Your Guide to the Best 1970s Movie Musicals, from ‘Cabaret’ to ‘Willy Wonka,’ ‘Grease’ and More
Relive a magical decade of musical movie making, including Barbra Streisand in 'A Star is Born'
Movie musicals have been a staple of Hollywood since its earliest days, enchanting audiences across generations. Even today, their enduring appeal is evident in the success of recent films like Wonka, Mean Girls, Moana 2 and Wicked. Celebrating the genre is the work of late journalist, avid moviegoer and movie historian Lee Gambin, author of We Can Be Who We Are: Movie Musicals from the ’70s.
Gambin’s journey to writing about musicals was born out of his passion for film, which began with a focus on horror. His early career involved contributing to magazines like Fangoria and other publications devoted to that genre. Over time, however, he recognized the type of misrepresentation of musicals that he felt was the case with horror, the former often being perceived as a narrowly defined art form. Inspired to challenge this perception, he set out to celebrate the versatility and diversity of musicals, much as he had done for horror.
In writing his book, Gambin intended was to spotlight the often-overlooked musicals of the 1970s. While films like Grease and The Rocky Horror Picture Show are widely known and celebrated, many others from the era remain under-appreciated. He also wanted to challenge the notion that musicals were falling out of favor during that time, a belief fueled by the underperformance of films like Hello, Dolly! and Doctor Dolittle. Gambin points out that other musicals, such as Oliver!, achieved significant success, proving that the genre still resonated with audiences. We Can Be Who We Are underscores how the 1970s offered a wealth of musical films that defied these misconceptions.
Through this book, Gambin provides a comprehensive exploration of the musicals released between 1970 and 1980. His insights offer a fresh perspective on the cultural impact and creative innovations of these films, highlighting their lasting influence and success. What follows is a look at 15 of them, the critical analysis coming from Gambin himself.
‘On a Clear Day You Can See Forever’ (1970)
This visually stunning film bridges the cultural shift from the 1960s to the 1970s, with Barbra Streisand portraying a chain-smoking student whose hypnosis sessions reveal past lives. Her therapist becomes infatuated with one of her past personas while frustrated by her present self. Directed by Vincente Minnelli, the film’s artistic vision shines through its imaginative depiction of past lives and Streisand’s stylized costumes, which enhance its unique aesthetic.
As Gambin observed, the songs, reimagined from the stage production, bring fresh charm to the screen. Notably, a musical number by Jack Nicholson, playing Streisand’s stepbrother, was cut for narrative reasons and his limited singing ability. Streisand’s portrayal of Daisy Gamble, blending neurosis with rapid-fire dialogue, is both endearing and compelling, while her extraordinary vocals transcend debates over her legacy.
LEE GAMBIN: “There’s a really beautiful still that I was lucky enough to get for the book, which has Vincente Minnelli directing Streisand, and the way she is watching him and taking everything in, you can tell this is someone who is a master of her craft, learning from another master. I believe that On a Clear Day You Can See Forever helped move her into directing herself as she becomes one of the big names in filmmaking from the ’70s into the early ’80s. Not just as a woman, but as a filmmaker herself.”
‘Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory’ (1971)
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory begins with a gritty, realistic tone, showing children finding Golden Tickets through media coverage, before shifting into the fantastical world of the Chocolate Factory. Songs like “Cheer Up, Charlie” and “I’ve Got a Golden Ticket” establish its musical identity early, keeping the viewer immersed. Gene Wilder’s portrayal of Wonka is both creepy and mesmerizing, adding depth and ambiguity to the character, while the Oompa-Loompas act as detached moral arbiters of the children’s behavior.
Beyond its whimsy, the film addresses themes like economic recession, class divisions, and cultural diversity. Charlie’s complex arc, Gambin points out, mirrors Dorothy’s in The Wizard of Oz, as he navigates personal and philosophical growth through his journey. The music by Leslie Bricusse adds a unique, menacing undertone to the film, particularly in Wonka’s “Pure Imagination,” which juxtaposes whimsy with darkness. Wonka’s dual nature as both creator and destroyer deepens the narrative, while the adaptation of Roald Dahl’s novel retains its darker elements. The musical ultimately serves as a subversive take on the idea of promise, exposing its hidden costs and enriching the story.
