Movies: Musical Bios
by qempyrean | created - 17 Mar 2017 | updated - 3 months ago | PublicFilm biographies of selected singers, songwriters, composers, musicians, bandleaders, etc.
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1. Stars and Stripes Forever (1952)
Approved | 90 min | Biography, Comedy, Music
A film biography of the composer John Philip Sousa, from his early days in the Marine Corps Band through the Spanish-American War in 1898.
Director: Henry Koster | Stars: Clifton Webb, Robert Wagner, Debra Paget, Ruth Hussey
Votes: 963
2. Till the Clouds Roll By (1946)
Passed | 132 min | Biography, Musical
Biography of songwriter and Broadway pioneer, Jerome Kern (Robert Walker). Unable to find immediate success in the U.S., Kern sought recognition abroad. He journeyed to England where his dreams of success became real and where he met his future wife Eva Leale (Dorothy Patrick).
Directors: Richard Whorf, Vincente Minnelli, George Sidney | Stars: Robert Walker, Van Heflin, Lucille Bremer, June Allyson
Votes: 2,713 | Gross: $6.72M
3. Words and Music (1948)
Approved | 121 min | Biography, Comedy, Musical
Musical biography chronicling the songwriting partnership of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart.
Director: Norman Taurog | Stars: Mickey Rooney, Tom Drake, June Allyson, Perry Como
Votes: 1,451
4. Look for the Silver Lining (1949)
Approved | 106 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
Marilyn Miller grows up in a showbiz family and hits Broadway before she is sixteen. She falls in love with her dancer-mentor Jack, but he is married. When she marries her stage partner Frank he soon is called to arms in World War I.
Director: David Butler | Stars: June Haver, Ray Bolger, Gordon MacRae, Charles Ruggles
Votes: 432
5. Love Me or Leave Me (1955)
Passed | 122 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A fictionalized account of the career of jazz singer Ruth Etting and her tempestuous marriage to gangster Marty Snyder, who helped propel her to stardom.
Director: Charles Vidor | Stars: Doris Day, James Cagney, Cameron Mitchell, Robert Keith
Votes: 4,746
6. I'll See You in My Dreams (1951)
Passed | 110 min | Biography, Comedy, Musical
The success and decline of songwriter Gus Kahn is portrayed, with his wife, Grace Kahn, sticking by him the whole time.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Doris Day, Danny Thomas, Frank Lovejoy, Patrice Wymore
Votes: 1,221
7. The Glenn Miller Story (1954)
Approved | 115 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biography of bandleader Glenn Miller from his beginnings to his death over the English Channel in December 1944.
Director: Anthony Mann | Stars: James Stewart, June Allyson, Harry Morgan, Charles Drake
Votes: 9,714
8. The Benny Goodman Story (1956)
Approved | 116 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The young Benny Goodman is taught clarinet by a Chicago music professor. He is advised by bandleader Kid Ory to play whichever kind of music he likes best, but to make a living, Benny begins by joining the Ben Pollack traveling band.
Director: Valentine Davies | Stars: Steve Allen, Donna Reed, Berta Gersten, Barry Truex
Votes: 1,298
9. Lady Sings the Blues (1972)
R | 144 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the troubled life and career of the legendary Jazz singer, Billie Holiday.
Director: Sidney J. Furie | Stars: Diana Ross, Billy Dee Williams, Richard Pryor, James T. Callahan
Votes: 4,848 | Gross: $6.03M
10. The Gene Krupa Story (1959)
101 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biopic of famous jazz drummer, Gene Krupa, who becomes a sensation but cannot handle success and life in the fast lane and ends-up broke, struggling with drugs and alcohol.
Director: Don Weis | Stars: Sal Mineo, Susan Kohner, James Darren, Susan Oliver
Votes: 779
11. With a Song in My Heart (1952)
Approved | 117 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A talented singer's musical career begins to soar.
Director: Walter Lang | Stars: Susan Hayward, Rory Calhoun, David Wayne, Thelma Ritter
Votes: 1,509
12. The Eddy Duchin Story (1956)
Approved | 123 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The life story of the famous pianist and band-leader of the 1930s and 1940s.
