today as it was in 1964.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Dr. Strangelove among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ Widely considered one of the best comedies ever made.
✓ Selected into the National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
Mary Poppins (1964)
Musical fantasy film produced Disney, directed by Robert Stevenson, starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.
Story: In turn of the century London, a magical nanny employs music and adventure to help two neglected children become closer to their father. (IMDB)
A lavish modern fairy tale celebrated for its amazing special effects, catchy songs, and Julie Andrews’s legendary performance in the title role.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Mary Poppins among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, and widely considered Walt Disney’s crowning live-action achievement.
✓ Winner of 5 Oscars, and nominee for another 8, including the ‘Best Picture of the Year’ Academy Award.
✓ Selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
The Sound of Music (1965)
Musical drama film produced and directed by Robert Wise, starring Julie Andrews.
Story: A woman leaves an Austrian convent to become a governess to the children of a Naval officer widower. (IMDB)
Unapologetically sweet and maybe even a little corny, The Sound of Music will win over all but the most cynical filmgoers with its classic songs and irresistible warmth.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Sound of Music among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ Received five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, also received two Golden Globe Awards, for Best Motion Picture and Best Actress.
✓ The United States Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
Doctor Zhivago (1965)
Epic romantic drama film directed by David Lean.
Story: The life of a Russian physician and poet who, although married to another, falls in love with a political activist’s wife and experiences hardship during World War I and then the October Revolution. (IMDB)
It may not be the best of David Lean’s epics, but Dr. Zhivago is still brilliantly photographed and sweepingly romantic.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Doctor Zhivago among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
✓ Winner of 5 Oscars, and nominee for another 5, including the ‘Best Picture of the Year’ Academy Award.
✓ Ranked by the American Film Institute #39 on their 100 Years… 100 Movies list, and ranked by the British Film Institute as the 27th greatest British film of all time.
The Flight of the Phoenix (1965)
Adventure drama film directed by Robert Aldrich and starring James Stewart.
Story: After a plane crash in the Sahara, one of the survivors says he’s an airplane designer and they can make a flyable plane from the wreckage. (IMDB)
Why is The Flight of the Phoenix among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Although the movie didn’t perform too well in its time, it has since gained a large following, and now it is considered a true classic with a noteworthy influence on pop culture.
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
Italian epic Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood.
Story: A bounty hunting scam joins two men in an uneasy alliance against a third in a race to find a fortune in gold buried in a remote cemetery. (IMDB)
Arguably the greatest of the spaghetti westerns, this epic features a compelling story, memorable performances, breathtaking landscapes, and a haunting score.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Good, the Bad and the Ugly among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ One of the highest grossing movies of the 1960s.
✓ Praised for Leone’s use of long shots and close-up cinematography, as well as his distinctive use of violence, tension, and stylistic gunfights.
Fahrenheit 451 (1966)
British dystopian science fiction drama film directed by François Truffaut.
Story: In an oppressive future, a fireman whose duty is to destroy all books begins to question his task. (IMDB)
Fahrenheit 451 is an intriguing film that suffuses Truffaut’s trademark wit and black humor with the intelligence and morality of Ray Bradbury’s novel.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Fahrenheit 451 among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Nominated for a Bafta Film Award, and for the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.
✓ Although it had a mixed critical reception upon release, the film has gained significant critical acclaim over the years, and is now considered to be a true classic.
Batman: The Movie (1966)
Superhero comedy film starring Adam West.
Story: The Dynamic Duo faces four supervillains who plan to hold the world for ransom with the help of a secret invention that instantly dehydrates people. (IMDB)
Batman: The Movie elevates camp to an art form – and has a blast doing it, every gloriously tongue-in-cheek inch of the way.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Batman: The Movie among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ The first full-length theatrical adaptation of the iconic DC Comics character Batman.
✓ One of the most popular movies of the 1960s, and a timeless superhero classic.
The Graduate (1967)
Romantic comedy-drama film starring Dustin Hoffman.
Story: A disillusioned college graduate finds himself torn between his older lover and her daughter. (IMDB)
The music, the performances, the precision in capturing the post-college malaise – The Graduate’s coming-of-age story is indeed one for the ages.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Graduate among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ Selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”
✓ The American Film Institute ranked this as the #17 Greatest Movie of All Time.
The Jungle Book (1967)
Animated family film produced by Disney.
Story: Bagheera the Panther and Baloo the Bear have a difficult time trying to convince a boy to leave the jungle for human civilization. (IMDB)
With expressive animation, fun characters, and catchy songs, The Jungle Book endures as a crowd-pleasing Disney classic.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Jungle Book among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ One of the most popular and highest grossing movies of the 1960s.
✓ Voted number 19 in Channel 4’s (UK) “Greatest Family Films”.
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
War adventure film directed by Robert Aldrich, starring Lee Marvin and Charles Bronson.
