Afterword - Musician biopics
by JohnFarrowKarrtorp | created - 21 May 2014 | updated - 31 May 2014 | PublicSuggested by contributors to the Afterword blogsite.
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1. Control (2007)
R | 122 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A profile of Ian Curtis, the enigmatic singer of Joy Division whose personal, professional, and romantic troubles led him to die by suicide at the age of 23.
Director: Anton Corbijn | Stars: Sam Riley, Samantha Morton, Craig Parkinson, Alexandra Maria Lara
Votes: 68,586 | Gross: $0.87M
2. Monica Z (2013)
111 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The world famous Swedish jazz singer, actress and icon Monica Zetterlund's life through stardom and hardship.
Director: Per Fly | Stars: Edda Magnason, Sverrir Gudnason, Kjell Bergqvist, Vera Vitali
Votes: 4,327
3. 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: 99,154 | Gross: $35.18M
4. Oil City Confidential (2009)
104 min | Documentary, Music
The story of Dr Feelgood, four men in cheap suits who crashed out of Canvey Island in the early '70s, sandpapered the face of rock'n'roll, leaving all that came before a burnt-out ruin - ... See full summary »
Director: Julien Temple | Stars: Lee Brilleaux, Wilko Johnson, John Martin, John B. Sparkes
Votes: 635
5. Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life (2010)
Not Rated | 135 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A glimpse at the life of French singer Serge Gainsbourg, from growing up in 1940s Nazi-occupied Paris through his successful song-writing years in the 1960s to his death in 1991 at the age of 62.
Director: Joann Sfar | Stars: Eric Elmosnino, Lucy Gordon, Laetitia Casta, Doug Jones
Votes: 10,308 | Gross: $0.23M
6. Gonzaga: From Father to Son (2012)
120 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of Brazilian popular singer Luiz Gonzaga and his son Gonzaguinha.
Director: Breno Silveira | Stars: Adélio Lima, Chambinho do Acordeon, Land Vieira, Júlio Andrade
Votes: 1,448
7. 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: 90,775 | Gross: $10.30M
8. Backbeat (1994)
R | 100 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A dramatization of the Hamburg, Germany phase of The Beatles' early history.
Director: Iain Softley | Stars: Stephen Dorff, Sheryl Lee, Ian Hart, Gary Bakewell
Votes: 6,586 | Gross: $2.39M
9. 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: 20,522 | Gross: $67.18M
10. 'Round Midnight (1986)
R | 133 min | Drama, Music
A troubled, but talented musician flees the US to escape his problems, finding refuge and support in Paris.
Director: Bertrand Tavernier | Stars: Dexter Gordon, François Cluzet, Gabrielle Haker, Sandra Reaves-Phillips
Votes: 5,868 | Gross: $3.27M
11. 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: 36,461 | Gross: $54.22M
12. Camarón (2005)
119 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
The movie will cover the life of Camarón de la Isla (Jaenada), the legendary Spanish flamenco cantaor, from his beginning until his death. It tells around the relationships Camarón de la ... See full summary »
Director: Jaime Chávarri | Stars: Óscar Jaenada, Verónica Sánchez, Mercè Llorens, Jacobo Dicenta
Votes: 739
13. 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: 157,450 | Gross: $75.33M
14. 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
15. 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
16. 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: 428,387 | Gross: $51.97M
17. Good Vibrations (2012)
Not Rated | 103 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A chronicle of Terri Hooley's life, a record-store owner instrumental in developing Belfast's punk-rock scene.
Directors: Lisa Barros D'Sa, Glenn Leyburn | Stars: Cathal Maguire, Peter Kelly, Charlie Berkeley, Jack Carberry
Votes: 5,597
18. 24 Hour Party People (2002)
R | 117 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
In 1976, Tony Wilson sets up Factory Records and brings Manchester's music to the world.
