Movies Every Musician Should See

There is so much to learn from the movies.
Here are some movies that every rock star can benefit from viewing. This list is an opening salvo to the Musician's Movie Cannon.
Not that you have to be a musician to enjoy them, but in each movie there are specific lessons for keeping your band together, self promotion and seeking the help of the modern medical profession among other life lessons).

so, without further ado, movies every musician should see...


Head - Released after their TV show's cancellation, The Monkees one and only feature film is a surrealist exercise in late-1960s pop art.

Dig - The "feud" between Anton and the Dandy Warhols may be my favorite thing about both bands.Its ridiculous to think that these are the only models for success, or the only tracts for bands to follow, but Dig does point out some very obvious pitfalls about the industry.

Overnight - What not to do when handed the keys to the kingdom. The director of "Boondock Saints" makes every wrong move possible on his rise to the "top".

Hard days Night - Its a nice reminder of why everyone wants to be in a band. mad cap fun!

Purple Rain - It's enough to watch Prince perform "Purple Rain", but there are also lessons about dealing with expectations, artistic credibility and being part of band.

Hype - Just like some kids grow up obsessed with bands and then end up starting a band, I was obsessed with record labels and wondering why they do that and how they do it. Sub Pop was the closest, best thing for me to focus my curiosity on…. I was fascinated by the snarky advertising. There was this post-modern, meta quality to some of it, and this smugness quality to some of it. Twenty years later, I still don’t know if I liked it or hated it, but I was surely fascinated by it. - Slim Moon, founder of Kill Rock Stars Records (Elliott Smith, the Decemberists, Sleater-Kinney)

Gimme Shelter - This is the third film in this informal series, but only the first time we see the Stones in something resembling an interview. In "Sympathy for the Devil," they provide the soundtrack to a political tableau. In "Rock and Roll Circus," they dress like buffoons while singing songs praising the working man and his hard life. In "Gimme Shelter," the Maysles convinced the band to allow them to record their reactions as they sit and watch the rough cut. Not surprisingly, they say little. It's clear that the band is very comfortable performing as The Rolling Stones, but not terribly comfortable being the Rolling Stones. -IFC

Last Waltz - A Scorsese movie chronicling the Band's farewell concert with The Band being joined on stage by more than a dozen special guests, including Eric Clapton, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, Ronnie Hawkins, Dr. John, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Ringo Starr, Muddy Waters, Ronnie Wood and Neil Young. Beyond the music, the very premise of the concert is amazing: A big bang to end the era, thanksgiving dinner for thousands, a wicked lineup, great music and some really enlightening interviews.

Johnny Suede - If not just to see Nick Cave as Freak Storm, then maybe the lesson is always have a day job.

Metallica: Some Kind of Monster - Oh, Christ. If it ever gets to this, it is time to hang it up.

Jailhouse Rock - Elvis being Elvis? Elvis beats a man to death in a bar, learns to play guitar in prison and becomes an ego maniacal rock star in Hollywood. Lessons learned?

Superstar: the Karen Carpenter Story - good luck trying to find it, but..."A marvelous film made by Todd Haynes, a Brown University student at the time, later the director of "Poison" and the brilliant, hypnotic "Safe" (1995), "Superstar" details the rise and fall of Karen Carpenter entirely through an inspired formal devise: Carpenter, her brother Richard, family, and friends are all "portrayed" by Barbie dolls. The film is not merely about fame or anorexia (the disease of which Carpenter died), but conjures the suburban California of the 1970's, indeed the whole plastic experience of America and American pop culture (of which, of course, The Carpenters and Barbie dolls are most certainly a part)."imdb

Half Cocked - Versus toured with this film for a little while. It's a great portrayal of mid-90's indie rock and what that scene meant and what it could have been.

Decline of Western Civilization - A snapshot of Los Angeles' punk scene circa '79-'81. Penelope Spheris' documentary captures the influence and importance of a scene that included Black Flag, X, Circle Jerks, Germs, and Fear.

Stop Making Sense - The movie that introduced David Byrne's "Big Suit" was financed by the Talking Heads. They raised 1.2 million dollars to have the film made.

Fade to Black - A hip-hop version of "The Last Waltz"? A great insight into a hip hop mogul's artistry.

Don't Look Back - Bob Dylan as he is.

I'm Trying to Break Your Heart - How to keep a band together, or how to keep a "brand" together. Its a heart breaker about the making of Wilco's "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot"

Instrument - This documentary is something of a pinnacle for Fugazi and Jem Cohen. Cohen has long been artistically involved with Fugazi, and now he has pieced together this documentary. The film jumps around and swirls with the music, getting more choppy and spacey as the band itself becomes more experimental. -imdb

the Devil and Daniel Johnston - Daniel Johnston, manic-depressive genius singer/songwriter/artist is revealed in this portrait of madness, creativity and love.imdb

You're Gonna Miss Me - It's not easy being a pioneer. For proof, just watch this film about Roky Erickson, whose band, the 13th Floor Elevators, coined the term "psychedelic rock" in the 1960s. Targeted for his advocacy of pharmaceuticals, Erickson was busted for possession of a single joint in 1969 and spent three years in an institute for the criminally insane. This film covers his rise and fall, as well as his family's efforts to help him get his life back on track.

Another State of Mind - Youth Brigade, Social Distortion and Minor Threat hit the road an an attempt to hit 30 cities in just 35 days in a school bus. Touring is important, touring "well" is more important.

the Filth and the Fury - "The Catch-22 with punk rock, and indeed with all forms of entertainment designed to shock and offend the bourgeoisie, is that if your act is too convincing, you put yourself out of business" - Roger Ebert (what a dick)

honorable mentions - the mayor of sunset strip, the knack and how to get it, fearless freaks, kill your idols, watch me jumpstart