LEE GAMBIN: “I remember seeing it as a kid and thinking of it as a creepy film. The moral judgments are dicey, the Oompa-Loompas are sort of a moral guard, but they’re letting these kids perish. It’s a really interesting film and kind of a response to the recession that’s happening at the time. The idea of Charlie inheriting the Chocolate Factory comes at a lot of costs to him personally, spiritually and philosophically. He’s got to relearn about life.”
‘Cabaret’ (1972)
Cabaret is often cited as a favorite by those who claim they don’t like musicals, and for good reason—it’s a masterpiece, according to Gambin. The film is grim, unsettling, and intelligent, offering a dazzling veneer that conceals a deeper darkness. Joel Grey’s chilling portrayal of the emcee is unforgettable, embodying a sinister presence akin to Hitler. His performance draws audiences into the Kit-Kat Club, which stands in stark contrast to the rising political horrors outside, creating a jarring commentary on Nazism’s ascent.
Liza Minnelli’s Sally Bowles is equally iconic, her deeply personal performance impossible to imagine in anyone else’s hands. Director Bob Fosse’s choice to confine most songs to the Kit-Kat Club, except the chilling “Tomorrow Belongs to Me” sung by Nazi youth, enhances the film’s structure. This anthem, deceptively joyful, serves as a haunting precursor to the club’s eventual takeover by Nazis and the demise of its bohemian world. The message is clear: there is no place for artists, Jews or gays under this oppressive regime.
LEE GAMBIN: “The songs are just ridiculously incredible, and what I love about the film especially is Sally as a character is supposed to be not that great a performer. And she likes living through the Kit-Kat Club. That’s how she exists and I love that aspect to her. The film deals with all this really heavy stuff. I remember it being one of the first things I saw a child where abortion was brought up, and this sort of ghoulishness of the cabaret and the way the dancers were all made up. It just hypnotized me. Just a dark, rich nightmare of a film and it’s just fascinating to watch.”
‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ (1973)
The film adaptation of Jesus Christ Superstar is, according to Gambin, a bold, innovative take on the Broadway rock opera. Director Norman Jewison crafted a hybrid approach, setting the story in the Tel Aviv desert with scaffolding and a youthful, rock-and-roll aesthetic. Presented as a performance staged by young artists, the film blends theatricality with mysticism. Its most provocative element is the depiction of Christ’s death without resurrection, emphasizing its finality as the performers leave Jesus behind.
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s iconic score is revitalized with Andrew Previn’s orchestrations, adding fresh energy and cementing the film as a unique adaptation. Jewison described how musicians from bands like Deep Purple and Black Sabbath collaborated with the London Symphony Orchestra, blending styles for a groundbreaking soundtrack.
LEE GAMBIN: “One of my favorite things in talking to Norman Jewison was the discussion of my own critical thoughts of Superstar and what it sort of says as a commentary on the recording industry. I said to him, ‘I’ve always seen this version of Jesus as the first rockstar, Mary Magdalene’s his number one groupie and Judas is his concerned manager.’ He got that, which is cool, because sometimes you don’t want to push your own critical thoughts on filmmakers, but he was really open to it. He told me great stories about the guys from Deep Purple and Black Sabbath working along with the London Symphony Orchestra and how that was so different. They all had to merge together to make this score.”
‘Phantom of the Paradise’ (1974)
Director Brian De Palma’s Phantom of the Paradise reimagines Phantom of the Opera in a vibrant rock-and-roll setting. De Palma’s bold techniques—split screens, vivid colors, and theatrical bombast—paired with Paul Williams’s exceptional music, create a standout musical that appeals even to non-musical fans.
De Palma’s admiration for classic musicals is evident, with nods to legends like Busby Berkeley and Arthur Freed, while darker themes inspired by Faustian mythology give the film a genre-defying edge.
LEE GAMBIN: “There’s the influence of Faust in there, and it’s just a really cool, great and loud rock and roll film that transcends what you can do with hybrid film genres. What’s amazing is how much Paul Williams did during this period — Bugsy Malone, The Muppet Movie, this, A Star is Born.”
‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show’ (1975)
A newly engaged couple, Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon), find refuge in Dr. Frank-N-Furter’s (Tim Curry) eccentric mansion, sparking a chaotic adventure. A definitive cult classic, the film, emphasized Gambin, blends Richard O’Brien’s eclectic influences—’60s romance comics, horror, sci-fi, musicals, and muscle culture—into a vibrant, subversive masterpiece built around the mantra “don’t dream it, be it.”