Story: During World War II, a rebellious U.S. Army Major is assigned a dozen convicted murderers to train and lead them into a mass assassination mission of German officers. (IMDB)
Amoral on the surface and exuding testosterone, The Dirty Dozen utilizes combat and its staggering cast of likable scoundrels to deliver raucous entertainment.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is The Dirty Dozen among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ One of the most popular and highest grossing movies of the 1960s.
✓ The American Film Institute placed the film at number 65 on their 100 Years… 100 Thrills list.
✓ Nominated for four Academy Awards, winning in the category Best Sound Effects.
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Adventure | Sci-Fi
Directed by Stanley Kubrick
Story: After discovering a mysterious artifact buried beneath the Lunar surface, mankind sets off on a quest to find its origins with help from intelligent supercomputer H.A.L. 9000. (IMDB)
One of the most influential of all sci-fi films — and one of the most controversial — Stanley Kubrick’s 2001 is a delicate, poetic meditation on the ingenuity — and folly — of mankind.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is 2001: A Space Odyssey among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list, and also selected by the Vatican in the “art” category of its list of 45 “great films”.
✓ Praised for its scientifically accurate depiction of space flight, pioneering special effects, and ambiguous imagery.
✓ Deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Horror drama film directed by Roman Polanski.
Story: A young couple moves in to an apartment only to be surrounded by peculiar neighbors and occurrences. When the wife becomes mysteriously pregnant, paranoia over the safety of her unborn child begins to control her life. (IMDB)
A frightening tale of Satanism and pregnancy that is even more disturbing than it sounds thanks to convincing and committed performances by Mia Farrow and Ruth Gordon.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Rosemary’s Baby among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ Earned universal acclaim from film critics and won numerous nominations and awards.
✓ Selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, being deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
Planet of the Apes (1968)
Science fiction adventure film directed by Franklin J. Schaffner and starring Charlton Heston.
Story: An astronaut crew crash-lands on a planet in the distant future where intelligent talking apes are the dominant species, and humans are the oppressed and enslaved. (IMDB)
Planet of the Apes raises thought-provoking questions about our culture without letting social commentary get in the way of the drama and action.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Planet of the Apes among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ Selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
✓ Groundbreaking for its prosthetic makeup techniques and was well received by critics and audiences.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
Biography crime western film directed by George Roy Hill, starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford.
Story: Wyoming, early 1900s. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid are the leaders of a band of outlaws. After a train robbery goes wrong they find themselves on the run with a posse hard on their heels. Their solution – escape to Bolivia. (IMDB)
With its iconic pairing of Paul Newman and Robert Redford, jaunty screenplay and Burt Bacharach score, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid has gone down as among the defining moments in late-’60s American cinema.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
✓ Winner of 4 Oscars, and nominee for another 3, including the “Best Picture of the Year” Academy Award.
✓ Ranked #7 on the American Film Institute’s list of the ten greatest films in the genre “Western”.
Midnight Cowboy (1969)
Buddy drama film directed by John Schlesinger, starring Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight.
Story: A naive hustler travels from Texas to New York City to seek personal fortune, finding a new friend in the process. (IMDB)
John Schlesinger’s gritty, unrelentingly bleak look at the seedy underbelly of urban American life is undeniably disturbing, but Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight’s performances make it difficult to turn away.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Midnight Cowboy among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.
✓ Winner of three Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. It is the only X-rated film ever to win “Best Picture”.
✓ Deemed “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.
Easy Rider (1969)
American independent road drama film starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and
Jack Nicholson.
Story: Through the open country and desert lands, two bikers head from L.A to New Orleans, and along the way, meet a man who bridges a counter-culture gap they are unaware of. (IMDB)
Edgy and seminal, Easy Rider encapsulates the dreams, hopes, and hopelessness of 1960s counterculture.
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Consensus
Why is Easy Rider among the best movies of the 1960s?
✓ Included among the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Roger Ebert’s Great Movies list.
✓ The American Film Institute ranked this as the #84 Greatest Movie of All Time.
✓ Critics have praised the performances, directing, writing, soundtrack, visuals, and atmosphere.
…end of the reel…
So there you have it: The 30 Greatest Movies of the 1960s
If you want to take a look at the movies listed above, without all that info between the titles, here’s a quick recap:
Wait, there’s more!
If you’re a hardcore fan of the 1960s, and you already saw most of the movies in the Top 30 List above, than here’s the extended version for you:
TOP 100 MOVIES OF THE 1960s
Click to reveal the List
Is there a movie on the list you’d replace with another one? Share your thoughts below.
Ready for another journey?
Explore the best movies of other decades too!
Thank you for your sharing. I am worried that I lack creative ideas. It is your article that makes me full of hope. Thank you. But, I have a question, can you help me?
I don’t think the title of your article matches the content lol. Just kidding, mainly because I had some doubts after reading the article.