Paul Newman was one of Hollywood’s great leading men of the mid-20th century, particularly famous for his anti-hero roles. He appeared in both blockbusters and critical darlings, earning nine Oscar nominations, one Best Actor win and one Honorary Oscar. Despite the rapidly changing and, at times, tumultuous cinematic landscape that he needed to continuously adapt to, there was never a significant lull in Newman’s career, with the actor remaining a major Hollywood star well into his 80s.

Over fifty years, Newman worked with everyone from Alfred Hitchcock to the Coen Brothers. Several of his performances, as well as his method acting approach, were highly influential. Fans on IMDb have rated several of Newman’s movies, with many achieving high marks. While these might not necessarily be Newman’s all-time best movies, they are a reflection of what modern audiences like about his career. Whether because of their enduring influence, memorable characters, or significant plots, these movies are the best Paul Newman movies in the eyes of IMDb.

12‘Slap Shot’ (1977)

IMDb Rating: 7.3/10

A brilliant mixture of sports spectacle and complete hilarity, Slap Shot thrives with its delightfully fun premise and a magnificent comedic turn from Paul Newman. It focuses on an ice hockey team, the Charlestown Chiefs, in a working town in New England. As the team struggles financially, player and coach Reggie Dunlop (Newman) decides to play three brothers whose brutal approach to the game enthralls fans. As the fanfare grows, so does the team’s appetite for the contest, with Dunlop restructuring the side to play in a thuggish and violent manner to draw in big crowds.

It’s an old-school sports comedy that wears its heart on its sleeve, exhibiting as much pluck and offbeat charm as its central hockey team. While there’s absurdist satire in every ounce of its premise, Slap Shot excels as a rousing and immersive hit of sports fun that boasts a hardened and aggressive exterior but contains a gooey and warm-hearted core that is a treat to embrace. It is one of the funniest movies of the 1970s and stands as a terrific gem in Newman’s illustrious career.

 

11‘The Young Philadelphians’ (1959)

IMDb Rating: 7.4/10

A classical tale of ambition and greed and what those things do to a decent man’s soul, The Young Philadelphians focuses on the journey of a young lawyer as he tries to rise up the social ranks of the world. As his mother frets about their family’s social status following his father’s death, Anthony Lawrence (Newman) works valiantly to ensure his future. However, the higher he climbs, the more he must sacrifice his morality as he begins resorting to unethical methods to get ahead.

Its efforts to evoke a sense of social awe and inspire contemplation concerning what it takes to thrive in modern society probably didn’t reach the heights the film was aiming for. However, it still functions immaculately as a well-executed story with engaging plot beats and compelling characters. While it has aged, The Young Philadelphians‘ broad commentary on class and wealth remains appropriate, and Paul Newman’s lead performance makes for an admirable outing from the Hollywood star.

 

10‘Hombre’ (1967)

IMDb Rating: 7.4/10

Hombre is a Revisionist Western based on a novel by Elmore Leonard and directed by Martin Ritt, one of Newman’s most frequent collaborators. Newman stars as John Russell, a white man raised by Apaches, who finds himself caught between being targeted by abuse when he travels to Arizona to collect his inheritance following his father’s death. When bandits attack the stagecoach he makes his trek on, it falls to Russell to defend the passengers who have begrudged him.

One of the all-time best cult Westerns, Hombre is a gritty and insightful exploration of the American West. The film features little dialogue, but Newman conveys a lot with his physicality and mannerisms. The actor excels in the quiet role, portraying a fascinating figure that stands among his finest creations.

 

9‘Somebody Up There Likes Me’ (1956)

IMDb Rating: 7.5/10

Somebody Up There Likes Me is a biopic about Rocky Graziano, a boxing legend who became the World Middleweight champion in the 1940s. It was one of Newman’s first starring roles and served as ample proof that he was capable of leading a film himself. Rocky is hot-tempered and tough as nails, with a rough background and abusive upbringing, but he’s also hopelessly in love with Norma (Pier Angeli) and genuinely tries to look after his family.

It could easily have been a run-of-the-mill sports flick, but its terrific sense of storytelling and Newman’s captivating, note-perfect performance elevate it to be a rousing biographical film with an impressive amount of depth. Executed with the simple yet precise technical display that was commonplace in Hollywood films of the 40s and 50s, Somebody Up There Likes Me is a classical boxing movie that thrives off the back of Newman’s performance. It raised Newman’s career profile, giving him a brilliant platform for the many classics he would later star in.

 

8‘The Verdict’ (1982)

IMDb Rating: 7.7/10

An all-time great courtroom drama, The Verdict is one of director Sidney Lumet‘s most underrated achievements as it follows a down-on-his-luck lawyer struggling with alcoholism and a waning career. He sees a chance at turning his life around when he is presented with a seemingly straightforward medical malpractice case involving a young woman left in a vegetative state due to a botched surgery. However, as he delves deeper into the case, he uncovers a web of corruption and deceit.

The film boasts an impressive cast, featuring the likes of Charlotte Rampling, Jack Warden, and James Mason, all of whom elevate Newman to deliver what is potentially the best performance of his career. He sinks his teeth into the flawed but relatable character, with his portrayal of Frank Galvin earning an Oscar nomination. The film itself was praised as a tightly scripted and well-realized legal drama that flourished with its gritty realism and strong characters.

