Most Popular Movies 1956
This chart shows the 1956 movie releases that have attracted the most interest on The Numbers web site over the past 24 hours. A share of 100 corresponds to 1 percent of the total views for all 1956 releases.
See also: Domestic Release Schedule for 1956 - Top 1956 Worldwide
| Most Popular Overall | 1957 → |
1
| Shichinin no samurai |
| Director: Akira Kurosawa |
| Lead Roles: Toshiro Mifune as Kikuchiyo |
| Initial Theatrical Release: November 19, 1956 (Wide) by Cowboy Pictures, released as The Seven Samurai |
| Keywords: Foreign Language, 1500s, Set in Japan |
| Classification: Original Screenplay, Action, Live Action, Historical Fiction |
|
Domestic BO: $391,683 |
|
International BO: $31,515 |
Synopsis
When 16th-century farmers whose village is repeatedly attacked by merciless bandits ask an elderly, masterless samurai for help.
2
| Moby Dick |
| Director: John Huston |
| Initial Theatrical Release: June 27, 1956 (Wide) |
| Keywords: Animals Gone Bad, Chase Adventure, On a Boat, Revenge, Sole Survivor, 1840s, Voiceover/Narration |
| Classification: Based on Fiction Book/Short Story, Adventure, Live Action, Historical Fiction |
|
Domestic BO: $10,400,000 |
|
International BO: $11,840 |
3
| Around the World in 80 Days |
| Director: Michael Anderson |
| Lead Roles: David Niven as Phileas Fogg, Cantinflas as Passepartout, Shirley MacLaine as Princess Aouda, Robert Newton as Inspector Fix |
| Initial Theatrical Release: October 17, 1956 (Wide) by United Artists |
| Keywords: Gratuitous Cameos, Chase Adventure, 1870s, Set in England, Set in London, Falsely Accused, Set in Spain, Set in India, Set in New York City, On a Boat, In a Plane, Travelogue, Gambling, Romance, Surprise Twist |
| Classification: Based on Fiction Book/Short Story, Adventure, Live Action, Historical Fiction |
|
Domestic BO: $42,000,000 |
4
| Trapeze |
| Director: Sir Carol Reed |
| Lead Roles: Burt Lancaster as Mike Ribble, Tony Curtis as Tino Orsini, Gina Lollobrigida as Lola |
| Initial Theatrical Release: May 30, 1956 (Wide) |
| Keywords: Romantic Drama, Romance, Relationships Gone Wrong, Love Triangle, Circus, Acrobatics |
| Classification: Based on Fiction Book/Short Story, Drama, Live Action, Contemporary Fiction |
|
Domestic BO: $14,400,000 |
5
| Carousel |
| Director: Henry King |
| Initial Theatrical Release: February 16, 1956 (Wide) by 20th Century Fox |
| Classification: Based on Musical or Opera, Drama, Live Action, Contemporary Fiction |
|
International BO: $3,604 |
6
| Love Me Tender |
| Director: Robert D. Webb |
| Lead Roles: Richard Egan as Vance Reno, Debra Paget as Cathy Reno, Elvis Presley as Clint Reno |
| Initial Theatrical Release: November 15, 1956 (Wide) |
| Keywords: Civil War, Romance, Love Triangle, Intertitle, Dysfunctional Family, Sibling Rivalry, Romantic Musical, The Civil War, 1860s |
| Classification: Original Screenplay, Musical, Live Action, Historical Fiction |
|
Domestic BO: $9,000,000 |
7
| The Wrong Man |
| Director: Alfred Hitchcock |
| Initial Theatrical Release: December 23, 1956 (Wide) by Warner Bros. |
| Keywords: Film Noir |
| Classification: Original Screenplay, Thriller/Suspense, Live Action |
|
Domestic BO: $2,000,000 |
|
International BO: $55 |
8
| The Searchers |
| Director: John Ford |
| Initial Theatrical Release: March 13, 1956 (Wide) |
| Classification: Original Screenplay, Western, Live Action, Historical Fiction |
|
International BO: $6,608 |
9
| Written on the Wind |
| Director: Douglas Sirk |
| Initial Theatrical Release: December 25, 1956 (Limited) by Universal |
| Classification: Based on Fiction Book/Short Story, Drama, Live Action, Contemporary Fiction |
|
International BO: $669 |
10
| War and Peace |
| Director: King Vidor |
| Initial Theatrical Release: August 21, 1956 (Wide) |
|
Domestic BO: $12,500,000 |
|
International BO: $24,865 |
11
| Diane |
| Director: David Miller |
| Lead Roles: Lana Turner as Diane de Poitiers, Pedro Armendáriz as King Francis I, Roger Moore as Prince Henri (King Henry II), Marisa Pavan as Catherine de Medici, Sir Cedric Hardwicke as Ruggieri |
