Dave Tompkins :: DVD Library :: 2-Genre Table :: Music :: Drama


(text-only version)

All That Jazz (1979)

Director/choreographer Bob Fosse tells his own life story as he details the sordid life of Joe Gideon (Roy Scheider), a womanizing, drug-using dancer.

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Almost Famous (2000)

A high-school boy is given the chance to write a story for Rolling Stone Magazine about an up-and-coming rock band as he accompanies it on their concert tour.

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Amadeus (1984)

The incredible story of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, told in flashback mode by Antonio Salieri - now confined to an insane asylum.

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And the Ship Sails On (1983)

In July 1914 a luxury liner leaves Italy with the ashes of the famous opera singer Tetua. The boat is filled with her friends...

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August Rush (2007)

A drama with fairy tale elements, where an orphaned musical prodigy uses his gift as a clue to finding his birth parents.

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Autumn Sonata (1978)

After having neglected her children for many years, world famous pianist Charlotte visits her daughter Eva in her home...

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Babette's Feast (1987)

In 19th century Denmark, two adult sisters live in an isolated village with their father, who is the honored pastor of a small Protestant church that is almost a sect unto itself...

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The Band's Visit (2007)

A band comprised of members of the Egyptian police force head to Israel to play at the inaugural ceremony of an Arab arts center, only to find themselves lost in the wrong town.

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Billy Elliot (2000)

A talented young boy becomes torn between his unexpected love of dance and the disintegration of his family.

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Black Orpheus (1959)

A retelling of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth, set during the time of the Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro.

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The Bodyguard (1992)

A former Secret Service agent takes on the job of bodyguard to a pop singer, whose lifestyle is most unlike a President's.

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The Burmese Harp (1956)

In the War's closing days, when a conscience-driven Japanese soldier fails to get his countrymen to surrender to overwhelming force, he adopts the lifestyle of a Buddhist monk.

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Cadillac Records (2008)

Chronicles the rise of Chess Records and its recording artists.

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Center Stage (2000)

A group of 12 teenagers from various backgrounds enroll at the American Ballet Academy in New York to make it as ballet dancers and each one deals with the problems and stress of training and getting ahead in the world of dance.

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The Chorus (2004)

The new teacher at a severely administered boys' boarding school works to positively effect the students' lives through music.

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Chuck Jones: Extremes and In-Betweens - A Life in Animation (2000)

The life and works of a legendary animator.

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Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962)

This movie shows us Cléo, a French singer, who is afraid of getting the result of of a test from her doctor...

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Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)

Biography of Loretta Lynn, a country and western singer that came from poverty to fame.

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The Commitments (1991)

The travails of Jimmy Rabbitte to form the ''World's Hardest Working Band,'' The Commitments, and bring soul music to the people of Dublin, Ireland.

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Control (2007)

A profile of Ian Curtis, the enigmatic singer of Joy Division whose personal, professional, and romantic troubles led him to commit suicide at the age of 23.

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Country Strong (2010)

A rising country-music songwriter works with a fallen star to work their way fame, causing romantic complications along the way.

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Coyote Ugly (2000)

Aspiring songwriter Violet Sanford, after getting a job at a women-run NYC bar that teases its male patrons, comes out of her shell.

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Crazy Heart (2009)

A faded country music musician is forced to reassess his dysfunctional life during a doomed romance that also inspires him.

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Departures (2008)

A newly unemployed cellist takes a job preparing the dead for funerals.

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Dirty Dancing (1987)

Spending the summer in a holiday camp with her family, Frances ('Baby') falls in love with the camp's dancing teacher.

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The Double Life of Veronique (1991)

Veronika lives in Poland. Veronique lives in Paris. They don't know each other. Veronika gets a place in a music school...

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Dreamgirls (2006)

Based on the Broadway musical, a trio of black female soul singers cross over to the pop charts in the early 1960's.

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Duets (2000)

A professional karaoke hustler reconnects with his daughter and a bored suburban businessman turns outlaw karaoke singer, among other plotlines.

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Eight Mile (2002)

A young rapper, struggling with every aspect of his life, wants to make the most of what could be his final opportunity but his problems around gives him doubts.

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Empire Records (1995)

The employees of an independent music store learn about each other as they try anything to stop the store being absorbed by a large chain.

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Fame (1980)

A chronicle of the lives of several teenagers who attend a New York high school for students gifted in the performing arts.

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Farewell My Concubine (1993)

The story of two men, who met as apprentices in the Peking Opera, and stayed friends for over 50 years.

