Hollywood’s Golden Age endures
by Timothy S. Goeglein · The Washington TimesOPINION:
Alfred Hitchcock once reportedly said, “To me, the cinema is the ultimate form of magic.”
We recently lost one of the last stars from the magical cinematic era dubbed the Golden Age of Hollywood: Eva Marie Saint, the co-star of the Hitchcock classic “North by Northwest,” who passed away this month at 102.
Her loss brought back memories of the classic movies from that era.
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A few years ago, I was having a meal with my good friend Craig Osten, who, like me, is a classic movie fan. He and his wife introduce new generations to the cinematic gems of Hollywood’s Golden Age and find that young adults are falling in love with these movies, just as he did when he was young.
Why? These films tell real stories free of graphic violence and gratuitous sexuality while exploring the depth of character rather than mindless destruction.
Over that meal, we put together our list of the best 25 films of all time, and all but two come from Hollywood’s Golden Age:
- Casablanca (1942)
- North by Northwest (1959)
- Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
- Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939)
- Citizen Kane (1941)
- Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
- It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
- Swing Time (1936)
- Vertigo (1958)
- Notorious (1946)
- Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
- On the Town (1949)
- Stagecoach (1939)
- Show Boat (1936)
- The Awful Truth (1937)
- Mrs. Miniver (1942)
- Double Indemnity (1944)
- The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
- Patton (1970)
- The Searchers (1956)
- Chariots of Fire (1981)
- Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
- The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
- Gone with the Wind (1939)
- The Philadelphia Story (1940)
Many of these were made by the greatest set of directors Hollywood has ever known: Hitchcock, Frank Capra, John Ford, Leo McCarey and Michael Curtiz. These were craftsmen who knew how to tell a story and use the Production Code — until it was officially abandoned and replaced by the MPAA rating system in 1968 — to their advantage through implied actions.
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Nearly all the films were made during the studio system era and under the dreaded Production Code. As many critics have noted, code restrictions helped make “Casablanca” the classic that it is. The code forced the movie to end with Humphrey Bogart making the personal sacrifice of convincing Ingrid Bergman to stay with her husband.
In “North by Northwest,” Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint engage in witty repartee that skirts the restrictions of the time yet still generates enough heat to raise the thermostat while keeping viewers on the edge of their seats.
These films were unafraid of tackling tough issues, such as racial bigotry in “Show Boat,” hypocrisy in “Citizen Kane” and the plight of war veterans reentering society in “The Best Years of Our Lives.”
The movies and their characters made an impact, whether it was the brave British heroine played by Greer Garson in “Mrs. Miniver” — which Winston Churchill described as “more powerful to the war effort than the combined work of six military divisions” — or the humble, socially awkward schoolmaster “Chips,” who, in an incredible performance by Robert Donat, rises above personal setbacks and tragedy to shape generations of British boys into gentlemen.
Anyone older than 40 who has experienced the loss of youthful idealism as it meets adult reality is still greatly moved by Jimmy Stewart in “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
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Other films on the list are just fun. There is the wittiness of “The Awful Truth,” a story of marital reconciliation that made Cary Grant a star, and the swashbuckling of Errol Flynn in “The Adventures of Robin Hood.”
It is unlikely that anyone will ever again put together as perfect a cast as Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart and Katharine Hepburn in the classic “The Philadelphia Story.”
Who can forget the artistry of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in “Swing Time”? Just watch the “Pick Yourself Up” number early in the film, and you will see cinematic magic at its finest.
Of course, no list is complete without the joy and hilarity of “Singin’ in the Rain,” chronicling the chaos of the advent of sound movies.
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Sadly, the craftspeople who made these movies possible — the studios, directors, actors, costume designers, composers and even production crews — are all pretty much gone now. Yet their films continue to entertain new generations with compelling stories and inspired performances.
We can be thankful that we will forever have the magic they created. Rest in peace, Eva.
• Timothy S. Goeglein is the vice president of government and external relations at Focus on the Family and a co-author of a new book, “What Really Matters: Restoring a Legacy of Faith, Freedom, and Family” (Fidelis, 2026).