from the 30's
Gone With The Wind (1939) - this movie is every bit of the hype it has received over the years...cinema history.
The Wizard of Oz (1939) - who doesn't know this movie
City Lights (1931) - the most notable Charles Chaplin film ever (the gold rush (1925) nearly pales in comparison)
from the 40's
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) -Cary Grant is so adorable in this and Peter Lorre is so class.
also
I Married a Witch (1942) - fun dark comedy and Veronica Lake is to sexy.
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) - war and tragedy come home in this fabulous movie...really really great.
It's a Wonderful Life (1946) - still played here every Christmas
The Maltese Falcon (1941) - the 40's was Humphrey Bogart's decade and what can I say I just love Peter Lorre
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the forties to me had so many good movies it really is hard to just pick a few...I must mention the late 30's through the 40's is when Disney really began to make it's mark.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937)
Fantasia (1940)
Bambi (1942)
Pinocchio (1940)
Dumbo(1941)
Song Of The South (1946) -most people don't know this movie because it's been banned but the song Zippity do da. Zippity-ay came from it. sang by Uncle Remus'