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Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical is pretty darn good. I’m a big fan of Kristen Bell (The Good Place, Veronica Mars) and her singing and dancing and singing while dancing is super impressive. And then, there’s… that outfit.
Also, Alan Cumming doing his thing, which is always entertaining.
I have a weird love for Across the Universe. The middle is a bore, but I love the 1st and 3rd act. How I learned to like The Beatles.
Yesterday, a 2019 film is good in that it is the Beatles music but in a world where no one has heard of the Beatles.
CATS.
Not kidding.
a) I am bisexual. It's the best show for being bisexual
b) I love the rhythmic games it plays inside the music, both for orchestra and vocalists
c) you can only perform it properly if you are at the top of your game physically and vocally
d) I like how the plot is cryptically buried and has to be interpreted
Spring Awakening
Spring Awakening is such a masterpiece that I’m angry it hasn’t been adapted to a movie.
I’m also obsessed with South Pacific and Man of La Mancha.
Moulin Rouge. No competition in my mind.
hamilton.
book of mormon.
jesus christ superstar.
After I saw Book of Mormon in the first Norwegian version, I played the full original soundtrack almost every day for years afterwards.
Twisted by Starkid
It's the story of Aladdin in the style of Wicked. It's a silly and wild ride of nonsense jokes and deep emotions.
Bugsy Malone will always be my childhood, Little Shop and Rocky Horror are up there though!
Wicked was my first favorite about a decade before the movie was made. Saw Hadestown live and it's quickly tied for first!
Paint Your Wagon. Movie tough guys Clint Eastwood and Lee Marvin singing. Some called this film pariah. I thought it was great!
Into the Woods,
Les Miserables,
Wicked.
Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog
I am very partial towards Kristina Från Duvemåla, written by the ABBA guys and based on a very important swedish series of novels about emigration to America. I am not religious - and definitely not Christian - but Helen Sjöholm performing "Du Måste Finnas (You Must Be Real)" might be my favourite performance of music ever and one of the most emotional performance I've ever seen. Link to the video with English subtitles.
I also always liked Jesus Christ Superstar. It was my mother's favourite musical so I kind of grew up on it, which maybe makes me less objective in evaluating it. But I just think it has a lot of great songs. Plus the 2000 film version is so wild and wacky in a charming way with leather jacket Judas and Simon wearing cargo pants.
prove to me that you’re devine, change my water into wine
I’m saddened that nobody’s mentioned Chess. It’s an amazing rock opera by the guys from ABBA and Tim Rice. One Night in Bangkok slaps.
Anthem is a phenomenal song.
Phantom of the Opera is the one I have seen the most on stage and it always gives me goose bumps. So probably that one.
But have seen Les Miserable, Cats, Rent, Aida, Miss Saigon, Chicago, and Wicked. Out of all of them the only one I didnt enjoy was Cats. I love listening to Cats on CD but the stage play just looses me. Also I will admit to liking the movie version of Rent more than the stage play and I am very sorry for that.
P. S. Wicked stage play far superior to movie(s).
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is great for a lot of reasons but its origin story for Cats is superb.
Based on how many songs from the musical I currently have in my All Songs playlist, Hamilton. Maybe recency bias but that show has so many bangers and I never get tired of hearing them. One Last Time, Satisfied, Yorktown, Guns and Ships, Helpless, Cabinet Battle #1, The Room Where It Happens, Dear Theodosia. So good.
For Opera enjoyers, I greatly liked that movie compilation of short animation pieces put onto select parts of popular operas: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcPWznYm52tvdMG7Y42pIET8mnqHCWB9U
Mine is probably Tosca ever since I've seen it decades ago on this compilation's VHS.
I am not a fan of musicals generally, but I do love The Nightmare Before Christmas and Little Shop of Horrors.
also not usually into musicals but The Wiz is one of my favorite movies
Fiddler on the Roof is my all time favorite, followed by Rent. And that is likely because I’ve only seen those 2 musicals.
I saw both Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables in London eons ago. They're both great, but I think I like Les Mis better.
