100 best music movies of 2019

Once upon a time in Russia, communism fell and Rock 'n' Roll rose to power. One band reigned supreme and toured far and wide across the eastern earth, but never even left Russia - until now. They only have once chance, to not only rule Russia -but to become the best band in the West. The strategy is simple - get on the boat, create an album - and make new friends. All with hopes of finally becoming a household name in the United States. But sometimes fame is harder than just toppling a government.

Leningrad, one summer in the early eighties. Smuggling LP’s by Lou Reed and David Bowie, the underground rock scene is boiling ahead of the Perestroika. Mike and his beautiful wife Natasha meet with young Viktor Tsoï. Together with friends, they will change the destiny of rock’n’roll in the Soviet Union.

Singer Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, drummer Roger Taylor and bass guitarist John Deacon take the music world by storm when they form the rock 'n' roll band Queen in 1970. Hit songs become instant classics. When Mercury's increasingly wild lifestyle starts to spiral out of control, Queen soon faces its greatest challenge yet – finding a way to keep the band together amid the success and excess.

Seasoned musician Jackson Maine discovers — and falls in love with — struggling artist Ally. She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer — until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally's career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.

Annie is stuck in a long-term relationship with Duncan – an obsessive fan of obscure rocker Tucker Crowe. When the acoustic demo of Tucker's hit record from 25 years ago surfaces, its discovery leads to a life-changing encounter with the elusive rocker himself.

Growing up in Texas, Bart Millard suffers physical and emotional abuse at the hands of his father. His childhood and relationship with his dad inspires him to write the hit song "I Can Only Imagine" as singer of the Christian band MercyMe.

A man and a woman meet in the ruins of post-war Poland. With vastly different backgrounds and temperaments, they are fatally mismatched and yet drawn to each other.

After being gone for a decade, a country star returns home to the love he left behind.

When an aspiring rapper goes viral for the wrong reasons, he thinks his career is sunk. But a wild party gives him one more chance to make it right.

Drawn from a never before seen cache of personal footage spanning decades, this is an intimate portrait of the Sri Lankan artist and musician who continues to shatter conventions.

Turo is stuck in a small village and the best thing in his life is being the lead vocalist for the amateur metal band Impaled Rektum. He and his bandmates have practiced for 12 years without playing a single gig. The guys get a surprise visitor from Norway -- the promoter for a huge heavy metal music festival -- and decide it's now or never. They steal a van, a corpse, and even a new drummer to make their dreams a reality.

In the hip Brooklyn neighborhood of Red Hook, single dad and record store owner Frank is preparing to send his hard-working daughter Sam off to college while being forced to close his vintage shop. Hoping to stay connected through their shared musical passions, Frank urges Sam to turn their weekly jam sessions into a father-daughter live act. After their first song becomes an internet breakout, the two embark on a journey of love, growing up and musical discovery.

A famous opera singer is held hostage in South America by a guerrilla rebel group after performing at a Japanese businessman's lavish birthday party. Unexpected bonds are forged in the standoff that ensues.

On the eve of their biggest gig ever, the members of synth-rock band Starfoxy throw a rager that ends with a fan mysteriously dead in the pool.

Muse, the world renowned multi-platinum selling and multi-award winning band, embarked on their ambitious Drones World Tour in 2015-16, playing over 130 dates across the globe. Known for pushing boundaries in terms of their stage production the tour saw the band perform “in the round” from the middle of the arena, with the stage design and configuration giving fans a full 360 degree audio/visual sensory experience.

An in-depth and intimate portrait of Coldplay's spectacular rise from the backrooms of Camden pubs to selling out stadiums across the planet. At the heart of the story is the band's unshakeable brotherhood which has endured through many highs and lows.

Rebellious Ki-soo from North Korea is mesmerized by tap dance in prison camps. Ki-soo joins as a team member of a dance team named ‘Swing Kids’. Yet suddenly, their dreams about dancing in prison camps are put in danger.

Filmmaker Kevin Macdonald examines the life and career of singer Whitney Houston. Features never-before-seen archival footage, exclusive recordings, rare performances and interviews with the people who knew her best.

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A re-imagining of the life and times of Blaze Foley, the unsung songwriting legend of the Texas Outlaw Music movement.

In 1999, teenage sisters Celeste and Eleanor survive a seismic, violent tragedy. The sisters compose and perform a song about their experience, making something lovely and cathartic out of a catastrophe - while also catapulting Celeste to stardom. By 2017, Celeste is a mother to a teenage daughter of her own and is struggling to navigate a career fraught with scandals when another act of terrifying violence demands her attention.

