The 30+ Best Joanne Woodward Movies

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Updated May 10, 2024 36 items
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141 voters
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List of the best Joanne Woodward movies, ranked best to worst with movie trailers when available. Joanne Woodward's highest grossing movies have received a lot of accolades over the years, earning millions upon millions around the world. The order of these top Joanne Woodward movies is decided by how many votes they receive, so only highly rated Joanne Woodward movies will be at the top of the list. Joanne Woodward has been in a lot of films, so people often debate each other over what the greatest Joanne Woodward movie of all time is. If you and a friend are arguing about this then use this list of the most entertaining Joanne Woodward films to end the squabble once and for all.

If you think the best Joanne Woodward role isn't at the top, then upvote it so it has the chance to become number one. The greatest Joanne Woodward performances didn't necessarily come from the best movies, but in most cases they go hand in hand.

Harry & Son and Mr. & Mrs. Bridge are a great starting point for your to rank your favorites on this list

"This list answers the questions, "What are the best Joanne Woodward movies?" and "What are the greatest Joanne Woodward roles of all time?"

If you're a fan of Joanne Woodward, then check out our lists of the best Lee Grant and Geraldine Page movies as well.

Most divisive: The End
Over 100 Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The 30+ Best Joanne Woodward Movies
  • The Three Faces of Eve
    1
    Joanne Woodward, Lee J. Cobb, David Wayne
    23 votes
    Suffering from headaches and inexplicable blackouts, timid housewife Eve White (Joanne Woodward) begins seeing a psychiatrist, Dr. Luther (Lee J. Cobb). He's stunned when she transforms before his eyes into the lascivious Eve Black, and diagnoses her as having multiple personalities. It's not long before a third, calling herself Jane, also appears. Through hypnosis and continued therapy, Luther struggles to help Eve recall the trauma that caused her identity to fracture.
  • Rachel, Rachel
    2
    Joanne Woodward, James Olson, Kate Harrington
    34 votes
    Written off as a spinster, 35-year-old schoolteacher Rachel Cameron (Joanne Woodward) lives with her widowed mother above a funeral parlor in rural Connecticut. Repressed by the community and given to despondency, Rachel spends her time daydreaming, buoyed by her lesbian best friend, Calla (Estelle Parsons). A religious experience begins a subtle awakening in Rachel, and when a childhood friend returns to town for his father's funeral, she experiences real, driving passion.
  • The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds
    3
    Joanne Woodward, Nell Potts, Roberta Wallach
    16 votes
    Widow Beatrice Hunsdorfer (Joanne Woodward) likes to say she's planning to open an upscale tea room, but in reality she's incapable of handling even the most pedestrian of life's responsibilities. A terrible homemaker and a questionable parent, she's a constant embarrassment to her two daughters. Ruth (Roberta Wallach) is given to rebellious acting out and seems destined to turn out like her mother, while Matilda (Nell Potts) is more thoughtful and likely to transcend her unfortunate childhood.
  • The Fugitive Kind
    4
    Marlon Brando, Anna Magnani, Joanne Woodward
    15 votes
    When drifter Valentine Xavier (Marlon Brando) arrives in a southern town, he catches the eye of the married Lady Torrance (Anna Magnani) and the oversexed alcoholic, Carol Cutrere (Joanne Woodward). Both vie for his attention, with Lady Torrance emerging victorious, offering Xavier employment in her general store, while her cancer-stricken husband is bedridden upstairs. After impregnating Lady Torrance and butting heads with friends of her husband, Xavier must make a crucial decision.