Director: George Sidney | Stars: Tyrone Power, Kim Novak, Victoria Shaw, James Whitmore
Votes: 2,156
13. The Helen Morgan Story (1957)
Not Rated | 118 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Torch singer Helen Morgan rises from sordid beginnings to fame and fortune only to lose it all to alcohol and poor personal choices.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Ann Blyth, Paul Newman, Richard Carlson, Gene Evans
Votes: 870
14. The Best Things in Life Are Free (1956)
Approved | 104 min | Biography, Musical
Ray joins Buddy and Lew to form a successful 1920s musical show writing team. Soon, they've got several hits on Broadway, but Buddy's ambition leads to friction among the group, as the other 2 feel increasingly left out.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Gordon MacRae, Dan Dailey, Ernest Borgnine, Sheree North
Votes: 381
15. Rhapsody in Blue (1945)
Passed | 135 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
George Gershwin is a driven composer whose need to succeed destroys his relationship with singer Julie Adams and socialite Christine Gilbert.
Director: Irving Rapper | Stars: Robert Alda, Joan Leslie, Alexis Smith, Charles Coburn
Votes: 1,799
16. The Jolson Story (1946)
Approved | 128 min | Biography, Drama, Music
This movie shows the idealized career of the singer Al Jolson, a little Jewish boy who goes against the will of his father in order to be in showbiz. He becomes a star, falls in love with a... See full summary »
Director: Alfred E. Green | Stars: Larry Parks, Evelyn Keyes, William Demarest, Bill Goodwin
Votes: 1,768
17. Night and Day (1946)
Approved | 128 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
A fictionalized biopic of composer Cole Porter from his days at Yale in the 1910s through the height of his success to the 1940s.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Cary Grant, Alexis Smith, Monty Woolley, Ginny Simms
Votes: 3,206
18. Three Little Words (1950)
Passed | 102 min | Biography, Comedy, Musical
The story of the successful Tin Pan Alley songwriting team of Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby is told loosely and lightheartedly.
Director: Richard Thorpe | Stars: Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen, Red Skelton, Arlene Dahl
Votes: 2,059 | Gross: $2.80M
19. Swanee River (1939)
Approved | 84 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
More fictional than factual biography of Stephen Foster. Songwriter from Pittsburgh falls in love with the South, marries a Southern gal (Leeds), then is accused of sympathizing when the Civil War breaks out.
Director: Sidney Lanfield | Stars: Don Ameche, Andrea Leeds, Al Jolson, Felix Bressart
Votes: 227 | Gross: $0.29M
20. A Song to Remember (1945)
Approved | 113 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biography of Frederic Chopin.
Director: Charles Vidor | Stars: Paul Muni, Merle Oberon, Cornel Wilde, Nina Foch
Votes: 1,618
21. Song Without End (1960)
Not Rated | 141 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The romantic story of Hungarian pianist Franz Liszt (Sir Dirk Bogarde), whose scandalous love affair forced him to abandon his adoring audiences.
Directors: Charles Vidor, George Cukor | Stars: Dirk Bogarde, Capucine, Geneviève Page, Patricia Morison
Votes: 954
22. Song of Norway (1970)
G | 138 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
Based on the life of Norway's greatest composer Edvard Grieg, and filmed in Norway where he lived. The soundtrack is all Edvard Grieg's music with added lyrics.
Director: Andrew L. Stone | Stars: Florence Henderson, Toralv Maurstad, Christina Schollin, Frank Porretta
Votes: 510 | Gross: $3.72M
23. The Great Waltz (1972)
G | 135 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Composer Johann Strauss becomes the "Waltz-King" and woos a baron's mistress in 19th-century Austria.
Director: Andrew L. Stone | Stars: Horst Buchholz, Mary Costa, Nigel Patrick, Yvonne Mitchell
Votes: 284 | Gross: $0.89M
24. Walk the Line (2005)
PG-13 | 136 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A chronicle of country music legend Johnny Cash's life, from his early days on an Arkansas cotton farm to his rise to fame with Sun Records in Memphis, where he recorded alongside Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins.
