It’s usually easy to identify a musical movie, but there are a few exceptions which blur the lines of the genre. Tons ofmovies about musicfeature musical performances and scenes, but this doesn’t mean they should count alongside true musicals. If the music in a movie is all being produced on stage or coming over the radio, it isn’t the same as a musical where characters burst into song to communicate their feelings.
These sort-of-musicals raise a few questions about what a movie musical should be, and what’s necessary for a movie to count as a musical. In fact, many of these movies have as many songs as true musicals, but their more naturalistic style means that they are bundled into another genre. Movies can use music in interesting ways without being described as musicals, even if the songs are a huge part of the story.
Pitch Perfectis a comedy movie at heart, but there are plenty of musical elements, particularly the stage performances. The story follows an all-female college a cappella group as they attempt to freshen up their act and gain broader appeal. Many of the performers are extremely musically talented, andPitch Perfectgives them the chance to shine on stage, with an approach to a cappella that feels punchy and vibrant.
Pitch Perfectuses music to reveal how certain characters change.
The competitive element means thatPitch Perfectfollows many of the story beats of a sports movie, and the same can be said for the sequels. In the same way that sports movies use events in competition to mirror the lives of the characters,Pitch Perfectuses music to reveal how certain characters change throughout the story. This is what makes it so similar to a musical, and it would cross that line if the characters ever burst into song off stage.
While Disney’s animated musicals are some of the best ever made, Pixar has largely ignored this trend. One notable exception isCoco,which follows a young boy into the Land of the Dead to find the truth about his ancestors. WhileCocoreveals the importance of family, it’s also a love letter to music, showing the power that music has to bring people together and create lasting memories.
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AlthoughCocoisn’t a full-blown musical, the songs play an important role in the story. This can be seen in the two different versions of “Remember Me,” which highlight the two different sides to Miguel’s appreciation for music, from the glamour and fame or Ernesto’s version to the emotional original. With a great soundtrack, a compelling villain and a heartbreaking finale,Cocostands out as one ofPixar’s best movies.
Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Sagatells a fictional story about a real music competition. Eurovision has been slowly growing an international audience overseas, but it’s a hugely popular tradition in Europe, just as it has been for decades. While people across the continent accept some of the oddities of the competition, it can appear strange from the outside, and this is whereEurovision Song Contestmines a lot of its humor.
Eurovision Song Conteststars Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams as a brother-sister duo from Iceland who dream of winning Eurovision, so the movie includes a couple of their songs and other songs from their competitors. This doesn’t exactly make it a musical, and the characters even comment on how bizarre it is when the movie allows itself one indulgent musical number, featuring legends from the real-life history of Eurovision.
The Boat That Rocked- known asPirate Radioin North America - tells the story of a radio station operating from a ship in the North Sea in the 1960s. Although the specific radio station and its crew are fictional, Richard Curtis' comedy does take inspiration from several real-life operations of the era. The movie is soaked in the style of the 1960s counterculture, andthis includes plenty of hits from bands like The Who, The Kinks and Cream.
The Boat That Rockedboasts a great cast filled with mostly British talent, and its soundtrack is irresistible.
Music plays a central role inThe Boat That Rocked,even though the characters aren’t musicians themselves. If Curtis wanted to, he could have easily turned the movie into a musical, butThe Boat That Rockedis about how music can influence culture and relationships on a personal level, so it’s the love of music that’s important.The Boat That Rockedboasts a great cast filled with mostly British talent, and its soundtrack is irresistible.
WhileA Hard Day’s NightandHelp!probably appeal most to fans of The Beatles,anyone can enjoyYellow Submarinewithout knowing much about the band or their music. It’s a psychedelic animated adventure that expands on the style of The Beatles' music with boundlessly inventive visuals. It doesn’t quite fit the mold of a musical, but the music plays such an important part that it could almost be described as a visual album or an extended music video, although neither of these labels suitYellow Submarineeither.
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Yellow Submarineis one of themost unique animated movies ever, and one of the most visually captivating. It has been credited with reviving animated movies, showing a path forward that broke from Disney’s hegemonic style. It uses The Beatles' music as a starting point, but it builds on these foundations with creativity, wit and an unorthodox blend of different art style and photography.