A self-destructive punk rocker struggles with sobriety while trying to recapture the creative inspiration that led her band to success.

A singer in New York gets a grim diagnosis that puts her life and dreams into perspective.

Burn the Stage: The Movie is the first movie from BTS, going behind-the-scenes of the BTS WINGS TOUR to reveal the full story of the band’s meteoric rise to fame. This unmissable cinema event provides an intimate look at what happens when the most successful global boyband of all time breaks down barriers and invades the mainstream music scene. Exclusive tour footage and brand-new one-on-one interviews with BTS members give fans an unprecedented glimpse into their lives and an opportunity for everyone to celebrate together in movie theaters worldwide.

Amalie is the girl who has everything, good looks, money, a boyfriend and a big talent of dancing. One day, her world falls apart and she moves from everything she knows. Then enter Mikael. He is dancing in the streets and Amalie joins him in dancing on the streets, dancing Battles.

A shy teenager living on the Isle of Wight dreams of pop stardom. With the help of an unlikely mentor, she enters a singing competition that will test her integrity, talent, and ambition.

Gloria is a free-spirited divorcée who spends her days at a straight-laced office job and her nights on the dance floor, joyfully letting loose at clubs around Los Angeles. After meeting Arnold on a night out, she finds herself thrust into an unexpected new romance, filled with both the joys of budding love and the complications of dating, identity, and family.

After Nick's girlfriend dumps him, his best mate Shane has the perfect antidote to his break-up blues: three days at an epic music festival.

The last concert of "Grazhdanskaya Oborona", held on February 9, 2008 in Yekaterinburg.

In 1962 England, a young couple finds their idyllic romance colliding with issues of sexual freedom and societal pressure, leading to an awkward and fateful wedding night.

A progressive graduate student finds success and sparks outrage when his interest in battle rap as a thesis subject becomes a competitive obsession.

A woman at rock bottom must find her way across Los Angeles in order to crash her ex-boyfriend's engagement party.

The movie is about the legendary Turkish "soul singer" Müslüm Gürses. Born into a poor family, Muslum found his redemption in music from the initial trauma that lingered over his musical and personal life as internalizing the grief. He rose through his ashes of shattered dreams like a phoenix. He walked in darkness, sang songs filled with sorrow which stirred people's souls and created a cult following. They were calling him "Baba" (The Father).

Adam Sandler takes his comical musical musings back out on the road, from comedy clubs to concert halls to one very unsuspecting subway station.

Laurel, a Chicago-based business executive, travels to Memphis to secure one of the city's oldest family-owned banks. While in Memphis, Laurel reunites with old flame Clay, a local music promoter with loftier aspirations. Though Laurel tries to keep her eye on the prize of the business acquisition, Clay is very persuasive reminding her of the days when they were a performing duo on the brink of stardom. Now Laurel's focus turns to the home of the Blues and dreams of making music again.

The whole life of the recent provincials, and now Muscovite Katie - one continuous selfie with a series of celebrities. Any intrigues for the sake of likes, any exploits in the name of “star instagram” status. But, the number of subscribers is still not enough and for the sake of the cherished goal, she goes to St. Petersburg to take a selfie with a mysterious artist who hides her identity, and thereby blow up the Internet. And at this time at the airport, a respectable stranger asks Katya to hand over the usual envelope to an unknown recipient ...

In 1994, Sarajevo was a city under siege. Mortars and rocket propelled grenades rained onto the city, killing indiscriminately, every day. Amongst the madness, two United Nations personnel: a British military officer and another Brit working for the UN Fire Department, decided it would be fun to persuade a global rock star, Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden, to come and play a gig to the population. Scream for Me Sarajevo brings that story, in all its madness, to the big screen. A story of musicians who risked their lives to play a gig to people who risked their lives to live them.

To become popular and impress his longtime crush, a nerdy teen forms a pop band with his three best buddies, but it causes a rift in their bromance.

Lila, a famous retired singer, loses her memory after suffering an accident, just as she planned her return to the stage.

The real life story of East German singer and writer Gerhard Gundermann and his struggles with music, life as a coal miner and his dealings with the secret police (STASI) of the GDR.

Street dancer Skyler comes out of the shadow of her trained dancer sister, Tosha, & joins a dance competition with the Honey dance studio; the prize is a college scholarship.

Chronicling the beautiful and tragic life and career of Ted Gärdestad, this biopic tells the story of the great highs and lows of one of Sweden's most loved artists.