Director: James Mangold | Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Reese Witherspoon, Ginnifer Goodwin, Robert Patrick
Votes: 265,930 | Gross: $119.52M
25. Your Cheatin' Heart (1964)
Not Rated | 99 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the country and western singer Hank Williams.
Director: Gene Nelson | Stars: George Hamilton, Susan Oliver, Red Buttons, Arthur O'Connell
Votes: 865
26. De-Lovely (2004)
PG-13 | 125 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Inspecting a magical biographical stage musical, composer Cole Porter reviews his life and career with his wife, Linda.
Director: Irwin Winkler | Stars: Kevin Kline, Ashley Judd, Jonathan Pryce, Kevin McNally
Votes: 11,848 | Gross: $13.34M
27. Bird (1988)
R | 161 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The troubled life and career of jazz musician Charlie "Bird" Parker.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Forest Whitaker, Diane Venora, Michael Zelniker, Samuel E. Wright
Votes: 13,497 | Gross: $2.18M
28. Magic Fire (1956)
Approved | 95 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The life and career of German composer Richard Wagner.
Director: William Dieterle | Stars: Yvonne De Carlo, Carlos Thompson, Rita Gam, Valentina Cortese
Votes: 182
29. Song of Love (1947)
Approved | 119 min | Drama, Music, Romance
Composer Robert Schumann struggles to compose his symphonies while his loving wife Clara offers her support. Also helping the Schumanns is their lifelong friend, composer Johannes Brahms.
Director: Clarence Brown | Stars: Katharine Hepburn, Paul Henreid, Robert Walker, Henry Daniell
Votes: 1,150
30. Mahler (1974)
PG | 115 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Composer Gustav Mahler's (Robert Powell) life, told in a series of flashbacks as he and his wife (Georgina Hale) discuss their failing marriage during a train journey.
Director: Ken Russell | Stars: Robert Powell, Georgina Hale, Lee Montague, Miriam Karlin
Votes: 3,063
31. The Great Victor Herbert (1939)
Approved | 91 min | Biography, Music, Musical
A fictionalized version of famous opera composer Victor Herbert where he witnesses the romance, stardom, parenthood, and troubled experiences of his star singers.
Director: Andrew L. Stone | Stars: Allan Jones, Mary Martin, Walter Connolly, Lee Bowman
Votes: 133 | Gross: $0.30M
32. St. Louis Blues (1958)
Not Rated | 105 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of W. C. Handy, the undisputed father of the blues.
Director: Allen Reisner | Stars: Nat 'King' Cole, Eartha Kitt, Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald
Votes: 725
33. Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
Passed | 126 min | Biography, Drama, Family
The life of the renowned musical composer, playwright, actor, dancer, and singer George M. Cohan.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: James Cagney, Joan Leslie, Walter Huston, Richard Whorf
Votes: 16,868 | Gross: $11.80M
34. Deep in My Heart (1954)
Approved | 132 min | Biography, Comedy, Musical
Biographic movie about the American composer Sigmund Romberg.
Director: Stanley Donen | Stars: José Ferrer, Merle Oberon, Helen Traubel, Doe Avedon
Votes: 959
35. The Music Lovers (1971)
R | 123 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Piano teacher Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky struggles against his homosexuality by marrying, but unfortunately he chooses a nymphomaniac whom he cannot satisfy.
Director: Ken Russell | Stars: Richard Chamberlain, Glenda Jackson, Max Adrian, Christopher Gable
Votes: 3,024 | Gross: $0.20M
36. La Bamba (1987)
PG-13 | 108 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biographical story of the rise from nowhere of early rock and roll singer Ritchie Valens who died at age 17 in a plane crash with Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper.
Director: Luis Valdez | Stars: Lou Diamond Phillips, Esai Morales, Rosanna DeSoto, Elizabeth Peña
Votes: 36,457 | Gross: $54.22M
37. The Buddy Holly Story (1978)
PG | 114 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the life and career of the early rock and roll singer, from his meteoric rise to stardom, to his marriage and untimely death.
Director: Steve Rash | Stars: Gary Busey, Don Stroud, Charles Martin Smith, Conrad Janis
Votes: 9,992 | Gross: $14.36M
38. Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
PG | 124 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The fictionalized life of singer Loretta Lynn, a girl who rose from humble beginnings to become a country music star in the 1960s/70s.