Director: Michael Winterbottom | Stars: Steve Coogan, Lennie James, John Thomson, Paul Popplewell
Votes: 39,723 | Gross: $1.13M
19. Cabin in the Sky (1943)
Passed | 98 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
A compulsive gambler dies during a shooting, but he'll receive a second chance to reform himself and to make up with his worried wife.
Directors: Vincente Minnelli, Busby Berkeley | Stars: Ethel Waters, Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson, Lena Horne, Louis Armstrong
Votes: 3,414
20. That Thing You Do! (1996)
PG | 108 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
A local Pennsylvania band scores a one-hit wonder in 1964 and rides the star-making machinery as long as they can, with lots of help from their manager.
Director: Tom Hanks | Stars: Tom Hanks, Liv Tyler, Charlize Theron, Tom Everett Scott
Votes: 73,625 | Gross: $25.81M
21. Elvis (2005)
TV-14 | 87 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A chronicle of the life of Elvis Presley, from his humble beginnings to his rise to international stardom.
Stars: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Rose McGowan, Randy Quaid, Tim Guinee
Votes: 4,193
22. 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: 18,900 | Gross: $13.74M
23. 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: 265,970 | Gross: $119.52M
24. Dogs in Space (1986)
R | 103 min | Drama
Two man are the key members of a band called 'Dogs in Space' and share a house in a Melbourne suburb with a variety of young music fans and social misfits, including a college student and a transient and apparently nameless teenage girl.
Director: Richard Lowenstein | Stars: Michael Hutchence, Saskia Post, Nique Needles, Deanna Bond
Votes: 1,375
25. Shine (1996)
PG-13 | 105 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Pianist David Helfgott, driven by his father and teachers, has a breakdown. Years later he returns to the piano, to popular if not critical acclaim.
Director: Scott Hicks | Stars: Geoffrey Rush, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Justin Braine, Sonia Todd
Votes: 56,731 | Gross: $35.81M
26. Searching for Sugar Man (2012)
PG-13 | 86 min | Documentary, Biography, Music
Two South Africans set out to discover what happened to their unlikely musical hero, the mysterious 1970s rock n roller, Rodriguez.
Director: Malik Bendjelloul | Stars: Rodriguez, Stephen 'Sugar' Segerman, Dennis Coffey, Mike Theodore
Votes: 72,933 | Gross: $3.97M
27. Telstar: The Joe Meek Story (2008)
R | 119 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A music-infused drama about Joe Meek, the flamboyantly gay, tone deaf, songwriter-producer behind the '60s hits "Have I the Right," "Just Like Eddie," "Johnny, Remember Me" and "Telstar."
Director: Nick Moran | Stars: Con O'Neill, Kevin Spacey, Pam Ferris, JJ Feild
Votes: 1,934
28. 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
29. 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
30. 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: 50,963 | Gross: $3.57M
31. I'm Not There (2007)
R | 135 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Ruminations on the life of Bob Dylan, where six characters embody a different aspect of the musician's life and work.
Director: Todd Haynes | Stars: Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Heath Ledger, Ben Whishaw
Votes: 61,204 | Gross: $4.02M
32. 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: 780
33. 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: 9,712
34. 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
35. 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
36. 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: 726
37. Cornelis (2010)
101 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biographical account of singer and composer Cornelis Vreeswijk including his breakthrough and his marital problems.
Director: Amir Chamdin | Stars: Hans-Erik Dyvik Husby, Malin Crépin, Helena Af Sandeberg, David Dencik
Votes: 2,663
38. Selena (1997)
PG | 127 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The true story of Selena, a Texas-born Tejano singer who rose from cult status to performing at the Astrodome, as well as having chart-topping albums on the Latin music charts.
Director: Gregory Nava | Stars: Jennifer Lopez, Edward James Olmos, Jon Seda, Jackie Guerra
Votes: 31,659 | Gross: $35.42M
39. Why Do Fools Fall in Love (1998)
R | 116 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Three women each claim to be the widow of 1950s doo-wop singer Frankie Lymon, claiming legal rights to his estate.
