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The Best Movies of 1963

Updated September 24, 2019 3.3k votes 236 voters 8k views 119 items

List of the best movies of 1963, with movie trailers when available. With President Kennedy being assassinated in 1963, many Americans turned to movies to take their mind off of the tragedy. These top movies of 1963 are listed by popularity, so the movies with the most votes are at the top. This list consists of all different movie genres - from The Birds to Cleopatra - but each film was released in 1963. You can filter this list of films that came out in 1963 for various bits of information, such as who directed the movie and what genre it is. Think the best 1963 movie isn't as high as it should be? Vote up your favorite so it will rise to the top.

List ranges from The Great Escape to It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and more.

This list answers the questions, "What are the best movies from 1963?" and "What are the most popular movies of 1963?"

1963 was a great year for movies, since a lot of classic films were released in 1963. This is a crowd sourced list that has been voted on by many people, so these top films of 1963 aren't just one persons opinion.

Data-driven recommendations based on voting from over 40 million monthly visits to Ranker. Try the free app

list ordered by

The Birds Alfred Hitchcock, Tippi Hedren, Suzanne Pleshette

Released: 1963

Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock

The Birds is a 1963 suspense/horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, loosely based on the 1952 story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. It depicts Bodega Bay, California, which is, ...more

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#291 of 1,699 The Most Rewatchable Movies #162 of 347 Movies with the Best Soundtracks #34 of 366 The Best Movies Based On Books

From Russia with Love Sean Connery, Robert Shaw, Daniela Bianchi

Released: 1963

Directed by: Terence Young

From Russia with Love is the second James Bond film made by Eon Productions and the second to star Sean Connery as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Released in 1963, the film was produced by ...more

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The Great Escape is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list The Best Movies of 1963

The Great Escape Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, James Garner

Released: 1963

Directed by: John Sturges

The Great Escape is a 1963 American WWII epic film based on an escape by British and Commonwealth POW from a German POW camp during WWII, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard ...more

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#7 of 375 The 50+ Best War Movies Ever Made, Ranked #9 of 222 The Greatest World War II Movies of All Time #481 of 1,699 The Most Rewatchable Movies

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World Mickey Rooney, Spencer Tracy, Buster Keaton

Released: 1963

Directed by: Stanley Kramer

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World is a 1963 American epic comedy film produced and directed by Stanley Kramer and starring Spencer Tracy with an all-star cast, about the madcap pursuit of $350,000 ...more

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#69 of 1,027 The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films #745 of 1,699 The Most Rewatchable Movieslisted on Every Oscar Winning Film Ever

Cleopatra Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Martin Landau

Released: 1963

Directed by: Darryl F. Zanuck, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Rouben Mamoulian

Cleopatra is a 1963 epic historical drama film chronicling the struggles of Cleopatra VII, the young Queen of Egypt, to resist the imperial ambitions of Rome. It was directed by Joseph L. ...more

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Hud Paul Newman, Yvette Vickers, Patricia Neal

Released: 1963

Directed by: Martin Ritt

Hud is a 1963 Western film directed by Martin Ritt and starring Paul Newman, Melvyn Douglas and Patricia Neal. It was produced by Ritt and Newman's recently founded company, Salem Productions, ...more

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#1,413 of 1,699 The Most Rewatchable Movies #103 of 395 The Best Western Movies Ever Madelisted on Every Oscar Winning Film Ever

The Nutty Professor Jerry Lewis, Stella Stevens, Henry Gibson

Released: 1963

Directed by: Jerry Lewis

The Nutty Professor is a 1963 American comic science fiction feature film produced, directed, co-written and starring Jerry Lewis. The score was composed by Walter Scharf. The film is a parody ...more

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Jason and the Argonauts Honor Blackman, Patrick Troughton, Nancy Kovack

Released: 1963

Directed by: Don Chaffey

Jason and the Argonauts is a 1963 British Columbia Pictures fantasy Greek Mythology feature film starring Todd Armstrong as the titular mythical Greek hero in a story about his quest for the ...more

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The Pink Panther Peter Sellers, Claudia Cardinale, David Niven

Released: 1963

Directed by: Blake Edwards

The Pink Panther is a 1963 Technicolor American comedy film filmed in 70mm Super Technirama directed by Blake Edwards and co-written by Edwards and Maurice Richlin, starring David Niven, Peter ...more

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#56 of 1,027 The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films #74 of 1,208 The Absolute Funniest Movies Of All Time #30 of 581 The Greatest Film Scores of All Time

McLintock! John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Stefanie Powers

Released: 1963

Directed by: John Wayne, Andrew V. McLaglen

McLintock! is a 1963 comedy Western directed by Andrew V. McLaglen and starring John Wayne, with co-stars including Maureen O'Hara, Yvonne De Carlo, and Wayne's son Patrick Wayne. The film, ...more