Director: Michael Apted | Stars: Sissy Spacek, Tommy Lee Jones, Levon Helm, Phyllis Boyens
Votes: 20,520 | Gross: $67.18M
39. Sweet Dreams (1985)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of Patsy Cline, the velvet-voiced country music singer who died in a tragic plane crash at the height of her fame.
Director: Karel Reisz | Stars: Jessica Lange, Ed Harris, Ann Wedgeworth, David Clennon
Votes: 5,391 | Gross: $9.09M
40. Bound for Glory (1976)
PG | 147 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The early life of Woody Guthrie as a vagabond folk singer.
Director: Hal Ashby | Stars: David Carradine, Ronny Cox, Melinda Dillon, Gail Strickland
Votes: 5,593
41. Great Balls of Fire! (1989)
PG-13 | 108 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The life and career of wildly controversial rock 'n' roll star Jerry Lee Lewis.
Director: Jim McBride | Stars: Dennis Quaid, Winona Ryder, John Doe, Stephen Tobolowsky
Votes: 18,899 | Gross: $13.74M
42. Star! (1968)
G | 176 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
A musical biography of Gertrude Lawrence, who led a hustling and bustling life on the stage.
Director: Robert Wise | Stars: Julie Andrews, Richard Crenna, Michael Craig, Daniel Massey
Votes: 2,272 | Gross: $9.16M
43. Song of Scheherazade (1947)
Approved | 105 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
In 1865, Russian Navy midshipman Rimsky-Korsakov is inspired by a romantic interlude with a cabaret dancer while on shore leave in Spanish Morocco and writes the symphonic suite Scheherazade.
Director: Walter Reisch | Stars: Yvonne De Carlo, Brian Donlevy, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Eve Arden
Votes: 246
44. The Great Waltz (1938)
Passed | 104 min | Biography, Drama, Music
In 1845 Vienna, Johann Strauss II (Fernand Gravey) - 'Jonahi' to his friends - would rather write and perform waltzes than anything else, this at a time when a waltz is not considered ... See full summary »
Directors: Julien Duvivier, Victor Fleming, Josef von Sternberg | Stars: Luise Rainer, Fernand Gravey, Miliza Korjus, Hugh Herbert
Votes: 1,306
45. Unfinished Symphony (1934)
84 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
Composer Franz Schubert--broke, struggling and unhappy--gets a break when a wealthy friend wangles him an invitation to a command performance in front of a princess of the royal family. ... See full summary »
Directors: Anthony Asquith, Willi Forst | Stars: Mártha Eggerth, Helen Chandler, Hans Jaray, Eliot Makeham
Votes: 36
46. Amadeus (1984)
R | 160 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The life, success and troubles of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as told by Antonio Salieri, the contemporaneous composer who was deeply jealous of Mozart's talent and claimed to have murdered him.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Elizabeth Berridge, Roy Dotrice
Votes: 428,315 | Gross: $51.97M
47. The Doors (1991)
R | 140 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the famous and influential 1960s rock band The Doors and its lead singer and composer, Jim Morrison, from his days as a UCLA film student in Los Angeles, to his untimely death in Paris, France at age 27 in 1971.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Val Kilmer, Meg Ryan, Kyle MacLachlan, Frank Whaley
Votes: 99,114 | Gross: $35.18M
48. Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
PG-13 | 134 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the legendary British rock band Queen and lead singer Freddie Mercury, leading up to their famous performance at Live Aid (1985).
Director: Bryan Singer | Stars: Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy
Votes: 593,312 | Gross: $216.43M
49. I Saw the Light (2015)
R | 123 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the country-western singer Hank Williams, who in his brief life created one of the greatest bodies of work in American music. The film chronicles his rise to fame and its tragic effect on his health and personal life.
Director: Marc Abraham | Stars: Tom Hiddleston, Elizabeth Olsen, Maddie Hasson, Bradley Whitford
Votes: 8,269 | Gross: $1.65M
50. Dixie (1943)
Passed | 89 min | Comedy, Musical
A young songwriter leaves his Kentucky home to try to make it in New Orleans. Eventually he winds up in New York, where he sells his songs to a music publisher, but refuses to sell his most... See full summary »
Director: A. Edward Sutherland | Stars: Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour, Billy De Wolfe, Marjorie Reynolds
Votes: 175
51. Tonight We Sing (1953)
Approved | 109 min | Drama, Music
Story of the legendary impresario Sol Hurok and the many stars that he introduced and represented to the world of music.
