59 Walter Huston Movies, Ranked Best to Worst

Fred C. Dobbs and Bob Curtin, two American drifters seeking work in Mexico, are convinced by impoverished old prospector, Howard, to go to mine gold in the Sierra Madre Mountains. While they are successful in their mission, defeating bandits and overcoming harsh natural conditions, they are threatened by their growing fear, suspicion and jealousy of each other.

A retired automobile manufacturer and his wife take a vacation to Europe, which is to be their ‘second honeymoon’. While the wife falls in with a crowd of frivolous socialites, the husband meets a woman who is quite opposite to his wife- self-assured, confident and able to take care of herself.

Soon after San Francisco detective Sam Spade takes a case from beautiful Ruth Wonderly, his partner and another man are found dead, and he is implicated in at least one murder. While investigating the murders, he finds out that she faked her identity, and encounters three dangerous criminals who are looking for a valuable Maltese Falcon statuette.

This musical is a biopic about the life of George Cohan, who used to produce, direct, write and star in his own musical shows and eventually received a legendary status.

D.A. Mark Brady is appointed as the warden of a prison, after his failed attempt at running for governor. The same prison is holding Graham, a young man whom Brady had gotten into prison with a ten year conviction. After realizing that Graham has reached his breaking point after working for six years in the prison jute mill, he decides to make him his valet. Over some time, Graham begins to earn the respect of both Brady and his daughter. However, Graham’s loyalty is put to the test when a murder occurs in the prison.

A House Divided is a drama film which revolves around a widowed fisherman who falls for a woman, who is young enough to be his daughter. They soon get married. However, things get quite complicated when she falls in love with his son.  

A ranch foreman hires his old friend for a job, but the two eventually become competing suitors. After the foreman succeeds, his friend joins a local gang of cattle thieves, after which the foreman is forced to have his friend lynched. But later saddled with guilt, he swears to kill the leader of the gang as well. 

Jim Fitzpatrick, an upright and honest police chief, is striving to clean his city of gangsters, especially the gang of Sam Belmonte. Jim’s police-detective brother, Ed, gets involved with Daisy, a Belmonte gang mole. As he needs money to continue this relationship, Ed conspires with the gangsters resulting in deaths and corrupt practices, which forces Jim to turn into a vigilante. 

Ethan Wilkins is a poor, honest preacher, whose son Jason dreams of becoming a doctor. Jason continuously asks his mother for money to pay for his fancy things and education, which she willingly does. He earns fame during the Civil War; however, he forgets all about his mother who struggles with poverty after Ethan’s death. Will Jason ever realize his mistake? 

Based on a novel named Saint Johnson, this western drama film revolves around a gambler Frame Johnson, who is also a former lawman. He is soon pushed to accept the job of a town marshal.

After her father is executed for shooting his wife and her lover, a half Native-American girl named Pearl, is sent to live with distant relatives in Texas. Although she is welcomed, she is met with hostility from the ranch-owner. She soon attracts the attention of Lewt, son of the ranch owner, who is lustful and unruly, but despite this, Pearl finds herself drawn physically to him as well.

Dick Heldar, an artist from London, suffers a head injury during a battle in Sudan, and as a result of this, his eyesight begins to deteriorate. Therefore, before his eyesight gets even worse, he throws his soul into painting his masterwork, a portrait of Bessie, a barmaid, whom he is in love with. Problem however arises because Bessie is in love with Torpenhow, Dick’s friend.

While traveling from Moscow, writer Fedya becomes fascinated with gambling addict, the stunning Pauline Ostrovsky. When he abandons his own journey and follows her, he also decides to write a character study on gambling addicts. Unfortunately, his love for Pauline leads him down a path of gambling and crime from which he never recovers. 

The Lady Lies is a drama film which tells the story of a wealthy widowed attorney and a beautiful salesgirl, who fall for one another, and start a relationship. However, the man's snotty children are opposed to their relationship and they try to break them apart.  

