13 Classic Movies for Father's Day

This Father’s Day, settle down with your dad and your favorite snacks to watch these cinematic gems.

1930s

Judge Hardy and Son

Judge Hardy and Son (1939) – Lewis Stone  and Mickey Rooney star as a man and his son who must save their home. This is the seventh in a series of comedy-dramas about the fictional, small-town Hardy family.

 1940s

It Started with Eve

It Started With Eve (1941) To make his dying father happy, a young man (Robert Cummings) asks a hat check girl (Deanna Durbin) to pose as his fiancée. Once the father (Charles Laughton) recovers, the lies unravel in this musical comedy from Universal Studios.

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) – This film’s memorable climax is near Christmastime and is usually trotted out during the winter, but it’s perfectly fit for the last days of spring during Father’s Day. It stars James Stewart as a father who does not see his worth in life until someone special shows him what life would be like if he were never born.  

Father was a Fullback

Life With Father (1947) William Powell is the father of all boys in this hilarious romp at the turn of the twentieth century. Irene Dunne plays mother. Elizabeth Taylor plays love interest to one of the sons.

Father was a Fullback (1949) Fred MacMurray stars in this comedy as a college football coach of a losing team who must find a new quarterback at work while dealing with his moody teenaged daughter (Betty Lynn) at home. A young Natalie Wood plays his tomboyish younger daughter with great aplomb. Maureen O'Hara plays the understanding wife.

1950s

Father of the Bride

Father of the Bride (1950) Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor star in this sentimental comedy about a man who prepares for the financial and emotional ups and downs  of his daughter’s wedding. The 1991 remake starring Steve Martin was an entertaining movie as well.

East of Eden (1955) The son (James Dean) in this film is desperate for his father’s approval. Will he achieve that goal?  This film is adapted from Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck’s novel of the same name.

East of Eden

1960s

Swiss Family Robinson (1960)  John Mills turns in a strong performance as the father of a family who has been shipwrecked on an island. It is a Disney movie of danger and adventure for the entire family.

In Search of the Castaways (1962) – To find their missing father, a daughter (Hayley Mills) and son must enlist the aid of a scientist (Maurice Chevalier) and a shipping company owner (Wilfrid Hyde-White).  Based on a Jules Verne novel, this journey takes them through an avalanche, an erupting volcano, an earthquake, a flash flood and many other escapades.

Take Her, She's Mine

To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)  Set during the 1930s and told from the perspective of the young daughter, this film adaptation of Harper Lee’s bestselling novel follows Gregory Peck as an attorney who defends truth and justice against life-threatening odds.

Take Her, She’s Mine (1963) – James Stewart stars as a father who must keep his daughter out of trouble in college. Instead, he finds himself inadvertently embroiled in scandal. Sandra Dee also stars in this comedy.

Courtship of Eddie's Father

The Courtship of Eddie’s Father (1963) – Glenn Ford stars in this serio-comic film of a young son (Ron Howard) who encourages his widowed father to remarry.  Legendary,  Academy Award-winner Vincent Minnelli directs.

 

Yours, Mine and Ours (1968) A widowed naval officer (Henry Fonda) marries a widow (Lucille Ball) and must now blend their enormous families into one.

Yours, Mine and Ours