Alec Guinness (1914-2000) was an Oscar® winning English actor. Most of his professional life, he was known for his six collaborations with director David Lean. To current audiences he is best known for playing Obi-Wan “Ben” Kenobi in the original Star Wars movies. His IMDb page shows 63 acting credits from 1934 to 2011. This page ranks 44 Alec Guinness movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television shows, some of his early British movies and his movies not released in North America theaters are not included in the rankings.
From Joel Hirschhorn’s Rating The Movie Stars Book…..”Guinness was once asked if he enjoyed acting and he replied, “Yes I do, It’s happy agony”. Watching him, one should only be glad he feels that the agony is worth it. Few, if any, actors have given so many dazzling performances in such a wide variety of roles.” This page comes from requests by many different people.
Alec Guinness Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews, and awards.
Alec Guinness Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
- Sort Alec Guinness movies by co-stars of his movies.
- Sort Alec Guinness movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Alec Guinness movies by yearly domestic box office rank
- Sort Alec Guinness movies how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations each Alec Guinness movie received and how many Oscar® wins each Alec Guinness movie won.
- Sort Alec Guinness movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
- Use the search and sort button to make this page very interactive.
Alec Guinness or John Mahoney
Hello Bruce. I always liked Alec Guinness. I’ve seen 29 of these films. I love “Great Expectations” and “Oliver Twist” as well as “Kind Hearts and Coronets”. He Gives a great performance in “The Bridge on the River Kwai” and a good one in “Lawrence of Arabia”. I really like the Ealing comedy “The Lavender Hill Mob” and of course he was the Original Obi one Kanobi in 1977’s “Star Wars. A great career. Nice Page Bruce.
Hey Lyle (I tried to figure out who was commenting…but I was unable to connect the IP address to a name)…..thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts on Mr. Guinness. Tally count. Anony 29, Flora and Steve 18, PhilHoF17 17, Cogerson 15 and bob cox 12. So you are the current leader in the clubhouse…congrats.
The Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia were two of my dad’s all-time favorite movies. I think he would agree with you on Sir Alex’s performances….Kwai got him the Oscar….his role in Lawrence is nice but overshadowed by so many others….O’Toole,Quinn and Sharif. I just recently discovered Kind Hearts and Coronets..I was so confused at first…I thought he was the killer…..so I kept looking at Dennis Price and wondering if that was Guinness in makeup or so young I did not recognize him……now I know he was the victim…or should I say victims….lol.
All those great movies and roles…yet his Obi One is the one he is best remembered by…..40 years later and he still is being discovered by new generations….good feedback….it is greatly appreciated.
And now Anonymous has a name…thanks Lyle.
Hey Bruce,
It’s been a while but I still regularly check out UMR and there have been many additions over the past few months I would have commented on had I had more time. However, I thought I should at least congratulate you on this wonderful Alec Guinness page as I imagine it must have been a lot of work to find US box information on all these British films…and some of this information is quite interesting, like The Ladykillers and The Lavender Hill Mob not doing too badly considering their very British character.
Next to Laurence Olivier, I think Guinness is the greatest male British movie star, at least in terms of talent and accomplishment. I have seen 17 of his films, my favorites (of the ones he starred in) being The Bridge on the River Kwai, Tunes of Glory, Oliver Twist, Kind Hearts and Coronets, and Fall of the Roman Empire. Of course, in supporting roles, Guinness has appeared in a few other of David Lean’s greatest classics – Great Expectations, Dr. Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia – as well as Star Wars and the delightful, dark comedy, Murder By Death, and he was equally memorable in those.
Another tour de force of a page!
Hey PhilHoF17…..glad to hear from you. Good to hear that you are still checking out UMR. Sorry it is been so busy for you….hopefully things will slow down and you do the important stuff again…you know….like sharing your movie knowledge with UMR…lol.
Many of his 1950s British film box office grosses come from books….which I do not like at all….but in the end…it was use those books or ignore the movie….many of those early Guinness performances are among his best. I always like to compare the grosses with current movies. Ladykillers and Lavender Hill Mob performed around what last year’s American Assassin and Jigsaw did….enough to get noticed but far from box office glory.
Tally counts: Steve and Flora barely top your total…as they have both seen 18 Guinness movies…compared to your 17. I have seen 16 and bob cox sits at 12. Of your favorites….many are my favorites too….with Kind Hearts and Coronets being the Guinness movie I discovered the most recently. Good feedback. Once again…very glad to hear from you again.
