Overview of the events of 1953 in film
Overview of the events of 1953 in film
The year 1953 in film involved some significant events.
Top-grossing films (U.S.)
The top ten 1953 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:
Highest-grossing films of 1953
Rank |
Title |
Studio |
Box-office gross rental
|
1
|
The Robe
|
20th Century Fox
|
$17,500,000[1]
|
2
|
This Is Cinerama
|
Cinerama Releasing Corporation
|
$12,500,000[1]
|
3
|
From Here to Eternity
|
Columbia Pictures
|
$12,200,000[1]
|
4
|
Shane
|
Paramount Pictures
|
$8,000,000[1]
|
5
|
How to Marry a Millionaire
|
20th Century Fox
|
$7,300,000[1]
|
6
|
Peter Pan
|
Walt Disney/RKO Radio Pictures
|
$6,000,000[1]
|
7
|
House of Wax
|
Warner Bros.
|
$5,500,000[2]
|
8
|
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
|
20th Century Fox
|
$5,100,000[1]
|
9
|
Salome
|
Columbia Pictures
|
$4,750,000[2]
|
10
|
Mogambo
|
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
|
$4,576,000[3]
|
Notable films released in 1953
United States unless stated
#
A
- Abbott and Costello Go to Mars
- Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
- Act of Love (Un acte d'amour), starring Kirk Douglas – (US/France)
- The Actress, starring Spencer Tracy and Jean Simmons
- Albert R.N., directed by Lewis Gilbert, starring Anthony Steel, Jack Warner, Robert Beatty, William Sylvester – (GB)
- The All-American, starring Tony Curtis
- All I Desire, starring Barbara Stanwyck
- All the Brothers Were Valiant, starring Ann Blyth
- Anarkali – (India)
- Appointment in Honduras, directed by Jacques Tourneur, starring Ann Sheridan and Glenn Ford
- Arrowhead, starring Charlton Heston and Jack Palance
B
- Baaz, directed by and starring Guru Dutt – (India)
- The Band Wagon, starring Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Jack Buchanan, Nanette Fabray, Oscar Levant
- The Bandit of Brazil (O Cangaceiro) – (Brazil)
- Barabbas, directed by Alf Sjöberg – (Sweden)
- The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, starring Paula Raymond and Cecil Kellaway
- Beat the Devil, directed by John Huston, starring Humphrey Bogart, Jennifer Jones, Gina Lollobrigida – (Italy/GB/US)
- The Beggar's Opera, starring Laurence Olivier and Dorothy Tutin – (GB)
- Belinsky – (U.S.S.R.)
- Ben and Me, featuring the voices of Sterling Holloway and Charles Ruggles
- Beneath the 12-Mile Reef, starring Robert Wagner
- Bienvenido Mr. Marshall, directed by Luis García Berlanga, starring Fernando Rey – (Spain)
- The Big Heat, directed by Fritz Lang, starring Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame, Lee Marvin
- Big Leaguer, starring Edward G. Robinson
- The Bigamist, directed by and starring Ida Lupino, with Joan Fontaine, Edmond O'Brien
- Black Ermine – (Argentina)
- Blowing Wild, starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck
- The Blue Gardenia, starring Anne Baxter and Raymond Burr
- A Blueprint for Murder, starring Joseph Cotten and Jean Peters
- Bread, Love and Dreams (Pane, amore e fantasia), starring Vittorio De Sica and Gina Lollobrigida – (Italy)
- Bright Road, the first feature-film appearance of Harry Belafonte (US)
- The Brute (El Bruto), directed by Luis Buñuel, starring Pedro Armendáriz and Katy Jurado – (Mexico)
- By the Light of the Silvery Moon, starring Doris Day and Gordon MacRae
C
- The Caddy, starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
- Calamity Jane, starring Doris Day
- Call Me Madam, starring Ethel Merman
- The Captain's Paradise, starring Alec Guinness – (GB)
- Cease Fire
- The Charge at Feather River, starring Guy Madison
- City Beneath the Sea, starring Robert Ryan, Anthony Quinn, Mala Powers
- City That Never Sleeps, starring Gig Young, William Talman, Paula Raymond, Mala Powers
- The Clown, starring Red Skelton
- Confidentially Connie, starring Van Johnson and Janet Leigh
- The Conquest of Everest – (documentary) – (GB)
- The Cruel Sea, starring Jack Hawkins and Denholm Elliott – (GB)
- Cry of the Hunted, starring Vittorio Gassman, Barry Sullivan, Polly Bergen
D
- Dangerous Crossing, starring Jeanne Crain and Michael Rennie
- Dangerous When Wet, starring Esther Williams
- Decameron Nights, starring Joan Fontaine and Louis Jourdan
- The Desert Rats, starring Richard Burton and James Mason
- Desperate Moment, starring Dirk Bogarde and Mai Zetterling – (GB)
- Devdas – (India)
- Do Bigha Zamin (Two Acres of Land), directed by Bimal Roy – (India)
- Donovan's Brain, starring Lew Ayres and Nancy Davis
- Down Among the Sheltering Palms, starring Mitzi Gaynor, Gloria DeHaven, Jane Greer
- Dream Wife, starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr
E
- Él (Him), directed by Luis Buñuel, starring Arturo de Córdova – (Mexico)
- The Earrings of Madame de..., directed by Max Ophüls, starring Charles Boyer – (France/Italy)
- East of Sumatra, starring Anthony Quinn and Jeff Chandler
