BY THE NUMBERS: FAVORITE DIRECTORS OF THE 1940S

When a kindly priest is murdered while waiting at a street corner in a quiet Connecticut town, the citizens are horrified and demand action from the police. All of the witnesses identify John Waldron, a nervous out-of-towner, as the killer. District Attorney Henry Harvey is then put on the case and faces political opposition in his attempt to prove Waldron's innocence.

It's the hope that sustains the spirit of every GI: the dream of the day when he will finally return home. For three WWII veterans, the day has arrived. But for each man, the dream is about to become a nightmare.

Two jobless Americans convince a prospector to travel to the mountains of Mexico with them in search of gold. But the hostile wilderness, local bandits, and greed all get in the way of their journey.

Dumbo is a baby elephant born with over-sized ears and a supreme lack of confidence. But thanks to his even more diminutive buddy Timothy the Mouse, the pint-sized pachyderm learns to surmount all obstacles.

The Roth family leads a quiet life in a small village in the German Alps during the early 1930s. When the Nazis come to power, the family is divided and Martin Brietner, a family friend is caught up in the turmoil.

British film written and directed by Humphrey Jennings, filmed in documentary style showing the lives of firefighters through the Blitz in World War II.

In WWII-era Rome, underground resistance leader Manfredi attempts to evade the Gestapo by enlisting the help of Pina, the fiancée of a fellow member of the resistance, and Don Pietro, the priest due to oversee her marriage. But it’s not long before the Nazis and the local police find him.

Dictator Adenoid Hynkel tries to expand his empire while a poor Jewish barber tries to avoid persecution from Hynkel's regime.

A Japanese mountain inn patron's foot is cut by an ornamental hairpin accidentally left behind by a former patron, leading to much curiosity among the other patrons regarding her identity.

In postwar Vienna, Austria, Holly Martins, a writer of pulp Westerns, arrives penniless as a guest of his childhood chum Harry Lime, only to learn he has died. Martins develops a conspiracy theory after learning of a "third man" present at the time of Harry's death, running into interference from British officer Major Calloway, and falling head-over-heels for Harry's grief-stricken lover, Anna.

A psychopathic criminal with a mother complex makes a daring break from prison and then leads his old gang in a chemical plant payroll heist. After the heist, events take a crazy turn.

A bad day gets worse for young detective Murakami when a pickpocket steals his gun on a hot, crowded bus. Desperate to right the wrong, he goes undercover, scavenging Tokyo’s sweltering streets for the stray dog whose desperation has led him to a life of crime. With each step, cop and criminal’s lives become more intertwined and the investigation becomes an examination of Murakami’s own dark side.

Young Manuela (Judy Garland) is pledged by her Aunt Inez (Gladys Cooper) to be married to the town mayor (Walter Slezak.) He's much older and "round as a pumpkin," but very rich, much to the delight of greedy Aunt Inez. In the meantime, Manuela dreams of being swept away by the infamous Macoco, "Mack the Black of the Caribbean Sea." Meanwhile, Serafin (Gene Kelly) and his troupe of traveling actors arrive in town to perform. Serafin meets Manuela and makes a romantic play for her, but she'll have nothing to do with the lowly actor. Later that night during the performance, Serafin hypnotises Manuela. While under his mesmerizing spell she reveals her Macoco fantasy to him and the audience. Serafin finds out that the mayor is actually Macoco, attempting to retire quietly with his lifetime's worth of plunder. Serafin tries to blackmail the mayor into giving up Manuela. Having no success with that, he announces to the villagers that he, Serafin, is Macoco. He threatens to burn down the town unless they give up Manuela to him in ten minutes' time. The townspeople plead with Manuela to sacrifice herself for the sake of the village. She grudgingly agrees to this "sacrifice," while actually being quite eager to run off with the man she thinks is Macoco. Then Manuela finds out that Serafin is just an actor, not really Macoco. A hilarious scene ensues in which she throws every vase in the room at him. ThemMayor, eager to have the impostor executed as Macoco, thereby ensuring a permanent new identity for himself and a beautiful new wife, arranges with the Viceroy for a trial and execution. Just before the execution, Serafin pleads for one last performance for the Viceroy. During the performance, Manuela discovers that the Mayor is the real Macoco, and she helps Serafin bait him into revealing himself as the real pirate. In the final scene, Manuela and Serafin perform "Be A Clown" in some new town, with the real Macoco presumably executed, and the two actors happily in love.

Gino, a drifter, begins an affair with inn-owner Giovanna as they plan to get rid of her older husband.

1945 film by Marcel Carné

1945 film by Robert Bresson

Walt Disney's timeless masterpiece is an extravaganza of sight and sound! See the music come to life, hear the pictures burst into song and experience the excitement that is Fantasia over and over again.

A girl, working in a German commandant's office, saves two wounded Russian pilots sacrificing her own life.

A shimmering glass hotel at the top of a remote Provençal mountain provides the setting for a tragicomic tapestry about an obsessive love pentangle, whose principals range from an artist to a hotel manager to a dam worker.

1943 silent short film