Skip to main content

sarah-murray
4th November 2013

Top 5: Musical sequences not from a musical

Sarah countdowns the musical moments in movies which make you want to stand up and boogie
Categories:
TLDR

5. The 40-Year-Old Virgin

SPOILER ALERT: Predictably, the film closes with protagonist Steve Carell finally losing that burdensome cherry at the ripe old age of 40. He proceeds to celebrate said coitus with the lads in a fun fantasy musical rendition of ‘Aquarius’/’Let the Sunshine In’.

4. Anchorman

In another Judd Apatow classic, Ron Burgundy and the gang explain to us the meaning of love with a spontaneous barbershop quartet performance of ‘Afternoon Delight.’

3. (500) Days of Summer

Life is beautiful, you’re in love, and the only logical way to express your joy is through the medium of Hall and Oats. We’ve all been there. Only Joseph Gordon-Levitt has a flash mob to help him celebrate his recent hook-up with the beautiful Zooey Deschanel.

2. Beetlejuice

In a darkly comic scene that could only be the brainchild of director Tim Burton, the guests of a dinner party, hosted by the Deetz family, become possessed by the ghosts of the recently deceased Adam and Barbara Maitland. Wanting to scare the living inhabitants out of their old home, the Maitlands take control of their bodies and groove to ‘Day-O (The Banana Boat Song).’

1. Wayne’s World

There’s something about Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ that makes the urge to rock out literally impossible to suppress. Topping the list is the opening scene of Wayne’s World, the ultimate car ride sing-a-long that has everybody watching head-banging and air-guitaring with them.


More Coverage

My formative film: A love letter to Notting Hill

How Richard Curtis’ film about a charming bookshop owner changed my view on romance films forever

SCALA!!! co-director Jane Giles on audiences, programming and being a first-time filmmaker: “There has to be room in the film world for all tastes”

In conversation with Jane Giles, co-director of SCALA!!!, we discuss how she came to make the film, her career in programming and how the London cinema had lasting impact on young audiences

Chungking Express: Intoxicating youthful cinema | UoM Film Soc screening reports

In an age where arthouse cinema has become middle-aged, Wong Kar-wai’s 90s classic still speaks to today’s youth

An evening with UoM Film Society and Chungking Express

A crowded university building full of students ready to watch a Wong Kar-wai film and an earworm of a song