By Daniel Kim — Used to ignore anything black and white. Now watches movies from every decade.
Last updated: April 2026
Until a few years ago, I had a rule. I only watched movies made after 1990. Anything older felt ancient. The black and white ones? Forget it. I assumed they were slow, boring, and not for me.
Then a friend would not stop talking about Rear Window. “You have to watch it,” she said. “It is from 1954,” I said. “That is the point,” she said.
I finally watched it. Not because I wanted to. Because she would not let it go.
The movie is about a man in a wheelchair who looks out his window and suspects his neighbor of murder. Almost the entire movie takes place in one apartment. There is no action. No special effects. No color.
I loved it.
I was tense the whole time. I cared about what happened. I could not look away. It felt more modern than half the movies I had watched that year.
That movie cracked something open for me. I started watching other old movies. Some were great. Some were not. But I stopped assuming that “old” meant “bad.”
What I Was Missing
Pacing is different, not worse.
Old movies are slower. That is not a flaw. That is a choice. They let scenes breathe. They trust the audience to pay attention. I had to adjust my expectations. Once I did, I started noticing things I missed in fast-paced modern movies. The acting. The lighting. The small details.
They had less technology, so they worked harder.
No CGI. No green screens. If they wanted a crowd, they hired extras. If they wanted an explosion, they blew something up. That limitation forced creativity. You can feel it.
Black and white is not a lack of color. It is a different language.
Black and white changes how you see shadows, light, and faces. Some movies would not look better in color. They would look worse.
A Few Old Movies That Surprised Me
| Movie (Year) | Why I Watched | Why I Loved It |
|---|---|---|
| Rear Window (1954) | Friend insisted | Tense, clever, almost no action |
| 12 Angry Men (1957) | Heard it was a classic | One room, twelve actors, better than most thrillers |
| Some Like It Hot (1959) | Wanted to try a comedy | Genuinely funny. Not “for its time” funny. Actually funny. |
| Paths of Glory (1957) | War movie fan | Bleak. Beautiful. Made me angry. |
I am not saying everyone will love these. I am just saying I was wrong to dismiss them because of their release date.
What I Learned
Original does not mean better.
New movies are not automatically better than old movies. Old movies are not automatically better than new movies. Each era has good and bad. I was just ignoring half of them.
Culture changes. People do not.
The concerns in old movies—love, fear, ambition, betrayal—are the same concerns we have now. The clothes and cars are different. The people are not.
I had to learn how to watch them.
You cannot watch a 1950s movie like a 2020s movie. You have to slow down. Pay attention differently. Let the movie set its own pace. That took practice. It was worth it.
What I Am Not Saying
I am not saying all old movies are good. Some are boring. Some have not aged well. Some are offensive.
I am not saying you have to watch old movies. Watch what you enjoy.
I am just saying: if you have never tried, you might be missing something. Not better. Just different. And different can be good.
How to Start (If You Want To)
Pick a famous old movie in a genre you already like.
| If You Like | Try |
|---|---|
| Thrillers | Rear Window (1954) |
| Courtroom dramas | 12 Angry Men (1957) |
| Comedies | Some Like It Hot (1959) |
| Romance | Roman Holiday (1953) |
| War movies | Paths of Glory (1957) |
Do not watch it on your phone. Watch it on a TV. In the dark. Put your phone away.
If you are bored, that is fine. Turn it off. Try a different one. But give it a real chance first.
The Bottom Line
I used to only watch new movies. I thought old movies were slow and boring. Then I watched Rear Window from 1954. I was wrong.
Not every old movie is great. But some are. And I never would have known if I had not tried.
Now I watch movies from every decade. The 1950s. The 1970s. The 1990s. Even the 1920s.
Turns out, a good story does not have an expiration date.
About the author: Daniel Kim watches movies from all decades now. He still likes new movies. He just does not ignore the old ones anymore.
This article is for entertainment purposes. Movie tastes vary. Watch what you enjoy.