Puppets! Pixels! Anime! Live action! Stock footage! Lumpennerd Johannes Grenzfurthner gives an ideotaining cinematic revue about important political concepts. Everyone is talking about freedom! Privacy! Identity! Resistance! The Market! The Left! But, yikes, Johannes can't tolerate ignorant and topically abusive comments on the "Internet" anymore! Supported by writer Ishan Raval, in this film, Johannes explains, re-evaluates, and sometimes sacrifices political golden calves of discourse. Not to be used with false consciousness or silicone-based lubricant.

Roger, a Rasputin-like drifter, is in search of the ultimate indie-rock band, The Transcendents. What he finds is less than transcendent: a band who has all but abandoned society, a host of unpleasant memories, and more questions than answers in search of his own existential fulfillment. Set in the Wonderland of America's Do-it-Yourself music scene, The Transcendents is a dark comedic fairytale that straddles the line between the absurd and the all too real.

The journey of a struggling singer 'Fanney Khan' who aspires to make his daughter a big name in the music world.

Two girls grow closer as they practice for their last duet before graduating, a piece called "Liz And The Blue Bird".

Zander Raines, a dazzling and tempestuous young choreographer, gives the break of a lifetime to two hopeful artists when he casts a stunning contemporary dancer, Barlow, and innovative pianist, Charlie, in New York’s most-anticipated new Broadway show: Free Dance. But the move throws off the show’s delicate creative balance when Charlie falls hard for Barlow, while Zander embraces her as his muse.

Brosettes rejoice! Matt and Luke Goss take on the big screen - and each other - in this candid documentary charting the twin pop sensations' stormy reunion.

Yuli is the nickname given to Carlos Acosta by his father, Pedro, who considers him the son of Ogun, an African god and a fighter. As a child Yuli avoids discipline and education, learning from the streets of an impoverished and abandoned Havana. His father, however, has other ideas, and knowing that his son has a natural talent for dance, sends him to the National Ballet School of Cuba. Despite his repeated escapes and initial poor behaviour, the boy is inevitably drawn to the world of dance, and begins to shape his legendary career from a young age, becoming the first black dancer to be cast in some of the most prestigious ballet roles, originally written for white dancers, in companies such as the Houston Ballet or the Royal Ballet in London.

New Zealand’s 4th Most Popular Parody Duo are back for a mutha-uckin’ special concert live at the London Apollo.

In the Philippine remake of the 2014 South Korean film of the same name, an elderly woman in her 70s suddenly finds herself to be in her 20s after having her picture taken in a mysterious photo studio.

An unflinching and deeply personal journey into the life and work of guitarist Eric Clapton told through his own words and songs.

A behind-the-scenes documentary about the recording of Aretha Franklin's best-selling album finally sees the light of day more than four decades after the original footage was shot.

The love of an enchanted young girl brings wonder and healing to a broken family.

A 12 year old boy with a passion for dance and his brother are rescued from the streets by an old showman who takes them to live with his estranged former dancing partner/brother.

A musical drama set in small-town Iowa, SAINTS REST tells the story of two estranged sisters, who over the course of one summer, form a connection through their shared love of music, as they grieve the recent death of their mother.

In the wake of his father’s suicide, young record collector Ollie Sway returns to the family lake house with his friend Nikolai in tow to lay claim to an invaluable jazz recording. An unexpected visit from Ollie’s estranged grandmother and a chance encounter with a girl from across the lake derail their search, forcing them to confront the Sway family history and a suffering that has resounded through generations.

On the day that underground rapper Hak-soo fails his 7th audition, he receives a call from his hometown that his father is in the hospital. But he finds out that it was his father's plot to bring him to Byeon-san. To top it all, he is suspected as a phishing scam criminal and locked up in this small, boring suburb.

Celeste is a renowned opera diva who retired early for the man she loved to live on a crumbling and beautiful estate in the heart of a rainforest in Far North Queensland. Ten years after the tragic death of her husband, Mateos, in a boating accident, Celeste is set to return to the stage for her final performance. Her husband’s son Jack, still haunted by the past, arrives amidst the preparations for the performance and finds Celeste is as he remembered – beautiful, intoxicating and dangerous. Celeste wants Jack to stay at the estate, but needs him to perform one last request.

One was a demon on guitar; the other was fresh out of school and no slouch on harmonica. SATAN & ADAM is a celebration of friendship and the blues comprised of documentary footage shot over the course of two decades.

Gauthier, a young journalist, learns from his mother that he is the illegitimate son of Guy Jamet, a popular French singer whose heyday stretched unevenly from the 1960’s to the nineties. Guy is currently promoting a new album of old material and heads on tour. Armed with a camera, Gauthier decides to follow Guy, recording his daily routine and his concerts to create a documentary portrait.

