Browse all

The Best Musical Movies of All Time

From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land

In the cinematic world, few genres are as controversial as musicals. You either love them or you hate them. And while some people may think that music doesn't go well with movies, there are always some films that prove us wrong. Below, check out the best musical movies of all time, according to this author, to brighten up your day.

The Best Musical Movies of All Time

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) 

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565945
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565946
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565943
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565944
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565942

Directed by Howard Hawks, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes follows dancers Lorelei Lee, played by Marilyn Monroe, and Dorothy Shaw, played by Jane Russell, on a trip to Paris as they are followed by a secret investigator hired by the disbelieving rich father of Lorelei's fiancé. 

West Side Story (1961) 

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565964
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565963
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565962
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565961

In Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise's West Side Story, an adaptation of the classic romantic tragedy Romeo and Juliet, Maria and Tony, two teenagers from rival New York gangs, fall in love as tensions between their groups rise to the edge.

Grease (1978) 

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565959
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565958
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565957
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565956
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565955
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565960

 

Set in the '50s, Grease centers on good girl Sandy Olson, played by Olivia Newton-John, and Danny Zuko, played by John Travolta, who discover after a summer affair that they are attending the same high school. Can they rekindle their romance while navigating the social boundaries of their respective subcultures - Danny, the leader of the T-Birds, a group of black leather jacket-wearing boys, and Sandy, a member of the Pink Ladies, a group of pink-wearing girls?

Moulin Rouge! (2001) 

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565954
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565953
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565952
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565951

 

Directed by Baz Luhrmann, Moulin Rouge! tells the story of a young bohemian, played by Ewan McGregor, who falls in love with Satine, played by Nicole Kidman, a performer at the local Moulin Rouge in Montmartre, Paris.

The Phantom of the Opera (2004) 

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565978
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565977
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565976
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565975

 

In Joel Schumacher's The Phantom of the Opera, Christine, a performer played by Emmy Rossum, ends up becoming the obsession of a disfigured and murderous musical mastermind, played by Gerard Butler, who lives underneath the Paris Opera House.

Mamma Mia (2008)

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565973
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565972
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565971
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565974

 

At its core, the plot of Mamma Mia is: A mother. One daughter. Three possible fathers. All set in Greece, with an ABBA soundtrack.

La La Land (2016)

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565984
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565967
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565968
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565969

 

Damien Chazelle's La La Land follows pianist Sebastian, played by Ryan Gosling, and actress Mia, played by Emma Stone, as they search for career opportunities and love in high-stakes Los Angeles.

Wicked (2024) 

The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565980
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565981
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565982
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565983
The Best Musical Movies of All Time From the classic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe to the romantic La La Land | Image 565979

 

Starring Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda, Wicked, directed by Jon M. Chu, follows the unexpected friendship between two opposites and their conflict after an encounter with the Wizard of Oz.