| Initial Theatrical Release: January 12, 1956 (Wide) by MGM |
| Classification: Historical Fiction |
12
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| The Ten Commandments |
| Director: Cecil B. DeMille |
| Lead Roles: Charlton Heston as Moses, Yul Brynner as Rameses |
| Initial Theatrical Release: October 5, 1956 (Wide) |
| Keywords: Visual Effects, Religious, Voiceover/Narration, Prologue, Faith-Based Drama |
| Classification: Based on Religious Text, Drama, Live Action, Dramatization |
|
Domestic BO: $85,400,591 |
|
International BO: $30,863 |
13
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| La Pointe-Courte |
| Director: Agnès Varda |
| Initial Theatrical Release: January 4, 1956 (Wide) (France) |
| Classification: Original Screenplay, Drama, Live Action, Contemporary Fiction |
|
International BO: $1,599 |
14
| Invasion of the Body Snatchers |
| Director: Don Siegel |
| Initial Theatrical Release: February 5, 1956 (Limited) |
| Classification: Based on Fiction Book/Short Story, Horror, Live Action, Science Fiction |
|
International BO: $2,984 |
15
| French Cancan |
| Director: Jean Renoir |
| Initial Theatrical Release: April 4, 1956 (Wide) (Portugal) |
| Classification: Based on Fiction Book/Short Story, Drama, Live Action, Historical Fiction |
|
International BO: $2,544 |
16
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| Backlash |
| Director: John Sturges, Eugene Forde |
| Lead Roles: Richard Widmark as Jim Slater, Donna Reed as Karyl Orton |
| Initial Theatrical Release: April 11, 1956 (Limited) by Universal |
| Keywords: Set in Arizona, 1800s |
| Classification: Based on Fiction Book/Short Story, Western, Live Action, Historical Fiction |
17
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| Attack! |
| Director: Robert Aldrich |
| Lead Roles: Jack Palance as Lt. Joe Costa, Fox Company, Eddie Albert as Captain Erskine Cooney |
| Initial Theatrical Release: October 17, 1956 (Limited) by United Artists |
| Classification: Based on Play, Action, Live Action, Historical Fiction |
Synopsis
When Lieutenant Joe Costa learns that his men died because their commander, Captain Cooney, was too much of a coward to join the fight, Costa issues a serious warning: Don’t let it happen again! But Cooney’s cowardice forces Costa into a fateful choice: continue to risk the lives of his men… or take the life of the captain.
18
| Du rififi chez les hommes |
| Director: Jules Dassin |
| Lead Roles: Jean Servais as Tony, Robert Manuel as Mario, Carl Mohner as Jo |
| Initial Theatrical Release: June 5, 1956 (Limited) |
| Keywords: Heist, No Honor Among Thieves, Film Noir, Character POV shot, Life on the Outside, Relationships Gone Wrong, Tortured for Information, Kidnap, Rescue, Domestic Abuse |
| Classification: Original Screenplay, Thriller/Suspense, Live Action, Contemporary Fiction |
|
Domestic BO: $529,179 |
19
| The Violent Years |
| Director: William Morgan |
| Initial Theatrical Release: 1956 (Limited) |
20
| The Teahouse of the August Moon |
| Lead Roles: Marlon Brando, Glenn Ford, Machiko Kyo |
| Initial Theatrical Release: November 29, 1956 (Limited) by MGM |
| Keywords: 1950s, Satire, Satirical Comedy, Set in Japan |
| Classification: Original Screenplay, Comedy, Live Action, Contemporary Fiction |
Synopsis
This comedy-drama is partially a gentle satire on America's drive to change the world in the post-war years. One year after World War II, Captain Fisby is sent to the village of Tobiki in Okinawa to teach the people democracy. The first step is to build a school — but the wily Okinawans know what they really want. They tell him about their culture and traditions — and persuade him to build something they really want instead: a teahouse.
21
| All That Heaven Allows |
| Director: Douglas Sirk |
| Initial Theatrical Release: April 5, 1956 (Limited) (Italy) |
| Classification: Original Screenplay, Drama, Live Action, Contemporary Fiction |
|
International BO: $116 |
22
| Helen of Troy |
| Initial Theatrical Release: January 26, 1956 (Limited) |
| Classification: Based on Fiction Book/Short Story, Drama, Live Action, Historical Fiction |