top of page

My 10 Favorite Movie Musicals

With the recent film release of the hugely successful Broadway musical "Wicked" (a musical I did NOT like), I thought I'd share a list of my 10 Favorite Movie Musicals.


My list features musicals from the 1970s onward because, in reality, most great movie musicals were released between the late 1930s and the 1950s (with a few legendary ones in the 1960s).


Incredible films like "Singin' In the Rain," "A Hard Day's Night," "Mary Poppins," "My Fair Lady," "Funny Face," "On the Town," "Guys and Dolls," any of Busby Berkeley, Vincente Minnelli, and the Marx Brothers movies, and don't EVEN get me started on the sheer exquisiteness of "An American in Paris" (just to name a handful) rightly appear on pretty much everyone's list of the "Best Musicals of All Time."


And so, while I absolutely adore these legendary works, I genuinely love the ones listed below for their unique contributions to the genre as well.


And yes, every single movie on this list is 5,000 times better than "Wicked."


Top 10 Favorite Modern Movie Musicals (1970s to Present)


Bob Fosse's autobiographical masterpiece is absolutely my favorite musical of all time. It's one of the most notable films ever made, and it has what might be the best opening 10 minutes in film history and what might be the best closing 10 minutes in film history. Everything in between is magnificent and perfect. By the way, the clip above contains those final 10 minutes. Strap in because it does NOT get any better than this.


Yeah, this movie is genius and my second favorite musical of all time. Trey Parker is one of the greatest writers, satirists, lyricists, and creators of comedy on earth... Matt Stone is a guy who hangs out with him and does funny voices. The team (pretty much Parker, that is) would go on to create "The Book of Mormon," which is the best stage musical of the past 40 years, easily, and you can see all of that greatness in the hilarious and brilliant film version of the TV series. The clip above is not only a hilarious satire of a Broadway ballad, it is also a straight-up GREAT fucking Broadway ballad...sung by Satan.


Frank Oz's masterful film version of the musical based on the Roger Corman low-budget horror film from 1960 is as good as movie musicals get. A wildly inventive story, a great cast, fabulous staging, and over-the-top theatrics make this movie incredibly special. Alan Menken and Howard Ashman put together some of the best songs in musical history, resulting in flawless entertainment. This clip is actually my favorite song and favorite musical number from ANY musical. Yeah, this is the best song ever from a musical.


A film that people love to hate, and those people are dumb. Damien Chazelle's magnificent modern tribute to classic movie musicals like "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" and "The Young Girls of Rochefort" is an unapologetic old-fashioned melodrama loaded with great music, incredible performances and a tone of cynical sadness that grounds it in the modern era. Exhilarating, funny, and ultimately unbelievably heartbreaking, this is a work of monumental skill and vision, and yeah, it should have won the Best Picture Oscar over "Moonlight," as Faye Dunaway announced. The clip here is the jaw-dropping and extraordinary opening sequence that still makes me weep every single time I watch it.


Wildly inventive, incredibly risky, and very divisive, this fabulous tribute to The Beatles and their music is one of the most criminally underrated and unfairly maligned movies ever made. Julie Taymor's wonderfully imaginative direction and interpretations of the Beatles' songs are breathtaking. A must-see if you're a fan of the boys from Liverpool and a must-see if you're just a fan of bold, distinctive filmmaking of the highest order. The clip included here features multiple Salma Hayeks in sexy nurse uniforms... you're welcome.


Tim Burton's marvelous film version of one of my favorite Sondheim musicals of all time (and one of my favorite musicals in general) is gorgeous to look at and lovely to listen to. It's got all the cool shit that makes Burton's movies so cool, and much more. I adore every frame of this movie, even if some of the cast's voices aren't particularly strong (ahem, Johnny Depp). It's worth seeing if only for the late great Alan Rickman's outstanding work as Judge Turpin. The clip posted here is from my favorite number in the movie, which features Depp and Rickman with Sondheim at his finest.


This wonderful, fantastical, and stylized biopic of Elton John is loaded with incredible music from the early days of John and collaborator Bernie Taupin's career, and it is a genuinely compelling story. Dexter Fletcher's full-on, old-fashioned musical extravaganza is one of the boldest works of the past 10 years. It features a singularly remarkable performance by Taron Egerton as Elton John. It was also a welcome palate cleanser after sitting through the pitiful, evil, lying garbage that was "Bohemian Rhapsody," a work that spat on the life of Freddie Mercury and loaded the screen with massive untruths and lousy musical reenactments. "Rocketman" took a more fantastical approach, got the approval of the film's subject, and ended up being a remarkable piece of work. Also, Bryce Dallas Howard has never, ever been better.


Milos Forman's film version of the 1968 Broadway musical is not without its detractors and controversy, mainly because of the changes made from the stage to the screen. I am a huge fan of Foreman's version and love the changes. I also love the cast, casual style, and wonderful sense of humor throughout. It packs a huge emotional wallop in the final moments and leaves me in tears every time I watch it. The cast, led by a fantastic Treat Williams, shines magnificently.


Yes, the Steven Spielberg version of the Leonard Bernstein, David Newman musical is far superior to the Robert Wise, Jerome Robbins 1961 version. I had been waiting for Spielberg to make a musical for 42 years since I first saw the Jitterbug Contest sequence from "1941," and this film did not disappoint. It's a truly great musical and movie—one of Spielberg's best.


I was hesitant to put two Fosse films on this list, but ultimately, this film HAD to be included. "Cabaret" is a significant film because it came out after the musical film genre had seemingly run its course with so many overloaded, overwrought, overproduced, loud, and just plain bad musicals from the late 1960s. Fosse's movie was a jolt of much-needed electricity to a tired genre and a film of remarkable power, originality, and substance. Of course, the music and the Kander and Ebb songs are amazing.


OTHER IMPORTANT MODERN MUSICALS THAT MUST BE MENTIONED:



and, of course...."THE BLUES BROTHERS" (1980)


What are some of your favorite Movie Musicals?? Let me know by leaving a message at (773) 417-6948 or email me at nick@nickdigilio.com. Happy Holidays!


Thanks for reading, and please SUBSCRIBE to my weekly NEWSLETTER!

patreon logo

And consider joining me on Patreon as a paid subscriber to help keep this thing going.


Thanks again!

Recent Posts

See All

SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER!

Each week (and sometimes more often) you will receive a pop-culture/entertainment/humor bulletin packed with fun content, previews of upcoming events (including live appearances such as my monthly Classic Cinemas 'Nick's Pix' movie screenings), cool stories, and EXCLUSIVE movie reviews and interviews, you will NOT find anywhere else.

bottom of page