Rachel, Rachel (1968)

New England schoolteacher Rachel Cameron's life is small and safe. Too small and too safe for a warmhearted woman who wants to do something-anything-to keep from slipping into spinsterhood. Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward joined their stellar talents in this powerfully human movie, with Newman making his directorial debut and Woodward giving one of her hallmark screen performances. Both won New York Film Critics and Golden Globe awards for their work, and the film garnered four Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. The Newmans teamed afterward on other masterful films (The Glass Menagerie, Mr. & Mrs. Bridge and the TV miniseries Empire Falls). But for tenderness, insight and artistry, none surpasses Rachel, Rachel.