Director: Mitchell Leisen | Stars: David Wayne, Ezio Pinza, Roberta Peters, Anne Bancroft
Votes: 140
52. Topsy-Turvy (1999)
R | 160 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Set in the 1880s, the story of how, during a creative dry spell, the partnership of the legendary musical/theatrical writers Gilbert and Sullivan almost dissolves, before they turn it all around and write the Mikado.
Director: Mike Leigh | Stars: Jim Broadbent, Allan Corduner, Dexter Fletcher, Sukie Smith
Votes: 13,483 | Gross: $6.20M
53. Lisztomania (1975)
R | 103 min | Biography, Comedy, Music
Composer and pianist Franz Liszt (Roger Daltrey) attempts to overcome his hedonistic life-style while repeatedly being drawn back into it by the many women in his life and fellow composer Richard Wagner (Paul Nicholas).
Director: Ken Russell | Stars: Roger Daltrey, Sara Kestelman, Paul Nicholas, Ringo Starr
Votes: 3,121
54. Melba (1953)
112 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
The highly fictionalized story of Nellie Melba, Australian-born soprano who rose to operatic fame in the latter part of the 19th century and who had a dessert and form of dry toast (true) ... See full summary »
Director: Lewis Milestone | Stars: Patrice Munsel, Robert Morley, John McCallum, John Justin
Votes: 47
55. The Great Caruso (1951)
Approved | 109 min | Biography, Drama, Music
This film traces the life of tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921). He loves Musetta, in his home town of Naples, and then Dorothy, the daughter of one of the Metropolitan Opera's patrons. Caruso... See full summary »
Director: Richard Thorpe | Stars: Mario Lanza, Ann Blyth, Dorothy Kirsten, Jarmila Novotna
Votes: 1,467
56. I Dream of Jeanie (1952)
Approved | 90 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
The life and career of famed American composer Stephen Foster.
Director: Allan Dwan | Stars: Ray Middleton, Bill Shirley, Muriel Lawrence, Eileen Christy
Votes: 248
57. Interrupted Melody (1955)
Passed | 106 min | Biography, Drama, Music
This movie chronicles Australian-born opera star Marjorie Lawrence's success, her battle with polio, and her eventual career comeback.
Director: Curtis Bernhardt | Stars: Glenn Ford, Eleanor Parker, Roger Moore, Cecil Kellaway
Votes: 1,191
58. My Wild Irish Rose (1947)
Approved | 101 min | Biography, Musical
The life of Irish tenor Chauncey Olcott is chronicled from his childhood to his days as the toast of New York. In between, his rise to the top is complicated by romances with two women: his... See full summary »
Director: David Butler | Stars: Dennis Morgan, Andrea King, Arlene Dahl, Alan Hale
Votes: 434
59. Rocketman (I) (2019)
R | 121 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A musical fantasy about the fantastical human story of Elton John's breakthrough years.
Director: Dexter Fletcher | Stars: Taron Egerton, Jamie Bell, Richard Madden, Bryce Dallas Howard
Votes: 194,885 | Gross: $96.37M
60. My Gal Sal (1942)
Passed | 103 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
At the end of the 19th century, the young Indiana boy Paul Dresser left his hometown for a long adventure that would eventually place him at the pinnacle of American music as a songwriter.
Director: Irving Cummings | Stars: Rita Hayworth, Victor Mature, John Sutton, Carole Landis
Votes: 884
61. After the Ball (1957)
89 min | Biography, Musical
The life and loves of Music hall singer Vesta Tilley, who married into the nobility.
Director: Compton Bennett | Stars: Pat Kirkwood, Laurence Harvey, Jerry Stovin, Jerry Verno
Votes: 100
62. La Vie En Rose (2007)
PG-13 | 140 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biopic of the iconic French singer Édith Piaf. Raised by her grandmother in a brothel, she was discovered while singing on a street corner at the age of 19. Despite her success, Piaf's life was filled with tragedy.
