Items22The creator’s order
  1. 1Passport to Pimlico (1949)Passport to Pimlico (1949) 7.1/10 on IMDbReleased Oct 26, 1949A buried document makes part of Pimlico legally Burgundian, giving neighbors a chance to wriggle out of postwar rationing. It works because the local people take the ridiculous idea seriously enough to turn it into civic business. Start here for Ealing's gift for making a whole neighborhood the…0
  2. 2Dead of Night (1945)Dead of Night (1945) 7.5/10 on IMDbReleased Sep 9, 1945An architect arrives at a country house and recognizes the guests from his nightmares. The guests' macabre stories come in different moods, which helps the unease sneak up on you. Try this when you want an evening of short shocks that get more disturbing together.0
  3. 3The Cruel Sea (1953)The Cruel Sea (1953) 7.4/10 on IMDbReleased Feb 24, 1953A corvette named Compass Rose escorts convoys through waters where German submarines can strike. Small decisions carry the strain of keeping men alive at sea. It's a good first choice for the studio's war pictures if you care about what command costs the people doing it.0
  4. 4Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) 8.0/10 on IMDbReleased Jun 23, 1949An outsider sets about removing the relatives ahead of him in line for a dukedom. Alec Guinness keeps turning up as members of the family, which makes inherited privilege look absurdly hard to get away from. Pick this if you like your comedy delivered with perfect manners and a chill underneath.0
  5. 5Whisky Galore! (1949)Whisky Galore! (1949) 7.1/10 on IMDbReleased Jun 16, 1949A wreck leaves an island community with a chance to replenish its whisky, if the locals can stay a step ahead of Customs. The joke keeps spreading as different people decide how much they can get away with together. It's a good companion to Passport to Pimlico when you want neighbors pooling their…0
  6. 6The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) 7.5/10 on IMDbReleased Jun 28, 1951A quiet bank employee and his accomplices turn stolen gold into miniature Eiffel Towers. The daft little souvenirs give the movie the kind of physical joke you can follow through every mix-up. Choose this for a brisk caper in which the thieves' ordinariness makes their ambition funny.0
  7. 7The Man in the White Suit (1951)The Man in the White Suit (1951) 7.2/10 on IMDbReleased Aug 7, 1951Sidney Stratton's cloth never gets dirty or wears out, which gives both mill owners and workers reasons to fear it. Alec Guinness plays Sidney as avidly curious while everyone around him runs through the consequences. It's the Ealing comedy to choose when you want an inventive premise that gets…0
  8. 8The Ladykillers (1955)The Ladykillers (1955) 7.6/10 on IMDbReleased Dec 8, 1955Thieves pose as a string quintet and count on their elderly landlady to believe them. The performers get a surprising amount of mileage out of politeness, as if one more excuse might fix everything. Save this for when you want the studio's fondness for eccentric neighbors to turn into a very black…0
  9. 9Went the Day Well? (1942)Went the Day Well? (1942) 7.5/10 on IMDbReleased Dec 7, 1942A group of soldiers arrives in an English village with a reassuring story about who they are. The locals' discovery that they're facing a disguised German advance gives the familiar village setting a sharp edge. Watch it beside Passport to Pimlico to see the same instinct for collective action put…0
  10. 10Hue and Cry (1947)Hue and Cry (1947) 6.7/10 on IMDbReleased Feb 1, 1947A boy spots what he thinks is a gang's code in the funny papers. When the police dismiss him, the kids take over the investigation. The bomb-damaged London locations give their adventure a rougher, more open feel than a studio playset could.0