A Few of the Most Underrated Dance Movies Around
Dancers just love watching other dancers dance. It’s inspiring and when you love something, you just can’t get enough of it. Even after I’ve taught all day and gone to rehearsal or class afterward, adding a little more dance to my day is rarely out of the question.
There are many dancer movie lists out there. Still, I’d like to offer one featuring a few of my favorites. The main requirement a film had to pass in order to make it into this particular post was this: it possesses solid, great quality dancing. There are some ‘dance’ movies out there with okay-ish dancing. However, in my opinion, the dancers and choreographers who made these films I’ve chosen to feature are what set the bar for future movies and/or are classic.
So, here is the list of a few of my favorite go-to’s after another day of teaching dance when I just didn’t quite get enough.
- Swing Kids
I’d like to start by saying that it is positively criminal how underrated this movie is. Set against the heart-wrenching backdrop of World War II, this film encompasses the rise of the Swing Kids in turbulent Germany. As non-conformists, the young generation who embraced outlawed jazz music and the jitterbug helped define the history of swing dancing. The drama in this movie is undeniable and the dance scenes, both spontaneous and in the club setting are a riot, a beautiful and lively contrast to the barren and hopeless setting in which the story is told. And, to make this movie even better, the two main characters are played by Christian Bale and Robert Sean Leonard as youngsters. In this movie you get to watch Batman and Dr. James Wilson jitterbug side-by-side. Come on, it doesn’t get much better than that!
“You think that just because you’re not doing it yourself, you’re not a part of it? Well, I’m sick and tired of doing my part.”
2. Footloose
Okay, this is the one exception to the statement I made above: this movie might appear on other top dance movie lists. And I know how some people feel about remakes and let me tell you, I’m the same way. But this movie is really great and, in my opinion, one of the tales that actually thrive in the second version so hear me out. Everyone knows that Julianne Hough is amazing—I could never get enough of watching her dance on “Dancing with the Stars.” And she’s just as great in this movie even though she was so young! There are so many fantastic group dance scenes packed into the story all the way from freestyle in parking lots to line dancing in country joints. I feel that it will definitely please dancers who enjoy all styles.
“Ecclesiastes assures us that there is a time to every purpose under heaven. A time to laugh and a time to weep. A time to mourn and there is a time to dance.”
3. High Strung
This story follows the lives of two budding artists whose stories intersect. One, a girl fighting for her place in the dancing world, working endlessly to achieve perfection as she battles a string of competition. Two, a lonely violinist also trying to make his own way though technically he has not even earned the right to remain in the country yet. An array of different dance styles are represented in this movie. From classical and contemporary ballet sequences to street dancing on a subway platform, it is a treat for anyone who appreciates creative choreography—with this film you get lots of it! This movie speaks to me in that there are the frustrations, challenges, and curve balls of everyday life that will hit us no matter what as humans. Still, even as we attempt to navigate through the confusion of setbacks, relationships, and limitations that are out our control, our art—the thing that makes us truly feel like ourselves—need not be neglected.
“The music is always there, burning inside me. I don’t know where it comes from. I only know that if it stays trapped within… I will be consumed.”
4. Oklahoma!
A classic. We have to take a moment to recognize the old world of dancing somewhere on this list. From dancing on a train station platform, to on top of a moving train, to a farmhouse, to a barnyard, this movie is a Western through and through. I adore when the cowboy-old frontier feel is mixed with solid technique, grace, poise, power… all of the fantastic characteristics of excellent dancing. These elements, mixed with fun-loving characters, classic music, and plenty of humor should definitely be on your list when it comes to an uplifting dance film.
“Then mebbe it’s jist as well you ain’t. We don’t want people talkin’ ’bout us, do we?”
5. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Okay, so maybe we should recognize the classic dance movies more than once or even twice. This one is neck-in-neck with Oklahoma as one of those gold, old-fashioned films with barn dancing and a touch of that yesteryear charm. The barn raising dance scene is simply iconic! The numbers, “June Bride” and “Lonesome Polecat” are also some of my favorites. There are scenes like the barn dance where the focus is mostly fun and lively. Dance does allow us to take things a little less seriously for as long as the song lasts. But dance is also a way of dreaming, thinking, mourning, reminiscing. I like how these two dances are ‘thoughtful’ in nature—one focused on dreams of the future and the other on lamentation that sometimes comes with being in love. For me, I can relate because dancing goes with me through every season and becomes a part of even the daydreams and sorrows that aren’t connected to dancing directly. But as a fellow dancer you understand what I mean—dancing is there through it all.
“So I made up my mind. The next time I come into town, I’ll get a wife.”
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
6. West Side Story
I love the original Shakespeare version of Romeo and Juliet, so I’m not too much of a fan when people try to reinvent it. But a dance version is something I can get behind. The movie is full of drama, but peppered with impassioned numbers where the participants portray everything from love to hate through body movement. In the Mambo scene at the school event, the division among the two attending groups is cleverly worked into the choreography and the other routines throughout are just as lively.
“You all killed him!…. Not with bullets, or guns, with hate. Well now I can kill, too, because now I have hate!”
7. Newsies
Didn’t get enough of Christian Bale’s dancing skills from watching Swing Kids? Here’s another one that’ll give you your fix. Based on true events that greatly impacted history, this movie is jam packed with high-energy choreography featuring the talent of young dancers. The enthusiasm and stamina present in the dances of the newsies of New York in this film is, in my opinion, represents the same tenacity required of the real-life heroes involved in this event. If you want to see what youthful energy looks like in dance form, this one is a great choice.
“Sometimes all it takes is a voice, one voice that becomes a hundred, then a thousand, unless it’s silenced. “
What are your favorite dance movies? Please feel free to comment!
Looking for a little more inspiration? Take a look at Another Day to Dance: Stopping to Be Thankful For My Legs.
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