Director: Olivier Dahan | Stars: Marion Cotillard, Sylvie Testud, Pascal Greggory, Emmanuelle Seigner
Votes: 90,769 | Gross: $10.30M
63. Gilbert and Sullivan (1953)
Not Rated | 109 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
The common career of W.S. Gilbert,a barrister turned comic writer, and Arthur Sullivan, a classic composer turned converted against his will to light music, who wrote fourteen operettas between 1871 and 1896, to great public acclaim.
Director: Sidney Gilliat | Stars: Robert Morley, Maurice Evans, Eileen Herlie, Martyn Green
Votes: 270
64. Ray (I) (2004)
PG-13 | 152 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the life and career of the legendary rhythm and blues musician Ray Charles, from his humble beginnings in the South, where he went blind at age seven, to his meteoric rise to stardom during the 1950s and 1960s.
Director: Taylor Hackford | Stars: Jamie Foxx, Regina King, Kerry Washington, Clifton Powell
Votes: 157,443 | Gross: $75.33M
65. House of Ricordi (1954)
110 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the Ricordi family, the most prestigious music publishers in all of Italy.
Director: Carmine Gallone | Stars: Roland Alexandre, Myriam Bru, Elisa Cegani, Andrea Checchi
Votes: 114
66. Jolson Sings Again (1949)
96 min | Biography, Music
In this sequel to The Jolson Story, we pick up the singer's career just as he has returned to the stage after a premature retirement. But his wife has left him and the appeal of the ... See full summary »
Director: Henry Levin | Stars: Larry Parks, Barbara Hale, William Demarest, Ludwig Donath
Votes: 724
67. The Eddie Cantor Story (1953)
Approved | 115 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Eddie Cantor and his wife Ida arrive at Warner Bros. studios in Burbank, California, for a private screening of The Eddie Cantor Story. Just before the film rolls, Cantor whispers, "Ida, ... See full synopsis »
Director: Alfred E. Green | Stars: Keefe Brasselle, Marilyn Erskine, Aline MacMahon, Arthur Franz
Votes: 204
68. Respect (2021)
PG-13 | 145 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Following the rise of Aretha Franklin's career from a child singing in her father's church's choir to her international superstardom, RESPECT is the remarkable true story of the music icon's journey to find her voice.
Director: Liesl Tommy | Stars: Jennifer Hudson, Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Tituss Burgess
Votes: 17,852
69. Bessie (2015 TV Movie)
TV-MA | 115 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of legendary blues performer Bessie Smith, who rose to fame during the 1920s and '30s.
Director: Dee Rees | Stars: Queen Latifah, Kamryn Johnson, Rikki McKinney, Alan T. Coleman
Votes: 4,791
70. Leadbelly (1976)
PG | 126 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biography of the legendary folksinger, Huddie Ledbetter, master of the 12-string guitar and long-time convict on Texas and Louisiana chain gangs.
Director: Gordon Parks | Stars: Roger E. Mosley, Paul Benjamin, Madge Sinclair, James Brodhead
Votes: 903
71. Elvis (I) (1979 TV Movie)
168 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biographical movie about the famous rock singer Elvis Presley.
Director: John Carpenter | Stars: Kurt Russell, Shelley Winters, Bing Russell, Robert Gray
Votes: 5,137
72. Elvis (2022)
PG-13 | 159 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The life of American music icon Elvis Presley, from his childhood to becoming a rock and movie star in the 1950s while maintaining a complex relationship with his manager, Colonel Tom Parker.
Director: Baz Luhrmann | Stars: Tom Hanks, Austin Butler, Olivia DeJonge, Helen Thomson
Votes: 234,900 | Gross: $151.04M
73. What's Love Got to Do with It (1993)
R | 118 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of singer Tina Turner's rise to stardom and how she gained the courage to break free from her abusive husband, Ike Turner.
Director: Brian Gibson | Stars: Angela Bassett, Laurence Fishburne, RaéVen Kelly, Virginia Capers
Votes: 24,597 | Gross: $39.10M
74. The Great Mr. Handel (1942)
Not Rated | 89 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A lavish period drama produced in 1942 by Lord Rank's G.H.W. Productions Ltd.