Director: Gregory Nava | Stars: Halle Berry, Vivica A. Fox, Lela Rochon, Larenz Tate
Votes: 4,550 | Gross: $12.41M
40. 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
41. El cantante (2006)
R | 106 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The life story of Hector Lavoe who started the salsa movement in 1975 and brought it to the United States.
Director: Leon Ichaso | Stars: Marc Anthony, Jennifer Lopez, John Ortiz, Manny Perez
Votes: 5,268 | Gross: $7.56M
42. Lavoe (2011)
90 min | Drama, Music
Based on the life story of the great salsa singer Hector Lavoe from Ponce Puerto.
Director: Anthony Felton | Stars: Raúl Carbonell, Patricia Manterola, Joana Vargas, Luis Jose Lopez
Votes: 77
43. The Clash: Westway to the World (2000 Video)
60 min | Documentary, Music
A career retrospective of British punk band The Clash, featuring exclusive interviews with the entire band.
Director: Don Letts | Stars: Terry Chimes, Terence Dackombe, Topper Headon, Mick Jones
Votes: 1,141
44. Marley (2012)
PG-13 | 144 min | Documentary, Biography, Music
A documentary on the life, music, and legacy of Bob Marley.
Director: Kevin Macdonald | Stars: Bob Marley, Ziggy Marley, Rita Marley, Jimmy Cliff
Votes: 14,504 | Gross: $1.41M
45. The Rose (1979)
R | 125 min | Drama, Music, Romance
The tragic life of a self-destructive female rock star who struggles to deal with the constant pressures of her career and the demands of her ruthless business manager.
Director: Mark Rydell | Stars: Bette Midler, Alan Bates, Frederic Forrest, Harry Dean Stanton
Votes: 9,251 | Gross: $29.20M
46. Bix (1991)
100 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biopic of troubled jazz musician/composer Bix Beiderbecke (1903-1931), who played with the Paul Whiteman band, among others.
Director: Pupi Avati | Stars: Bryant Weeks, Emile B. Levisetti, Julia Ewing, Mark Collver
Votes: 167
47. Young Man with a Horn (1950)
Passed | 112 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A young trumpet player is torn between an honest singer and a manipulative heiress.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Kirk Douglas, Lauren Bacall, Doris Day, Hoagy Carmichael
Votes: 3,892
48. The Fabulous Dorseys (1947)
Approved | 88 min | Biography, Music, Musical
The Dorsey Brothers bandleaders' lives traced from childhood music insisting father to fame rise eventual split furthering careers propelling with their music.
Director: Alfred E. Green | Stars: Tommy Dorsey, Jimmy Dorsey, Janet Blair, Paul Whiteman
Votes: 644
49. Pete Kelly's Blues (1955)
Not Rated | 95 min | Crime, Drama, Music
In 1927, a Kansas City, Missouri cornet player and his band perform nightly at a seedy speakeasy until a racketeer tries to extort them in exchange for protection.
Director: Jack Webb | Stars: Jack Webb, Janet Leigh, Edmond O'Brien, Peggy Lee
Votes: 1,502
50. Mo' Better Blues (1990)
R | 130 min | Drama, Music, Romance
Jazz trumpeter Bleek Gilliam makes questionable decisions in his professional and romantic lives.
Director: Spike Lee | Stars: Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Wesley Snipes, Giancarlo Esposito
Votes: 13,673 | Gross: $16.15M
51. The Big Broadcast of 1937 (1936)
Approved | 100 min | Comedy, Musical
The employees of a failing radio station must put on a huge ratings winner to have any chance of continued operation.
Director: Mitchell Leisen | Stars: Jack Benny, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Bob Burns
Votes: 389
52. Stormy Weather (1943)
Passed | 78 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
The relationship between an aspiring dancer and a popular songstress provides a retrospective of the great African-American entertainers of the early 1900s.