- Easy to Love, starring Esther Williams
- Easy Years (Anni facili), directed by Luigi Zampa – (Italy)
- The Eddie Cantor Story, starring Keefe Brasselle
- Entotsu no mieru basho (The Four Chimneys) – (Japan)
- Esa pareja feliz (That Happy Couple), directed by Juan Antonio Bardem and Luis García Berlanga – (Spain)
- Escape By Night, starring Bonar Colleano and Sid James – (GB)
- Escape from Fort Bravo, directed by John Sturges, starring William Holden, Eleanor Parker, John Forsythe
F
- Fair Wind to Java, starring Fred MacMurray and Vera Ralston
- The Farmer Takes a Wife, starring Betty Grable
- Fast Company, starring Howard Keel and Polly Bergen
- Fear and Desire, directed by Stanley Kubrick
- The Final Test, directed by Anthony Asquith, starring Jack Warner (GB)
- Folly to Be Wise, directed by Frank Launder, starring Alastair Sim – (GB)
- Footpath, starring Dilip Kumar – (India)
- From Here to Eternity, directed by Fred Zinnemann, starring Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Deborah Kerr, Frank Sinatra, Donna Reed – winner of 8 Oscars
G
- Gate of Hell (Jigokumon) – (Japan)
- A Geisha (Gion Bayashi), directed by Kenji Mizoguchi – (Japan)
- Genevieve, starring Dinah Sheridan, John Gregson, Kay Kendall – (GB)
- Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe
- The Girl Next Door, starring June Haver and Dan Dailey
- The Girl Who Had Everything, starring Elizabeth Taylor, William Powell, Fernando Lamas, Gig Young
- Give a Girl a Break, directed by Stanley Donen, starring Debbie Reynolds, Marge Champion, Gower Champion
- The Glass Wall, starring Vittorio Gassman and Gloria Grahame
- The Golden Blade, starring Rock Hudson and Piper Laurie
- The Great Adventure (Det stora äventyret), directed by Arne Sucksdorff – (Sweden)
- The Great Sioux Uprising, starring Jeff Chandler
- Gun Fury, starring Rock Hudson and Donna Reed
H
- The Heart of the Matter, starring Trevor Howard – (GB)
- The Hitch-Hiker, directed by Ida Lupino, starring Edmond O'Brien and William Talman
- Hondo, starring John Wayne and Geraldine Page in her film debut
- Houdini, starring (husband and wife) Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh
- House of Wax, starring Vincent Price
- How to Marry a Millionaire, starring Marilyn Monroe, Betty Grable, Lauren Bacall (Grable, Fox's top star of the 1940s, with Monroe, Fox's top star of the 1950s)
I
- I Confess, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Montgomery Clift and Anne Baxter
- The I Don't Care Girl, starring Mitzi Gaynor
- I Love Lucy, starring Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz
- I, the Jury, starring Biff Elliot and Peggie Castle
- Inferno, starring Robert Ryan
- Interim, directed by Stan Brakhage, short film (25 ½ minutes); music by James Tenney)
- The Intruder, starring Jack Hawkins – (GB)
- Is Your Honeymoon Really Necessary?, starring Bonar Colleano and Diana Dors – (GB)
- Island in the Sky, starring John Wayne
- It Came from Outer Space, directed by Jack Arnold, starring Richard Carlson
J
- Jennifer, starring Ida Lupino and Howard Duff
- Jeopardy, starring Barbara Stanwyck, Barry Sullivan, Ralph Meeker
- Julius Caesar, directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, starring Marlon Brando, James Mason, John Gielgud, Louis Calhern, Greer Garson, Deborah Kerr
K
L
- The Lady Without Camelias (La signora senza camelie), directed by Michelangelo Antonioni – (Italy)
- The Landowner's Daughter (Sinhá Moça), starring Anselmo Duarte – (Brazil)
- Lagu Kenangan (L. Inata [id]), starring Titien Sumarni and AN Alcaff (Indonesia)
- Latin Lovers, starring Lana Turner
- Law and Order, a western starring Ronald Reagan
- The Lawless Breed, starring Rock Hudson
- Lili, starring Leslie Caron
- The Limping Man, starring Lloyd Bridges – (GB)
- A Lion Is in the Streets, starring James Cagney, Barbara Hale, Anne Francis
- Little Boy Lost, starring Bing Crosby
- Little Fugitive
- The Living Desert, winner of Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature
- Love in the City (L'Amore in Città), an anthology film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni, Dino Risi, Federico Fellini and others – (Italy)
- Love Letter (Koibumi) – (Japan)
M
- Malta Story, directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, starring Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, Anthony Steel, Muriel Pavlow – (GB)
- Man in the Attic, starring Jack Palance and Constance Smith
- The Man Between, starring James Mason and Claire Bloom – (GB)
- Man in the Dark, starring Edmond O'Brien and Audrey Totter
- Man on a Tightrope, starring Fredric March and Gloria Grahame
- Martin Luther – (US/West Germany)
- The Master of Ballantrae, directed by William Keighley, starring Errol Flynn, Roger Livesey, Anthony Steel, Beatrice Campbell – (U.K.)
