TopTenREVIEWS presents the film career and movie reviews of John Qualen.
Email to a friend
Actor Facts
Death:
September 12, 1987
Biography:
One of the best and most familiar character actors of the first four decades of sound films, although few who knew his face also knew his name. John Qualen was born in Canada to Norwegian parents. His father was a minister. The family moved to the United States and Qualen (whose real name was Kvalen) grew up in Elgin, Illinois. ...more about John Qualen
John Qualen
ACTOR RANKINGS:
CAREER SPAN
Decade
Movie Score
# Movies
1930s
2.3416
38
1940s
2.5956
38
1950s
2.1211
23
1960s
2.1794
14
1970s
No Reviews
1
Ratings and rankings are based on all available critic reviews & awards for each movie.
Overall Actor Score: 
2.4001
2.4001John Qualen Movie Rankings
1
3.9536Expatriate and nightclub owner Rick Blaine is faced with the decision to help an old girlfriend's resistance-fighter husband escape the Nazis at the beginning of WWII. ...more about Casablanca
- DVD Best Pricing:
Wal Mart
2
3.6915Ethan Edwards (John Wayne)returned from war to find his family massacred and his niece kidnapped by Indians. With his half-nephew he vows to find and save his niece from the people he despises. After years of searching, he finds she as become one of them. ...more about Searchers
- DVD Best Pricing:
Wal Mart
3
3.6805Based on the John Steinbeck novel, Tom Joad (Henry Fonda) is a man just released from prison, but when he returns home to his family farm, he finds it deserted. It seems the depression and the drought has forced the farmers to find greener pastures. ...more about Grapes of Wrath
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
More Movie Rankings Below
All-Time Top Movies
4
3.2053Hildy Johnson has divorced Walter Burns and visits his office to tell him that she is engaged to another man and that they are going to get married the day after. ...more about His Girl Friday
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
5
3.1520Since being voted out of office as local prosecutor, Paul Biegler spends more time fishing than keeping up his law practice. But he does take on the defence of a lieutenant from the local army camp charged with murdering a bar-owner who raped his wife. ...more about Anatomy of a Murder
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
6
2.9848Senator Ranse Stoddard returns to the city Shinbone in the Wild West to go to the funeral of his friend, Tom Doniphon. ...more about Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
7
2.9222Teenaged Mowgli, who was raised by wolves, appears in a village in India and is adopted by Messua. Mowgli learns human language and some human ways quickly, though keeping jungle ideas. ...more about Jungle Book
- DVD Best Pricing:
Newegg.com
8
2.8161A down-on-his-luck farmer makes a deal with the devil for seven years of prosperity. When Mr. Scratch comes to collect, orator and hero of the common man Daniel Webster comes to the rescue. Based on the short story by Stephen Vincent Benet. ...more about Devil and Daniel Webster
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
9
2.7939When a commercial airliner developes engine problems on a trans- Pacific flight and the pilot loses his nerve, it is up to the washed-up co-pilot Dan Roman to bring the plane in safely. ...more about High and the Mighty
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
10
2.7728An old Chinese gentleman rides into the town of Abalone, Arizona and changes it forever, as the citizens see themselves reflected in the mirror of Lao's mysterious circus of mythical beasts. ...more about 7 Faces of Dr. Lao
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
11
2.7531The Elder boys return to Clearwater, Texas for their Mother's funeral. John the eldest is a well known gunfighter and trouble follows him wherever he goes. ...more about Sons of Katie Elder
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
12
2.7457Aboard the freighter Glencairn, the lives of the crew are lived out in fear, loneliness, suspicion and cameraderie. ...more about Long Voyage Home
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
13
2.6785Sam (John Wayne) and George (Stewart Granger) strike gold in Alaska. George sends Sam to Seattle to bring George's fiance back to Alaska. Sam finds she is already married, and returns instead with Angel (Capucine). ...more about North to Alaska
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
14
2.6556Madcap debutante Melsa Manton finds a body in a deserted house. Of course, the police don't believe her. Stung by Peter Ames's front page editorial decrying her "prank," Melsa enlists seven fellow debs to help her investigate. ...more about Mad Miss Manton
- Not Available on DVD
