(Photo by Searchlight Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection. A COMPLETE UNKNOWN)

The 50 Best Music Biopic Movies

The latest: Bob Dylan goes electric in the Timothee Chalamet-starring A Complete Unknown, directed by Walk the Line‘s James Mangold.

Get ready for a Fresh new sound with tonight’s headliner: Rotten Tomatoes’ best music biopics ever!

Music has been a crucial component of the movies since the beginning, back even when they were supposedly ‘silent.’ So naturally we started making movies about those makers of melodies. And actors love playing them: They get to show off an expanded range of talent, and so many musicians’ lives are filled with drama and passion. As the term implies, the biopics on this list are all based on real people across an expanse of styles: rock (A Complete Unknown, Control), country (Coal Miner’s Daughter, Walk the Line), hip-hop (Straight Outta Compton), pop (Selena, Love & Mercy), classical (Amadeus), and beyond. The only exception we made was for 8 Mile: Though the names were changed, the fact that the main character – a Marshall Mathers stand-in – was played by the original Marshall Mathers demanded its inclusion.

Let’s take it from the top, and this time with feeling: Play on for the best-reviewed music biopic movies!

#1

What’s Love Got to Do With It (1993)

97%
88%

#1

Adjusted Score: 102320%

Synopsis: Based on the life of the legendary soul singer, Tina Turner (Angela Bassett) — born Anna Mae Bullock — discovers…
[More]

Starring: Angela Bassett, Laurence Fishburne, Vanessa Bell Calloway, Jenifer Lewis

Directed By: Brian Gibson

#2

Funny Girl (1968)

95%
85%

#2

Adjusted Score: 101872%

Synopsis: In this bittersweet, classic musical drama, the vibrant and beautiful young Fanny Brice (Barbra Streisand) starts out as a bit…
[More]

Starring: Barbra Streisand, Omar Sharif, Walter Pidgeon, Kay Medford

Directed By: William Wyler

#3

The Pianist (2002)

95%
96%

#3

Adjusted Score: 101360%

Synopsis: In this adaptation of the autobiography “The Pianist: The Extraordinary True Story of One Man’s Survival in Warsaw, 1939-1945,” Wladyslaw…
[More]

Starring: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay, Maureen Lipman

Directed By: Roman Polanski

#4

Blaze (2018)

95%
67%

#4

Adjusted Score: 99532%

Synopsis: A reimagining of the life and times of Blaze Foley, the unsung songwriting legend of the Texas Outlaw Music movement….
[More]

Starring: Ben Dickey, Alia Shawkat, Charlie Sexton, Josh Hamilton

Directed By: Ethan Hawke

#5

Behind the Candelabra (2013)

94%
71%

#5

Adjusted Score: 98490%

Synopsis: World-famous pianist Liberace (Michael Douglas) takes much-younger Scott Thorson (Matt Damon) as a lover, but the relationship deteriorates when Liberace…
[More]

Starring: Michael Douglas, Matt Damon, Dan Aykroyd, Scott Bakula

Directed By: Steven Soderbergh

#6

Shine (1996)

91%
90%

#6

Adjusted Score: 93510%

Synopsis: As a child piano prodigy, David Helfgott’s (Geoffrey Rush) musical ambitions generate friction with his overbearing father, Peter (Armin Mueller-Stahl)….
[More]

Starring: Geoffrey Rush, Justin Braine, Sonia Todd, Armin Mueller-Stahl

Directed By: Scott Hicks

#7

Amadeus (1984)

90%
95%

#7

Adjusted Score: 104666%

Synopsis: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Tom Hulce) is a remarkably talented young Viennese composer who unwittingly finds a fierce rival in the…
[More]

Starring: F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Jeffrey Jones, Elizabeth Berridge

Directed By: Milos Forman

#8

Straight Outta Compton (2015)

89%
91%

#8

Adjusted Score: 100830%

Synopsis: In 1988, a groundbreaking new group revolutionizes music and pop culture, changing and influencing hip-hop forever. N.W.A’s first studio album,…
[More]

Starring: O’Shea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Neil Brown Jr.

Directed By: F. Gary Gray

#9

Rocketman (2019)

89%
88%

#9

Adjusted Score: 110383%

Synopsis: Young Reginald Dwight changes his name to Elton John and collaborates with singer-songwriter Bernie Taupin to become one of the…
[More]

Starring: Taron Egerton, Jamie Bell, Richard Madden, Gemma Jones

Directed By: Dexter Fletcher

#10

Love & Mercy (2014)

89%
85%

#10

Adjusted Score: 99150%

Synopsis: In the late 1960s, the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson stops touring, produces “Pet Sounds” and begins to lose his grip…
[More]

Starring: John Cusack, Paul Dano, Elizabeth Banks, Paul Giamatti

Directed By: Bill Pohlad

#11

Sid & Nancy (1986)