Director: Andrew L. Stone | Stars: Lena Horne, Bill Robinson, Cab Calloway and His Cotton Club Orchestra, Katherine Dunham and Her Troupe
Votes: 2,889
53. A Song Is Born (1948)
Approved | 113 min | Comedy, Music, Musical
With her gangster boyfriend under investigation by the police, a nightclub singer hides out in a musical research institution staffed by bachelor professors - one of whom begins to fall for her.
Director: Howard Hawks | Stars: Danny Kaye, Virginia Mayo, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey
Votes: 2,800
54. Ball of Fire (1941)
Approved | 111 min | Comedy, Romance
A group of professors working on a new encyclopedia while living in a Manhattan mansion take in a mouthy nightclub singer who is wanted by the police to help bring down her mob boss lover.
Director: Howard Hawks | Stars: Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck, Oscar Homolka, Henry Travers
Votes: 14,072
55. Let's Get Lost (1988)
Not Rated | 120 min | Documentary, Biography, Music
Documentary on the life of jazz trumpeter and drug addict Chet Baker. Fascinating series of interviews with friends, family, associates and lovers, interspersed with film from Baker's earlier life and some modern-day performances.
Director: Bruce Weber | Stars: Chet Baker, Carol Baker, Vera Baker, Paul Baker
Votes: 2,209
56. Cazuza: Time Doesn't Stop (2004)
98 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The life and times of Cazuza, Brazilian singer/poet/enfant terrible, from his start with rock group "Barão Vermelho", to his death from Aids, in 1990, showing his career, love affairs, and involvement with drugs.
Directors: Walter Carvalho, Sandra Werneck | Stars: Daniel de Oliveira, Marieta Severo, Reginaldo Faria, Andrea Beltrão
Votes: 4,211
57. Amália - Uma Estranha Forma de Vida (1995 Video)
285 min | Documentary
A five hour documentary series about the legendary "queen" of fado.
Director: Bruno de Almeida | Stars: Amália Rodrigues, Joaquim de Almeida
Votes: 53
58. Derailroaded (2005)
Not Rated | 86 min | Documentary, Biography, Music
A documentary on the life and music of manic-depressive, paranoid-schizophrenic cult music icon Wild Man Fischer.
Director: Josh Rubin | Stars: Wild Man Fischer, Harold Bronson, Solomon Burke, Ruth Buzzi
Votes: 236
59. Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999 TV Movie)
R | 120 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Dorothy Dandridge's way to fame and fortune as a dancer, singer and actress.
Director: Martha Coolidge | Stars: Halle Berry, Brent Spiner, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Obba Babatundé
Votes: 3,922
60. The Hours and Times (1991)
57 min | Drama, Music
A fictionalized account of what may have happened when John Lennon and Brian Epstein went on holiday together to Spain in 1963.
Director: Christopher Munch | Stars: David Angus, Ian Hart, Stephanie Pack, Robin McDonald
Votes: 818 | Gross: $0.00M
61. The Karen Carpenter Story (1989 TV Movie)
120 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Story of the meteoric rise and sudden fall of Karen Carpenter, who became a famous singer before battling anorexia and bulimia.
Directors: Joseph Sargent, Richard Carpenter | Stars: Cynthia Gibb, Mitchell Anderson, Peter Michael Goetz, Michael McGuire
Votes: 1,444
Thumbs down for this one from the Afterword.
62. Por Toda Minha Vida (2006–2011)
Biography, Drama, Music
Stars: Fernanda Lima, Nelson Motta, Paulo Carvalho, Rômulo Estrela
Votes: 39
63. Nowhere Boy (2009)
R | 98 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A chronicle of John Lennon's first years, focused mainly in his adolescence and his relationship with his stern aunt Mimi, who raised him, and his absentee mother Julia, who re-entered his life at a crucial moment in his young life.
Director: Sam Taylor-Johnson | Stars: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Kristin Scott Thomas, Anne-Marie Duff, David Threlfall
Votes: 38,914 | Gross: $1.45M
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