The most common criticism I've ever heard about Les Mis is that it's overdone. Maybe it is, but that's because it's so fuckin good.
I saw Phantom of the Opera on Broadway in NYC so that’s a top one for me.
My favorite is Repo the Genetic Opera. I really enjoy that one.
Edit: I forgot to mention that I love anything Gene Kelly, that man’s butt is amazing!
Canone inverso, August Rush are two of my comfort musicals.
Paint Your Wagon
A musical about bigamy where a gold miner in a town full of men (population: men) buys a wife from a travelling Mormon who wants to downsize his wife collection. Said miner shares everything equally with his mining partner, including his new wife.
Clint Eastwood and Lee Marvin both sing. French Tarts are hijacked from another city. A bull fights a bear. Hijinks ensue.
I think I know exactly what I mean, when I say it's a shpadoinkle day!
The 1986 film Little Shop of Horrors is my favorite movie of all time. TIL it premiered off-Broadway in ‘82
Directors cut of Little Shop fucks.
Also Phantom for me. But I also haven't seen Dear Evan yet, while having heard a few of the songs from it which suggest I may like it more. Nor did I ever get a chance to see Avenue Q. It still bums me out there was not a filmed release of that one.
Despite the name, the Young Girls of Rochefort. It's French, 1960s, impeccable set design and just oozes style and fun.
Sweet Charity is another. Bon Fosse has some absurd choreography in there and Shirley McLean is lovely. Also, if you're a Simpsons fan there's a song there that'll make you go "OH!!! THAT'S WHAT THAT WAS!!!"
Stinsen brinner.
It's a swedish musical about a train station shutting down.
Gotta be Phantom of the Paradise. It's a rock opera and spiritual successor to the Rocky Horror Picture Show. The story is a mix of Faust, the Picture of Dorian Grey, and Phantom of the Opera, set at a nightclub called the Paradise.
Phantom of the Opera — though I commit the sin of loving the movie soundtrack better than the stage play. I love the overproduced rock opera. Wish I could've caught Tommy live by The Who.
I will say Hamilton is really fucking good, too. I've seen it four times live and innumerable times on Disney+. It's probably the one I most enjoy watching. The music, the comedy, the freaking technical artistry of how they move around on stage so dynamically. If you shot it as a movie, it wouldn't be nearly as good.
I'm not nearly as enamored of Wicked as many. The songs really aren't that memorable or singable except for a couple. Popular is catchy as fuck though. My wife has taken me to see it twice and... it's way too long for not having any good music. It's well written but if you don't have music you'd play an album of when you're not watching it, don't make a musical.
Jersey Boys was fun, but I don't remember it really having much to say. I only saw it once long ago so I mostly just remember enjoying the music.
Le Mes was the opposite — like Wicked, it's a hell of a story, but I don't enjoy it at all.
I'm very meh about Annie. Was way over advertised when I was a kid and as a result I can't fucking stand Tomorrow.
I haven't seen Rocky Horror, Moulin Rouge or Evita on stage but I really enjoyed the movies. I hated the Cats movie.
I don't think that's all the musicals I've seen, but that's all I can remember.
Imaginaerum, if that counts.
If you’re unfamiliar with it, ask yourself if Pink Floyd: The Wall counts. Same kinda film. But modern and less offensive. I do think they’re both musicals though. Just not corny.
Also, Nightwish, the band behind Imaginaerum, have a song about Phantom of the Opera. Guess what it’s called. ;) Good stuff.
Avenue Q is my favourite so far. Les Mis is a close second. Cats production in London third.
My wife showed me Sweeney Todd the other night. Not the Johnny Depp one, it was a literal filming of the play from 1982. It was really good. I'm not always a fan of musicals but it was nice to see a darker musical.
I love the George Hearn / Patty LuPone live in concert version. Still gives me goosebumps when he gets his razor back.
YT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85MJ2V4KJK8 It's long but it's so good.
Holy smokes, same actor in both of these almost 20 years apart. That's awesome. Definitely showing her this one. Thanks.