10 Most Successful Musical Films of All Time

If you’re having trouble choosing a good movie to watch in the musical genre, the 10 most successful musical films of all time will certainly provide some good ideas.

Music breathes life into a movie, and in the case of a musical, it plays an extremely significant role in the film’s success. As the character breaks into song, so does the audience, tapping their feet along with the performers on the big screen. The experience that a musical film brings is like no other.

Some musical artists also dabble in this genre of movies, using their talents as singers to enhance the value of a musical film. For instance, Elvis Presley, one of the 10 most successful musical artists of all time, in addition to his thriving music career, acted in a number of musicals as well, Jailhouse Rock being the most well-known.

1024px-Liza_Minnelli_Cabaret_1972_crop

The success of a movie these days is measured by the amount of money it brings into the box office. We, however, did not use that as a basis to compile our list, for if we did, all time classics like Singin’ in the Rain and West Side Story would be excluded, and frankly, that would just be blasphemy in the eyes of a film enthusiast. So we decided to rank the movies a little bit differently. We took Moviefone’s 50 best movie musicals ever made (live action only) as our starting point and arranged them using three criteria: the critic rating and the audience rating as per Rotten Tomatoes, and the number of award nominations received by each movie. We only considered nominations from major forums though, namely the Academy Awards and the Golden Globe Awards. Combining the ranking as per all three criteria, we came up with the following list of 10 most successful musical films of all time. In case of a tie, we gave preference to the critic score.

10. The Sound of Music (1965)

Critic Rating: 86%

Audience Rating: 91%

This insanely popular musical, with Julie Andrews starring as an exuberant governess to the children of a widowed Naval officer, was the highest grossing film in the year of its release. Furthermore, it was granted ten nominations at the 38th Academy Awards and swept the ceremony with its victories, bagging the Best Picture as well as the Best Director award. Its commercial success coupled with its success in the awards category made it a film that will certainly pass the test of time.

9. The Music Man (1962)

Critic Rating: 94%

Audience Rating: 85%

The Music Man, one of the movies added to the National Film Registry in the year 2005, is based on a Broadway musical of the same name. Robert Preston charmed in his role of a con man. However, it was the efforts of the whole team that the movie was presented with six Academy Award nominations, an indication of how well it was received by critics. The one it won was for Best Music. It also has in its name the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture in the musical category.

8. The King and I (1956)

Critic Rating: 96%

Audience Rating: 83%

Yet another musical about a governess, The King and I features Deborah Kerr as a widowed schoolteacher who is appointed as a tutor for the children of the King of Siam. The performance of Yul Brynner as the King was highly praised and earned him an Oscar. In totality, the film was nominated for nine Oscars and four Golden Globes.

7. The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Critic Rating: 99%

Audience Rating: 89%

A classic in every sense of the word, The Wizard of Oz is considered to be one of the best films to ever grace the big screen. The book by L. Frank Baum has had numerous adaptations, but none as successful as this 1939 movie. Judy Garland’s portrayal of Dorothy earned her an Academy Juvenile Award, a great honor for aspiring actors under the age of eighteen. The well-executed tale of a magical land along with the mesmerizing songs make the movie one of the 10 most successful musical films of all time.

6. Top Hat (1935)

Critic Rating: 100%

Audience Rating: 91%

A list of musical movies without one of Fred Astaire’s masterpieces is quite impossible. Astaire and Ginger Rogers have united for various movies, but Top Hat is by far the most successful one. A stage musical has also been made as an adaptation of the original movie.

5. West Side Story (1961)

Critic Rating: 94

Audience Rating: 84

The tragic love story inspired by Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story won an astounding ten Oscars out of the eleven nominations it received, giving it the distinction of the musical film with the most Oscar wins. It also did well at the Golden Globes, with seven nominations, winning three.

4. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)

Critic Rating: 100%

Audience Rating: 95%

We are continuing our list of most successful musical films of all time with this musical starring the legendary Gene Kelly, that shows stars who are used to silent movies and have difficulty adapting to movies with sound. The unique concept along with the wonderful acting has even placed Singin’ in the Rain on the number one spot on the American Film’s Institute list of Greatest Movie Musicals. It also features on other similar lists of the Institute, including 100 Years… 100 Movies.

3. My Fair Lady (1964)

Critic Rating: 96

Audience Rating: 90

The gorgeous Audrey Hepburn and the charming Rex Harrison tantalize in this classic musical, which won the Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor at the 37th Academy Awards. The movie was being considered for a remake in 2008 with Keira Knightley proposed to portray the Hepburn’s character. The idea did not pan out, though.

2. Cabaret (1972)

Critic Rating: 97

Audience Rating: 87

The rise of the Nazi Party is an event that is highly prevalent in the film, propelling critics to comment on the fact that it is one of the only musicals that is not a typical feel-good movie. This unique quality of Cabaret is what made it so successful. It won a total of eight Oscars, establishing a record of the movie that won the most Academy Awards without winning Best Picture.

1. Mary Poppins (1964)

Critic Rating: 100

Audience Rating: 86

And yet again, a movie starring Julie Andrews as a nanny has made its way onto our list of 10 most successful musical films of all time. This time, though, she is no regular nanny, but a magical one. The Disney production certainly deserves its position with the most Academy Award nominations out of all the films on our list. Mary Poppins also earned Julie Andrews an Oscar, a milestone in her career.