The best movies featuring musicians to stream right now
LADY Gaga shines in A Star is Born, but she’s not the only pop star who’s proven they can act. Here are five other musicians who nailed the jump from microphone to movie screen.
THE release in cinemas of the sure-fire hit remake of A Star is Born will have everyone raving about the authentic acting of pop diva Lady Gaga. Here are five other musicians who have landed the jump from microphone to movie screen.
ONE OF THE TRULY GREAT MOVIE EXPERIENCES OF 2018
8 MILE (2002) ***1/2
Netflix, Amazon
Former chart-topping hellraiser Eminem acquits himself very well in this pseudo-autobiographical take on his early days as a wannabe rapper from the wrong side of the tracks. The classy direction of Curtis Hanson (LA Confidential) filters elements of Rocky, Saturday Night Fever and Purple Rain through the Eminem’s own mythical public image for an authentically gritty result. Co-stars Brittany Murphy.
THE SOCIAL NETWORK (2010) *****
Foxtel Now, Stan
Singer Justin Timberlake remains the unsung hero of this masterful, contentious biopic of Facebook web tycoon Mark Zuckerberg. Timberlake steps effortlessly inside the shoes of Sean Parker, a co-founder of Napster never short on overconfident moves or underhand tactics. The movie itself is as relevant as ever, with its eerily accurate commentary on the ever-widening gap between the online world and the real world.
HIDDEN FIGURES (2016) ***1/2
Foxtel Now
One of the most influential singer-songwriters (and style influencers) in the world right now, Janelle Monae can also hold her own as a charismatic actor in a manner so many of her peers cannot. She is a standout here in the riveting true story of a group of black female mathematicians employed by NASA during the crucial pre-Apollo years of the US space program. A lively, illuminating great all-ages experience.
MOONSTRUCK (1987) ****
Foxtel Now, Stan
Best performance ever by a musician transitioning from recording studio to silver screen? The incomparable Cher would have to go close here. She won a Best Actress Oscar for her flawless portrayal of an Italian-American wallflower sick and tired of waiting for her mamma’s boy fiance (Danny Aiello) to walk her down the aisle. Once our heroine finds solace in the embrace of a brother-in-law-to-be (a young Nicolas Cage), all hell breaks loose.
FIGHT CLUB (1999) ****
Foxtel Now, Amazon
Sadly, what happened at the 2011 AFL Grand Final didn’t stay at the 2011 AFL Grand Final for the once-all-conquering Meat Loaf. However, the burly belter has enough fine notches on his acting belt to argue he shouldn’t just be remembered for his nadir as a song butcher. Mr Loaf was never better on screen than as the ill-fated, big-hearted Bob Paulson, the only warm character in a cold, cold movie.
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Originally published as The best movies featuring musicians to stream right now