89%
76%

#11

Adjusted Score: 95904%

Synopsis: Following their breakout success in England, flagship punk rock band the Sex Pistols venture out on their first U.S. tour….
[More]

Starring: Gary Oldman, Chloe Webb, David Hayman, Andrew Schofield

Directed By: Alex Cox

#12

Born to Be Blue (2015)

88%
73%

#12

Adjusted Score: 93260%

Synopsis: In the late 1960s, jazz trumpeter Chet Baker (Ethan Hawke) begins a romance with an actress (Carmen Ejogo) while trying…
[More]

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Carmen Ejogo, Callum Keith Rennie, Tony Nappo

Directed By: Robert Budreau

#13

Control – Love Will Tear Us Apart (2007)

88%
89%

#13

Adjusted Score: 92309%

Synopsis: In 1970s England, troubled musician Ian Curtis (Sam Riley) rises to fame as lead singer of the band Joy Division….
[More]

Starring: Sam Riley, Samantha Morton, Craig Parkinson, Alexandra Maria Lara

Directed By: Anton Corbijn

#14

Hilary and Jackie (1998)

88%
83%

#14

Adjusted Score: 91202%

Synopsis: Iris Du Pré (Celia Imrie) inspires a love of music — and a healthy rivalry — in her daughters, Hilary…
[More]

Starring: Emily Watson, Rachel Griffiths, James Frain, David Morrissey

Directed By: Anand Tucker

#15

24 Hour Party People (2002)

87%
87%

#15

Adjusted Score: 89876%

Synopsis: Manchester, 1976. Tony Wilson (Steve Coogan) is an ambitious but frustrated local TV news reporter looking for a way to…
[More]

Starring: Steve Coogan, Lennie James, Shirley Henderson, Paddy Considine

Directed By: Michael Winterbottom

#16

Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980)

85%
86%

#16

Adjusted Score: 91339%

Synopsis: Raised in rural Kentucky poverty and married at the age of 13, Loretta Lynn (Sissy Spacek) begins writing and singing…
[More]

Starring: Sissy Spacek, Tommy Lee Jones, Beverly D’Angelo, Levon Helm

Directed By: Michael Apted

#17

The Sound of Music (1965)

83%
91%

#17

Adjusted Score: 93349%

Synopsis: A tuneful, heartwarming story, it is based on the real life story of the Von Trapp Family singers, one of…
[More]

Starring: Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Eleanor Parker, Richard Haydn

Directed By: Robert Wise

#18

Walk the Line (2005)

83%
90%

#18

Adjusted Score: 90822%

Synopsis: The rise of country music legend Johnny Cash (Joaquin Phoenix) begins with his days as a boy growing up on…
[More]

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Reese Witherspoon, Ginnifer Goodwin, Robert Patrick

Directed By: James Mangold

#19

La Bamba (1987)

83%
79%

#19

Adjusted Score: 90380%

Synopsis: Los Angeles teenager Ritchie Valens (Lou Diamond Phillips) becomes an overnight rock ‘n’ roll success in 1958, thanks to a…
[More]

Starring: Lou Diamond Phillips, Esai Morales, Rosanna DeSoto, Elizabeth Peña

Directed By: Luis Valdez

#20

Nowhere Boy (2009)

81%
74%

#20

Adjusted Score: 86563%

Synopsis: A rebellious teenager, future Beatle John Lennon (Aaron Johnson) lives with his Aunt Mimi (Kristin Scott Thomas) in working-class Liverpool,…
[More]

Starring: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Kristin Scott Thomas, Anne-Marie Duff, David Threlfall

Directed By: Sam Taylor-Johnson

#21

Get On Up (2014)

80%
68%

#21

Adjusted Score: 87661%

Synopsis: James Brown (Chadwick Boseman) was born in extreme poverty in 1933 South Carolina and survived abandonment, abuse and jail to…
[More]

Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis

Directed By: Tate Taylor

#22

Ray (2004)

79%
87%

#22

Adjusted Score: 85774%

Synopsis: Legendary soul musician Ray Charles is portrayed by Jamie Foxx in this Oscar-winning biopic. Young Ray watches his 7-year-old brother…
[More]

Starring: Jamie Foxx, Kerry Washington, Regina King, Clifton Powell

Directed By: Taylor Hackford

#23

Elvis (2022)

77%
94%

#23

Adjusted Score: 99514%

Synopsis: The film explores the life and music of Elvis Presley (Austin Butler), seen through the prism of his complicated relationship…
[More]

Starring: Austin Butler, Tom Hanks, Helen Thomson, Richard Roxburgh

Directed By: Baz Luhrmann

#24

A Complete Unknown (2024)

