Sometimes I’m pleasantly surprised by an unexpected singing scene in films that are not about singing at all. Usually it ends up being a feel-good moment, on occasions it turns out to be a remarkable bit of the film. Here’s my favorite ones:
1. Almost Famous – Tiny Dancer, cast + Elton John
Although the whole film is about music, the ensemble singing along with Elton John’s song on their way home is uplifting.
2. Ten Things I Hate About You – Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Heath Ledger + Frankie Valli
Best way to apologise and win back the girl, it’s a tie with John Cusack holding a boombox under his girl’s window.
3. My Best Friend’s Wedding – I Say A Little Prayer, cast + Dionne Warwick
Effective way to tell a story and charm the audience with a classic song, plus Rupert Everett is at his best.
4. Young Frankenstein – Puttin’ On The Ritz, Gene Wilder + Irving Berlin
How would you present your recently-raised-from-the-dead creature to the wide world? With a vaudeville number, of course!
5. Muriel’s Wedding – Waterloo, Toni Collette and Rachel Griffiths + Abba
Show the mean girls that you don’t care and sing some Abba!
6. The Fisher King – Lydia The Tattooed Lady, Robin Williams + Harold Arlen and Yip Armburg
A foolproof method to captivate a quirky girl’s attention is to sing a Groucho Marx’s song.
7. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty – Space Oddity, Kristen Wiig + David Bowie
The confidence boost that an introverted needs: Kristen Wiig singing a Bowie’s song.
Ramblings of a cinephile 