  • The Long, Hot Summer
    5
    Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Anthony Franciosa
    22 votes
    Handsome vagabond Ben Quick (Paul Newman) returns to the Mississippi town his late father called home, but rumors of his dad's pyromaniac tendencies follow him as soon as he sets foot there. The proud young man's determination eventually wins over civic leader Will Varner (Orson Welles), who decides Ben might be just the man for his daughter, Clara (Joanne Woodward) -- much to the displeasure of Will's gutless son (Anthony Franciosa) and Clara's society boyfriend (Richard Anderson).
  • The Glass Menagerie
    6
    Joanne Woodward, John Malkovich, Karen Allen
    17 votes
    Tom Wingfield looks back on his relationship with his mother, Amanda, and sister, Laura, all of whom were abandoned by patriarch Mr. Wingfield 16 years earlier. Tom chafes at his dead-end job, while Amanda longs for the security of the past and frets anxiously about prospects for Laura, who has a crippled foot that has left her vulnerable and insecure. Tom invites a friend to dinner, whom Laura has known from school, raising Amanda's and Laura's hopes that a romantic match is possible.
  • Mr. & Mrs. Bridge
    7
    Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Robert Sean Leonard
    16 votes
    A rich Midwestern lawyer (Paul Newman), his wife (Joanne Woodward) and their children grow apart in the World War II era.
  • Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams
    8
    Joanne Woodward, Martin Balsam, Sylvia Sidney
    14 votes
    Middle-aged, middle-class New Yorker Rita Walden (Joanne Woodward), already prone to depression and nightmares, is thrown into an emotional tailspin by the sudden death of her mother (Sylvia Sidney). Settling her mother's estate dredges up memories of her idyllic childhood on the family farm, and of her adolescent crush on one of the farm workers, a painful contrast to her strained relationships with her two grown children and her war-haunted optometrist husband, Harry (Martin Balsam).
  • Sybil
    9
    Joanne Woodward, Sally Field, Brad Davis
    16 votes
    This tale of child abuse and and its deep psychological scars, based on a true story, follows Sybil (Sally Field), an introverted student living alone in New York City who suffers from multiple personality disorder. Haunted by nightmares of her past, Sybil starts seeing a psychiatrist named Dr. Cornelia B. Wilbur (Joanne Woodward). When Dr. Wilbur discovers Sybil has over a dozen different personalities, she becomes obsessed with uncovering her patient's tortured childhood in order to heal her.
  • The Sound and the Fury
    10
    Yul Brynner, Joanne Woodward, Margaret Leighton
    13 votes
    The once-prominent Compson family of Jefferson, Miss., has been reduced to near-penury by generations of alcoholism and sin. Levelheaded Jason (Yul Brynner) struggles to keep the family together, but his teenage stepsister, Quentin (Joanne Woodward), chafes against his strictures. When Quentin's estranged mother (Margaret Leighton) reappears in town and carnival worker Charles (Stuart Whitman) attempts to seduce the virginal teen, the family may finally be headed for complete collapse.
  • From the Terrace
    11
    Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Myrna Loy
    14 votes
    Alfred Eaton (Paul Newman) returns home after World War II, driven to be as successful as possible out of hatred toward his wealthy father (Leon Ames). He is unendingly ambitious: founding an aircraft construction company with his friend Lex (George Grizzard), marrying a socialite (Joanne Woodward) and leveraging a fortunate encounter with a powerful financier (Felix Aylmer) into a new career. When he meets the beautiful, truthful Natalie (Ina Balin), Alfred has a crisis of conscience.
  • Breathing Lessons
    12

