Oscar Nominated Movies from 1953
by mtatzgern | created - 11 Dec 2019 | updated - 11 Dec 2019 | PublicFeature films nominated for the 26th Academy Awards
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1. From Here to Eternity (1953)
Passed | 118 min | Drama, Romance, War
At a U.S. Army base in 1941 Hawaii, a private is cruelly punished for not boxing on his unit's team, while his commanding officer's wife and top aide begin a tentative affair.
Director: Fred Zinnemann | Stars: Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Deborah Kerr, Donna Reed
Votes: 50,840 | Gross: $30.50M
2. Julius Caesar (1953)
Not Rated | 120 min | Drama, History
The growing ambition of Julius Caesar is a source of major concern to his close friend Brutus. Cassius persuades him to participate in his plot to assassinate Caesar but they have both sorely underestimated Mark Antony.
Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz | Stars: Louis Calhern, Marlon Brando, James Mason, John Gielgud
Votes: 12,892
3. Roman Holiday (1953)
Passed | 118 min | Comedy, Romance
A bored and sheltered princess escapes her guardians and falls in love with an American newsman in Rome.
Director: William Wyler | Stars: Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, Eddie Albert, Hartley Power
Votes: 147,707
4. Shane (1953)
Not Rated | 118 min | Drama, Western
A weary gunfighter in 1880s Wyoming begins to envision a quieter life after befriending a homestead family with a young son who idolizes him, but a smoldering range war forces him to act.
Director: George Stevens | Stars: Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin, Brandon De Wilde
Votes: 44,164 | Gross: $20.00M
5. The Robe (1953)
Approved | 135 min | Drama, History, Romance
In the Roman province of Judea during the 1st century, Roman tribune Marcellus Gallio is ordered to crucify Jesus of Nazareth but is tormented by his guilty conscience afterwards.
Director: Henry Koster | Stars: Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Michael Rennie
Votes: 11,753 | Gross: $36.00M
6. Stalag 17 (1953)
Not Rated | 120 min | Comedy, Drama, War
After two Americans are killed while escaping from a German P.O.W. camp in World War II, the barracks black marketeer, J.J. Sefton, is suspected of being an informer.
Director: Billy Wilder | Stars: William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger, Robert Strauss
Votes: 58,827
7. Mogambo (1953)
Passed | 116 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance
On a Kenyan safari, white hunter Victor Marswell has a love triangle with seductive American socialite Eloise Kelly and anthropologist Donald Nordley's cheating wife Linda.
Director: John Ford | Stars: Clark Gable, Grace Kelly, Ava Gardner, Donald Sinden
Votes: 9,177
8. Lili (1953)
Passed | 81 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
An orphaned young woman becomes part of a puppet act and forms a relationship with the anti-social puppeteer.
Director: Charles Walters | Stars: Leslie Caron, Mel Ferrer, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Zsa Zsa Gabor
Votes: 3,942
9. The Moon Is Blue (1953)
M/PG | 99 min | Comedy, Romance
Two aging playboys are both after the same attractive young woman, but she fends them off by claiming that she plans to remain a virgin until her wedding night. Both men determine to find a way around her objections.
Director: Otto Preminger | Stars: William Holden, David Niven, Maggie McNamara, Tom Tully
Votes: 2,520
10. Hondo (1953)
PG | 83 min | Drama, Romance, War
Army dispatch rider Hondo Lane discovers a woman and young son living in the midst of warring Apaches and becomes their protector.
Director: John Farrow | Stars: John Wayne, Geraldine Page, Ward Bond, Michael Pate
Votes: 12,424
11. Torch Song (1953)
Approved | 90 min | Drama, Music, Romance
A tough but unhappy Broadway star re-evaluates her life when she crosses paths with a blind pianist.
Director: Charles Walters | Stars: Joan Crawford, Michael Wilding, Gig Young, Marjorie Rambeau
Votes: 1,502
12. Pickup on South Street (1953)
Passed | 80 min | Crime, Film-Noir, Mystery
A pickpocket unwittingly lifts a message destined for enemy agents and becomes a target for a Communist spy ring.
Director: Samuel Fuller | Stars: Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, Thelma Ritter, Murvyn Vye
Votes: 16,156
13. Martin Luther (1953)
Approved | 105 min | Biography, Drama, History
Biopic of German priest Martin Luther (Niall MacGinnis), covering his life between 1505 and 1530 A.D., and the birth of the Protestant Reformation movement.
Director: Irving Pichel | Stars: Niall MacGinnis, John Ruddock, Pierre Lefevre, Guy Verney
Votes: 667
14. The President's Lady (1953)
Approved | 96 min | Biography, Drama
The story of president Andrew Jackson from his early years, the film begins when he meets Rachel Donaldson Robards. The plot concentrates on the scandal concerning the legality of their marriage and how they overcame the difficulties.