Released amidst cultural shifts like sexual liberation and punk rock, the film reflects these movements but rejects a tidy resolution. Brad and Janet are left broken, their self-discovery coming at a steep cost.
LEE GAMBIN: “If you look at the history of a lot of these musicals, they have very dark endings. Fiddler on the Roof has the Jews exiled from Russia, Cabaret has the rise of Nazism, La Mancha is the Spanish Inquisition. These are things that happen where characters aren’t completely going to be strolling hand in hand all cheery and happy like Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland in those excellent Arthur Freed [or] Busby Berkeley musicals. So while it gets championed as a celebratory thing, people forget the element that Janet and Brad end up destroyed by the sexual freedom they’ve experienced for the last hour and a half.”
‘Tommy’ (1975)
Ken Russell’s Tommy brings The Who’s rock opera to vivid life, turning the story of a traumatized boy who becomes a messianic figure through pinball into a striking commentary on religion, media, and greed. Russell’s bold, unconventional style amplifies the narrative, creating an electrifying and thought-provoking cinematic experience.
LEE GAMBIN: “All of this and that score by The Who — it’s just outstanding. On top of that, there’s Ann-Margret‘s dazzling performance as Nora, which is just out of this world. As much as I love Louise Fletcher in Cuckoo’s Nest, I really feel Ann-Margret should have taken home that Oscar. You can’t compare the performances; they’re too bloody different.”
‘Bugsy Malone’ (1976)
Bugsy Malone reimagines a 1930s gangster film with kids in all the roles, featuring Scott Baio and Jodie Foster (future stars, respectively, of Happy Days and Silence of the Lambs). The whimsical twist includes pie-firing Tommy guns, pedal-powered cars, and adult-dubbed vocals for its musical numbers. Directed by Alan Parker, the film blends a playful homage to classic gangster movies with surprisingly dark undertones, culminating in an uplifting message about self-reinvention.
LEE GAMBIN: “Jodie Foster is a knockout in this film; her performance is amazing and you can see the wisdom beyond her years in it. She shot Taxi Driver before this, so for her to come from that and into a film with a bunch of kids, was a big jump.”
‘A Star is Born’ (1976)
This third iteration of A Star is Born, starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson, offers a unique blend of drama and 1970s stadium rock. Streisand’s stunning vocals and Kristofferson’s gritty authenticity elevate the film, which explores themes of love and sacrifice as Kristofferson’s troubled musician supports Streisand’s rise to stardom.
LEE GAMBIN: “The problem with it is that it gets bogged down. You can see there were so many writers on it that sort of threw in their input. You can see that these sequences are bogged down and ignored in favor of montages, which do nothing for the film. They don’t tap into their relationship and how tumultuous it is.”
‘New York, New York’ (1977)
Robert De Niro and Liza Minnelli deliver electrifying performances as a volatile saxophonist and aspiring singer in Martin Scorsese’s ambitious blend of classic Hollywood musicals and gritty realism. Mused Gambin, the film juxtaposes stylized sets with raw dialogue, creating a unique tone that balances magic with brutal emotional intensity. The chemistry between De Niro and Minnelli is captivating and unsettling, epitomized by a prolonged, tension-filled car argument.
LEE GAMBIN: “It feels like it just goes on for ages and gets to this point where they’re just screaming at each other and it’s unsettling. That kind of stuff is really classic Scorsese; he just gets in there and makes you feel uncomfortable. And then, juxtaposed to that is all this beautiful celebratory stuff that pays tribute to classic Hollywood. I really wish Scorsese would make another musical.”
‘Saturday Night Fever’ (1977)
Though not a traditional musical, Saturday Night Fever earns its place, suggested Gambin, as a “dancical,” where music drives the story and reveals character. John Travolta’s Tony Manero, a struggling working-class Italian-American, transforms into the king of the disco floor. The Bee Gees’ iconic soundtrack enhances Tony’s journey, offering insight into his charismatic yet flawed persona.
Beneath the vibrant disco scenes lies a raw exploration of masculinity, class and identity. The film’s gritty undertones and unflinching depiction of discontent make it more than a celebration of dance—it’s a grim, uncompromising portrait of its time.