    Breathing Lessons

    James Garner, Joanne Woodward, Kathryn Erbe
    7 votes
    When the husband of their friend Serena (Joyce Van Patten) dies, Ira (James Garner) and Maggie Moran (Joanne Woodward), an older married couple, make an event out of their day's travel to the funeral. Examining life and marriage on their journey, the couple of 29 years remains as in love today as when they first met -- despite being near opposites in personality. However, their love and respect for one another cut through all the differences between them.
  • They Might Be Giants
    13
    George C. Scott, Joanne Woodward, Jack Gilford
    10 votes
    After the death of his wife, wealthy retiree Justin Playfair (George C. Scott) creates a fantasy world for himself in which he is the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes, even dressing like the character. Out of concern for Justin's money more than his health, his brother Blevins puts him under the care of psychiatrist Dr. Mildred Watson (Joanne Woodward). As Dr. Watson grows fond of Justin, she begins to play along with his theories, eventually becoming an assistant in his investigations.
  • Philadelphia
    14
    Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington, Jason Robards
    12 votes
    In the groundbreaking film Philadelphia, Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks), a talented lawyer, battles an unjust firing after his law firm discovers he's HIV-positive. Aiding him in this fierce legal fight is Joe Miller (Denzel Washington), a small-time attorney who initially harbors prejudice against those with AIDS. This drama, directed by Jonathan Demme, tackles societal discrimination head-on and scored Hanks an Oscar for Best Actor in 1994. As the narrative unfolds, it unflinchingly showcases the struggles of individuals living with AIDS during a less informed time.
  • No Down Payment
    15
    Joanne Woodward, Tony Randall, Sheree North
    12 votes
    In an average suburban California apartment complex, the quiet facade of domestic life begins to unravel for three contrasting married couples. Idealistic newlyweds David (Jeffrey Hunter) and Jean (Patricia Owens) confront the bitter, broken lives of their neighbors, coquettish Leola (Joanne Woodward), scheming used-car salesman Jerry (Tony Randall) and his wife, Isabelle (Sheree North). Will their love and hope withstand the corrosive effect of the fallen?
  • Paris Blues
    16
    Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Sidney Poitier
    13 votes
    Despite being far from home, American jazz musicians Ram Bowen (Paul Newman) and Eddie Cook (Sidney Poitier) are content living and working in Paris. Ram knows it's the best place for him to develop his musical reputation, and Eddie is far away from the racism that once greeted him on a regular basis. But after meeting and falling in love with American tourists Lillian (Joanne Woodward) and Connie (Diahann Carroll), the pair must decide whether their artistic integrity is worth abandoning.
  • Do You Remember Love
    17

