The Best Pre-Code Movies

Updated September 23, 2019 3.0k votes 313 voters 21.3k views

List RulesVote for your personal favorite Pre-code films, regardless of how popular or successful they were at the box office.

Here it is, ladies and gents, a list of all the best pre-code movies of all time, many of which are streaming on Netflix and Amazon Prime.

The pre-code Hollywood movie genre refers to films made between the widespread use of sound in movies in 1929 and the enforcement of the Hays Code in 1934 (also known as the Motion Picture Production Code), and featured stars such as Clark Gable, Joan Blondell, and Barbara Stanwyck.

The films on this list cover the top pre-code movies of all time and is currently ordered from best to worst, according to your votes, so be sure to thums up movies like The Gay Divorcee or Hold Your Man if you like them -- or vote them down if they weren’t your cup of tea. This list has everything from Wonder Bar to The Wet Parade, and more, but if we missed any pre-code films on this list by famous directors like Cecil B. DeMille, please add them yourself, as this is an open list, which means you can add any movies whenever you like (choices are subject to moderation).

So whether you're at home and want to watch these pre-code Hollywood movies on DVD or streaming… or if you're seeing them at an Indie theatre for the first time, this list of the best pre-code films will help you decide what to watch. So from the latest, to the greatest pre-code movies, here is the full list of pre-code films, ordered from best to worst.

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1
193
7
Footlight Parade
James Cagney, Joan Blondell
Released: 1933
Directed by: Busby Berkeley, Lloyd Bacon
Footlight Parade is a 1933 American musical film starring James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Ruby... more
2
191
6
Gold Diggers of 1933
Ginger Rogers, Joan Blondell
Released: 1933
Directed by: Mervyn LeRoy, Busby Berkeley
Gold Diggers of 1933 is a pre-code Warner Bros. musical film directed by Mervyn LeRoy with... more
3
73
7
42nd Street
Ginger Rogers, Dick Powell
Released: 1933
Directed by: Lloyd Bacon
42nd Street is a 1933 American Warner Bros. musical film directed by Lloyd Bacon with... more
4
70
10
Bombshell
Jean Harlow, Frank Morgan
Released: 1933
Directed by: Victor Fleming
Bombshell is a 1933 American Pre-Code romantic comedy-drama film directed by Victor Fleming... more
5
61
7
Fashions of 1934
Bette Davis, William Powell
Released: 1934
Directed by: William Dieterle
Fashions of 1934 is a 1934 Pre-Code American musical comedy film directed by William Dieterle... more
6
63
13
Gold Diggers of Broadway
George Raft, Nick Lucas
Released: 1929
Directed by: Roy Del Ruth
Gold Diggers of Broadway is a 1929 Warner Bros. comedy/musical film which is historically... more
7
57
11
Platinum Blonde
Jean Harlow, Loretta Young
Released: 1931
Directed by: Frank Capra
Platinum Blonde is a 1931 American romantic comedy motion picture starring Jean Harlow, Robert... more
8
50
7
The Love Parade
Jean Harlow, Jeanette MacDonald
Released: 1929
Directed by: Ernst Lubitsch
The Love Parade is a 1929 musical comedy film about the marital difficulties of Queen Louise... more
9
46
17
The Maltese Falcon
Thelma Todd, William Dieterle
Released: 1931
Directed by: Roy Del Ruth
The Maltese Falcon is an American pre-code crime film, based on the novel of the same name by... more
10
34
6
King Kong
Fay Wray, Merian C. Cooper
Released: 1933
Directed by: Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack
King Kong is a 1933 American fantasy monster/adventure film directed and produced by Merian C.... more
More King Kong
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11
37
10
Little Caesar
Edward G. Robinson, Douglas Fairbanks
Released: 1931
Directed by: Mervyn LeRoy
Little Caesar is a 1931 Warner Bros. Pre-Code crime film that tells the story of a hoodlum who... more
More Little Caesar
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12
35
9
It Happened One Night
Clark Gable, Claudette Colbert
Released: 1934
Directed by: Frank Capra
It Happened One Night is a 1934 American romantic comedy film with elements of screwball... more
More It Happened One Night
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13
30
5
All Quiet on the Western Front
Fred Zinnemann, Lew Ayres
Released: 1930
Directed by: Lewis Milestone
All Quiet on the Western Front is a 1930 American epic film based on the Erich Maria Remarque... more
More All Quiet on the Western Front
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14
28
6
Three on a Match
Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart
Released: 1932
Directed by: Mervyn LeRoy
Three on a Match is a 1932 American pre-Code crime drama released by Warner Bros. The film was... more
15
29
7
Red Dust
Clark Gable, Jean Harlow
Released: 1932
Directed by: Victor Fleming
Red Dust is a 1932 American romantic drama film directed by Victor Fleming and starring Clark... more
16
29
8
The Public Enemy
Jean Harlow, James Cagney
Released: 1931
Directed by: William A. Wellman
The Public Enemy is a 1931 American all-talking pre-code crime film produced and distributed... more
More The Public Enemy
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17
27
8
Grand Hotel
Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford
Released: 1932
Directed by: Edmund Goulding
Grand Hotel is a 1932 American drama film directed by Edmund Goulding. The screenplay by... more
18
24
5
Freaks
Wallace Ford, Edward Brophy
Released: 1932
Directed by: Tod Browning
Freaks is a 1932 American horror film in which the eponymous characters were played by people... more
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19
28
10
Duck Soup
Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx
Released: 1933
Directed by: Leo McCarey
Duck Soup is a 1933 Marx Brothers anarchic comedy film written by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby,... more
More Duck Soup
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20
23
5
Dracula
Bela Lugosi, Tod Browning
Released: 1931
Directed by: Tod Browning, Karl Freund
Dracula is a 1931 vampire-horror film directed by Tod Browning and starring Bela Lugosi as... more
More Dracula
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21
21
4
Frankenstein
Boris Karloff, John Boles
Released: 1931
Directed by: James Whale
Frankenstein is a 1931 horror monster film from Universal Pictures directed by James Whale and... more
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22
20
4
Trouble in Paradise
Herbert Marshall, Charlie Ruggles
Released: 1932
Directed by: Ernst Lubitsch
Trouble in Paradise is a 1932 American pre-Code romantic comedy film directed by Ernst... more
23
32
19
Baby Face
John Wayne, Barbara Stanwyck
Released: 1933
Directed by: Alfred E. Green
Baby Face is a 1933 American dramatic film directed by Alfred E. Green, and starring Barbara... more

24
19
4
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Fredric March, Wallace Beery
Released: 1931
Directed by: Rouben Mamoulian
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a 1931 American Pre-Code horror film directed by Rouben Mamoulian... more
More Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
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25
20
6
Night Nurse
Clark Gable, Barbara Stanwyck
Released: 1931
Directed by: William A. Wellman
Night Nurse is a 1931 American pre-code crime drama and mystery film produced and distributed... more