Features

The ten greatest musical movies of all time… as voted for by you

We let the people decide!

| London |

8 June 2020

Last week we asked you to vote for your favourite musical movie and, with thousands, taking part, we have finally got down to the top ten!

Did your favourites make the list?

10) RENT

Bam in at number ten is RENT, based on Jonathan Larson's 1996 Broadway musical of the same name. Directed by Chris Columbus with many of the original Broadway cast returning, it manages to send literal chills with brilliant turns.

9) Hairspray

One of the few instances of a film being turned into a musical and then turned back into a film, the 2007 piece with Nikki Blonsky, Queen Latifah, Michelle Pfeiffer, Amanda Bynes and many many more is a faithful and luscious version of the stage production.

8) Chicago

This one really "popped" with audiences – the film version of Kander and Ebb's brilliant musical, which won a whole wad of Oscars when it premiered, comes in at number eight.

7) The Greatest Showman

One of the few films on here that has never (yet) made it to the stage. the Hugh-ge cult success of The Greatest Showman has shown that some movie musicals can find their way into audience hearts very quickly. It also has a rocking soundtrack.

6) The Sound of Music

From the modern to the classic, The Sound of Music comes in at number six. Featuring Julie Andrews, a ton of nuns and a tense escape, it looks like movie fans have no problem with returning to Maria for a bit of cinematic joy.

5) Singin' in the Rain

Another shining highlight of the Hollywood golden age is the ever-hummable Singin' in the Rain featuring Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds, plus perhaps one of the most famous lamp posts in the history of film.

4) Grease!

John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John head up the cast of Grease!, which continues to be a firm favourite with some great tunes that would have a school dancefloor rocking in a heartbeat.

3) Mamma Mia!

There's a podium finish for Mamma Mia!, which takes the tunes of ABBA and puts them into a highly saturated, larger-than-life bonanza of a box office smash featuring Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried.

2) Les Misérables

Though some casting choices ruffled some feathers, at number two was Tom Hooper's version of the iconic long-runner Les Misérables. Featuring an epic production design, some lingering long takes and some star-making performances, Hooper certainly took Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil's show and ran with it.

1) West Side Story

Coming in top by an absolute country mile was West Side Story – leaving all of its competitors behind. Released four years after the musical and winning ten Academy Awards in 1962, it continues to be one of the most defining films based on stage shows to come out in the last century. With Steven Spielberg's new version arriving later this year, the West Side hype train continues in earnest!

Honourable mentions (ranking from 11 to 20)
Moulin Rouge, Dirty Dancing, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, The Phantom of the Opera, Oliver!, La La Land, Little Shop of Horrors, The Last Five Years, Cabaret and Dreamgirls.