The Evolution Of Song And Dance In Movies Over The Past 100 Years

Let me just get this out of the way now: I am not a fan of movie musicals. Which is weird, I suppose, because I’m part of the small percentage of straight men who actually enjoys musical theater. Remember that scene in the movie version of Mamma Mia where Meryl Streep sings “The Winner Takes It All” and Pierce Brosnan just stands there for five minutes awkwardly reacting? That was painful for me. Like what I imagine getting a prostate exam is like. I remember actually squirming in my seat in the theater (Yes, I saw Mamma Mia in a theater…I somehow allowed myself to be dragged there by a girl) during this scene. And for the record, I hated the stage version of Mamma Mia as well. I do, however, love ABBA.

I tell you all of this because, considering my hatred for movie musicals, I honestly was not expecting to really care all that much for this supercut of the evolution of song and dance on the big screen by the amazingly prolific YouTuber, Mewlists. (He recently gave us the greatest unscripted moments in film and a compilation of the best on-screen drug trips) Going back to 1921, Mewlists took a clip of a dance scene from a movie each year until the present — 100 years of on screen evolution, and it’s pretty freakin’ fantastic.

After the jump is the complete list of films with scenes used for the video, along with the year they came out.

1. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse 1921
2. 42nd Street 1933
3. Flying Down to Rio 1933
4. The Little Colonel 1935
5. Top Hat 1935
6. Swing Time 1936
7. A Day at the Races 1937
8. Fantasia 1940
9. Hellzapoppin’ 1941
10. Stormy Weather 1943
11. Broadway Rhythm 1944
12. Anchors Aweigh 1945
13. It’s a Wonderful Life 1946
14. The Red Shoes 1948
15. Royal Wedding 1951
16. Singin’ in the Rain 1952
17. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes 1953
18. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers 1954
19. It’s Always Fair Weather 1955
20. Jailhouse Rock 1957
21. Funny Face 1957
22. El bolero de Raquel 1957
23. Damn Yankees 1958
24. Party Girl 1958
25. The Sound of Music 1959
26. Never on Sunday 1960
27. West Side Story 1961
28. Band of Outsiders 1964
29. My Fair Lady 1964
30. Zorba the Greek 1964
31. Mary Poppins 1964
32. The Producers 1968
33. Young Frankenstein 1974
34. Saturday Night Fever 1977
35. Grease 1978
36. All That Jazz 1979
37. Airplane! 1980
38. The Blues Brothers 1980
39. Urban Cowboy 1980
40. Fame – 1980
41. Flashdance 1983
42. Risky Business 1983
43. Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life 1983
44. Footloose 1984
45. A Chorus Line 1985
46. Girls Just Want to Have Fun 1985
47. White Nights 1985
48. Teen Wolf 1985
49. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off 1986
50. Dirty Dancing 1987
51. The Little Mermaid 1989
52. Beauty and the Beast 1991
53. Strictly Ballroom 1992
54. Scent of a Woman 1992
55. Reservoir Dogs 1992
56. Addams Family Values 1993
57. Swing Kids 1993
58. Pulp Fiction 1994
59. True Lies 1994
60. Muriel’s Wedding – 1994
61. Showgirls 1995
62. Shall We Dansu? 1997
63. Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion 1997
64. Titanic 1997
65. Dance with Me 1998
66. She’s All That 1999
67. Road Trip 2000
68. Center Stage 2000
69. Billy Elliot 2000
70. Save the Last Dance 2001
71. Shrek 2001
72. Moulin Rouge! 2001
73. Chicago 2002
74. Grind 2003
75. Kung Fu Hustle 2004
76. Napoleon Dynamite 2004
77. You Got Served 2004
78. Shall We Dance? 2004
79. Starsky & Hutch 2004
80. Beauty Shop 2005
81. Mr. & Mrs. Smith 2005
82. The 40-Year-Old Virgin 2005
83. Clerks II 2006
84. Little Miss Sunshine 2006
85. Step Up 2006
86. Take the Lead 2006
87. Hairspray 2007
88. Spider-Man 3 2007
89. Enchanted 2007
90. Stomp the Yard 2007
91. Superbad 2007
92. Get Smart 2008
93. Make It Happen 2008
94. Slumdog Millionaire 2008
95. Step Up 2: The Streets 2008
96. Tropic Thunder 2008
97. (500) Days of Summer 2009
98. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus 2009
99. Toy Story 3 2010
100. Black Swan 2010

(HT: Daily What)

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