The Divorcée – Arsenal – All Quiet on the Western Front – Animal Crackers – Morocco – Min and Bill – Under the Roofs of Paris

1930: World Premieres
1930: Still Left to See

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 The Movies of 1930: World Premieres
 By Title // By Grade

★ = Full Review   /   ★ = Capsule   /   ★ = Feature or Blog Post   /   ★ = Grain of Salt

 Updated: 21 Jan 2023, with Westfront 1918, With Byrd at the South Pole, and L'Âge d'or

Top Ten List

1.  Earth Dir. Aleksandr Dovzhenko. Semyon Svashenko, Stepan Shkurat A
2.  All Quiet on the Western Front Dir. Lewis Milestone. Lew Ayres, Louis Wolheim A
2.  Westfront 1918 Dir. G.W. Pabst. Gustav Diessl, Fritz Kampers, Hans-Joachim Moebis A
4.  Morocco Dir. Josef von Sternberg. Marlene Dietrich, Gary Cooper A–
5.  L'Âge d'or Dir. Luis Buñuel. Gaston Modot, Lya Lys, Max Ernst, Pierre Prévert B+
6.  The Blood of a Poet Dir. Jean Cocteau. Lee Miller, Enrique Rivero B+
7.  À propos de Nice Dir. Jean Vigo. Short, satirical survey of French coastal city B+
8.  The Big House Dir. George Hill. Chester Morris, Wallace Beery B+
9.  The Blue Angel Dir. Josef von Sternberg. Emil Jannings, Marlene Dietrich B+
10.  Under the Roofs of Paris Dir. René Clair. Albert Préjean, Pola Illéry B+


Ranked Tiers of Films Screened

All Quiet on the Western Front Dir. Lewis Milestone. Lew Ayres, Louis Wolheim A
Earth Dir. Aleksandr Dovzhenko. Semyon Svashenko, Stepan Shkurat A
Westfront 1918 Dir. G.W. Pabst. Gustav Diessl, Fritz Kampers, Hans-Joachim Moebis A

Morocco Dir. Josef von Sternberg. Marlene Dietrich, Gary Cooper A–

★ À propos de Nice Dir. Jean Vigo. Short, satirical survey of French coastal city B+
★ L'Âge d'or Dir. Luis Buñuel. Gaston Modot, Lya Lys, Max Ernst, Pierre Prévert B+
The Big House Dir. George Hill. Chester Morris, Wallace Beery B+
The Blood of a Poet Dir. Jean Cocteau. Lee Miller, Enrique Rivero, Pauline Carton B+
The Blue Angel Dir. Josef von Sternberg. Emil Jannings, Marlene Dietrich B+
Holiday Dir. Edward H. Griffth. Ann Harding, Mary Astor, Robert Ames B+
★ Min and Bill Dir. George Hill. Marie Dressler, Wallace Beery, Dorothy Jordan B+
Under the Roofs of Paris Dir. René Clair. Albert Préjean, Pola Illéry B+

★ Borderline Dir. Kenneth Macpherson. Paul Robeson, Eslanda Robeson, H.D. B
The Office Wife Dir. Lloyd Bacon. Dorothy Mackaill, Lewis Stone, Joan Blondell B
★ With Byrd at the South Pole Dir. Julian Johnson. Expedition documentary B

Anna Christie Dir. Clarence Brown. Greta Garbo, George F. Marion B–
The Devil's Holiday Dir. Edmund Goulding. Nancy Carroll, Phillips Holmes B–
Hell-Bound Train Dir. James and Eloyce Gist. Church-backed propaganda film B–
Sarah and Son Dir. Dorothy Arzner. Ruth Chatterton, Fredric March B–

The Big Pond Dir. Hobart Henley. Maurice Chevalier, Claudette Colbert C+
The Divorcée Dir. Robert Z. Leonard. Norma Shearer, Chester Morris C+
The Green Goddess Dir. Alfred E. Green. George Arliss, H.B. Warner, Alice Joyce C+
Up the River Dir. John Ford. Spencer Tracy, Warren Hymer, Humphrey Bogart C+

The Girl Said No Dir. Sam Wood. William Haines, Leila Hyams C

The Royal Family of Broadway Dir. George Cukor, Cyril Gardner. Ina Claire C–

Romance Dir. Clarence Brown. Greta Garbo, Gavin Gordon, Lewis Stone D
The Runaway Bride Dir. Donald Crisp. Mary Astor, Lloyd Hughes, David Newell D