3 of the Best Movies Starring Musicians

Sometimes, a musician is more than a musician. Sometimes their artistry extends far beyond their time in the studio and into other realms of entertainment. In the case of the three musicians below, they were also adept at starring in feature films.

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1. A Hard Day’s Night – The Beatles

The Fab Four’s movies gave fans feeling Beatlemania something even more finite to latch onto. Instead of relying on replaying their albums ad nauseam, they were able to watch their favorite band weathering wacky circumstances with their trademark humor.

Most of the Beatles’ feature films are winners, but we are partial to A Hard Day’s Night. It was the project that started it all and primed them for a relatively successful career as film stars.

[RELATED: The Beatles’ 4 Feature Films Ranked]

2. The Man Who Fell to Earth – David Bowie

There was very little that David Bowie couldn’t do. He was a stellar rock star with a plethora of on-stage personas that made his leap to actor a fairly easy one. For Bowie’s inclusion in this list, we’re looking at The Man Who Fell to Earth.

The outer space connections in this film aren’t too far off from what Bowie was touting in his music career at the time. Bowie flexed his acting chops in this film–chops that he would continue to make use of across several subsequent feature films.

3. Purple Rain – Prince

Last, but certainly not least, we have Prince‘s “Purple Rain.” No one could’ve made a movie quite like this one. Prince was a particular and singular force. This movie is proof enough of that fact.

On top of stellar musical numbers, the dramatic moments of this film are similarly enticing. From trials at home to musical endeavors to a love story, Purple Rain pretty much runs the gamut in terms of plot.

(Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

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