- Meet Me at the Fair, starring Dan Dailey and Diana Lynn
- Miss Sadie Thompson, starring Rita Hayworth
- The Mississippi Gambler, starring Tyrone Power and Piper Laurie
- Mogambo, starring Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly (remake of 1932's Red Dust which starred Gable with Jean Harlow)
- Money from Home, starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
- Monsieur Hulot's Holiday (Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot), directed by and starring Jacques Tati – (France)
- La montaña sin ley
- The Moon Is Blue, first U.S. movie to use the words "pregnant" and "virgin", directed by Otto Preminger, starring William Holden, David Niven, Maggie McNamara
- The Moonlighter, starring Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray
N
P
R
- Remains to Be Seen, starring June Allyson and Van Johnson
- Report News (Reportaje), starring Arturo de Córdova and Dolores del Río – (Mexico)
- Return to Paradise, starring Gary Cooper
- Ride, Vaquero!, starring Robert Taylor and Ava Gardner
- The Robe, the first movie filmed in CinemaScope, starring Richard Burton and Jean Simmons
- Rogue's March, starring Peter Lawford, Janice Rule
- Roman Holiday, directed by William Wyler, starring Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn in her Oscar-winning first leading role
- Rosanna (La Red) – (Mexico)
S
- Salome, starring Rita Hayworth
- Sawdust and Tinsel (Gycklarnas afton), directed by Ingmar Bergman – (Sweden)
- Scared Stiff, starring Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Lizabeth Scott and Carmen Miranda
- Sea Devils, starring Rock Hudson and Yvonne De Carlo – (GB/US)
- Seminole, starring Rock Hudson and Anthony Quinn
- Shane, directed by George Stevens, starring Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur (in her final film role), Brandon de Wilde, Ben Johnson, Jack Palance
- Siamo Donne (We, the Women), starring Alida Valli and Ingrid Bergman – (Italy)
- Small Town Girl, starring Jane Powell and Ann Miller
- So Big, directed by Robert Wise, starring Jane Wyman, Sterling Hayden, Steve Forrest
- So This Is Love, starring Kathryn Grayson and Merv Griffin
- South Sea Woman, starring Burt Lancaster and Virginia Mayo
- Split Second, starring Alexis Smith and Jan Sterling
- Stalag 17, directed by Billy Wilder, starring William Holden (in his Oscar-winning role), Don Taylor, Harvey Lembeck, Robert Strauss, Otto Preminger, Peter Graves
- Stars of the Russian Ballet (Mastera russkogo baleta), starring Galina Ulanova – (USSR)
- The State Department Store (Állami Áruház) – (Hungary)
- The Steel Lady, starring Rod Cameron and Tab Hunter
- The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan, starring Robert Morley and Maurice Evans – (GB)
- The Story of Little Muck (Die Geschichte vom kleinen Muck) – (East Germany)
- The Story of Three Loves, trilogy starring James Mason, Leslie Caron, Kirk Douglas
- Summer with Monika (Sommaren med Monika), directed by Ingmar Bergman, starring Harriet Andersson – (Sweden)
- The Sun Shines Bright, directed by John Ford, starring Charles Winninger
T
- Take Me to Town, directed by Douglas Sirk, starring Ann Sheridan and Sterling Hayden
- Take the High Ground!, starring Richard Widmark and Karl Malden
- Thérèse Raquin, directed by Marcel Carné, starring Simone Signoret – (France)
- Three Perfect Wives (Las Tres perfectas casadas), starring Arturo de Córdova – (Mexico)
- Thunder Over the Plains, starring Randolph Scott
- Titanic, starring Barbara Stanwyck, Clifton Webb, Thelma Ritter, Brian Aherne, Robert Wagner
- The Titfield Thunderbolt, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Stanley Holloway – (GB)
- Tokyo Story (Tōkyō Monogatari), directed by Yasujirō Ozu – (Japan)
- Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom
- Torch Song, starring Joan Crawford
- Treasure of the Golden Condor, directed by Delmer Daves, starring Cornel Wilde
- Trouble Along the Way, starring John Wayne
- Trouble in Store, starring Norman Wisdom – (GB)
- Tumbleweed, starring Audie Murphy
- Twice Upon a Time, directed by Emeric Pressburger – (GB)
U
V
W
Y