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Great films where music is a central theme.

I'm a film lover for as long as I can remember. There's nothing like a film that combines my passion for music and film. I'm going to leave out concert films from this, as there are plenty of threads on that. Lets stick to other films - dramas or documentaries - that use music as a central theme, or have it as a key element in the narrative. Here are a few of my own favorites to get the ball rolling.

As it is in Heaven
The Bands Visit
Schultze Gets the Blues
Troubled Water (the Erik Poppe film)
Sweet and Lowdown
Bird
'Round Midnight
I'm Not Here

Documentaries:

Throw Down Your Heart
The Devil and Daniel Johnston
Lets Get Close (Bruce Weber)
Buena Vista Social Club
Bob Dylan: Don't Look Back
Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man

So it's really could be split into two threads; Narative films and Documentaries. But lets try leaving it open to both, just no concert films. What are some of your favorites?
jax2
tbromgard
814 posts
 
Red Violin
jax2 OP
3,031 posts
 
Ah, now great soundtracks are the subject for a whole other thread and that's not what I was getting at. Sorry if that wasn't clear. What I'm looking for are either narative films (dramas) where music is a central theme of the narative, or plays a central roll in the actual story itself. Or documentary films about music/musicmakers.

So films like When Harry Met Sally, and the Vin Diesel film, might have a great soundtrack, but it is not what I'm asking for here because music does not have any substantial part of the story (actually I haven't seen the Vin Diesel film, but going on a hunch). Whereas a film like, The Commitments, is a story around the theme of music making, and your other great suggestion, Oh Brother Where Art Thou, has the central characters playing in a band, and where that genre of music has a big roll throughout that film.

I think there's a "Great Soundtracks" thread somewhere in the archives where those suggestions would be appropriate. Again, sorry If my OP was not clear.
tan43
128 posts
 
With me it is no contest. Schindler's list.
calbrs03
184 posts
 
Twenty-Four Hour Party People
Almost Famous
The Red Shoes
waltersalas's avatar
waltersalas
943 posts
 

Goodfellas

Dazed and Confused

The Big Chill

Five Easy Pieces

Almost Famous (or most any Cameron Crowe film, going all the way back to Fast Times at Ridgemont High)

Note: I don't know if any of these except Five Easy Pieces and Goodfellas qualify as "great films," but the music is certainly central to them all.
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