In 2016, GRAMMY-nominated trio Above & Beyond left the electronic world behind, risking it all to go acoustic. Their new film Above & Beyond Acoustic - Giving Up The Day Job, follows the group's unlikely journey from the DJ booth to the Hollywood Bowl.

At the age of 18, Rudy Love was touring the US with Little Richard. By the 1970s, he was working as a pilot vocalist for The Temptations and Marvin Gaye, his songs were being recorded by Esther Phillips and Isaac Hayes, and he was appearing on records with Ray Charles and Sly Stone. Yet, his solo career and the albums he produced with his Love Family band failed to achieve success, due partially to dodgy record label practices that saw his recordings distributed under the names of other artists. Now, at the age of 70, Rudy Love is beginning to see his work rediscovered by artists including Jay-Z, and is finally achieving the respect he has long deserved.

Explore the vision behind the iconic American jazz record label. Since 1939, Blue Note artists have been encouraged to push creative boundaries in search of uncompromising expressions. Through current recording sessions, rare archive and conversations with iconic Blue Note artists, the film reveals an intimate perspective of a legacy that continues to be vital in today’s political climate.

17-year-old Cyril is funny, smart and an all-round good guy. Just his somewhat overlarge nose spoils the picture. On a school trip to Berlin with Roxy, a stunning new classmate, Cyril is not the only one taken with her. Benno, the class Casanova has his eye on the girl too and makes a nasty wager. Roxy is more interested in the introverted Rick, who is not only shy but also slow. Cyril hastens with his spoken word skills to Rick's aid, and falls head over heels in love with Roxy himself. So whose brave heart will win the fair lady?

This documentary recounts the life of the late composer Michel Legrand, known for his works on Les Parapluies de Cherbourg or Les Demoiselles De Rochefort with the famous director Jacques Demy.

The true story of punks, queers, & criminals on a ride with two men who accidentally changed music along the way.

Springsteen on Broadway is a solo acoustic performance written and performed by Tony Award, Academy Award, and 20-time Grammy Award winner Bruce Springsteen. Based on his worldwide best-selling autobiography 'Born to Run,' Springsteen on Broadway is a unique evening with Bruce, his guitar, a piano, and his very personal stories. In addition, it features a special appearance by Patti Scialfa. Netflix will allow global audiences to see the show critics have been raving about from anywhere they are.

The story of Mötley Crüe and their rise from the Sunset Strip club scene of the early 1980s to superstardom.

Deni Maroon, a musician and dock worker is determined to pull off a music festival against the interests of the local factory owner.

The whole path of Russian hip-hop from the underground to the huge stadiums, shown by the eyes of the brightest and most iconic representatives of culture. The film looks behind the scenes of Russian rap, exposing all conflicts and clashes, reveals the true look of the whole genre and answers the question of how he managed to capture the current generation and become the number one music.

The story of Elton John's life, from his years as a prodigy at the Royal Academy of Music through his influential and enduring musical partnership with Bernie Taupin.

Jack Malik is a struggling singer-songwriter in an English seaside town whose dreams of fame are rapidly fading, despite the fierce devotion and support of his childhood best friend, Ellie. After a freak bus accident during a mysterious global blackout, Jack wakes up to discover that he's the only person on Earth who can remember The Beatles.

A pampered dog named Trouble must learn to live in the real world, while trying to escape from his former owner's greedy children.

Two young New Yorkers begin to fall in love over the course of a single day, as a series of potentially life-altering meetings loom over their heads - hers concerning her family’s deportation to Jamaica, and his concerning an education at Dartmouth.

1994, a small town in central Scotland. Best mates Johnno and Spanner, despite being total opposites, have a deep bond. Now on the cusp of adulthood, life is destined to take them in different directions – Johnno’s family are moving him to a new town and a better life, leaving Spanner behind to face a precarious future. But this summer is going to be different for them, and for the country. The explosion of the free party scene and the largest counter-cultural youth movement in recent history is happening across the UK.

Across 2017/2018 Depeche Mode embarked on their Global Spirit Tour, in which they performed to more than 3 million fans at 115 shows across the globe. This new visually-striking film captures the energy and spectacle of the band’s performance from the tour along with a deeper look into how their music and shows have been woven into the fabric of their fans’ lives.

The story of artist Lil Peep (Gustav Åhr) from his birth in Long Island and meteoric rise as a genre blending pop star & style icon, to his death due to an accidental opioid overdose in Arizona at just 21 years of age.

In 1987, during the austere days of Thatcher’s Britain, a teenager learns to live life, understand his family, and find his own voice through the music of Bruce Springsteen.

