The MoFo Top 100 Musicals Countdown

@Sedai remember to get your 90s in on time. Especially if I am participating.

I will most certainly get that list in!

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Will I need to send a reminder message?

Probably!

A comedy funnier than a non comedy? I don't believe you.

Yes, Singin' in the Rain is a comedy romance musical and An American in Paris is a drama romance musical. Thank you for clarifying genre characteristics without responding to the question in a non flippant way.

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Top 100 Films, clicky below

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I'm sure there's an Honest Trailer out there for The Wizard of Oz, which is a funny video series that repackages films out of context or views them in a different way than intended.

I wasn't the person you asked about that.

I'm firmly in the "those of us who hate them." category.

For me, I don't care about the quality of the film. I can love a great film and appreciate all its technical aspect, acting, script, use of colour, sound editing etc or I can hate a great film even if it excels in all those areas. Do I like it? Do I enjoy it? That's the difference for me between a great film and a crap one.

I don't like musicals, so beautiful musicals, such as The Red Shoes for example (if that can be included) look spectacular and you can take almost any frame from that film and put it on the wall as a work of art. But... Well, you know how I feel about 17 minutes dance sections. Whereas Xanadu is... Well it's Xanadu isn't it? But I love the 70's, I love the look and aesthetic of the film and you've got ELO who I like in a disco mode. Do I love that film? No. God no. Do I like it more than The Red Shoes? Yes. Will I watch it rather than The Red Shoes? Yes. Therefore it's better than The Red Shoes, despite the quality of both films.

Yes, it's the correct order and I'm so pleased about that. I really don't like The Wizard Of Oz and do like Singin' (most of the time. There are times when I just can't because it's too dancey and Donald O'Connor has a very annoying face.)

Honestly, when someone says musicals I think of Singin' In The Rain as the apex of that genre. Now, usually I'd make a joke about how that isn't very hard because it's like being the least smelly turd, but Singin' really is just a very good film and a film about a monumental time in Hollywood which, as a film fan, I naturally have an interest in, even if it's not necessary to enjoy the film. But having a story which I like is a big part of why I like it so much more than most musicals and why I had it at #3 on my list. I did think about putting it higher because it is the musical, IMO and I wanted to do right by the people who really wanted this countdown. But then I thought, sod it, it's my list and I'd rather watch Hedwig or Everyone Says I Love You (for very different reasons) so it took #3 because, as much as I love The Doors, I don't really see it as a musical.

Thank you to @Thursday Next for being a great and gracious host (and allowing me to have The Wicker Man on appeal, even if it didn't end up being a 1 pointer) and everyone else for helping out and taking part.

Now, as is tradition, I will reveal what the top 25 should've looked like. Although I'll admit that they're not in the 'real' order because The Wicker Man should be a lot higher because it's great. The ones which didn't make it are bolded and you might see a pattern emerging there among a number/all of them.

1. Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001)
2. Everyone Says I Love You (1996)
3. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
4. The Doors (1991)
5. Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
6. Moulin Rouge! (2001)
7. The Apple (1980)
8. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)
9. Duck Soup (1933)
10. Chicago (2002)
11. Repo! The Genetic Opera (2008)
12. Earth Girls Are Easy (1988)
13. Voyage of the Rock Aliens (1984)
14. Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
15. Fame (1980)
16. Xanadu (1980)
17. Grease (1978)
18. Rock 'n' Roll High School (1979)
19. 42nd Street (1933)
20. Phantom of the Paradise (1974)
21. The Lion King (1994)
22. Burlesque (2010)
23. Hair (1979)
24. Tommy (1975)
25. The Wicker Man (1973)

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5-time MoFo Award winner.

I completely forgot about RRR. It would’ve been very high on my list.

I’m also perplexed it’s not categorized as such on IMDb or Letterboxd. That’s also why I missed it when I looked through what to vote for.*

Granted, it’s many many genres and musical may not be the main genre. But it sure has both singing and dancing several times in the movie. So it counts and I would’ve voted for it. Dammit.

Americans often find comedy movies more appealing than dramas due to their ability to provide escapism and stress relief. Comedy films offer lighthearted, humorous experiences that allow audiences, cinephiles or otherwise, to forget their worries and enjoy an escapist laugh. In contrast, dramas, even romantic dramas such as An American in Paris, often tackle heavier themes and emotions, which can be emotionally taxing and don't naturally inspire repeat viewings. Comedy's universal appeal makes it widely relatable and entertaining, and the comedy on display in Singin' in the Rain largely does not date from generation to generation.

For example, Donald O'Connor's rightly famous "Make 'Em Laugh" number has the kind of physical comedy coupled with divine timing that has pleased audiences from Vaudeville through "America's Funniest Home Videos". The 17-minute ballet sequence that is the climax of An American in Paris, while technically marvelous, is not anywhere near as narratively satisfying as the comical foil Lina Lamont getting her just deserts in Singin' in the Rain's finale. It is a stand-up and cheer moment that boldly underlines all the fun that preceded it, leading to a natural feeling that brings repeat viewings and passing down from generation to generation. An American in Paris is pretty, but does not give the same kind of communal joy that the lighter tale does in spades.

