Best 23 Drama Movies Picks from 1961

A young New York socialite becomes interested in a young man who has moved into her apartment building, but her past threatens to get in the way. See more about Breakfast at Tiffany's / IMDB / YouTube

A crafty ronin comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and decides to play them against each other to free the town. See more about Yojimbo / IMDB / YouTube

Two youngsters from rival New York City gangs fall in love, but tensions between their respective friends build toward tragedy. Explore West Side Story / IMDB / YouTube

A small-time crook, hunted by the authorities for a car theft and the murder of a police officer, attempts to persuade a hip American journalism student to run away with him to Italy. Look into Breathless / IMDB / YouTube

Fictionalized depiction of the 1947 Judges' Trial, the third of twelve trials of Nazi war criminals conducted by the American occupying forces in Nuremberg, Germany, in which former judges of Nazi Germany were tried for their actions. Find out about Judgment at Nuremberg / IMDB / YouTube

An up-and-coming pool player plays a long-time champion in a single high-stakes match. Check out The Hustler / IMDB / YouTube

A series of stories following a week in the life of a philandering tabloid journalist living in Rome. Get info on La Dolce Vita / IMDB / YouTube

A war-hardened general, egged on by his ambitious wife, works to fulfill a prophecy that he would become lord of Spider's Web Castle. Details on Throne of Blood / IMDB / YouTube

A team of Allied saboteurs is assigned an impossible mission: infiltrate an impregnable Nazi-held Greek island and destroy the two enormous long-range field guns that prevent the rescue of 2,000 trapped British soldiers. Find out about The Guns of Navarone / IMDB / YouTube

A woman disappears during a Mediterranean boating trip. During the search, her lover and her best friend become attracted to each other. Info on L'Avventura / IMDB / YouTube

A young governess for two children becomes convinced that the house and grounds are haunted. Details on The Innocents / IMDB / YouTube

Recently released from a mental hospital, Karin rejoins her emotionally disconnected family in their island home, only to slip from reality as she begins to believe she is being visited by God. Read about Through a Glass Darkly / IMDB / YouTube

A divorcée falls for an over-the-hill cowboy who is struggling to maintain his romantically-independent lifestyle. Get info on The Misfits / IMDB / YouTube

Having recently been uprooted to Milan, Rocco and his four brothers each look for a new way in life when a prostitute comes between Rocco and his brother Simone. See more about Rocco and His Brothers / IMDB / YouTube

The love of high school sweethearts Deanie and Bud is weighed down by the oppressive expectations of their parents and society in smalltown Kansas in 1928, threatening the future of their relationship. Read about Splendor in the Grass / IMDB / YouTube

A stripper who's desperate to become a mother accepts her reluctant boyfriend's suggestion that she be impregnated by his best friend. Info on A Woman Is a Woman / IMDB / YouTube

A rebellious student at a girls' school accuses two teachers of lesbianism. Explore The Children's Hour / IMDB / YouTube

In the sixteenth century, Francis Barnard travels to Spain to clarify the strange circumstances of his sister's death after she had married the son of a cruel Spanish Inquisitor. Get info on The Pit and the Pendulum / IMDB / YouTube

The fabled Spanish hero Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar (a.k.a. El Cid) overcomes a family vendetta and court intrigue to defend Christian Spain against the Moors. Details on El Cid / IMDB / YouTube

After they rob a bank in Mexico, Dad Longworth absconds with the loot leaving his partner, Rio, to be captured by the Rurales. 5 years later, Rio escapes from prison and seeks revenge on Longworth, but falls in love with his step-daughter. Details on One-Eyed Jacks / IMDB / YouTube

As World War II and the German occupation ends, the Polish resistance and the Soviet forces turn on each other in an attempt to take over leadership in Communist Poland. Learn about Ashes and Diamonds / IMDB / YouTube

In WWII Italy, a widow and her lonely daughter seek distance between themselves and the horrors of war. Learn about Two Women / IMDB / YouTube

The State of Israel is created in 1948, resulting in war with its Arab neighbors. Find out about Exodus / IMDB / YouTube