1. The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse)
After a detective is assaulted by thugs and placed in an asylum run by Professor Baum, he observes the professor's preoccupation with another patient, the criminal genius Dr. Mabuse the hypnotist. When Mabuse's notes are found to be connected with a rash of recent crimes, Commissioner Lohmann must determine how Mabuse is communicating with the criminals, despite conflicting reports on the doctor's whereabouts, and capture him for good.
It has an average vote of 7.595 on TMDB.
2. Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler (Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler)
Dr. Mabuse and his organization of criminals are in the process of completing their latest scheme, a theft of information that will allow Mabuse to make huge profits on the stock exchange. Afterwards, Mabuse disguises himself and attends the Folies Bergères show, where Cara Carozza, the main attraction of the show, passes him information on Mabuse's next intended victim, the young millionaire Edgar Hull. Mabuse then uses psychic manipulation to lure Hull into a card game where he loses heavily. When Police Commissioner von Wenk begins an investigation of this mysterious crime spree, he has little to go on, and he needs to find someone who can help him.
It has an average vote of 7.6 on TMDB.
3. Metropolis (Metropolis)
In a futuristic city sharply divided between the rich and the poor, the son of the city's mastermind meets a prophet who predicts the coming of a savior to mediate their differences.
It has an average vote of 8.137 on TMDB.
4. Fury
Joe, who owns a gas station along with his brothers and is about to marry Katherine, travels to the small town where she lives to visit her, but is wrongly mistaken for a wanted kidnapper and arrested.
It has an average vote of 7.502 on TMDB.
5. Mädchen in Uniform (Mädchen in Uniform)
A sensitive girl is sent to an all-girls boarding school and develops a romantic attachment to one of her teachers.
It has an average vote of 7.22 on TMDB.
6. Destiny (Der müde Tod)
As a young couple stops and rests in a small village inn, the man is abducted by Death and is sequestered behind a huge doorless, windowless wall. The woman finds a mystic entrance and is met by Death, who tells her three separate stories set in exotic locales, all involving circumstances similar to hers.
It has an average vote of 7.4 on TMDB.
7. Solaris (Солярис)
A psychologist is sent to a space station orbiting a planet called Solaris to investigate the death of a doctor and the mental problems of cosmonauts on the station. He soon discovers that the water on the planet is a type of brain which brings out repressed memories and obsessions.
It has an average vote of 7.832 on TMDB.
8. Le Corbeau (Le Corbeau)
Remy Germain is a doctor in a French town who becomes the focus of a vicious smear campaign, as letters accusing him of having an affair and performing unlawful abortions are mailed to village leaders. The mysterious writer, who signs each letter as "Le Corbeau" soon targets the whole town, exposing everyone's dark secrets.
It has an average vote of 7.5 on TMDB.
9. Freaks
A circus' beautiful trapeze artist agrees to marry the leader of side-show performers, but his deformed friends discover she is only marrying him for his inheritance.
It has an average vote of 7.808 on TMDB.
10. The Third Man
In postwar Vienna, Austria, Holly Martins, a writer of pulp Westerns, arrives penniless as a guest of his childhood chum Harry Lime, only to learn he has died. Martins develops a conspiracy theory after learning of a "third man" present at the time of Harry's death, running into interference from British officer Major Calloway, and falling head-over-heels for Harry's grief-stricken lover, Anna.
It has an average vote of 7.927 on TMDB.
11. Scarface
In 1920s Chicago, Italian immigrant and notorious thug, Antonio "Tony" Camonte, shoots his way to the top of the mobs while trying to protect his sister from the criminal life.
It has an average vote of 7.451 on TMDB.
12. Battleship Potemkin (Броненосец Потёмкин)
A dramatized account of a great Russian naval mutiny and a resultant public demonstration, showing support, which brought on a police massacre. The film had an incredible impact on the development of cinema and is a masterful example of montage editing.
It has an average vote of 7.625 on TMDB.
13. It Happened One Night
A rogue reporter trailing a runaway heiress for a big story joins her on a bus heading from Florida to New York and they end up stuck with each other when the bus leaves them behind at one of the stops along the way.
It has an average vote of 7.8 on TMDB.
14. Rashomon (羅生門)
Brimming with action while incisively examining the nature of truth, "Rashomon" is perhaps the finest film ever to investigate the philosophy of justice. Through an ingenious use of camera and flashbacks, Kurosawa reveals the complexities of human nature as four people recount different versions of the story of a man's murder and the rape of his wife.
It has an average vote of 8.093 on TMDB.
15. To Be or Not to Be
During the Nazi occupation of Poland, an acting troupe becomes embroiled in a Polish soldier's efforts to track down a German spy.
It has an average vote of 7.847 on TMDB.
16. Ran (乱)
With Ran, legendary director Akira Kurosawa reimagines Shakespeare's King Lear as a singular historical epic set in sixteenth-century Japan. Majestic in scope, the film is Kurosawa's late-life masterpiece, a profound examination of the folly of war and the crumbling of one family under the weight of betrayal, greed, and the insatiable thirst for power.
It has an average vote of 8.074 on TMDB.
17. Vertigo
A retired San Francisco detective suffering from acrophobia investigates the strange activities of an old friend's wife, all the while becoming dangerously obsessed with her.
It has an average vote of 8.168 on TMDB.
18. Drunken Angel (酔いどれ天使)
Doctor Sanada treats gangster Matsunaga after he is wounded in a gunfight, and discovers that he is suffering from tuberculosis. Sanada tries to convince Matsunaga to stay for treatment, which would drastically change his lifestyle. They form an uneasy friendship until Matsunaga's old boss Okada returns from prison.
It has an average vote of 7.6 on TMDB.
19. Baby Face
A young woman uses her body and her sexuality to help her climb the social ladder, but soon begins to wonder if her new status will ever bring her happiness.
It has an average vote of 7.283 on TMDB.
20. Little Caesar
A small-time hood shoots his way to the top, but how long can he stay there?
It has an average vote of 6.868 on TMDB.