Director: Henry Levin | Stars: Susan Hayward, Charlton Heston, John McIntire, Fay Bainter
Votes: 982
15. Titanic (1953)
Not Rated | 98 min | Drama, History, Romance
An unhappily married couple struggle to deal with their problems while on board the luxurious, ill-fated RMS Titanic.
Director: Jean Negulesco | Stars: Clifton Webb, Barbara Stanwyck, Robert Wagner, Audrey Dalton
Votes: 7,665 | Gross: $4.91M
16. Knights of the Round Table (1953)
Approved | 115 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
King Arthur's rule is threatened by the adulterous love between Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere, a relationship the king's enemies hope to exploit.
Director: Richard Thorpe | Stars: Robert Taylor, Ava Gardner, Mel Ferrer, Anne Crawford
Votes: 4,074
17. The Story of Three Loves (1953)
Approved | 122 min | Drama, Fantasy, Music
An anthology film consisting of three very different stories about love set in Europe and told in flashback.
Directors: Vincente Minnelli, Gottfried Reinhardt | Stars: Kirk Douglas, James Mason, Leslie Caron, Farley Granger
Votes: 1,473
18. Young Bess (1953)
Approved | 112 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
The early life of Elizabeth I, from her childhood until her accession to the throne of England in 1558.
Director: George Sidney | Stars: Jean Simmons, Stewart Granger, Deborah Kerr, Charles Laughton
Votes: 1,818
19. The Four Poster (1952)
Approved | 103 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Adapted from the prize-winning Broadway play that featured two people and a four-poster bed, in which the couple enacts their marriage, from 1897, until he dies some time after she has died... See full summary »
Directors: Irving Reis, John Hubley | Stars: Rex Harrison, Lilli Palmer
Votes: 235
20. All the Brothers Were Valiant (1953)
Approved | 95 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance
In the South Pacific islands, two brothers, one good and one bad, fight over the same girl and over a bag of pearls.
Director: Richard Thorpe | Stars: Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger, Ann Blyth, Betta St. John
Votes: 1,108
21. Beneath the 12-Mile Reef (1953)
Approved | 102 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance
Fierce competition among sponge fishermen forces a Greek-American family to fish in the dangerous 12-mile reef area off the western coast of Florida.
Director: Robert D. Webb | Stars: Robert Wagner, Terry Moore, Gilbert Roland, J. Carrol Naish
Votes: 1,612
22. Dream Wife (1953)
Approved | 100 min | Comedy, Romance
A business tycoon decides to wed a Middle Eastern princess whose customs dictate the pair must live apart for several months before marrying. Even more complications settle in when the tycoon's ex-fiancée is assigned to chaperone the pair.
Director: Sidney Sheldon | Stars: Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Walter Pidgeon, Betta St. John
Votes: 2,223
23. The Actress (1953)
Passed | 90 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
This is an account of the real life experience of actress/playwright Ruth Gordon.
Director: George Cukor | Stars: Spencer Tracy, Jean Simmons, Teresa Wright, Anthony Perkins
Votes: 1,506
24. Call Me Madam (1953)
Approved | 114 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
Washington hostess Sally Adams becomes a Truman-era US ambassador to a European grand duchy.
Director: Walter Lang | Stars: Ethel Merman, Donald O'Connor, Vera-Ellen, George Sanders
Votes: 1,463
25. How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)
Approved | 95 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Three women set out to find eligible millionaires to marry, but find true love in the process.
Director: Jean Negulesco | Stars: Marilyn Monroe, Betty Grable, Lauren Bacall, David Wayne
Votes: 24,894
26. The Band Wagon (1953)
Passed | 112 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A pretentiously artistic director is hired for a new Broadway musical and changes it beyond recognition.
Director: Vincente Minnelli | Stars: Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Oscar Levant, Nanette Fabray
Votes: 12,585
27. The War of the Worlds (1953)
G | 85 min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
A small town in California is attacked by Martians, beginning a worldwide invasion.
Director: Byron Haskin | Stars: Gene Barry, Ann Robinson, Les Tremayne, Robert Cornthwaite
Votes: 38,559 | Gross: $4.36M
28. Crazylegs (1953)
Approved | 87 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
The story of the life and career of football star Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch (who plays himself).
Director: Francis D. Lyon | Stars: Elroy 'Crazylegs' Hirsch, Lloyd Nolan, Joan Vohs, James Millican
Votes: 192
29. Calamity Jane (1953)
Passed | 101 min | Musical, Romance, Western
The story of Calamity Jane, her saloon, and her romance with Wild Bill Hickok.
