You've just screeched out the lyrics to “What Is This Feeling?” and finished bawling your eyes out while listening to “Defying Gravity.” You were one of the hundreds that went to the movie theaters to watch Wicked,starring Cynthia Erivo as green gal Elphaba and Ariana Grande as her popular counterpart Glinda, directed by John M. Chu (In the Heights, Crazy Rich Asians). And you may have even dressed up in costume for the occasion.
Now, what's next? You may have a red-slippered-sized hole in your heart afterWicked, desperate to fill it in with more movie-musical magic. While there were so many live-action movie-musicals to choose from (and animated movie-musicals, too), we feel that these seven will do just the trick and cast a spell on you:
1. Funny Girl
Who has pipes that can rival those of Cynthia Erivo's and Ariana Grande's combined? There's only one answer: Barbra Streisand. And which movie musical has songs as vocally challenging as “Defying Gravity”? Why, Funny Girl starring Streisand, of course!
With a romance at its crux as passionate and as ill-fated as Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey) and Elphaba's inWickedand powerful ballads to match,Funny Girlis a great movie musical to sing your heart out to once you've recovered from belting “Popular” in theaters.Plus,Funny Girlis extra juicy, as it is based on the true (and slightly hyperbolized) story of comedienne Fanny Brice and her scandalous relationship with noted scoundrel, Nicky Arnstein.
Tomatometer:94%
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video
2. Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical
Part of what has madeWicked the musical such a phenomenon since it first hit Broadway in 2003 with Idina Menzel in the pointy black hat and Kristen Chenoweth floating down in the bubble was how delightfully zany its overarching premise was while keeping its humanity intact. Two budding witches going from being rivals to besties to frenemies, all before Dorothy flies into Oz with Toto in hand? Sure, why not! And if it's vibrant wackiness like that which you seek, thenRoald Dahl's Matilda the Musicalwill surely scratch that itch.
Matilda the Musical, which follows the exact opposite trajectory of Wicked(going from book to screen to musical, rather than book to musical to screen), is kooky in its set design, choreography, and plot while also being mesmerizing in its reverberating motif that being different is actually cool. Even though its titular protagonist (played by Alisha Weir) is a wee bit younger than Glinda and Elphaba, we promise that she's got enough spunk and supernatural ability to go toe to toe with both of Oz's It Girls.
Tomatometer:93%
Where to Watch: Netflix
3. Little Shop of Horrors
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there is no baddie in movie-musical history as iconic as Audrey II (sorry to the Wicked Witch of the West)! Audrey II, the antagonist of Little Shop of Horrors, is a sentient alien plant that is somewhat of a cross between an earthly Venus Flytrap and a Butterwort, voiced by Motown legend Levi Stubbs, who calls herself the “Mean Green Motha from Outer Space.”
Instead of using flying monkeys to do her evil bidding like that other mean green lady, she puppeteers a gawky guy (Seymour Krelborn, played to a tee by Rick Moranis) to feed her flesh. (Again, iconic!)We hate to pit two queens against each other, but when it comes to being a villainess, Audrey II has got this one in the bag. (Or, more aptly, the pot.)
Tomatometer:91%
Where to Watch: YouTube TV
4. Hairspray
Is there a movie musical out there as saccharine and sparkly as Wicked,with as many campy costumes and over-the-top characters,andan overt message about the ugliness of bigotry and the beauty of tolerance? Why yes, yes there is: Look no further than 2007'sHairspray, which features a bubbly John Travolta in a dress and a bump-it, among other joyous visuals.
Plus, there isn't a cast as star-studded as this movie-musical (no, not even Wickedcan compete). On the bill are Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, Queen Latifah, Brittany Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, and Nikki Blonsky, giving their 200% to this film with their performing chops. After getting into Hairspray, you really won't be able to “stop the beat.”
Tomatometer:92%
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video
5. Phantom of the Paradise
Phantom of the Opera? Overdone, overplayed — and if you've just sat through two hours and 40 minutes of John M. Chu's Wickedadaptation at the movies, you've definitely seen the aforementioned film based on one of the most well-known musicals of all time.
But I bet you (probably) haven't seen Phantom of the Opera'sgritty rock horror cousin,Phantom of the Paradise. Directed by Brian de Palma (ofCarrie, Carlito's Way, Scarface,andMission: Impossiblefame),Phantom of the Paradiseis campy, and scary, and saucy, and spooky. It may be wildly different in tone than Wicked — at least Part 1, anyway — but you'll leave your viewing of Phantom of the Paradise feeling just as entranced. Rock on.
Tomatometer:82%
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video
6. The Young Girls of Rochefort
The first part ofWicked, before the stage musical's intermission and director John M. Chu's sequel, is all about how Glinda and Elphaba are sisters from another mister— they're twin flames (until, well, they're not— but that's a story for another musical-movie). If you were entranced by the many duets betweenWicked'sco-protagonists (portrayed by Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo), then you'll no doubt have a blast watching the charming and chic Les Demoiselles de Rochefort.
But, fair warning? Watching this movie-musical may give you the travel bug and give you the unrelenting urge to fly to France.
60s psychedelic Parisian outfits, dizzying dance numbers, and real-life sisters playing fraternal twins (Catherine Denevue as Delphine Garnier and Françoise Dorléac as Solange Garnier), plus a memorable Gene Kelly bit, made this an international and domestic success, transcending language barriers.
Tomatometer: 98%
Where to Watch: Max
7. The Entire High School Musical Trilogy
Before Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens were A-list stars, they were singing and dancing their hearts out in the hallways of East High in Albuquerque (and probably dribbling a basketball at the same time). The Kenny Ortega-directed musical film franchise of the mid-aughts is chockfull of catchy tunes, flamboyant costuming, and a sweet star-crossed lovers storyline that rendered the trilogy for tweens something of a cult classic.
So we couldn't choose just one of theHigh School Musicalflicks for you to watch — you're going to have to jump into all three! As Hudgen's croons to her future beau during a fateful New Years singalong, “this could be the start of something new!” (But don't blame us when you can't get the soundtracks out of your head for, uh, the rest of your life.)
Tomatometer: 67%/83%/64%
Where to Watch: Disney+