15
2.5943Charles Engle has been caught embezzling. He writes a suicide note, and goes out wandering on the town. ...more about Angels Over Broadway
- DVD Best Pricing:
DVDEmpire
16
2.5874In this unhistorical account, Capt. William Kidd is already a clever, ruthless pirate when, in 1699, he tricks the king into commissioning him as escort for a treasure ship from India. He enlists a crew of pardoned cutthroats... ...more about Captain Kidd
- DVD Best Pricing:
Newegg.com
17
2.5423Based of the Graham Greene novel about a revolutionary priest in Central America. A priest who is The Fugitive is trying to getaway from the authorities who have denounced Christianity and want anyone linked to it dead. ...more about Fugitive
- Not Available on DVD
19
2.5204Vivian, Ed and Harry steal jewels in Paris. In New York government agent McBride accompanies Vivian riding across the country with the loot. She falls in love with him and gives up crime; he finds the stash and arrests her. ...more about Whipsaw
- Not Available on DVD
20
2.5108The US Army is under pressure from the desperate relatives of white prisoners of the Comanches to secure their rescue. A cynical and corrupt marshal, Guthrie McCabe, is persuaded by an army lieutenant to assist in the negotiations with the Comanches. ...more about Two Rode Together
- Not Available on DVD
21
2.5089A black professional man meets a blind white girl in the park one day. The tray of colored beads she strings for a living has been turned over and he helps her put them back in order. ...more about Patch of Blue
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
22
2.4930A rich railroad tycoon, bored with his marriage (his wife has no time for him -- she's too busy giving parties and sailing on yachts) starts seeing a showgirl. ...more about Upperworld
- Not Available on DVD
23
2.4176A young boy stows away on a California-bound ship, determined to strike it rich in the gold fields and save himself and his sister from financial ruin. ...more about Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
25
2.3561Three bumbling crooks buy a store so that they can rob the bank next door. When they soon discover the money they can make as legitimate businessmen, they abandon their plan. Trouble is, one of their cohorts, who's escaped from jail, won't let them. ...more about Larceny
- Not Available on DVD
26
2.3287John and Mary sims are city-dwellers hit hard by the financial fist of The Depression. ...more about Our Daily Bread
- DVD Best Pricing:
DVDEmpire
27
2.2952Young Matt Masters, an Ozark Mountains moonshiner, hates the father he has never seen, who apparently deserted Matt's mother and left her to die. His obsession contributes to the hatred rampant in the mountains. ...more about Shepherd of the Hills
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
28
2.2885A completely fabricated biography of the famous Danish fairytale writer Hans Christian Andersen featuring several of his stories and a ballet performance of "The Little Mermaid". ...more about Hans Christian Andersen
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
29
2.2786American-born Sheila Wayne has lived in Switzerland since childhood. Now newly married, she has a recurring nightmare about an ominous old house she can't recall having seen in waking life. ...more about My World Dies Screaming
- DVD Best Pricing:
Newegg.com
30
2.2693Charlie's visit to Paris, ostensibly a vacation, is really a mission to investigate a bond-forgery racket. But his agent, apache dancer Nardi is killed before she can tell him much. ...more about Charlie Chan in Paris
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
31
2.2526Jane and Duke (alias Capt. Blake) accidently meet in Vera Cruz while chasing flim-flam man Fiske. Soon the local Inspector General (El Gato) is involved. Fiske races across Mexico, pursued by Jane and Duke, trailed by the real Capt. Blake. ...more about Big Steal
- Not Available on DVD
32
2.2328Stefan Dangos immigrates to America and works his way up from the iron mines and steel mills to become a great American success story as an industrialist. ...more about American Romance
- Not Available on DVD
33
2.2099Dancer Sherazade was told by the stars that she will become wife of the kalif in Bagdad. She tells Kamar, brother of kalif Haroun. He planned a coup d'etat, which failed at first, but supported by the wasir he finally succeeds. ...more about Arabian Nights
- DVD Best Pricing:
Newegg.com
34
2.1886Leslie Calvin, the sole survivor of a submarine accident, goes to her relatives in order to recover emotionally. Unfortunately she encounters various scam artists led by Mr. Sydney who intend to kill her and steal the family assets. Dr. ...more about Dark Waters