Thanks for your response Bruce. Yes, I hope to find a bit more time to give my two-cents worth every once in a while (just did now with Willem Dafoe). Hopefully things are settling now with some challenging issues, including my mother passing away over the summer. Ah, it’s been a difficult time, but it’s always fun to tune off and check out what’s new on UMR!
Hey PhilHoF17….no worries. Gotta admit the comments on my side can be very overwhelming at times….so I can imagine that with as many new pages as we put out….it is equally hard to keep up. Plus…I admit….with all the legends and superstars done years ago…some of the new UMR subjects are not huge view getters.
Sorry to hear about the passing of your mother. I know my father’s passing is still something I think about on a regular basis. Many times…I think….my dad would have liked this movie…or he would have liked this comment…..I am 100% sure he would have been happy two of all-time favorite movies did well in these Guinness rankings. Good to hear from you.
really did not like the swan. I thought grace Kelly was lost which may have been in character and intentional but not effective for me. she is so beautiful and the rest of the cast sparkled. too sad.
Hey bob cox….I have not seen The Swan. I think it is easily the least known Grace Kelly movie. It was made after she had become a huge star….yet it is barely mentioned these days. Thanks for the mini-review…it does not sound like it is worth tracking down. Good stuff.
Thank You UMR, or as Gomer Pyle/ Jim Nabors says ” Thank You, Thank You, Thank You”
i saw 12, including top 8. Tens and favorites both: star wars, the empire strikes back. tens dr zhivago, bridge on the river kwai,, Lawrence of Arabia, great expectations. hidden gem is Cromwell, with Richard harris an 8 solid historical piece.
Hey bob cox…glad you liked our Alec Guinness page…another Best Actor Oscar winner completed…slowly getting them done. I like all of your 10s….with Dr. Z being the one I like the least. I saw Cromwell…..and I agree it is a pretty good movie. Thanks for the input.
Second attempt here, Alec Guinness is no longer on the Oracle of Bacon Top 1000 Center of the Hollywood Universe list, however in 2000 he was # 392. These are the actors on the 2016 list he appeared with;
20 MAX VON SYDOW The Quiller Memorandum (1966)
26 CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
54 HARRISON FORD Star Wars (1977)
54 HARRISON FORD Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
54 HARRISON FORD Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
91 JAMES EARL JONES Star Wars (1977)
91 JAMES EARL JONES Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
91 JAMES EARL JONES Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
91 JAMES EARL JONES The Comedians (1967)
112 ROD STEIGER Doctor Zhivago (1965)
115 M. EMMET WALSH Raise the Titanic (1980)
122 GERALDINE CHAPLIN Doctor Zhivago (1965)
163 JAMES CROMWELL Murder by Death (1976)
210 ARMIN MUELLER-STAHL Kafka (1991)
219 DAVID STRAITHAIRN Lovesick (1983)
236 JEREMY IRONS Kafka (1991)
319 TREAT WILLIAMS Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
323 DONALD PLEASENCE Barnacle Bill (1957)
332 ELYA BASKIN Raise the Titanic (1980)
339 WALLACE SHAWN Lovesick (1983)
345 MIRIAM MARGOLYES Little Dorrit (1988)
382 ANJELICA HUSTON A Handful of Dust (1988)
398 PATRICK STEWART Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980)
403 ROBERT REDFORD Situation Hopeless… But Not Serious (1965)
427 GEORGE SEGAL The Quiller Memorandum (1966)
436 IAN HOLM Kafka (1991)
438 JOHN RATZENBERGER Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
468 JASON ROBARDS Raise the Titanic (1980)
469 JOSS ACKLAND Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
496 JUDI DENCH A Handful of Dust (1988)
503 PETER O’TOOLE Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
523 HARRY FIELDER Cromwell (1970)
523 HARRY FIELDER Star Wars (1977)
567 SHANE RIMMER Star Wars (1977)
572 CARRIE FISHER Star Wars (1977)
572 CARRIE FISHER Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
572 CARRIE FISHER Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
602 ALBERT FINNEY Scrooge (1970)
613 TONY DEVON LOVESICK (1983)
616 DAVID JENSEN KAFKA (1991)
627 GARRICK HAGON Star Wars (1977)
642 DAVID THEWLIS LITTLE DORRIT (1988)
