The 10 Best John Ford Movies, Ranked (According To IMDb)

With a career spanning over fifty years, John Ford is amongst the most prolific filmmakers of all time, helming a staggering 140 projects between 1917 and 1970. What’s even more amazing, however, is the sheer amount of those movies that have become classic, with many of his films being inducted into the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry.

He may be most well-known for his iconic westerns, but John Ford’s filmography is much more diverse than many seem to realize – with everything from romantic comedies to war movies under his belt. These are the auteur’s ten best movies, ranked according to IMDb.

10 Fort Apache (1948) – 7.5

Arguably the most ground-breaking western of the 1940s, Fort Apache’s brilliance lies in its subversion of the outdated and jingoistic ‘Cowboys vs. Indians’ narrative – painting its Native American characters as sympathetic victims of U.S. Cavalry’s increasingly violent outbursts.

Starring an against-type Henry Fonda as the cavalry’s intolerant, war-hungry lieutenant and John Wayne as a captain hoping to broker peace with the Apache clan, Fort Apache is an epic, thought-provoking western that sees director John Ford at the peak of his career.

9 Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) – 7.6

Starring Henry Fonda as the sixteenth president of the United States, Young Mr. Lincoln tells the story of Abraham Lincoln’s early years as an impoverished lawyer. The movie chronicles Lincoln’s first successful case, in which he defends a pair of brothers who are wrongly accused of murder.

Sure, the movie is hardly a factual account of Lincoln’s early life, but historical accuracy is not the point of Young Mr. Lincoln. Instead, the movie serves as an endearing slice of Americana that pits the optimistic Lincoln against the bureaucracy and tension of a pre-Civil War America.

8 Mister Roberts (1955) – 7.7

Nominated for three Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Sound, and Best Actor – the latter of which was awarded to Jack Lemmon for his role in the movie – Mister Roberts is one of John Ford’s most beloved non-western movies.

Following the crew of the U.S. Navy cargo ship ‘Reluctant,’ the movie explores the politics and personality clashes that keep the crew at each other’s throats. Expertly balancing light-hearted humor and thought-provoking drama, the movie even received a less talked about sequel, Ensign Pulver, nine years later.

7 How Green Was My Valley (1941) – 7.7

Famous for beating the classic Citizen Kane at the 14^th Academy Awards – boasting an impressive ten nominations – How Green Was My Valley is based on the 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, which sees a working-class Welsh family navigate the harsh conditions of the South Wales coalfields.

A poignant story about the socially destructive nature of industrialization, How Green Was My Valley paints a heartbreaking picture of a community torn apart by industry, with John Ford earning himself a Best Director Oscar for his efforts.

6 My Darling Clementine (1946) – 7.8

Chronicling the famous conflict between lawman Wyatt Earp and the malicious Clanton gang, My Darling Clementine not only stands as one of the definitive westerns in John Ford’s filmography but one of the definitive westerns of all time.

Featuring a pitch-perfect Henry Fonda as Wyatt Earp, a handful of thrilling shootouts, gorgeous cinematography, and a cast of colorful characters, My Darling Clementine is successful on every conceivable level, acting as an impressive distillation of the entire western genre.

5 The Quiet Man (1952) – 7.8

1952’s romantic comedy-drama The Quiet Man isn’t exactly the kind of movie you’d expect from director John Ford. Following John Wayne’s Sean Thornton as he attempts to buy a farm and court the hot-headed Mary Kate Danaher – played brilliantly by the legendary Maureen O’Hara – the movie sees Sean’s efforts scuppered by her brother, the bitter, unpleasant landowner Will Danaher.

Presented in glorious Technicolor, The Quiet Man captures the beauty of the Irish countryside fantastically well, with the setting serving as a great backdrop for the movie’s breezy, light-hearted story.

4 Stagecoach (1939) – 7.9

With 1939 being considered one of the best years in the history of film, it should come as no surprise that Stagecoach released in that very year. Not only did the movie put a young John Wayne on the map, but its pristine execution served as a template for Orson Welles’ directorial efforts in Citizen Kane.

The story follows Wayne’s Ringo Kid and his companions as they traverse a deadly stretch of Apache land in a rickety stagecoach. The movie’s influence has subsequently echoed throughout cinema, being felt in everything from Raiders of the Lost Ark to Mad Max: Fury Road.

3 The Searchers (1956) – 7.9

Argued by many to be the greatest western of John Ford’s career – if not of all time – The Searchers was made forty years after the inception of Ford’s incredible career, and the movie bears the mark of a much more mature, nuanced storyteller.

Chronicling the efforts of John Wayne’s Ethan Edwards to rescue his niece from the Comanche tribe who kidnapped her, the movie is a meditation on racism, violence, rage, and the myth of the western ‘hero’ – sitting firmly amongst the darkest movies of John Ford’s career.

2 The Grapes of Wrath (1940) – 8.0

Based on the classic novel of the same name by John Steinbeck, 1940’s adaptation of The Grapes of Wrath is widely seen as one of the best movies ever made. Though its ending is decidedly more optimistic than its bleak source material, the movie is a harrowing depiction of the abject poverty of a Great Depression-era America.

Earning John Ford one of his four Academy Awards for Best Director, The Grapes of Wrath saw its director head in a surprising new direction, trading in the patriotic lens his earlier movies were shot through for a much more cynical one – possibly opening the door to similarly subversive works such as 1948’s Fort Apache.

1 The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) – 8.1

Shot in the twilight of John Ford’s career, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance proves that the legendary director never lost his talent. A delightfully revisionist old west tale, the movie sees James Stewart’s Ranse Stoddard go head-to-head with the nefarious criminal Liberty Valance for the soul of Shinbone – a small frontier town.

Offering a few fun twists and turns along the way, the movie plays with the traditional perspective of the western, with its casting of John Wayne as the hot-headed Tom Doniphon feeling like a calculated decision of Ford’s part. Simply put, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is one of the most beloved westerns ever made – and is arguably the highlight of John Ford’s career.