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
35
2.1077Single father Bob Holcomb, dissatisfied with his daughter JoJo's choice of partner, seizes an unexpected opportunity to bring her on a trip to Sweden in order for her to forget all thoughts on marriage. ...more about I'll Take Sweden
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
36
2.0684Fishermen Jonah Goodwin and Olaf Johnson are confronted by gangster Harold Goff who tries to extort "boat protection" money out of the two men. ...more about Out of the Fog
- Not Available on DVD
39
1.9529Remake of "To Have and Have Not" based on Hemingway short story. Plot reset to early days of Cuban revolution. Murphy plays charter boat skipper who gets entangled in gunrunning scheme to get money to pay off debts. ...more about Gun Runners
- Not Available on DVD
40
1.9086Dagwood wants to join the trout club and Blondie wants a fur coat. Jealousy reigns when Dag's old girlfriend Joan shows up, but nothing else matters when a drawing at the movie theatre provides money for the coat. ...more about Blondie on a Budget
- Not Available on DVD
41
1.9068The folk of small western town Firecreek stand up for their rights after gunmen abuse them, leading to an extravagant final battle between good-guy Jimmy Stewart and bad-guy Henry Fonda. ...more about Firecreek
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
42
1.8950Frank Johnson (Ross Elliott), sole witness to a gangland murder, goes into hiding and is trailed by Police Inspector Ferris (Robert Keith), on the theory that Frank is trying to escape from possible retaliation. ...more about Woman on the Run
- Not Available on DVD
43
1.8433Journalist Agatha Reed returns to her alma mater for homecoming, although she's more interested in renewing her romance with an old flame who's now the college president. ...more about Goodbye
- Not Available on DVD
44
1.8355John Muller, medical school dropout and brilliant crook, plans a holdup which goes a little bit wrong, and finds vindictive gambler Rocky Stansyck after him. ...more about Hollow Triumph
- DVD Best Pricing:
Overstock.com
45
1.8342Robin Hood-like pirate Baptiste takes only the ships of rich but wicked trader Narbonne. ...more about Buccaneer's Girl
- Not Available on DVD
46
1.7442A husband makes fun of his wife's theatrical aspirations when she agrees to appear in a local production. When she begins to neglect him, he decides to retaliate by also going on stage. ...more about Doubting Thomas
- DVD Best Pricing:
Newegg.com
48
1.6268Story of Cam Calloway and his family, who live in a densely wooded area in New England. Cam dreams of building a sanctuary for the geese that fly over the area each year, and he tries several schemes to buy a nearby lake for this santuary. ...more about Those Calloways
- DVD Best Pricing:
DVDEmpire
49
1.5172A naive couple and a child arrive to the town on the way to California to buy there a farm. There is a poker play between the richest men in the region. ...more about Big Hand for the Little Lady
- Not Available on DVD
51
1.0397It's nearly Christmas, but Mike Hammer is on the vengeance trail when Jack, his wartime buddy, is murdered. Hotheaded Hammer sets out to find the killer, working his way through an increasingly large pile of suspects (and corpses). ...more about I
- Not Available on DVD
52
1.0397Bit player Sherry Stewart (Cleo Moore) gets miffed when director Walter Darman (Hugo Haas) turns her down after she reads for a small part in his picture. ...more about Other Woman
- Not Available on DVD
53
0.8597For some reason, this year's Nobel prize in literature has been awarded to the young author Andrew Craig, who seems to be more interested in women and drinking than writing. Another laureate is Dr. ...more about Prize
- Not Available on DVD
54
In 1865, the cadets of a Russian Naval Academy ship have shore leave in Morocco; among them is (fictionalized) future composer 'Nicky' Rimsky-Korsakov. ...more about Song of Scheherazade
- Not Available on DVD
56
Down-on-his-luck film director Jimmie Dale takes a job at a fly-by-night acting school. He is drawn into the plans of the school's owner to bilk a wealthy young man out of the funds he has supplied to shoot a movie starring pretty student Alice Perkins. ...more about 365 Nights in Hollywood
- DVD Best Pricing:
Herman Street
57
A convict (Wallace Beery) is finishing a ten-year prison sentence, during which time he has studied to become a gentleman and intends to go straight. ...more about Alias a Gentleman
- Not Available on DVD
58
Hodiak, Brian, Derek and Teal have just been released from prison. They return to Tomahawk Gap, now a ghost town, to retrieve the money that they stole and was buried by a partner somewhere in the town. ...more about Ambush at Tomahawk Gap
