100 Film Musicals
Editor: Jim Hillier & Douglas Pye
As you probably guess by the titles of these books the BFI are publishing you get an authors choice of 100 recommended films in a certain genre. Usually it is not just the crème of the crop, but also films that offer variety in the exploration of the genre.
This time round it is the Musical. 100 films were selected and each have a short section within the book that go into further detail. So if you are a fan of Audrey Hepburn, or Roger and Hammerstein, or Bollywood, or some of the big Oscar winners, or the golden classics, or the modern updates, or even high School musical – then the choices here are a perfect fit.
It isn’t all singing, there is dancing too which is identified as an important part of the genre as many of the classics attest to. But there is also recognition of the pop and rock star (Step up Elvis and even Saturday Night Fever). The list then also defines the singing, but also just the music in complied score/pop song form as also justifiable.
Steven Hurst