So you think you can dance? Or maybe your are just in the mood for some on screen dancing or stories involving dancers. Dancing seems to be made for film – motion, expression, music, energy – from tap to Broadway to ballet to disco, these films featuring dancers will scratch your itch for dancing.
Singing in the Rain (1952) – Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor and Debbie Reynolds in a 60th-anniversary Ultimate Collectors Edition newly remastered in 2011 4K transfer of the best-loved Hollywood musical ever-filled with memorable songs, lavish routines and Kelly’s fabulous song-and-dance number performed in the rain.
Saturday Night Fever (1977) – Tony Manero (John Travolta) doesn’t have much going for him during the weekdays. He still lives at home and works as a paint store clerk in his Brooklyn, N.Y., neighborhood. But he lives for the weekends, when he and his friends go to the local disco and dance the night away.
Grease (1978) – Experience the friendships, romances and adventures of a group of high school kids in the 1950s. Welcome to the singing and dancing world of “Grease,” the most successful movie musical of all time. A wholesome exchange student (Olivia Newton-John) and a leather-clad Danny (John Travolta) have a summer romance, but will it cross clique lines?
White Nights (1985) – The passionate worlds of dance and global politics collide in this explosive thriller from Academy Award nominated director Taylor Hackford (2004, Ray). In a role which hits close to home, ballet’s Mikhail Baryshnikov plays Nikolai Rodchenko, a legendary Soviet dancer who has defected to the West – until a cruel twist of fate suddenly traps him back in Mother Russia. Tap dancer Gregory Hines co-stars as Raymond Greenwood, a cynical U.S. Army deserter ordered by the KGB to make Nikolai’s “homecoming” permanent. Nikolai has pierced the Iron Curtain once and now only Raymond can help him make it again. Adding to White Nights’ dramatic fire is the music of Lionel Richie (the Academy Award – winning Say You, Say Me).
Moulin Rouge! (2001) – A poor Bohemian poet in 1890s Paris falls for a beautiful courtesan and nightclub star coveted by a jealous duke.
Dirty Dancing (1987) – Spending the summer at a Catskills resort with her family, Frances “Baby” Houseman falls in love with the camp’s dance instructor, Johnny Castle.
Flashdance (1983) – An 18-year-old female amateur dancer who performs nightly at a dancing bar, and works as a welder during the day, dreams of joining the Pittsburgh ballet school.
Footloose (1984) – A big city teenager moves to a small town where Rock and Roll music and dancing have been banned by backward local parents and his rebellious spirit shakes up the populace.
Black Swan (2010) – Nina is a talented but unstable ballerina on the verge of stardom. Pushed to the breaking point by her artistic director and a seductive rival, Nina’s grip on reality slips, plunging her into a waking nightmare.
Strictly Ballroom (1992) – A maverick dancer risks his career by performing an unusual routine and sets out to succeed with a new partner.
West Side Story (2021) – An adaptation of the 1957 musical, West Side Story explores forbidden love and the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds.
Billy Elliot (2000) – A talented young boy becomes torn between his unexpected love of dance and the disintegration of his family.
La La Land (2016) – Winner of 6 Academy Awards including Best Director for writer/director Damien Chazelle, and winner of a record-breaking 7 Golden Globe Awards, LA LA LAND is more than the most acclaimed movie of the year – it’s a cinematic treasure for the ages that you’ll fall in love with again and again. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling star as Mia and Sebastian, an actress and a jazz musician pursuing their Hollywood dreams – and finding each other – in a vibrant celebration of hope, dreams, and love.