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Charade Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, James Coburn

Released: 1963

Directed by: Stanley Donen

Charade is a 1963 Technicolor American romantic comedy/mystery film directed by Stanley Donen, written by Peter Stone and Marc Behm, and starring Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn. The cast also ...more

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#173 of 250 The Best Psychological Thrillers of All Time #541 of 1,027 The All-Time Greatest Comedy Filmslisted on Every Oscar Winning Film Ever

Donovan's Reef John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Cesar Romero

Released: 1963

Directed by: John Ford

Donovan's Reef is a 1963 American film starring John Wayne. It was directed by John Ford and filmed on location on Kauai, Hawaii. The cast included Elizabeth Allen, Lee Marvin, Jack Warden, ...more

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Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow Sophia Loren, Marcello Mastroianni, Armando Trovajoli

Released: 1963

Directed by: Vittorio De Sica

Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow is a 1963 comedy anthology film by Italian director Vittorio de Sica. It stars Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni. The film consists of three short stories ...more

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The Raven Jack Nicholson, Vincent Price, Boris Karloff

Released: 1963

Directed by: Roger Corman

The Raven is a 1963 American independent B movie/horror-comedy film produced and directed by Roger Corman. The film stars Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, and Boris Karloff as a trio of rival ...more

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#604 of 847 The Best Horror Movies Of All Time #18 of 43 The Best Movies About Magic #45 of 161 The Best B Movies of All Time

The Trial Orson Welles, Anthony Perkins, Romy Schneider

Released: 1962

Directed by: Orson Welles

The Trial is a 1962 film directed by Orson Welles, who also wrote the screenplay based on the novel of the same name by Franz Kafka. Welles stated immediately after completing the film: ...more

The Sword in the Stone Alan Napier, Sebastian Cabot, Norman Alden

Released: 1963

Directed by: Wolfgang Reitherman

The Sword in the Stone is a 1963 American animated musical fantasy comedy film produced by Walt Disney and released to theaters on December 25, 1963 by Buena Vista Distribution. The 18th film in ...more

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Love with the Proper Stranger Natalie Wood, Steve McQueen, Richard Mulligan

Released: 1963

Directed by: Robert Mulligan

Love with the Proper Stranger is a 1963 romantic comedy drama film made by Pakula-Mulligan Productions and Boardwalk Productions and released by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Robert ...more

The Leopard Claudia Cardinale, Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon

Released: 1963

Directed by: Luchino Visconti

The Leopard is a 1963 Italian film by director Luchino Visconti, based on Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa's novel of the same name.

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55 Days at Peking Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, David Niven

Released: 1963

Directed by: Nicholas Ray, Guy Green, Andrew Marton

55 Days at Peking is a 1963 historical epic film starring Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, and David Niven, made by Samuel Bronston Productions, and released by Allied Artists. The movie was ...more

The Silence Ingrid Thulin, Gunnel Lindblom, Birger Malmsten

Released: 1963

Directed by: Ingmar Bergman

The Silence is a 1963 Swedish film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman and starring Ingrid Thulin and Gunnel Lindblom. The plot focuses on two sisters – the younger a sensuous woman with a ...more

Who's Minding the Store? Jerry Lewis, Jill St. John, Agnes Moorehead

Released: 1963

Directed by: Frank Tashlin

Who's Minding the Store? is a comedy film directed by Frank Tashlin and starring Jerry Lewis. It was released on November 28, 1963, by Paramount Pictures.

Beach Party Vincent Price, Annette Funicello, Yvette Vickers

Released: 1963

Directed by: William Asher

Beach Party was the first of several beach party films from American International Pictures aimed at a teen audience. This film is often credited with creating the beach party film genre.

Spencer's Mountain Maureen O'Hara, Henry Fonda, Veronica Cartwright

Released: 1963

Directed by: Delmer Daves

Spencer's Mountain is a 1963 film written, directed, and produced by Delmer Daves from a novel by Earl Hamner, Jr. The film starred Henry Fonda, Maureen O'Hara and in early appearances, James ...more

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The Haunting Claire Bloom, Lois Maxwell, Julie Harris

Released: 1963

Directed by: Robert Wise

The Haunting is a 1963 British psychological horror film directed and produced by Robert Wise and adapted by Nelson Gidding from the novel The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson. It stars ...more

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Captain Newman, M.D. Robert Duvall, Gregory Peck, Tony Curtis

Released: 1963

Directed by: David Miller

Captain Newman, M.D. is a 1963 film starring Gregory Peck, Tony Curtis, Angie Dickinson, Robert Duvall, Eddie Albert and Bobby Darin. It was directed by David Miller and filmed on location at ...more