    Do You Remember Love

    Joanne Woodward, Richard Kiley, Geraldine Fitzgerald
    8 votes
    Barbara Wyatt-Hollis (Joanne Woodward) is a successful college professor who must come to terms with the onset of Alzheimer's disease as it begins to affect her professional life, her marriage to her compassionate husband, George (Richard Kiley), and her grown children. As Barbara's personality and memories disappear, a husband no longer knows the woman he married, a mother (Geraldine Fitzgerald) helplessly watches her daughter's deterioration, and a son's fear and vulnerability consume him.
  • A Kiss Before Dying
    18
    Robert Wagner, Virginia Leith, Joanne Woodward
    10 votes
    Amoral Bud Corliss (Robert Wagner) pursues young heiress Dorie Kingship (Joanne Woodward) in the hopes of getting his hands on the fortune amassed by her father (George Macready). But after Dorie succumbs to Bud's charms and becomes pregnant as a result, he fears she'll be cut off by the family and murders her in a fashion that makes it look as if the poor girl committed suicide. When Bud tries to cozy up with Dorie's grieving sister, Ellen (Virginia Leith), she begins to suspect his intentions.
  • Winning
    19
    Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Robert Wagner
    10 votes
    Race car driver Frank Capua (Paul Newman) holds track victories above all else, but as he competes in the string of races that lead to motoring's crown jewel, the Indianapolis 500, he finds it harder to connect with wife Elora (Joanne Woodward) and stepson Charley (Richard Thomas). When he learns that Elora is sleeping with fellow racer Luther "Lou" Erding (Robert Wagner), Frank leaves the family, but plucky Charley decides he won't stand idly by as his family disintegrates.
  • The Drowning Pool
    20
    Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Anthony Franciosa
    10 votes
    A New Orleans oil heiress (Joanne Woodward) hires private eye Lew Harper (Paul Newman) to unravel a blackmail scheme.
  • WUSA
    21
    Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Anthony Perkins
    9 votes
    Rheinhardt (Paul Newman) has failed in his marriage and career, and has become a cynical alcoholic. When he gets a job reading the news at right-wing radio station WUSA, he goes through the motions because it pays well, though he disagrees with the station's viewpoint. After a shy activist named Rainey (Anthony Perkins) starts inquiring about a political conspiracy centered at the station, Rheinhardt becomes troubled by what he discovers and must decide whether or not to take action.
  • The Age of Innocence
    22
    Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, Winona Ryder
    11 votes
    Wealthy lawyer Newland Archer (Daniel Day-Lewis) is engaged to sweet socialite May Welland (Winona Ryder) in 1870s New York. On the surface, it is a perfect match. But when May's beautiful cousin Countess Ellen Olenska (Michelle Pfeiffer), who is estranged from her brutish husband, arrives in town, Newland begins to question the meaning of passion and love as he desperately pursues a relationship with Ellen, even though she has been made a social outcast by Archer's peers.
  • A Big Hand for the Little Lady
    23
    Henry Fonda, Joanne Woodward, Jason Robards
    15 votes
    When a yearly high-stakes poker game begins between the five richest men in Laredo, Texas, all other activity in the Wild West town comes to a stop as everyone gathers to watch the action. Recovering gambler Meredith (Henry Fonda), passing through town on the way to San Antonio, gets roped into the game by lawyer Otto Habershaw (Kevin McCarthy). When the stress of the game becomes too much to bear, his disapproving wife, Mary (Joanne Woodward), must step in to save the family fortune.
  • A Fine Madness
    24
    Sean Connery, Joanne Woodward, Jean Seberg
    5 votes
    After years of failure, hapless poet Samson Shillitoe (Sean Connery) is at the end of his rope. But no more so than is his current wife, Rhoda (Joanne Woodward), who suffers through his daily and casual philandering. But after Rhoda reports his erratic behavior to famously brilliant psychiatrist Dr. Oliver West (Patrick O'Neal), the sociopathic Shillitoe finds himself institutionalized -- though within arm's reach of West's gorgeous partner, Dr. Vera Kropotkin (Colleen Dewhurst).
  • Rally Round the Flag, Boys!
    25
    Paul Newman, Joan Collins, Tuesday Weld
    9 votes
    Rally Round the Flag, Boys! is a 1958 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Max Shulman, directed by Leo McCarey, starring Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, and released by 20th Century Fox. The title comes from a line in the song "Battle Cry of Freedom".
  • Crisis at Central High
    26
    Joanne Woodward, Charles Durning, Henderson Forsythe
    7 votes
    Unassuming yet determined teacher Elizabeth Huckaby (Joanne Woodward) is caught in the middle of one of America's defining moments in the 20th century -- the racial integration of schools. Arkansas' Central High is the venue, and Huckaby and her allies must fight mounting anger and racism to allow several black students to matriculate and lead normal student lives. This film depicts that entire fateful school year, which required military intervention to guarantee the students' safety.
  • Count Three and Pray
    27
    Van Heflin, Joanne Woodward, Raymond Burr
    7 votes
    After fighting for the Union during the Civil War, Luke Fargo (Van Heflin) is greeted with resentment when he returns home to his small southern town. Luke has a reputation as a rogue, but he's reinvented himself as a man of God and plans to fix up the town's damaged church. Recalling their romantic past, Georgina Decrais (Allison Hayes) tries to reclaim Luke. But, to the dismay of some suspicious townspeople, he concentrates on mentoring an unsophisticated young woman, Lissy (Joanne Woodward).
  • A New Kind of Love
    28
    Frank Sinatra, Paul Newman, Eva Gabor
    7 votes
    A New Kind of Love is a 1963 American romantic comedy film directed by Melville Shavelson and starring Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. Frank Sinatra sings "You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" over the opening credits.
  • Harry & Son
    29
    Morgan Freeman, Paul Newman, Ellen Barkin
    8 votes
    Harry & Son is a 1984 American drama film directed by Paul Newman, who also stars. The screenplay by Newman and Ronald Buck focuses on the relationship between a blue-collar worker and his son, who fails at various odd jobs while aspiring to be a writer. Joanne Woodward, Ellen Barkin, Ossie Davis, Wilford Brimley and Judith Ivey also star. Much of the film was shot in Lake Worth, Florida. The movie set construction site was the demolition of the sister hotel affiliated with the Gulf Stream Hotel named The Inn.
  • The Stripper
    30
    Joanne Woodward, Richard Beymer, Claire Trevor
    4 votes
    Stuck in a dead-end job in a dead-end Kansas town, Lila Green (Joanne Woodward) is at the end of her rope. After she loses her job as a local magician's stage assistant, Lila moves in with neighbor Helen (Claire Trevor) and her son, Kenny (Richard Beymer). One night, Lila and Kenny give in to their mutual attraction, but immature Kenny doesn't pursue her any further. When Lila lets a new boyfriend talk her into stripping at a nearby club, her world falls even further into ruin.