Music in Film: 2019

Ever since sound was introduced to film, music has played an integral part in cinematic storytelling. In the 20s, pianists played alongside silent films to fill the auditory void and to channel the film’s different moods. During the so-called “Golden Age of Hollywood,” musicals like Singin’ In the Rain and The Wizard of Oz dominated the box office, while blockbusters like Cleopatra showed the world how orchestras could be used to achieve any number of moods and sensations.

In our own look back at Music in Film: 2018 we examined how Bohemian Rhapsody, A Star Is Born, and Mary Poppins Returns are proof that music-heavy films continue to be popular. So now let’s take a look at the top musical films coming out in 2019.

Rocketman

Taron Egerton stars in this wonderful story about the rise of pop icon Sir Elton John, with the prodigious musician himself reportedly writing a new song to be featured in the film. Before you think it’s going to be another boring, tired biopic, reports from early screen tests in San Francisco say that it was met with phenomenal enthusiasm. Then again it’s hard to go wrong when the roster of songs to score the film includes Bennie and the Jets, Honky Cat, and Tiny Dancer.

The Dirt

Meanwhile, at the other end of the biopic spectrum is The Dirt, which unflinchingly chronicles the uncensored adventures of the notorious Mötley Crüe. Based on the band’s bestselling autobiography from 2001 and helmed by Jackass co-creator and Bad Grandpa director Jeff Tremaine, The Dirt examines what it meant (as well as what it took) to become the “world’s most notorious rock band.”.

Yesterday

Directed by Danny Boyle of Slumdog Millionaire fame, Yesterday stars Hollywood up-and-comer Himesh Patel as Jack Malik, a singer-songwriter who gets into an accident and wakes up in a world where no one recalls The Beatles except for himself. Jack then plays out the ultimate fantasy – rising to fame armed with nothing but the entire Beatles discography. The concept is an awesome remix of the typical Beatles-inspired blockbuster, and it works precisely because they’re arguably still the biggest band in the world despite the fact that they disbanded decades ago. Lottoland believes that the Beatles song I Wanna Hold Your Hand helped start the 60s music revolution, and it’s just one of the songs featured in the trailer, along with Something, Let It Be, and Hey Jude. It’s your typical Beatles playlist, just in a way that’s never been done before. The film is proof of The Beatles’ undying appeal and overarching social impact.

Cats

Cats is one of the most popular and longest-running Broadway shows of all time. First adapted into a film in 1998 as a direct-to-video feature, Movie Web reports that Cats is finally getting the big screen treatment this year. No doubt the film will find new fans and audiences in the process. It’s an adaption of a musical that promises to be anything but ordinary.

Guava Island

Very little is known about this rather secret film. But so far, we know that it’s a collaboration between multiple Grammy award-winning musicians Rihanna and Donald Glover, also known as Childish Gambino. It’s also going to be directed by long-time Gambino collaborator, Hiro Murai, and is currently being shot somewhere in Cuba. Based on the bootlegged trailers, Gambino/Glover plays a struggling musician who’s tired of the day-to-day hustle. In the trailer, he says: “We live in paradise, but none of us have the time or the means to actually live here,” alluding to the possible themes that the Grammy-stacked film will explore.