This is a World War II documentary propaganda film, depicting the daily lives of the US servicemen stationed at Adak Island during the Aleutian Islands Campaign. Because it concentrates more on their habitual activities than on actual combat, it is able to showcase the daily reality of their lives, generally ignored by other filmmakers. 

A wounded former submarine commander's love affair with his successor's married daughter is set against the backdrop of the US Navy's fight in the Adriatic Sea during World War I. Hell Below is based on Commander Edward Ellsberg's novel Pigboats and the movie is packed with submarine warfare action.

Gabriel Over the White House is a fantasy romantic drama film which tells the story of Judson Hammond, who becomes President of the US, during the height of the Depression. However, he decides to ignore every problem that the country is facing, and leaves everything to the local authorities. Things take a miraculous turn when an accident transforms him into an incorruptible statesman.

Based on the 1931 novel by Upton Sinclair, the film depicts how families are ruined by alcoholism.  Beginning with the Chilcotes of Louisiana, which loses most of its wealth to alcohol, the story moves northwards to portray the fate of the Tarletons, meanwhile joining the two families by love and a determination to fight the evil.   

After her child passes away, Ann Vickers devotes herself to social work, trying to improve the conditions in a women’s prison. However, this leads to her losing her job. She soon starts writing a book about the harsh realities of the prison, and also begins an affair with a corrupt judge.

When the Japanese invade a farming village and the men of the Tan family appease the invaders to be on the safe side, a courageous young woman named Jade is determined to oppose. She learns to read and fight to build up a resistance, which in turn inspires the entire village to follow suit.

 This Oscar winning documentary film provides a chronological breakdown of the incidents that occurred in Honolulu on December 7, 1941, the day the Japanese attacked US installations at Pearl Harbor and then goes on to describe its aftermath.  Originally 82 minutes long, the film was later censored and a 32 minutes version was released. 

This war documentary film was created to introduce the British people and their customs to the armed forces of the United States during the Second World War.

The Virtuous Sin is a romantic drama film which tells the story of a woman, who, in order to save her husband from a firing squad, has no other option but to offer herself to a General.

In 1941, the peaceful life of a Ukrainian village is shattered when they are brutally attacked by the Nazi planes followed by ground strike. Some villagers seek refuge in the hills and get together to rise up against the cruelty, especially when a Nazi doctor begins using the village children to fulfil the blood requirement of their wounded soldier.

The Ruling Voice is a crime drama film which tells the story of Jack Bannister, a crime lord, who heads a racketeering group. When his daughter refuses to use his illegal money, he decides to reconsider his involvement in this trade, and decides to move away from the crime world.

Hap Brown is a vaudeville clown who befriends Gardoni, a vain but penniless comedian who is thinking of suicide. He thinks of helping him out and presents Gardoni with several ideas. Although Gardoni initially dismisses them, eventually he decides to use them in his show, and over some time, he finds immense success. Gardoni takes Hap as a partner in his show, but also steal’s the latter’s girlfriend and gets married to her.

Summer Holiday is a musical comedy which tells the story of Richard Miller, who lives in a middle-class neighborhood with his family. He is in love with the girl-next-door, but the girl’s father is not happy with their puppy-love, since Richard is full of revolutionary ideas, which he shares with her.  

This documentary war propaganda film examines the history of Japan from the 16th century to the 1930s. The film was meant to educate the American soldiers about Japan and its people and society.  

Based on the book by U.S. ambassador to the Soviet Union, Joseph E. Davies, the movie depicts his experience in the Union between World War I and World War II. As Davies tries to navigate the world of Russian politics and communism, his family has to come to terms with the Russian way of daily life. 

The Woman from Monte Carlo is a drama film which tells the story of a wife of a French battleship captain Walter Huston, who is quite younger than her husband. She finds herself attracted to Warren William, a younger officer.