78%
0%

#24

Adjusted Score: 83234%

Synopsis: New York, 1961. Against the backdrop of a vibrant music scene and tumultuous cultural upheaval, an enigmatic 19-year-old from Minnesota…
[More]

Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Edward Norton, Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro

Directed By: James Mangold

#25

8 Mile (2002)

76%
54%

#25

Adjusted Score: 83260%

Synopsis: The people of Detroit know 8 Mile as the city limit, a border, a boundary. It is also a psychological…
[More]

Starring: Eminem, Kim Basinger, Brittany Murphy, Mekhi Phifer

Directed By: Curtis Hanson

#26

I’m Not There (2007)

76%
69%

#26

Adjusted Score: 82199%

Synopsis: Several actors portray legendary singer-songwriter Bob Dylan at different stages in his personal life and career. In 1959 a guitar-strumming…
[More]

Starring: Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere

Directed By: Todd Haynes

#27

La Vie en Rose (2007)

74%
84%

#27

Adjusted Score: 79794%

Synopsis: Born into poverty and raised in a brothel, Édith Piaf (Marion Cotillard) manages to achieve worldwide fame. Though her extraordinary…
[More]

Starring: Marion Cotillard, Clotilde Courau, Jean-Paul Rouve, Sylvie Testud

Directed By: Olivier Dahan

#28

Gainsbourg (2011)

73%
68%

#28

Adjusted Score: 75664%

Synopsis: The life of French singer Serge Gainsbourg….
[More]

Starring: Eric Elmosnino, Lucy Gordon, Laetitia Casta, Doug Jones

Directed By: Joann Sfar

#29

Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (2010)

72%
66%

#29

Adjusted Score: 73262%

Synopsis: Stricken with polio as a child, Ian Dury (Andy Serkis) finds success as a British punk rocker in the 1970s….
[More]

Starring: Andy Serkis, Olivia Williams, Naomie Harris, Bill Milner

Directed By: Mat Whitecross

#30

The Buddy Holly Story (1978)

100%
77%

#30

Adjusted Score: 102692%

Synopsis: A chronicle of the rise and brief career of rock ‘n’ roll star Buddy Holly (Gary Busey), who aspires to…
[More]

Starring: Gary Busey, Don Stroud, Charles Martin Smith, William Jordan

Directed By: Steve Rash

#31

Round Midnight (1986)

100%
89%

#31

Adjusted Score: 101936%

Synopsis: In the 1950s, Dale Turner (Dexter Gordon), a gifted black saxophonist with a drinking problem, leaves behind New York and…
[More]

Starring: Dexter Gordon, François Cluzet, Gabrielle Haker, Sandra Reaves-Phillips

Directed By: Bertrand Tavernier

#32

Till the Clouds Roll By (1946)

100%
47%

#32

Adjusted Score: 99342%

Synopsis: On opening night of his new Broadway musical, Show Boat, composer Jerome Kern (Robert Walker) reflects on his long career….
[More]

Starring: Robert Walker, Van Heflin, Lucille Bremer, Dorothy Patrick

Directed By: Richard Whorf

#33

Thirty-Two Short Films About Glenn Gould (1993)

92%
87%

#33

Adjusted Score: 93724%

Synopsis: In this episodic fusion of documentary and biographical drama, director François Girard explores the life of 20th-century pianist Glenn Gould…
[More]

Starring: Colm Feore, Gale Garnett, Katya Ladan, David Hughes

Directed By: François Girard

#34

Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

91%
83%

#34

Adjusted Score: 95323%

Synopsis: Brought to the White House to receive a Congressional Gold Medal from President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Broadway legend George M….
[More]

Starring: James Cagney, Joan Leslie, Walter Huston, Richard Whorf

Directed By: Michael Curtiz

#35

The Glenn Miller Story (1954)

89%
80%

#35

Adjusted Score: 89211%

Synopsis: Glenn Miller (James Stewart) is a poor trombone player with dreams of fame. Eventually, through years of hard work and…
[More]

Starring: James Stewart, June Allyson, Charles Drake, George Tobias

Directed By: Anthony Mann

#36

Song Without End (1960)

83%
39%

#36

Adjusted Score: 70589%

Synopsis: Famous pianist Franz Liszt (Dirk Bogarde) is unhappily married to Countess Marie D’Agoult (Genevieve Page) and considers quitting performing in…
[More]

Starring: Dirk Bogarde, Capucine, Geneviève Page, Patricia Morison

Directed By: Charles Vidor, George Cukor

#37

Bound for Glory (1976)

81%
76%

#37

Adjusted Score: 83674%

Synopsis: The Dust Bowl overtakes his native Oklahoma in the early 1930s, and struggling young musician Woody Guthrie (David Carradine) leaves…
[More]

Starring: David Carradine, Ronny Cox, Melinda Dillon, Gail Strickland

Directed By: Hal Ashby

#38

Bird (1988)

