Musicals For Guys Who Hate Musicals
Ladies, I know finding musicals for guys is like asking him to go shopping or cooking dinner. It just isn’t something that “real” men like to do. There is something about watching people break into dance and song that turns a guy off more than telling him your mother is coming to visit. Or is it? Maybe you are just requesting the wrong musicals. There’s a good chance that your man will turn down the opportunity to see Mama Mia or Dirty Dancing, but why not try one these musical movies. You might find that he actually likes these shows and once you’ve got him started, it will be an easy push to get him to take you to see an actual play! Feel free to add your own musicals to this list. I’d love to hear more.
THE BLUES BROTHERS
Didn’t think this 1980 movie was a musical, did you? Besides being a cult classic with some icons of comedy and the Blues, this movie is most definitely a musical. With songs like ‘Gimme Some Lovin’, ‘Minnie the Moocher’, and ‘Sweet Home Chicago’, this film is the perfect beer and chips night at home.
ANIMAL HOUSE
Another classic film from National Lampoon, Animal House (1978) might not have the song and dance numbers of the Blues Brothers, but it has its share of classic tunes from the 1960s. If you are fighting to say that this is a musical, try getting Otis Day and the Knights out of your head as they sing ‘Shout!’ or ‘Shama Lama Ding Dong’...
WILLIE WONKA & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY
Sometimes when you are trying to get a guy to like a musical, you have to go back to his roots - or in this case, his childhood. Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was a classic children’s movie made in 1971, starring Gene Wilder as Willie Wonka. Where’s the music, you ask? There is plenty of it in this film! Surely you remember the Oompah Loompah’s with their warnings about being bad children!
THIS IS SPINAL TAP
Guys like rock and roll and they also like parody. ‘This is Spinal Tap’ has it all. It’s a movie made in 1984 by director Rob Reiner (Meathead from TVs ‘All in the Family’) about the world’s loudest band, known as ‘Spinal Tap’ . It is a “mockumentary’ and has some really funny performances by Christopher Guest and Michael McKean. If you don’t think it is loud enough for you, make sure you turn your speakers up to eleven!
TOMMY
Finally, there is the Who’s 1975 rock-opera, ‘Tommy’. It is probably the only movie ever made about the arcade game pinball and it really isn’t even that good of a film, but hey, it has plenty of Who music! Tommy is a deaf, dumb and blind kid who really plays some mean Pinball. This turns him into a religious cult figure that somehow becomes accompanied by the Who. Besides the music, you also get to see plenty of Ann-Margaret and Oliver Reed, too. Yes, that's Elton John singing this song!
BONUS PLAY: SPAMALOT
If you’ve watched the above films, then you are finally ready to go forward onto the big stage - literally. This can be a little nerve-wracking for guys. A musical, to many men, is just one step below opera (and we all know that’s just like one of those foreign films you women like without subtitles!). This is why, ladies, you have to ease the men into it. Think about buying tickets to see ‘Spamalot’. It is a play based off of the Monty Python film, ‘The Holy Grail’. Lots of music, lots of sophomoric laughs and it might completely turn your fella into a musical-loving fan. Enjoy!