LEE GAMBIN: “What’s interesting is that films like Saturday Night Fever and Fame, are these movies that are really dark, gritty, grimy films, but people don’t remember that. They just think, ‘Oh, yeah, it’s Travolta doing his dancing in the disco,’ or in Fame it’s just kids jumping around the taxis, dancing. But watch them again. They’re really brawling, gritty, hard films.”
‘Grease’ (1978)
Grease is a divisive yet culturally significant film that redefined musicals and achieved massive box office success. Starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, it pairs lively musical numbers with an undercurrent of bittersweet ambiguity about its characters’ futures. The finale, “We Go Together,” leaves audiences pondering the fate of these “dead-end kids,” making the film both memorable and melancholic.
A product of the 1970s’ fascination with 1950s nostalgia, Grease celebrates rock ‘n’ roll’s lasting influence. It stands as a defining example of how the genre shaped musical storytelling, combining energy and poignant undertones to resonate with a new generation.
LEE GAMBIN: “Essentially the songs in Rocky Horror are very ’50s rock and roll songs. And then Grease happens and it sort of says, ‘Rock ‘n’ roll is here to stay.’ You may have Saturday Night Fever, which is all about disco, but rock ‘n’ roll is king as far as storytelling goes. Rock ‘n’ Roll is the epitome of what ’70s musicals were about when you think of rock music influencing Broadway. It starts with things like Bye Bye Birdie, but really kind of catapults with things like Hair.”
‘The Wiz’ (1978)
The Wiz reimagines The Wizard of Oz through a black cultural lens, blending a Motown-infused score with Sidney Lumet’s darker, socially relevant direction, said Gambin. By transforming Dorothy into an adult schoolteacher, the film explores themes of empowerment and personal growth for black women. Harlem, reimagined as Oz, integrates black urban culture into the fantastical setting, with Diana Ross delivering a poignant performance as Dorothy.
Supporting characters, like Michael Jackson’s philosophical Scarecrow and Nipsey Russell’s Tin Man, enrich the narrative, while standout production design by Tony Walsh and contributions from Quincy Jones and Lena Horne amplify its unique vision.
LEE GAMBIN: “I do love the story that Diana Ross went to the studio and said, ‘You should make Dorothy an older woman and I want to play this role.’ Poor Stephanie Mills was out. But the casting does make it different; it makes the film more adult. As a result, there’s more room to explore darker territory.”
‘Hair’ (1979)
In Hair, Claude Bukowski (John Hurt) arrives in New York City and is drawn into the countercultural world of free-spirited hippies, led by Berger (Treat Williams). Facing the Vietnam draft and falling for Sheila Franklin (Beverly D’Angelo), a rebellious socialite, Claude navigates a clash of ideals and personal conflict.
The original stage production was a landmark of the 1960s, boldly tackling anti-war sentiment, sexuality and rebellion with minimal plot. Milos Forman’s film adaptation streamlines the narrative for a more cohesive story but occasionally struggles with uneven integration of its musical numbers.
LEE GAMBIN: “The problem is that the songs don’t seem to hang off any kind of plot. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t, so you’re kind of watching this thing where it breaks into song and it’s a little bit jarring, because you’re following this very dense plot, which is very dramatic, and the songs are dramatic, but they don’t seem to tie in well. At the same time, it doesn’t really matter, because what you’ve got here as well is the incredible choreography from Twyla Tharp. Again, I love its moodiness and its anger, which I like because it is an angry musical.”
‘Fame’ (1980)
Fame unflinchingly portrays the lives of teenagers at a New York performing arts high school, exploring the consuming nature of artistic ambition. The film’s lack of closure for its characters, including the implied exploitation of Irene Cara’s character and Barry Miller’s Ralph succumbing to drugs, offers a chillingly realistic view of the cost of chasing dreams. Its tagline, “If they’ve got what it takes, it’s going to take everything they’ve got,” encapsulates its message.
LEE GAMBIN: “I love its bleakness, its honesty, its ugliness, its grittiness. The way the kids are all sort of alienated. The frenetic brilliant editing. The songs are terrific, the way each character is sort of representative of a different ghetto or a different experience. That great moment with Anne Meara as the teacher when she screams at Leroy and says, ‘Don’t you kids ever think about anything but yourself?’ So it’s the idea that we love these kids, we want them to succeed, but they’re also pretty self-involved, just caring about their own dreams.”
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