Guardians of the Galaxyuses music to reveal details about the characters, and as the perfect accompaniment to certain scenes. The music is much more important than it is in most superhero movies, with director James Gunn taking complete control of the soundtrack to ensure that each song is exactly right for each scene. TheGuardians of the Galaxysoundtrack- titled “Awesome Mix” by Peter Quill - uses popular music from the 1960s and 1970s.
Each song has deep meaning for Peter Quill, so it’s only right that the music draws attention to itself inGuardians of the Galaxy.
Peter Quill is a lone human traveling through space, andhis cassette player is his only reminder of his mother back on Earth. Each song has deep meaning for him, so it’s only right that the music draws attention to itself inGuardians of the Galaxy.Quill’s love of music eventually helps him defeat Ronan the Accuser by distracting him with the challenge of a dance-off. TheGuardians of the Galaxysequels continue with Gunn’s interesting use of music.
Inside Llewyn Davishas been described as a roman-à-clef about the life of Bob Dylan, but it also could be an alternative view of the Greenwich Village folk scene from Dylan’s time, showing the circular, dead-end paths that most musicians followed. The movie closes with Llewyn Davis seeing Dylan performing on stage, making the Coen brothers' inspirations clear, no matter how someone chooses to interpretInside Llewyn Davis' links to the singer.
Inside Llewyn Davishas been described as a roman-à-clef about the life of Bob Dylan.
Inside Llewyn Davisfeatures a few musical performances which provide some insight into the music industry of the time, especially in the obvious differences between Llewyn Davis' heartfelt, personal songs and the poppy, soulless music he gets paid to perform. It may not be considered one of thebest Coen brothers movies, butInside Llewyn Davisis worth watching for its interesting approach to musicand a compelling performance from Oscar Isaac.
Rob Reiner’s rock mockumentary is one of the funniest comedies ever made, andThis is Spinal Tap 2will finally catch up with the band after more than 40 years. Since the first movie watches as their final embers of relevance die down, it will be interesting to see how later life has treated them, and how many more drummers have died in strange circumstances. The main cast are returning with some high-profile guest stars alongside them.
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If the sequel is anything like the original, then it will also dip its toe into the musical genre without fully committing.The dissonance between Spinal Tap’s music and their day-to-day lives is a constant source of comedy, as they sing about dark subjects and evoke macabre mythology, but they enjoy pampered, pedestrian lives when they’re off-stage. The jarring shift between these two extremes wouldn’t work ifThis is Spinal Tapwas a true musical.
Angelina Jolie has garnered praise for her performance inMaria,which is the third movie inPablo Larraín’s trilogy about important womenfrom the 20th century. AfterJackieandSpencer,it’s no surprise thatMariais another thoughtful biopic that revolves around an outstanding performance. What makesMariadifferent is its focus on music and art rather than politics, as Jolie plays Maria Callas, the legendary opera singer.
Music informs every aspect ofMaria,showing its central role in Callas' life, even after she loses her singing voice and is forced out of the spotlight.Mariais a drama about a woman facing the loss of her artistic identity, as if she is mourning herself while facing unsympathetic questioning from the media. While other music biopics often seem content to simply play the hits,Mariais more restrained and thoughtful with the way it weaves music into the story.
Many of Richard Linklater’s movies have a focus on music, especially those that try to evoke a specific time and place, likeDazed & ConfusedandApollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood. School of Rockis even more musical thamn these, and the closest Linklater has come to directing a full-blown musical, although he does have an adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’sMerrily We Roll Alongin the works.
Many of Richard Linklater’s movies have a focus on music, especially those that attempt to evoke a specific time and place.
School of Rockfeatures a couple of original songs, as Jack Black plays a wannabe rock star who teaches a class of schoolchildren to be his new band. As well as teaching them his music, he also teaches them the history, fashion and attitude of rock and roll.School of Rockwas later adapted into a stage musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with some more original songs added to ensure it crossed the line over from being a near-musical.
