10 Movie Musicals That Are Amazing From Start to Finish
Musicals. Simultaneously, one of the most beloved and most divisive genres in all entertainment. From the highs of Singin’ in the Rain, Chicago, and Wicked, to the lows of Grease 2, Cats, and Dear Evan Hansen, musicals have remained an intensely discussed topic in the ever-evolving cinematic landscape. It can be unfairly dismissed by many since, unlike a stage show where the audience is so used to suspending their own disbelief, it can be hard for some to buy that people in musicals just break out into song at the flip of a dime.
Thankfully, many musicals have more than proven themselves to be amazing movies from start to finish. Films like West Side Story, Tick, Tick…. Boom! and Little Shop of Horrors have become beloved by audiences everywhere for their unique stories, strong implementation of character and nuance, and their own contribution to the style of musical film in general. They are the films that make a case for musicals as a medium in and of themselves and not just a genre.
10
‘West Side Story’ (1961)
Taking the basic story of Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story places the action in 1950s New York City, replacing the war between two aristocratic families with a teenage gang war between the White Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks. In the midst of a struggling stalemate between the two gangs, former Jet Tony (Richard Beymer) meets the Shark leader’s sister Maria (Natalie Wood), and the two fall in love almost instantly. But the hateful grudge between the two sides will break into a new mutiny, and their love will be shattered as quickly as it began.
While some elements of the film’s casting have visibly aged, and some plot threads were moved around to a slightly stronger effect in the Steven Spielberg remake, there’s no denying the impact that West Side Story had on the language of musicals in general. The music is masterfully romantic, lending a dreamlike quality to the film’s gritty setting, and the choreography is so iconic it’s still referenced to this very day in films like In the Heights and High School Musical.
9
‘Phantom of the Paradise’ (1974)
A cross between Phantom of the Opera, Faust, Dorian Gray, and a sprinkling of Rocky Horror on top, Phantom of the Paradise is a satirical, campy horror musical with a style all its own. Legendary and mysterious music producer Swan (Paul Williams) is about to open the Paradise, a premier concert hall ready to rock New York. The only problem is his struggle to control Winslow Leach (William Finley), the hopeful composer turned homicidal phantom that has taken up residence within the theatre.
One of Carrie and Scarface director Brian De Palma’s earliest movies, Phantom of the Paradise is silly and demented but carries a beating heart throughout its bizarre proceedings. Paul Williams brings his A-game to the soundtrack, excelling in multiple rock genres at once while delivering a wonderfully sleazy performance as the villain. Winslow himself represents the film’s tone perfectly, having a genuinely tragic edge, but keeping a dramatic flair all the way.
8
‘Moulin Rouge!’ (2001)
A visual and audible kaleidoscope of romance, tragedy, and decadence, Moulin Rouge! is one of the strangest yet greatest musical films ever made. In Paris, 1899, the Moulin Rouge nightclub is the place to be, and young writer Christian (Ewan McGregor) is their newest client. Falling in love at first sight with their prized courtesan Satine (Nicole Kidman), he decides to write a show that will convert the club into a theater, and make Satine a real actress. But the greedy duke (Richard Roxburgh) financing the show has other ideas.
Moulin Rouge! is the film that, for better and for worse, cemented the directing style of Australian maestro Baz Luhrmann – extremely theatrical storytelling, stylised and anachronistic needle drops in the soundtrack, and devoting an excessive amount of its screen-time to wild celebrations. That style may not be for everyone, but for pure romantic musical joy, it’s hard to deny that Moulin Rouge! is infectious for anyone looking to lose themselves in the spectacle.
7
‘Tick, Tick… Boom!’ (2021)
Inspired by both the musical of the same name and the real-life history that inspired it, Tick Tick… Boom! tells the story of Broadway legend Jonathan Larson (Andrew Garfield). Long before he died on the morning of the first performance of his hit musical Rent, he was just a struggling composer in 1990 NYC. While living in a shabby apartment, working his job as a diner waiter, and trying to fund his experimental new musical Superbia, Larson grapples with his ever-growing fears of mortality and his dreams never coming true, as his friends and family seem to be finding success beyond his world.
Directed by fellow Broadway superstar Lin-Manuel Miranda, Tick, Tick… Boom! is a tribute to musical theatre and the thousands of hopefuls aiming to leave their mark in an industry that favours the lucky. Garfield’s trademark nervous energy brings an infectious, hopeful charm to Larson, making him a flawed but compelling leading man with the song-writing talent to match. It’s a heck of a first time directing gig for Miranda, who brings his musical expertise while never forgetting it’s a movie first.
6
‘Wicked’ (2024)
The first half of a two-parter adaptation of the Broadway megahit, Wicked reimagines the story of the Wicked Witch of the West. Before Dorothy, before the flying monkeys, before she melted thanks to a bucket of water, Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo) was just a girl born with green skin and unusual magic powers. Arriving at Shiz University, she and her roommate, Galinda (Ariana Grande), develop a mutual loathing that blossoms into a friendship. But their paths will change drastically when they discover the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum) isn’t so wonderful after all.