662 DEREK JACOBI Little Dorrit (1988)
681 ANTHONY QUINN Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
684 PETER FALK Murder by Death (1976)
687 KRISTIN SCOTT THOMAS A Handful of Dust (1988)
736 OMAR SHARIFF Doctor Zhivago (1965)
736 OMAR SHARIFF Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
736 OMAR SHARIFF The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
767 ROBERT RIETTY DOCTOR ZHIVAGO (1965)
767 ROBERT RIETTY HITLER: THE LAST TEN DAYS (1973)
767 ROBERT RIETTY LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962)
767 ROBERT RIETTY THE CAPTAIN’S PARADISE (1953)
767 ROBERT RIETTY THE FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE (1964)
819 THERESA RUSSELL Kafka (1991)
863 DEEP ROY STAR WARS: EPISODE VI – RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983)
865 TONY COX STAR WARS: EPISODE VI – RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983)
884 JAMES FOX A Passage to India (1984)
885 MARK HAMILL Star Wars (1977)
885 MARK HAMILL Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
885 MARK HAMILL Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
909 JULIE CHRISTIE Doctor Zhivago (1965)
923 GEORGE TAKEI A MAJORITY OF ONE (1961)
The following actors were on the 2000 list but have since fallen off, all worked with Alec;
52 JAMES MASON The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
77 JOSE FERRER Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
90 JOHN IRELAND The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
94 ROBERT MORLEY Cromwell (1970)
94 ROBERT MORLEY Hotel Paradiso (1966)
94 ROBERT MORLEY Little Dorrit (1988)
95 KLAUS KINSKI Doctor Zhivago (1965)
96 FERDY MAYNE Our Man in Havana (1959)
96 FERDY MAYNE The Captain’s Paradise (1953)
98 HERBERT LOM The Ladykillers (1955)
101 RICHARD HARRIS Cromwell (1970)
102 DAVID NIVEN Murder by Death (1976)
122 JOHN MILLS Great Expectations (1946)
122 JOHN MILLS Tunes of Glory (1960)
142 JOHN HUSTON Lovesick (1983)
144 PETER USTINOV The Comedians (1967)
166 SOPHIA LOREN The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
192 YVONNE DE CARLO The Captain’s Paradise (1953)
207 WILLIAM HOLDEN The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
222 BESS FLOWERS The Swan (1956)
227 RICHARD BURTON The Comedians (1967)
234 AKIM TAMIROFF Hotel Paradiso (1966)
243 MICHAEL GOUGH The Horse’s Mouth (1958)
243 MICHAEL GOUGH The Man in the White Suit (1951)
248 ARTHUR KENNEDY Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
251 MEL FERRER The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
281 ELIZABETH TAYLOR The Comedians (1967)
283 CLIVE REVILL Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
283 CLIVE REVILL The Horse’s Mouth (1958)
320 ROSCOE LEE BROWNE The Comedians (1967)
323 GEORGE SANDERS The Quiller Memorandum (1966)
354 CYRIL CUSACK Little Dorrit (1988)
356 PHIL BROWN Star Wars (1977)
375 PETER CUSHING Star Wars (1977)
431 MARIANNE STONE A Run for Your Money (1949)
431 MARIANNE STONE Scrooge (1970)
433 SENTA BERGER The Quiller Memorandum (1966)
436 TIMOTHY DALTON Cromwell (1970)
443 SUSANNAH YORK Tunes of Glory (1960)
462 GUNTER MEISNER The Quiller Memorandum (1966)
469 FRANK FINLAY Cromwell (1970)
474 WILLIAM HOOTKINS Star Wars (1977)
501 ALDO SAMBRELL Doctor Zhivago (1965)
513 RICHARD JORDAN Raise the Titanic (1980)
517 WILFRID HYDE-WHITE Last Holiday (1950)
517 WILFRID HYDE-WHITE The Mudlark (1950)
524 RICHARD WATTIS Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)
524 RICHARD WATTIS The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
540 FREDDIE JONES Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
565 MARNE MAITLAND The Detective (1954)
575 JACK HAWKINS Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
575 JACK HAWKINS Malta Story (1953)
575 JACK HAWKINS The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
575 JACK HAWKINS The Prisoner (1955)
596 ADOLFO CELI Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
602 MAGGIE SMITH Murder by Death (1976)
613 JOHN LE MESURIER Our Man in Havana (1959)
636 GREGOIRE ASLAN Last Holiday (1950)
636 GREGOIRE ASLAN Our Man in Havana (1959)
638 HUGH GRIFFITH A Run for Your Money (1949)
638 HUGH GRIFFITH Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)
654 ROY KINNEAR Scrooge (1970)