77%
79%

#38

Adjusted Score: 78614%

Synopsis: Director Clint Eastwood, a noted jazz aficionado, directs this heartfelt study of pioneering bop saxophonist Charlie Parker (Forest Whitaker). Moving…
[More]

Starring: Forest Whitaker, Diane Venora, Samuel E. Wright, Keith David

Directed By: Clint Eastwood

#39

Miles Ahead (2016)

74%
57%

#39

Adjusted Score: 82497%

Synopsis: In the 1970s, down-and-out jazz trumpeter Miles Davis (Don Cheadle) tries to recover his new session tape from music producers….
[More]

Starring: Don Cheadle, Ewan McGregor, Emayatzy Corinealdi, LaKeith Stanfield

Directed By: Don Cheadle

#40

Greetings From Tim Buckley (2012)

72%
46%

#40

Adjusted Score: 72667%

Synopsis: Musician Jeff Buckley (Penn Badgley) prepares for a 1991 tribute concert for his father, late folk singer Tim Buckley. As…
[More]

Starring: Penn Badgley, Imogen Poots, William Sadler, Norbert Leo Butz

Directed By: Daniel Algrant

#41

Lady Sings the Blues (1972)

71%
86%

#41

Adjusted Score: 79655%

Synopsis: Pop star Diana Ross portrays legendary jazz singer Billie Holiday in this biographical drama. Beginning with Holiday’s traumatic youth, the…
[More]

Starring: Diana Ross, Billy Dee Williams, Richard Pryor, James Callahan

Directed By: Sidney J. Furie

#42

The Runaways (2010)

69%
55%

#42

Adjusted Score: 76503%

Synopsis: Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) and Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning), two rebellious teenagers from Southern California, become the frontwomen for the…
[More]

Starring: Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Alia Shawkat, Scout Taylor-Compton

Directed By: Floria Sigismondi

#43

Sweet Dreams (2024)

69%
67%

#43

Adjusted Score: 69113%

Synopsis: Johnny Knoxville, Mo Amer, Theo Von and Kate Upton unite in this wild and off-the-wall journey of second chances from…
[More]

Starring: Johnny Knoxville, Jay Mohr, Kate Upton, Mohammed Amer

Directed By: Lije Sarki

#44

Respect (2021)

68%
95%

#44

Adjusted Score: 77357%

Synopsis: Following the rise of Aretha Franklin’s career from a child singing in her father’s church’s choir to her international superstardom,…
[More]

Starring: Jennifer Hudson, Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Audra McDonald

Directed By: Liesl Tommy

#45

Backbeat (1994)

68%
67%

#45

Adjusted Score: 70424%

Synopsis: In 1960, close friends Stuart Sutcliffe (Stephen Dorff) and John Lennon (Ian Hart), along with bandmates Paul McCartney (Gary Bakewell),…
[More]

Starring: Sheryl Lee, Stephen Dorff, Ian Hart, Gary Bakewell

Directed By: Iain Softley

#46

I’ll See You in My Dreams (1951)

67%
67%

#46

Adjusted Score: 67084%

Synopsis: Gus Kahn (Danny Thomas), an aspiring lyricist, takes the advice of co-worker Grace LeBoy (Doris Day) in developing a new…
[More]

Starring: Doris Day, Danny Thomas, Frank Lovejoy, Patrice Wymore

Directed By: Michael Curtiz

#47

Selena (1997)

66%
78%

#47

Adjusted Score: 71550%

Synopsis: In this biographical drama, Selena Quintanilla (Jennifer Lopez) is born into a musical Mexican-American family in Texas. Her father, Abraham…
[More]

Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Edward James Olmos, Jon Seda, Constance Marie

Directed By: Gregory Nava

#48

Cadillac Records (2008)

66%
65%

#48

Adjusted Score: 70478%

Synopsis: In 1947 Chicago, Polish emigrant and bar owner Leonard Chess (Adrien Brody) hires a blues combo that includes guitarist Muddy…
[More]

Starring: Adrien Brody, Beyoncé, Jeffrey Wright, Gabrielle Union

Directed By: Darnell Martin

#49

Jimi: All Is by My Side (2013)

64%
36%

#49

Adjusted Score: 67270%

Synopsis: In 1966, an unknown guitarist named James Hendrix (André Benjamin) leaves New York for London, changes his name to Jimi…
[More]

Starring: André Benjamin, Hayley Atwell, Imogen Poots, Ruth Negga

Directed By: John Ridley

#50

One Chance (2013)

64%
64%

#50

Adjusted Score: 65948%

Synopsis: Tenor Paul Potts (James Corden) becomes a singing sensation after appearing on the TV show “Britain’s Got Talent” in 2007….
[More]

Starring: James Corden, Alexandra Roach, Julie Walters, Colm Meaney

Directed By: David Frankel