Director: Norman Walker | Stars: Wilfrid Lawson, Elizabeth Allan, Malcolm Keen, Michael Shepley
Votes: 94
75. The Waltz King (1963)
95 min | Adventure, Drama, Family
Johann Strauss Jr. tries to make a name for himself as a composer despite conflicts with his famous father.
Director: Steve Previn | Stars: Kerwin Mathews, Senta Berger, Brian Aherne, Peter Kraus
Votes: 26
76. Beyond the Sea (2004)
PG-13 | 118 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A swooning study of "Mack the Knife" singer Bobby Darin and specifically his relationship with wife Sandra Dee.
Director: Kevin Spacey | Stars: Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, John Goodman, Bob Hoskins
Votes: 15,544 | Gross: $6.32M
77. The Runaways (2010)
R | 106 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A coming-of-age biographical film about the 1970s teenage all-girl rock band The Runaways. The relationship between band members Cherie Currie and Joan Jett is also explored.
Director: Floria Sigismondi | Stars: Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Michael Shannon, Stella Maeve
Votes: 50,959 | Gross: $3.57M
78. Get on Up (2014)
PG-13 | 139 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A chronicle of James Brown's rise from extreme poverty to become one of the most influential musicians in history.
Director: Tate Taylor | Stars: Chadwick Boseman, Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis
Votes: 26,147 | Gross: $30.51M
79. Nina (I) (2016)
Not Rated | 90 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the late jazz musician and classical pianist Nina Simone, including her rise to fame and relationship with her manager Clifton Henderson.
Director: Cynthia Mort | Stars: Zoe Saldana, David Oyelowo, Kevin Mambo, Ronald Guttman
Votes: 3,056
80. Straight Outta Compton (2015)
R | 147 min | Biography, Drama, History
The rap group NWA emerges from the mean streets of Compton in Los Angeles, California, in the mid-1980s and revolutionizes Hip Hop culture with their music and tales about life in the hood.
Director: F. Gary Gray | Stars: O'Shea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Neil Brown Jr.
Votes: 218,569 | Gross: $161.20M
81. Young Toscanini (1988)
109 min | Biography, Drama
A fanciful biopic of legendary conductor Arturo Toscanini as a young man.
Director: Franco Zeffirelli | Stars: C. Thomas Howell, Elizabeth Taylor, Sophie Ward, John Rhys-Davies
Votes: 351
82. Callas Forever (2002)
PG-13 | 111 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The last days of legendary opera singer Maria Callas.
Director: Franco Zeffirelli | Stars: Fanny Ardant, Jeremy Irons, Joan Plowright, Jay Rodan
Votes: 2,453 | Gross: $0.45M
83. Shine on Harvest Moon (1944)
Passed | 112 min | Biography, Musical, Romance
Biographical movie about the early 20th century Broadway stars Nora Bayes and Jack Norworth.
Director: David Butler | Stars: Ann Sheridan, Dennis Morgan, Jack Carson, Irene Manning
Votes: 452
84. Stand by Your Man (1981 TV Movie)
120 min | Biography, Drama, Music
This rags-to-riches tale of country-western queen Tammy Wynette follows her life from her impoverished childhood to her status as country's First Lady and her rocky marriage with fellow superstar George Jones.
Director: Jerry Jameson | Stars: Annette O'Toole, Tim McIntire, Cooper Huckabee, James Hampton
Votes: 211
85. Rosie: The Rosemary Clooney Story (1982 TV Movie)
100 min | Biography, Drama
The story of singer Rosemary Clooney's rise to fame, her marriage to Jose Ferrer, and her nervous breakdown.
Director: Jackie Cooper | Stars: Sondra Locke, Tony Orlando, Penelope Milford, John Karlen
Votes: 104
86. Maestro (2023)
R | 129 min | Biography, Drama, History
This love story chronicles the lifelong relationship of conductor-composer Leonard Bernstein and actress Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein.
Director: Bradley Cooper | Stars: Carey Mulligan, Bradley Cooper, Matt Bomer, Vincenzo Amato
Votes: 60,898
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