669 ROBERT SHAW The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
673 PETER SELLERS Murder by Death (1976)
673 PETER SELLERS The Ladykillers (1955)
689 RAYNOR SCHEINE Lovesick (1983)
696 TUTTE LEMKOW The Captain’s Paradise (1953)
706 GABRIELE FERZETTI Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
712 FINLAY CURRIE Great Expectations (1946)
712 FINLAY CURRIE The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
712 FINLAY CURRIE The Mudlark (1950)
736 PAUL TUERPE Raise the Titanic (1980)
753 MAURICE DENHAM Malta Story (1953)
753 MAURICE DENHAM Oliver Twist (1948)
753 MAURICE DENHAM Our Man in Havana (1959)
765 LOUIS JOURDAN The Swan (1956)
780 PATRICK MAGEE CROMWELL (1970)
794 MICHAEL ENSIGN Raise the Titanic (1980)
795 STEPHEN BOYD The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
809 DIRK BOGARDE Damn the Defiant! (1962)
819 RALPH RICHARDSON Doctor Zhivago (1965)
819 RALPH RICHARDSON Our Man in Havana (1959)
824 FRANK WILCOX A Majority of One (1961)
854 MICHAEL MEDWIN Malta Story (1953)
854 MICHAEL MEDWIN Scrooge (1970)
866 ANNE ARCHER Raise the Titanic (1980)
871 DESMOND LLEWELYN The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
873 PAUL MULLER Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
901 BERNARD LEE Last Holiday (1950)
901 BERNARD LEE The Detective (1954)
906 GEOFFREY KEEN Cromwell (1970)
906 GEOFFREY KEEN Doctor Zhivago (1965)
906 GEOFFREY KEEN Malta Story (1953)
906 GEOFFREY KEEN The Scapegoat (1959)
918 BETTE DAVIS The Scapegoat (1959)
936 JOSE NIETO Doctor Zhivago (1965)
947 CHRISTOPHER MALCOLM Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
951 PERCY HERBERT The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
951 PERCY HERBERT The Prisoner (1955)
951 PERCY HERBERT Tunes of Glory (1960)
952 CHARLES GRAY Cromwell (1970)
973 JEAN SIMMONS Great Expectations (1946)
975 MAUREEN O’HARA Our Man in Havana (1959)
977 ANTHONY QUAYLE Damn the Defiant! (1962)
977 ANTHONY QUAYLE Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
977 ANTHONY QUAYLE The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
981 DUDLEY MOORE Lovesick (1983)
990 STEFAN SCHNABEL Lovesick (1983)
993 JAMES W. GAVIN Raise the Titanic (1980)
999 JULIAN GLOVER Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
999 JULIAN GLOVER Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Alec appeared with 25 Oscar winners:
ANJELICA HUSTON A Handful of Dust (1988)
ANTHONY QUINN Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
AUDREY HEPBURN The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
BETTE DAVIS The Scapegoat (1959)
BURL IVES Our Man in Havana (1959)
CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
DAVID NIVEN Murder by Death (1976)
ELIZABETH TAYLOR The Comedians (1967)
GEORGE SANDERS The Quiller Memorandum (1966)
GRACE KELLY The Swan (1956)
HUGH GRIFFITH A Run for Your Money (1949)
HUGH GRIFFITH Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)
JASON ROBARDS Raise the Titanic (1980)
JEREMY IRONS Kafka (1991)
JOHN MILLS Great Expectations (1946)
JOHN MILLS Tunes of Glory (1960)
JOSE FERRER Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
JUDI DENCH A Handful of Dust (1988)
JULIE CHRISTIE Doctor Zhivago (1965)
MAGGIE SMITH Murder by Death (1976)
PEGGY ASHCROFT A Passage to India (1984)
PETER FINCH The Detective (1954)
PETER USTINOV The Comedians (1967)
RICHARD BURTON The Comedians (1967)
ROD STEIGER Doctor Zhivago (1965)
SOPHIA LOREN The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964)
WILLIAM HOLDEN The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
Hey Dan
1. Sorry that the table was messed up on your first visit.
2. Took the rest of the night….but I got it fixed…at one point I almost deleted the page…glad I pressed on.
3. So Sir Alec was in 392nd place….but like all acting legends of the past…time moved him off the list.
4. First list….lots of Star Wars connections….he actually had a love/hate relationship with that movie…so he probably would not like those connections..lol.
5. Second list…looks like George Keen his most frequent co-star.
6. Oscar list….25? a little low….but his career does not have that many movies…plus many were made away from Hollywood…so I guess it makes sense.
Good stuff as always….thanks for taking the time to share this information.