A teenager's quest to launch Norwegian Black Metal in Oslo in the 1990s results in a very violent outcome.

The documentary biopic gives an insight into the life and music of Anatoliy Krupnov, one of the brightest rock stars of the late- and post-Soviet era. This is the story of the talented musician who created the cult rock group Cherny Obelisk (The Black Obelisk), the portrait of an artist and at the same time an accurate depiction of the era and its generation, the music and the ideas that guided minds and rock music at the turn of the century.

Professor Eugenius finds both his career and secret friendship with the Fixies in danger when his college sweetheart, Erica, threatens to reveal that Eugenius only beat her out of the University’s Grand Prize in 3D Printing because Fixies were secretly helping him. Erica challenges Eugenius to a rematch to show the world who the better inventor really is! Eugenius will employ his Fixie friends while Erica has little helpers of her own — crabbots, miniature robotic crabs that are faster and stronger than the Fixies.

A film about the legend of Russian rock, the founder and the undisputed leader of the group "DDT" Yuri Shevchuk. Work on the picture was more than 11 years, the crew traveled with "DDT" dozens of cities in several rounds. Backstage concerts and work on albums, rehearsals and performances in front of many thousands of halls .... The result of working with dozens of hours of the archive from the life of a musician and a band, as well as long conversations between Yuri Shevchuk and the author of the film and his thoughts about the past, present and future of Russia and the world .

Four guys from Russia went on a 30-day biking trip from Liverpool to London looking for new world music stars. Concert halls and recording studios, rehearsal spaces and record labels, festivals, clubs and streets. As a result: the unique stories from the talented musicians and their live playing against the background of the most musical landscape in the world.

A young Scottish singer, Rose-Lynn Harlan, dreams of making it as a country artist in Nashville after being released from prison.

A ship carrying settlers to a new home on Mars after Earth is rendered uninhabitable is knocked off-course, causing the passengers to consider their place in the universe.

After the idol group Aqours has won the final Love Live! contest, its remaining members prepare to enroll at a new school only to run into some unexpected trouble while the former members go missing on the way to their graduation trip. Separated, the girls begin to realize the value of their friendships as they attempt to find a solution to their various crises.

The story of how three oddball teenage bluesmen became one of the biggest, most beloved bands on the planet.

A couple deals with the aftermath of an adoption that goes awry as their household falls apart.

Ten fisherman from Cornwall are signed by Universal Records and achieve a top ten hit with their debut album of Sea Shanties. Based on the true-life story of Cornish folk band, Fisherman's Friends.

A coming-of-age story based on the lives of street rappers in Mumbai.

Film biography dwelling on the hectic artistic life of António Variações, a famous Portuguese pop rock singer from the 80s, who died from AIDS-related complications in 1984.

Michael Hutchence was flying high as the lead singer of the legendary rock band INXS until his untimely death in 1997. Richard Lowenstein’s documentary examines Hutchence’s deeply felt life through his many loves and demons.

It's Lara's 60th birthday, and she has every reason to celebrate: this evening, her son Viktor will be giving the most important piano concert of his career. Lara was, after all, the one who'd mapped out and driven his musical career. Yet Viktor has been unreachable for weeks and nothing indicates that Lara will be welcome at his debut performance. Without further ado, she buys up all the remaining tickets and hands them out to everyone she meets. The more Lara strives to make the evening successful, however, the more events get out of control.

A joyous family reunion becomes a hilarious nightmare as Madea and the crew travel to backwoods Georgia, where they find themselves unexpectedly planning a funeral that might unveil unpleasant family secrets.

In this world, there are many people who seem to be wandering along a relationship border-lining 'friends' and 'lovers'. This borderline is also commonly known as the FRIEND ZONE. It is a special area for those who are stuck in the middle where they cannot really stay friends with their close friends, nor move forward to be their friends' lovers.

Part documentary, part concert film, part fever dream, this film captures the troubled spirit of America in 1975 and the joyous music that Dylan performed during the fall of that year.

Kat is an aspiring singer-songwriter who dreams of making it big. However, her dreams are stalled by her reality: a conniving and cruel stepfamily and a demoralizing job working as a singing elf at billionaire Terrence Wintergarden’s Santa Land.

While crafting his Grammy-nominated album "Astroworld," Travis Scott juggles controversy, fatherhood and career highs in this intimate documentary.

A look at the roots of the historic music scene in L.A.'s Laurel Canyon featuring the music of iconic music groups such as The Byrds, The Beach Boys, Buffalo Springfield, and The Mamas and the Papas.