Five Favorite Male Performances In Musicals

In the interests of gender equality and to complete the post I wrote previously, I decided to write a companion post featuring the best male performances in musicals. I found this list far more difficult to write than the previous post, and I found in retrospect, that far more musicals are female orientated, and that few movie musicals feature strong male performances.

• ·        Antonio Banderas as Ché in Evita

I adore this film, and it is one of my favorite movie musicals, Antonio Banderas is equally as fantastic as Madonna is this picture, his role is in someways more difficult than hers, Banderas has to play a character with only one name, no past, no future and no backstory, he succeeds in crafting an omnipresent narrator who is magnetically enthralling despite his lack of character development. His character is also never properly explained, as he never actually talks to Evita, ans it is unclear if he is a real person, or a figment of her consciousness. Nonetheless, Antonio Banderas shines in this engaging movie musicals.

• ·        Gerard Butler as The Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera

Like Banderas, Gerard Butler is not a trained singer, but his performance as the mysterious benefactor living in the catacombs beneath the opera house is magnetic and mesmerizing, again, Butler plays a man with no name and who only shows half of his face. Looking at Gerard Butler’s filmography, Phantom is a highly odd addition, but he truly is fantastic in the title role, and his incarnation of the Phantom is the best to date, even outshining Michael Crawford’s now iconic performance in the original production. Despite not being a trained singer, Gerard Butler’s voice is crisp and clear, and his rendition of Music of the Night is outstanding.

• ·        Jim Broadbent as Harold Zidler in Moulin Rouge

Jim Broadbent is truly one of my favorite actors, few other thespians have such a consistent or varied filmography. From his star turn in Iris to his performance in Cloud Atlas, Broadbent has consistently show his acting chops to be honed and refined. In Moulin Rouge Broadbent plays Harold Zidler, the owner and manager of scandalous and salacious Parisian nightclub the Moulin Rouge. Broadbent seems able to walk a knife’s edge between gaiety and gravity, from his performance as the morbidly obese jet jolly nightclub owner front of house, to his grappling with the death of his little sparrow and the threat of violence from The Duke, Broadbent’s multi-faceted performance is entertaining without being superficial, and his singing is surprisingly good.

• ·       Gene Kelly as Don Lockwood in Singing in the Rain

The fact that Kelly had a hundred degree fever whilst shooting his iconic dance sequence in this film makes it all the more impressive. Kelley merits a place on this list because of one scene alone, and his dancing in this film is stunning and iconic. Singing in the Rain is a great film, and sparked a new era of color and light for movie musicals, launching the golden age of musicals, Singing in the Rain is a testament to Kelly’s talent as an actor, a singer and a dancer, a true triple treat.

• ·        Tim Curry as Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show

I simply adore this film, it is one of my favorites, and much of this is because of Tim Curry’s now iconic performance as Frank-N-Furter, everything in this performance works, from the insane crazed make-up and the chunky string of perls, to the british accent and slight aristocratic drawl. Successfully being able to walk in heels is impressive enough, and Tim Curry gives a truly gonzo performance in this quirky musical. After originating the role in the West-End, Curry felt no need to tone down his performance for the cameras, and his fourth wall breaking bravura acting is one of the main reasons to watch this film.