- Not Available on DVD
62
Upon her release from prison for a murder she didn't commit, a woman finds that her younger sister has been placed in an orphanage. ...more about Belle Le Grand
- Not Available on DVD
64
Stormy waves in the South China Sea wash a drunken captain, Charles Chinnough, off his ship just before it crashes on a reef. He's then rescued by a passing vessel. ...more about Captain China
- Not Available on DVD
68
Charming love story set on the Erie Canal in the mid-19th Century. A farmer (Henry Fonda in his film debut) works on the canal to earn money to buy a farm. ...more about Farmer Takes a Wife
- Not Available on DVD
69
A man hides out in the country to avoid testifying in his friends' divorce. A girl who he thinks is a process server thinks he's a gangster. So do the sheriff and his men. ...more about Fifty Roads to Town
- Not Available on DVD
73
In this sequel to Four Daughters, Adam Lemp and his daughters have gone on with life after the death of Mickey Borden. Ann, Mickey's widow, falls in love with Felix Dietz, but on the day of her engagement discovers that she carries Mickey's child. ...more about Four Wives
- Not Available on DVD
75
Head of a private European girls school (Marshall) falls in love with a student (Simon) who steps aside for a teacher (Chatterton) also loves him. Tyrone Power debuted in a nightclub scene. ...more about Girls' Dormitory
- Not Available on DVD
78
Flicker Hayes informs the police after he sets up two men to be caught in a phony robbery attempt, because they were responsible for his going to prison. ...more about He Was Her Man
- Not Available on DVD
79
When Clay Santell stops in the town of Sutterville after having his horse stolen, he is mistaken by townspeople for a murderer named Travers. The townspeople capture Santell, and turn him over to lawman Harry Deckett. ...more about Hell Bent for Leather
- Not Available on DVD
80
A mountain climber from America (Warren Douglas)is obsessed by his fear of the Matterhorn, where his father had died on an ascent. ...more about High Conquest
- Not Available on DVD
83
Broadway star Margaret Garrett has spent her whole life working to support her sponging relatives. When she meets carefree Dan Webster, she learns how to have fun for the first time. ...more about Joy of Living
- Not Available on DVD
90
The Jones family (without father) head for California to open a bungalow court. To increase business they advertise for families with children and pets. A neighbor threatens to sue. ...more about On Their Own
- Not Available on DVD
93
In old Spanish California, dashing cattleman Juan Obregon returns to the rancho of his friend Gaspar Melo, to find he's fathered a son on Rosa, one of Gaspar's identical twin daughters. Overjoyed, he plans to formalize his "unofficial" marriage. ...more about Passion
- Not Available on DVD
96
Gannon is an imprisoned racketeer kingpin who tries to manipulate his young cellmate into staging a riot and prison break, but the cellmate tries to back out when he realizes other inmates may be killed in the process. ...more about Revolt in the Big House
- Not Available on DVD
99
The story of trench life during World War I through the lives of a French regiment. As men are killed and replaced jaunty Lt. Denet becomes more and more somber. His rival for the affection of nurse Monique is Capt. La Roche. ...more about Road to Glory
- Not Available on DVD
100
In the 1920s, enterprising Louise Randall is determined to succeed in a man's world. She enrolls at business college but her plans for a career change when she falls in love with handsome Rodney Crane. ...more about Roughly Speaking
- Not Available on DVD
102
A Parisian sewer worker (Stewart) longs for a rise in status and a beautiful wife. He rescues a girl (Simone Simon) from the police, lives with her in a barren flat on the seventh floor, and then marches away to war. ...more about Seventh Heaven
- Not Available on DVD
106
This western starring Beery and Taylor as rivals is one cackling western. It involves the kidnapping and reselling of free slaves. Set in 1812 in the North and a town of abolitionists, the crimes needs to be solved. ...more about Stand Up and Fight
- Not Available on DVD
108
Street-smart Maisie from Brooklyn lands a job at an airplane assembly plant during WWII and falls in love with handsome pilot "Breezy" McLaughlin. ...more about Swing Shift Maisie
- Not Available on DVD
109
The young Gascon D'Artagnan arrives in Paris, his heart set on joining the king's Musketeers. He is taken under the wings of three of the most respected and feared Musketeers, Porthos, Aramis, and Athos. ...more about Three Musketeers
- Not Available on DVD