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Fitzcarraldo (1982)

The story of Brian Sweeney Fitzgerald, an extremely determined man who intends to build an opera house in the middle of a jungle.

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Flashdance (1983)

A Pittsburgh woman with two jobs as a welder and an exotic dancer wants to get into ballet school.

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Footloose (1984)

A city boy comes to a small town where rock music and dancing have been banned.

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Footloose (2011)

City kid Ren MacCormack moves to a small town where rock 'n' roll and dancing have been banned, and his rebellious spirit shakes up the populace.

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The Full Monty (1997)

Six unemployed steel workers form a male striptease act. The women cheer them on to go for ''the full monty'' - total nudity.

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Going My Way (1944)

A new priest shows up at the parish of a crusty old priest named Father Fitzgibbon. The new man, Father O'Malley...

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Hanna Montana: The Movie (2009)

As Hannah Montana's popularity begins to take over her life, Miley Stewart, on the urging from her father takes a trip to her hometown of Crowley Corners, Tennessee to get some perspective on what matters in life the most.

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The Harder They Come (1972)

Wishing to become a successful Reggae singer, a young Jamaican man finds himself tied to corrupt record producers and drug pushers.

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Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001)

A transexual punk rock girl from East Berlin tours the US with her rock band as she tells her life story and follows the ex-boyfriend/bandmate who stole her songs.

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High Fidelity (2000)

Rob, a record store owner and compulsive list maker, recounts his top five breakups, including the one in progress.

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Hustle & Flow (2005)

With help from his friends, a Memphis pimp in a mid-life crisis attempts to become a successful hip-hop emcee.

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I'm Still Here (2010)

Documenting Joaquin Phoenix's transition from the acting world to a career as an aspiring rapper.

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Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

A week in the life of a young singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961.

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It's All Gone Pete Tong (2004)

Former musician Frankie Wilde is a legend within the Ibiza club scene for being the most inspired DJ around...

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The Jazz Singer (1927)

The son of a Jewish Cantor must defy his father in order to pursue his dream of becoming a jazz singer.

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Jubilee (1978)

Queen Elizabeth I travels to late twentieth-century Britain to discover a tawdry and depressing landscape where life mostly seems aimless and is anyway held cheap...

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Kinky Boots (2005)

A drag queen comes to the rescue of a man who, after inheriting his father's shoe factory, needs to diversify his product if he wants to keep the business afloat.

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Kolya (1996)

Franta Louka is a concert cellist in Soviet-occupied Czechoslovakia, a confirmed bachelor and a lady's man...

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La Vie en Rose (2007)

The life story of singer Édith Piaf.

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The Last Days of Disco (1998)

Story of two female Manhattan book editors fresh out of college, both finding love and themselves while frequenting the local disco.

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A Late Quartet (2012)

Members of a world-renowned string quartet struggle to stay together in the face of death, competing egos and insuppressible lust.

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Legend of 1900 (1998)

Shortly after the Second World War, Max, a transplanted American, visits an English pawn shop to sell his trumpet. The shopkeeper recognizes the tune Max plays as one on a wax master of an ...

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Limelight (1952)

A fading comedian and a suicidally despondent ballet dancer must look to each other to find meaning and hope in their lives.

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Mr. Holland's Opus (1995)

A frustrated composer finds fulfillment as a high school music teacher.

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Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005)

Laura Henderson buys an old London theater and opens it up as the Windmill, a performance hall which goes down in history for, among other things, its all-nude revues.

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Nashville (1975)

Over the course of a few hectic days, numerous interrelated individuals prepare for a political convention as secrets and lies are surfaced and revealed.

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Notorious (2009)

The life and death story of Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace), who came straight out of Brooklyn to take the world of rap music by storm.

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Once (2006)

A modern-day musical about a busker and an immigrant and their eventful week in Dublin, as they write, rehearse and record songs that tell their love story.

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The Piano Teacher (2001)

A young man romantically pursues his masochistic piano teacher.

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Pinocchio (1940)

A living puppet, with the help of a cricket as his conscience, must prove himself worthy to become a real boy.

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Pirate Radio (a.k.a. The Boat That Rocked) (2009)

A period comedy about an illegal radio station in the North Sea in the 1960s.

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A Prairie Home Companion (2006)

A look at what goes on backstage during the last broadcast of America's most celebrated radio show, where singing cowboys Dusty and Lefty, a country music siren, and a host of others hold court.

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The Proud Valley (1940)

In a Welsh coal mining valley, a young man with a beautiful singing voice is called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice when a pit disaster threatens.

