Movies about music

[bort411]

I've noticed that most of the best movies about the music industry revolve around the 70s. Anyway, I'm a big fan of good films about music that both have a solid plot and charaterization, with an accurate representation of the era they are reflecting. I'm looking for recommendations regarding anything I've missed.

What I've Seen:
Velvet Goldmine (very good)
Almost Famous (excellent)
Rock N' Roll High School (best cult film ever)
Sid and Nancy (meh. Sex Pistols are overrated)
24 Hour Party People (very good, but not great)
The Buddy Holly Story (decent)
Boogie Nights (not really about music but Dirk Diggler's solo sessions are worthy of note)
The Doors (Crispen Glover as Andy Warhol seriously hurt this movie. Also, Oliver Stone is insane and makes up his biopics)
Great Balls of Fire (sucked, except for a very hot young Winona Ryder. Also, the burning piano scene was cool even if it was exaggerated)
La Bamba (The lip synching is terrible)
That Thing You Do (good, but a bit too ambitious in trying to summarize 60's music)

I haven't seen Ray, but I'll get to that. What else am I missing that's good?

[J.R.]

the absence of the last waltz is striking

beyond the sea is something a lot of people were polarized by, but that you may find interesting..although i was meh

[jakethebake]

This is Spinal Tap
Rock star

[swede123]

I can't believe you haven't mentioned High Fidelity yet. Great movie.

Swede

[bdk3clash]

I think "Sweet and Lowdown" was the last really, really good Woody Allen movie.

[bort411]

[ QUOTE ]
I can't believe you haven't mentioned High Fidelity yet. Great movie.

Swede

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It's emo. Some of that movie I absolutely love, but the plot and characterization piss me off. Rob is a whiney bitch, who never actually learns about his mistakes, remaining oblivious, then miraculously transforms. From the funeral scene on, it's like a completely different movie with a whipped Rob. He sacrifices his coolness for a girl that he doesn't even really like because he's tired of being sad. Weak.

[bdk3clash]

-"Romper Stomper" (Russell Crowe's first starring role, focusing on the Australian Nazi skinhead scene.)
-"SLC Punk" (kind of meh, but fun if you're into punk rock.)

If we're including documentaries, I've got about a million more suggestions.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
Rob is a whiney bitch

[/ QUOTE ]

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
-"Romper Stomper" (Russell Crowe's first starring role, focusing on the Australian Nazi skinhead scene.)

[/ QUOTE ]

How was that a music movie? I don't remember music in it at all.

[bdk3clash]

I guess their involvement in the music scene was more incidental to them being racist thugs, but they spend lots of the movie listening to racist music and I think they go to a concert, though I could be wrong.

[bdk3clash]

The movie "Rave" was surprisingly good. "Go" was also a good movie that was somewhat related to the rave music scene.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
I guess their involvement in the music scene was more incidental to them being racist thugs, but they spend lots of the movie listening to racist music and I think they go to a concert, though I could be wrong.

[/ QUOTE ]

Could be. It's been awhile. Mostly I just remember that movie was disturbing.

[twankerr]

"Swing Kids" about kids who listened to swing during Hitler's third reich, when it was outlawed

[bort411]

[ QUOTE ]
If we're including documentaries, I've got about a million more suggestions.

[/ QUOTE ]

Let's save documentaries for another thread.

[jakethebake]

The Committments

[M2d]

[ QUOTE ]
beyond the sea is something a lot of people were polarized by, but that you may find interesting..although i was meh

[/ QUOTE ]
I liked it, but I'm a bobby darin fan

[bort411]

[ QUOTE ]
The Committments

[/ QUOTE ]

I forgot about that one. You're right; this is a fantastic movie.

[jakethebake]

What about musicals like Grease, etc.?

[M2d]

The Song Remains the Same
Hard Day's Night
Yellow Submarine
Singing in the Rain
Purple Rain

[jakethebake]

The Wall
Tommy

[bort411]

[ QUOTE ]
What about musicals like Grease, etc.?

[/ QUOTE ]

I'd prefer that if they were musicals, they be about music.

Example: Singin' in the Rain is about the Hollywood industry moving out of the silent era, not music. Same situation with Grease.

[M2d]

The Music Man

[M2d]

Don was a vaudville performer (singing, dancing, fiddle) before he went into acting, so Singing in the Rain may squeek in?

[CCass]

The Jazz Singer

[bort411]

[ QUOTE ]
Yellow Submarine

[/ QUOTE ]

If you don't mind, could you tell me why you recommend this? I watched it for the first time about two years ago, and from what I recall it wasn't very good in any way.

The soundtrack, too, I think, is relatively weak. IMO it represents the least good Beatles material from 1965-1970. It's good, but not Beatles good.

[SenecaJim]

I can't remember the name of it, but there's a movie about Hughie ( Leadbelly ) that I enjoyed.

[siccjay]

CB-4

[jakethebake]

Hail Hail Rock and Roll

[whiskeytown]

Bandwagon

an indie film about 4 guys trying to start a band - it's a little quirky, but funny as hell -

RB

[maryfield48]

Can't believe nobody's said 'Purple Rain'.

Edit: Doh! That's because somebody did.

[Oski]

Eddie and the Cruisers
The Blues Brothers

[peachy]

for the person who asked...RAY was very good...i wasnt "too" pumped to see it before hand...but as it went on i loved it...great story b/c it shows both sides of him...it doesnt just highlight his good or dark side. Jamie Fox did an AMAZING job...didnt even think about it being him all the way through...he had the type of voice and his movements down perfect

[nothumb]

"Standing in the Shadows of Motown"

And, for emphasis, though they've been mentioned, "The Last Waltz" and "Purple Rain." Watch a coked out Neil Young's hands on "I Shall Be Released." What are you doing Neil???

NT