Wicked uses its status as the first of a two-parter to its advantage, keeping nearly every beat of the musical’s first act whilst allowing itself to breathe and allowing the audience to feel fully immersed in this new take on Oz. Every song from the original is present, and all help to advance the story and develop its characters in a manner that helps to improve the script of the original broadway show.
5
‘Little Shop of Horrors’ (1986)
Based on the Off-Broadway hit of the same name, in turn inspired by the Roger Corman B-movie also of the same name, Little Shop of Horrors is perhaps the best movie musical of the 1980s. Taking place mostly in a flower shop in 1960s Skid Row, poor assistant Seymour (Rick Moranis) has found a strange and unusual plant that begins to attract big business. But the plant needs human blood to survive, and as it begins to grow, talk, and sing, so does the body count.
Little Shop of Horrors features a setting not too dissimilar to West Side Story, campy yet sincere performances from the lead cast, and some of the most mind-boggling special effects ever seen in any movie, let alone a musical. Depending on the version you watch, it’s either a light-hearted romantic comedy with a dark, quirky edge, or a Faustian tragedy showing the way greed can make killers of us all. Either way, it’s a bloody good time.
4
‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show’ (1976)
On a dark and stormy night out, a young, fresh-faced, newly engaged couple, Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon), have gotten a flat tire and are in desperate need of help. They’ll find it and a whole lot more than they bargained for when they arrive at the castle of Dr. Frank N. Furter (Tim Curry) and his motley crew of misfits and Transylvanians.
From the unique twist on the 20th Century Fox opening fanfare, all the way to the haunting final number, The Rocky Horror Picture Show has style all the way through. It never takes itself completely seriously, inviting its audience into a journey of self-expression that always stays fun. A cross between a sci-fi B-movie, a punk rock concert, and a queer exploration film, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is still in limited release fifty years after its original theatrical run, still selling out midnight showings around the world.
3
‘Cabaret’ (1972)
In 1930s Berlin, English writer Brian Roberts (Michael York) has moved into the boarding house where American cabaret performer Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli) lives. As their relationship develops, Brian begins to witness the chaotic, carefree lives of those in the Weimar Republic, their unusual relationship dynamics, and their eventual demise as the Nazis begin to rise to power. All the while, witnessed by the creepy Emcee (Joel Grey) presiding over Sally’s hideaway, the Kit Kat Klub.
It may not be as beholden to the original Broadway stage version as some fans would like, but Cabaret is still a hauntingly amazing film in its own right. With musical numbers that comment on the actions of the characters without completely spilling over into the plot, it’s a dark tale of the dangers of complacency and an uncaring attitude to the evil changes coming to society. The first and last frames of the film literally mirror each other perfectly, showing the reflection of the nightclub becoming a Nazi hotspot step by step.
2
‘Beauty and the Beast’ (1991)
In 1991, New York Times reviewer Frank Rich described Beauty and the Beast, then playing in movie theaters across the world, as a better musical than anything seen on Broadway at that time. This comment led to the film being the first Disney property adapted for the Great White Way. But its success on stage was no real surprise, since classic musical theatre DNA was already embedded within the animated version’s story, script structure, characters, and even its animation.
With the possible exception of Little Shop of Horrors, it is easily Howard Ashman and Alan Menken’s best work in terms of musical storytelling, with the ‘I Want’ song, villain song, and crowd-pleasing showstoppers utilized to a tee. Even ‘Human Again’, the song added in for the extended cut on DVD, works well as a breather moment that adds an extra bonding moment between Belle (Paige O’Hara) and the Beast (Robby Benson). Simply put, Beauty and the Beast is pure Disney, and musical, magic.
1
‘Chicago’ (2002)
The last movie musical to win Best Picture, Chicago brought a Broadway cult hit straight to the screen with gusto. In the prohibition era of the windy city, the merry murderesses of the Cook County Jail have become the latest celebrities. Their newest star is Roxy Heart (Renée Zellweger), a fame-hungry woman who’s been thrown in the joint for killing her lover. As she tries her best to become popular and sympathetic enough to the public to plead her case, her lawyer Billy Flynn (Richard Gere), prison matron Mama Morton (Queen Latifah), and fellow inmate Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones) show the full extent of the media circus on display.
Chicago smartly blends the musical’s harsh reality and vaudevillian production sensibility by depicting the musical numbers, barring the opening and closing, as taking place entirely in Roxy’s head, reflecting her ambition of becoming a star. The cast does not include a single weak link, with the likes of Queen Latifah and John C. Reilly bringing a sense of individual showmanship to their characters. Murder, booze, and all that jazz. What’s not to love?