Director: David Butler | Stars: Doris Day, Howard Keel, Allyn Ann McLerie, Philip Carey
Votes: 10,851
30. Miss Sadie Thompson (1953)
Approved | 91 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
A self-righteous missionary man seeks to save the soul of a former prostitute.
Director: Curtis Bernhardt | Stars: Rita Hayworth, José Ferrer, Aldo Ray, Russell Collins
Votes: 1,693
31. Small Town Girl (1953)
Passed | 92 min | Musical, Romance
A judge's daughter keeps an eye on a playboy who gets 30 days in jail for speeding.
Director: László Kardos | Stars: Jane Powell, Farley Granger, Ann Miller, S.Z. Sakall
Votes: 931
32. The Caddy (1953)
Approved | 95 min | Comedy, Musical, Sport
Although gifted golfer Harvey Miller is too nervous to golf in public tournaments, he acts as coach and caddy for friend Joe Anthony.
Director: Norman Taurog | Stars: Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Donna Reed, Barbara Bates
Votes: 2,379
33. Above and Beyond (1952)
Approved | 122 min | Biography, Drama, War
Col. Paul Tibbets piloted the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima in World War II.
Directors: Melvin Frank, Norman Panama | Stars: Robert Taylor, Eleanor Parker, James Whitmore, Larry Keating
Votes: 1,342
34. Kiss Me Kate (1953)
Passed | 109 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
An ex-husband and wife team star in a musical version of 'The Taming of the Shrew'; off-stage, the production is troublesome with ex-lovers' quarrels and two gangsters looking for some money owed to them.
Director: George Sidney | Stars: Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, Ann Miller, Keenan Wynn
Votes: 6,817 | Gross: $4.38M
35. The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T. (1953)
G | 89 min | Family, Fantasy, Music
A young boy dreams that he is in an imaginary world where, assisted by his family's plumber, he must save other piano-playing kids like himself from the dungeons of his dictatorial piano teacher who also mind-controls his mother.
Director: Roy Rowland | Stars: Peter Lind Hayes, Mary Healy, Hans Conried, Tommy Rettig
Votes: 4,463
36. The Mississippi Gambler (1953)
Approved | 99 min | Romance, Western
In 1854 Mississippi, honest riverboat card gambler Mark Fallon wins young Laurent Dureau's diamond necklace, a family heirloom which, in the end, will bring him happiness and tragedy alike.
Director: Rudolph Maté | Stars: Tyrone Power, Piper Laurie, Julie Adams, John McIntire
Votes: 835
37. Little Fugitive (1953)
Not Rated | 75 min | Drama, Family
A young boy fears that he shot his older brother, who is only faking. He then runs away to Coney Island, a crowded beach area, and gets money by returning soda bottles for their deposits.
Directors: Ray Ashley, Morris Engel, Ruth Orkin | Stars: Richard Brewster, Winifred Cushing, Jay Williams, Will Lee
Votes: 3,034 | Gross: $0.03M
38. The Captain's Paradise (1953)
Approved | 94 min | Comedy, Romance
The captain of a ferry boat between the restricted British colony in Gibraltar and Spanish Morocco has a woman of differing appeal and temperament in each port.
Director: Anthony Kimmins | Stars: Alec Guinness, Peter Bull, Charles Goldner, Miles Malleson
Votes: 1,812
39. The Cruel Sea (1953)
Approved | 126 min | Drama, War
The World War II adventures of a British convoy escort ship and its officers.
Director: Charles Frend | Stars: Jack Hawkins, Donald Sinden, John Stratton, Denholm Elliott
Votes: 5,412
40. Take the High Ground! (1953)
Not Rated | 101 min | Drama, War
In 1953, at Fort Bliss, Texas, two former Korean War combat veterans work as drill sergeants and fall in love with the same woman.
Director: Richard Brooks | Stars: Richard Widmark, Karl Malden, Elaine Stewart, Carleton Carpenter
Votes: 1,110
41. The Desert Rats (1953)
Approved | 88 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Richard Burton plays a Scottish Army officer put in charge of a disparate band of ANZAC troops on the perimeter of Tobruk with the German Army doing their best to dislodge them.
Director: Robert Wise | Stars: Richard Burton, James Mason, Robert Newton, Robert Douglas
Votes: 5,301
42. The Naked Spur (1953)
Passed | 91 min | Drama, Thriller, Western
A bounty hunter trying to bring a murderer to justice is forced to accept the help of two less-than-trustworthy strangers.
Director: Anthony Mann | Stars: James Stewart, Janet Leigh, Robert Ryan, Ralph Meeker
Votes: 12,670
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