Ballet is a classical dance form with roots in the Renaissance courts of Italy and France, and while it has long been celebrated in Europe for its elegance, precision, and artistry, here in the United States ballet often struggles to attract large, mainstream audiences. While the artform enjoys a dedicated following among a specific demographic, it has not gained the widespread popularity that other cultural performances, such as Broadway musicals or modern dance, have achieved, even when included in a popular entertainment like An American in Paris. There are likely several reasons why American audiences, on the whole, seem to shy away from ballet, including cultural preferences, the perceived exclusivity of ballet, its historical context, and the rise of more contemporary performance genres.

One of the most significant barriers to ballet’s popularity in the U.S. is a cultural preference for more accessible, relatable forms of entertainment. Ballet, with its long traditions, intricate technique, and often abstract narratives, is seen as distant from the everyday experiences of most Americans. In contrast to the musical theater or film industry, which produce stories and characters that resonate with a broad audience, ballet often relies on themes from myth, classical literature, or historical events that may not feel immediately relevant to modern American life.

Moreover, ballet’s silent performance style—where the dancers express emotion through movement rather than spoken word—can make it difficult for some viewers, especially those unfamiliar with the form, to connect with the narrative or emotional undertones of the performance. Ballet’s reliance on universal yet stylized forms of expression often feels inaccessible to the casual audience. For American audiences, who are accustomed to more direct forms of communication in entertainment, ballet can seem out of reach or overly formal. But as another example, "Moses Supposes" is sustained joy and rhyming wordplay that is infectiously amusing.


In summation: Singin' in the Rain is a billion times funnier and more fun. Like I said much more succinctly the first time.

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"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra

My list…..

Musicals aren’t really my thing though I like a few. So my list is what it is.

1. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
2. Corpse Bride (2005)
3. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
4. The Lion King (1994)
5. Grease (1978)
6. The Sound of Music (1965)
7. tick, tick...BOOM! (2021)
8. Coco (2017)
9. La La Land (2016)
10. Beauty and the Beast (1991)
11. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
12. Annie (1982)
13. The Little Mermaid (1989)
14. The Greatest Showman (2017)
15. Dancer in the Dark (2000)
16. Aladdin (1992)
17. Frozen (2013)
18. West Side Story (1961)
19. Hercules (1997)
20. High School Musical 2 (2007)

IMDB and Letterboxd are not very helpful when it comes to genre tags. After being frustrated with both while writing the noir and neo-noir ballots, I just went 100% from memory this time.

Anyway, RRR should totally be labeled as a musical. My guess is that since it's Indian and nearly all Bollywood and Tollywood movies have song and dance, they deemed it redundant. Not to us ballot writers, dammit!

Agreed. Singin' in the Rain is a film you can enjoy in a more "brain off" mode ("And I can't stannim!"), or with an eye to technical appreciation.

An American in Paris features incredible techniques, but it's not a "brain off" film by any means.

And that's not an insult, but the combination of excellence and accessibility makes Singin' in the Rain something special and definitely is why it has much broader appeal. I would show Singin' in the Rain to someone who isn't really into dance, because it's got so much else going on.

I also forgot to thank Thief and Holden Pike for their invaluable contributions. Thanks guys!

I was also thinking about Bollywood films a bit when writing my Wicker Man write-up on, "why The Wicker Man's musical numbers require my mind to go into the musical mindset more than say, a musical number in a western, such as Rio Bravo," and I think genre expectation plays a lot to it. I did wonder, in one sense, shouldn't the bulk of what we think of as Bollywood films (okay, I know RRR is actually Tollywood) qualify as musicals since song and dance numbers are prevalent in all of them? And I guess, the answer is, "maybe." I think we just take those performances for granted which keeps them from registering as musicals in our minds (at least in the minds of many westerners).

But maybe I'm way off.

This is the newest addition to my Funko Pop collection. I just got it today.

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If I answer a game thread correctly, just skip my turn and continue with the game.
OPEN FLOOR.

My mother-in-law lives in an assisted living, and they have a movie theater in the building for the residents. There are movie posters all over the theater walls, and in the hallway just outside the theater doors. (They are the same posters all the time, regardless of what movie is showing each day.)

We were walking past the movie theater today, and I noticed these are the two posters just outside the theater:

Dude, that's f'in awesome! Love it!

Can we just skip to the part where Heat and Goodfellas are 1 and 2 in either order, I let out an historic frustrated sigh, and then move on to another countdown?

I agree.
I actually really wish that "Movies In Which Music is PERFORMED" had been a separate Countdown, I would have had such a different list.