A Collection of Labour Films and Workers' Movies (1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s)

Every country has its own rich tradition of labour culture. When someone asked me for suggestions for their project, I had to dig through quite a bit to collect the relevant information. This is an attempt to document what I could find and for anyone who searches for similar things. These great films are from all around the world and not limited by geography or language. The list includes movies that depict workers, working class lives, labour movements as well as documentaries and TV Shows.

A COLLECTION OF LABOUR MOVIES ( Pre-1960 )

[Year of Release] - [Movie Title] [Language]

1916 - Intolerance (English)

1924 - Der Letzte Mann (German)
1924 - Greed (English)
1925 - Stachka (Russian)
1926 - Die Freudlose Gasse (German)
1927 - Metropolis (German)
1928 - Hallelujah! (English)

1931 - Le Million (French)
1932 - Taxi ! (English)
1933 - Man's Castle (English)
1933 - The Gold-Diggers (English)
1933 - Employees' Entrance (English)
1935 - Black Fury (English)
1936 - Fury (English)
1936 - La Belle Equipe (French)
1936 - Modern Times (English)
1936 - Black Legion (English)
1938 - La Bete Humaine (French)
1938 - The Citadel (English)
1939 - Spare Time (English)

1940 - The Grapes of Wrath (English)
1941 - How Green Was my Valley (English)
1946 - Sciuscia (Italian)
1948 - Ladri di Biciclette (Italian)
1949 - Christ in Concrete - Give Us This Day (English)

1950 - Los Olvidados (Spanish)
1951 - The Man in the White Suit (English)
1952 - Ikiru (Japanese)
1952 - Umberto D (Italian)
1953 - Do Bigha Zameen (Hindi)
1956 - Gervaise (French)

1957 - Edge of the City (English)

1957 - The Garment Jungle (English)
1957 - The Pajama Game (English)
1958 - Look Back in Anger (English)