Movie musicals are back—in a big way. On Nov. 22, Wicked, starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, will be released in theaters across the U.S. And that’s not the only song-and-dance hitting a big screen near you. The End, starring Tilda Swinton, which came out earlier this fall, is a postapocalyptic musical about a rich family living in a converted salt mine. Meanwhile, the newly released Emilia Pérez follows the story of a Mexican lawyer (Zoe Saldaña) tasked with helping a notorious cartel boss (Karla Sofía Gascón) transition.
The musical genre may not be for everyone, but it may also be for more people than you think. Here, we’ve pulled together a list of 11 trailblazing and wildly different films that not only defined the genre, but also paved the way for what’s to come. From jazz-age extravaganzas to quirky, campy celebrations and modern classics, these films challenge conventions and push boundaries, showing us just how transformative the musical can be.
The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967)
Runtime: 126 minutes
The Young Girls of Rochefort, a follow up to Jacques Demy's equally acclaimed and influential The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, is renowned for its vibrant, colorful, and exquisitely choreographed musical numbers. The film chronicles twins Delphine and Solange (played by real-life sisters Catherine Deneuve and Françoise Dorléac) as they leave their sleepy French town in search of love and adventure. Demy's former wife, the pioneering filmmaker Agnès Varda, also made an important contribution to the musical genre with her 1977 film One Sings the Other Doesn't, cementing the couple's legacy in French cinema in general and the musical genre in particular.
Streaming: Max and the Criterion Channel
Nashville (1975)
Run Time: 159 min
Nashville remains deeply relevant 50 years after its release. It also holds the record for the most-nominated film in Golden Globes history. Robert Altman’s characters are constantly observed by one another and the omnipresent media, foreshadowing a future where everyone is both watching and watched. Possibly one of the best expressions of the “concert film,” Nashville echoes a sense of chaos and hope in its portrayal of a divided America. Also, it’s the same run time as Wicked, so you can get a little practice sitting through a lengthy film.
Streaming: Available to rent
All That Jazz (1979)
Run Time: 123 min
A mesmerizing work of autofiction by Bob Fosse, the man behind Cabaret, this film brims with honesty and grandiosity. There's a dance sequence here that's sexy and unforgettable—I might go so far as to call it a perfectly crafted musical sequence. A story of a womanizing, drug-addled choreographer coming face to face with his own demons, All That Jazz is the kind of film you’ll keep returning to if you love Fosse, dance, and musicals in general.
Streaming: The Criterion Collection
Losing Ground (1982)
Run Time: 88 min
Kathleen Collins's Losing Ground, a masterful work of independent cinema, tells the story of Sara (Seret Scott), a philosophy professor navigating her crumbling marriage to Victor, her own artistic ambitions, and the prospect of new love. The film builds emotional tension with a delicate musical progression. A lyrical exploration of artistic identity, it weaves dance, music, and intellectual drama into a nuanced portrait of a woman's creative awakening. Although the film did not have a theatrical release during Collins’s lifetime, it found a new audience—and received critical raves—in the mid-2010s.
Streaming: The Criterion Channel
Golden Eighties (1986)
Runtime: 99 mins
The late artist and filmmaker Chantal Akerman has dabbled in endurance cinema, rom-coms, and short films, but this is her first and only musical feature. Filmed on a single soundstage, the movie is set at a shopping mall and its theatricality marks a departure from Akerman’s trademark minimalism. With songs co-written by Akerman and composer Marc Hérouet, the film offers a stylish, bittersweet exploration of friendship, love, and the lives of ordinary shopkeepers.
Streaming: The Criterion Channel
Hairspray (1988)
Run Time: 92 min
This John Waters film—which spawned a beloved musical and 2007 remake—was deemed so significant by the kinds of people who make those decisions that it was selected for preservation by the Library of Congress. Starring the iconic Divine in what would be her last film with Waters before her death, Hairspray is defined by its awkwardness, quirkiness, and campiness. Waters’s other musical, Cry-Baby, 1990, is just as wonderfully weird, starring a baby-faced Johnny Depp doing his best bad-boy routine. Both films are perfect examples of Waters's ability to mix camp aesthetics with weirdly heartfelt stories about outsiders.
Streaming: Available to rent
Tokyo Pop (1988)
Run Time: 99 min
This 1980s gem about a frustrated musician (Carrie Hamilton as Wendy) who travels from New York to Tokyo on a whim is decidedly more movie than musical, though music plays a vital role throughout. In one standout sequence, Wendy’s rocker boyfriend Hiro (Diamond Yukai) begins a tender morning serenade that blossoms into a playful rock-and-roll duet. The story culminates in an electrifying rock concert finale that perfectly captures the spirit of '80s music.
Streaming: Amazon Prime Video
Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)
Run Time: 189 min
You cannot talk about musicals without talking about Bollywood films. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge is a three-hour rollercoaster that never loses steam. Despite its length, every moment captivates with gorgeous visuals, unforgettable musical numbers, and the timeless chemistry between Raj (Shah Rukh Khan) and Simran (Kajol) as star-crossed lovers.
Streaming: Amazon Prime Video
Dancer in the Dark (2000)
Run Time: 140 min
Björk—yes, Björk—plays an idealist factory worker with a degenerative eye condition who escapes her reality through musical fantasy. Director Lars Von Trier fused social realism with surrealism in this innovative interpretation of the movie musical genre, which Roger Ebert described as a “bold, reckless gesture." It’s also a singular one: Soon after the project was complete, Björk said she found it so draining she’d never act again.
Streaming: Tubi
La La Land (2016)
Run Time: 128 min
While it may be remembered most for its role in the most confusing “Best Picture” award announcement ever, Damien Chazelle’s vibrant, colorful piece brings the movie musical genre into the 2010s. It kicks off with an exuberantly choreographed musical dance sequence and features perfectly structured storytelling, strong performances, jazz, Hollywood, and tragedy. By now, everyone references the famous piano melodies and Justin Hurwitz’s score, which together have cemented this movie as one of the most iconic romantic musicals of the 21st century.
Will-o’-the-Wisp (2022)
Run Time: 67 min
This hour-long film, directed by João Pedro Rodrigues, masterfully weaves together climate change, colonialism, queer desire, and even Covid into a provocative tapestry that is at once deeply serious and irrepressibly joyful. Following Alfredo's journey from a childhood marred by a forest fire to his adulthood as a firefighter, the movie blazes with inventive dance routines and a soundtrack that pulses between traditional fado and contemporary Portuguese pop.
Streaming: Amazon Prime Video