7‘Road to Perdition’ (2002)

IMDb Rating: 7.7/10

Road to Perdition, directed by Sam Mendes, was Newman’s final live-action feature film before he passed away in 2008. He has a major supporting role as Irish mob boss John Rooney, an adoptive father figure for the lead character Michael Sullivan (Tom Hanks), a mob hitman during the Great Depression. After Rooney’s biological son Conor (Daniel Craig) tries to have Sullivan killed, the gunman embarks on a path of vengeance.

Once again, Newman elevates what could have been a stock character. Rooney is a bad guy, but he also has his own honor code, and he’s torn between conflicting loyalties. Newman’s performance was widely acclaimed, particularly his chemistry with Hanks, and earned him his last Oscar nomination. Road to Perdition is stylish yet insightful, a deeply contemplative crime film that explores the nature of familial bonds with a moody and immersive atmosphere.

6‘Hud’ (1963)

IMDb Rating: 7.8/10

Hud is a triumph in Newman’s filmography, and another of his Western collaborations with Ritt. Newman leads the cast as the titular antihero, an amoral cowhand who is at odds with his principled and morally upright father, Homer (Melvyn Douglas). Hud has a tragic backstory, which is eventually revealed, and their ranch is thrown into chaos by an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.

Riveting and utterly unforgettable, Hud is an intriguing portrait of generational conflict, with Newman walking a fine line between likable and repellent. The film is a fascinating character study of an engaging yet reprehensible figure brought to life by Newman with unrestrained commitment. Cinematographer James Wong Howe also deserves praise for his striking black-and-white visuals and powerful use of negative space.

5‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ (1958)

IMDb Rating: 7.9/10

This screen adaptation of the Tennessee Williams play was a major commercial hit and brought Newman to new audiences. The film revolves around the troubled Pollitt family and their deteriorating relationships. Newman plays Brick, a former football star grappling with guilt and inner turmoil. He struggles with the death of his best friend and harbors resentment towards his wife, Maggie (Elizabeth Taylor). As the family gathers for the patriarch’s birthday, tensions rise, and long-held secrets are exposed.

One of the best films from 1958, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is a revealing look into sexual repression and desire that faced considerable constraints from the Hayes Code. The film censors itself somewhat, leaving the play’s large homosexual undertones implicit rather than overt. Nevertheless, Newman rises to the occasion with his moody, muted performance, oozing self-loathing, insecurity, and a simmering rage that is close to boiling over.

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4‘The Hustler’ (1961)

IMDb Rating: 8.0/10

The Hustler is another iconic sports drama, with Newman this time playing talented but self-destructive pool player Eddie Felson. Eddie navigates his way through the seedy underworld of pool halls and high-stakes matches, convinced that he is destined to be the best in the game. Along the way, he finds himself up against a ruthless and experienced player named Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason).

Newman portrays Eddie as a flawed protagonist haunted by demons and wrestling with his own self-worth. His boyish, handsome face makes for a total contrast with his personality, adding a layer of grit and deception to The Hustler. Newman reprised the role 25 years later in Martin Scorsese‘s The Color of Money, which saw him finally win the Academy Award for Best Actor.

3‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’ (1969)

IMDb Rating: 8.0/10

While it received mixed reviews upon release, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid excelled as a major box office success that has come to be viewed as one of the greatest Westerns of all time. Newman stars alongside Robert Redford, with the two actors becoming an iconic duo as the titular outlaws trying to get rich in Wyoming at the turn of the century. When their planned heist goes wrong, they flee to Bolivia with Etta Place (Katharine Ross) to evade the law, only to find themselves being pursued by a relentless posse of hired lawmen.

Imbued with a strong comedic inflection and even a romantic subplot, the film subverted many of the major tropes of Western cinema at the time, and it still stands as a unique and captivating movie because of its eagerness to defy genre conventions. It is now regarded as a landmark film of the decade, with Newman and Redman’s chemistry a huge reason for its modern-day standing as a true classic.

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2‘Cool Hand Luke’ (1967)

IMDb Rating: 8.1/10

“What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate…” Cool Hand Luke is Newman’s most iconic antihero. After drunkenly damaging several parking meters, Lucas “Luke” Jackson is sentenced to two years working on a chain gang. However, he refuses to submit to the guards’ authority and frequently speaks out against them. This wins him the respect of his fellow prisoners, although he resists becoming a symbol.

It’s amazing how modern the classic film still feels more than 50 years after its release. A lot of the Hollywood glamour that defined American cinema in the 60s is stripped away, with the characters speaking and behaving in a realistic and believable style. Newman’s has remained famous over the years, perfectly encapsulating the anti-establishment mood that was rampant in American society at the time in response to the Vietnam War.

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1‘The Sting’ (1973)

IMDb Rating: 8.3/10

Just four years after collaborating on Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Paul Newman and Robert Redford were together again for the con-man classic, The Sting. It follows Johnny Hooker (Redford), a street-smart crook who gets by pulling off simple cons here and there. However, when his mentor is killed by a ruthless crime boss, he teams up with veteran swindler Henry Gondforff (Newman) to pull off the ultimate con job and take some revenge in the process.

It’s a great tale of two bad guys teaming up to bring down a far worse guy, but the film truly excels as a charming, breezy, and satisfyingly slick hit of sleight-of-hand fun and savvy style. George Roy Hill’s direction is effective where it needs to be, but he is wise to hand over a lot of the scenes to its stars who glimmer throughout. Newman was actually on an uncharacteristic run of flops when The Sting came out, but the thrilling crime blockbuster proved that when it comes to charming rogues, he can’t be beat. The film won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, and sits entrenched in IMDb’s top 250 movies list with an impressive rating of 8.3.