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Quai des Orfevres (1947)

Jenny Lamour wants to succeed in music hall. Her husband and accompanist is Maurice Martineau, a nice but jealous guy...

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Ray (2004)

The life and career of the legendary popular music pianist, Ray Charles.

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The Red Shoes (1948)

A young ballet dancer is torn between the man she loves and her pursuit to become a prima ballerina.

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The Red Violin (1998)

A perfect red-colored violin inspires passion, making its way through three centuries over several owners and countries, eventually ending up at an auction where it may find a new owner.

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The Ruling Class (1972)

A member of the House of Lords dies in a shockingly silly way, leaving his estate to his son. Unfortunately...

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The Runaways (2010)

A coming-of-age biopic about '70s teenage band The Runaways.

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Saturday Night Fever (1977)

A Brooklyn youth feels his only chance to get somewhere is as the king of the disco floor.

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Saving Mr. Banks (2013)

Author P.L. Travers reflects on her childhood after reluctantly meeting with Walt Disney , who seeks to adapt her Mary Poppins books for the big screen.

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Shall We Dance? (1996)

A successful but unhappy Japanese accountant finds the missing passion in his life when he begins to secretly take ballroom dance lessons.

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Shine (1996)

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.

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The Soloist (2009)

A Los Angeles journalist befriends a homeless Julliard-trained musician, while looking for a new article for the paper.

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Sparkle (2012)

Set in the 1960s, three sisters form girl group and soon become local sensations with major label interest, but fame becomes a challenge as the close-knit family begins to fall apart.

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A Star is Born (1976)

A has-been rock star falls in love with a young, up-and-coming songstress.

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Step Up (2006)

Tyler Gage receives the opportunity of a lifetime after vandalizing a performing arts school, gaining him the chance to earn a scholarship and dance with an up and coming dancer, Nora.

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Step Up 2: The Streets (2008)

Romantic sparks occur between two dance students from different backgrounds at the Maryland School of the Arts.

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Step Up 3 (2010)

A tight-knit group of New York City street dancers,find themselves pitted against the world's best hip hop dancers in a high-stakes showdown.

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Step Up 4: Revolution (2012)

Emily arrives in Miami with aspirations to become a professional dancer. She sparks with Sean, the leader of a dance crew whose neighborhood is threatened by Emily's father's development plans.

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Swing Kids (1993)

The story of a close-knit group of young kids in Nazi Germany who listen to banned swing music from the US...

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Take the Lead (2006)

The real story of a dance teacher who believed in the talent of a group of problem kids.

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The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)

In late 1950's New York, Tom Ripley, a young underachiever, is sent to Europe to retrieve a rich and spoiled millionaire playboy, named Dickie Greenleaf. But when the errand fails, Ripley takes extreme measures.

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Talk to Me (2007)

The story of Washington D.C. radio personality Ralph ''Petey'' Greene, an ex-con who became a popular talk show host and community activist in the 1960s.

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Tender Mercies (1983)

A broken-down, middle-aged country singer gets a new wife, reaches out to his long-lost daughter, and tries to put his troubled life back together.

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Three Colors: Blue (1993)

First of a trilogy of films dealing with contemporary French society concerns how the wife of a composer deals with the death of her husband and child.

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Topsy-Turvy (1999)

After Gilbert and Sullivan's latest play is critically panned, the frustrated team threatens to disband until it is inspired to write the masterpiece ''The Mikado.''

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Valley of the Dolls (1967)

Film version of Jacqueline Susann's best-selling novel chronicling the rise and fall of three young ladies in show business.

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Variety Lights (1950)

A beautiful but ambitious young woman joins a traveling troupe of third-rate vaudevillians and inadvertently causes jealousy and emotional crises.

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The Visitor (2007)

A college professor travels to New York City to attend a conference and finds a young couple living in his apartment.

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Walk the Line (2005)

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.

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What's Love Got to Do with It (1993)

A film about the singer Tina Turner and how she rose to stardom with her abusive husband Ike Turner and how she gained the courage to break free.

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Whisper of the Heart (1995)

A young girl finds that all the books she chooses in the library have been previously checked out by the same boy. Later she meets a very infuriating fellow...

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Yi Yi: A One and a Two... (2000)

Each member of a family in Taipei asks hard questions about life's meaning as they live through everyday quandaries...

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Zatoichi (2003)

The blind masseur/swordsman comes to a town in control of warring gangs, and while bunking with a farming family, he meets two women with their own agenda.

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