10 incredibly weird movies made by musicians
When Elvis Presley rose to fame in the 1950s, taking over the world with his smooth voice and Mississippi hips, he was backed by a manager who didn’t believe in the music he was making. While Tom Parker was happy with the money that rock ‘n’ roll brought in, he didn’t think it had any longevity. He wasn’t alone in this opinion, either, as many people thought the genre was merely a blip in pop culture.
Parker wasn’t willing to let his star be part of a genre that would dwindle. As such, he was keen on getting Elvis into the movies, as he believed this was a way he could guarantee success once people had stopped caring about rock music. This started a trend among many musicians, where once they had made it big, they would make some kind of effort to star in a film.
There was a method to the madness, though. As producer Andrew Solt notes: “I think Hollywood is always looking for the next big rock picture because these films always have the potential for pulling in a strong youth audience.” Since so many young people loved these musicians and they had an active audience waiting for them, it made sense for production companies to back movies made by and starring bands.
Some of these films are good, but the majority are weird, out of touch, or poorly executed. Ranging from romance flicks to intergalactic thrillers, these are some of the strangest movies in which bands and artists have starred.
The weirdest movies made by bands and artists:
Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park (Gordon Hessler, 1978)
Of all the rock bands with the potential to star in a movie, Kiss is the most obvious. Given that they already look like characters from a sci-fi glamour thriller, it wasn’t much of a shock when it was revealed that they would star in their own TV movie. It was released at the height of the band’s popularity in 1978 but wasn’t received well.
Kiss had many fans at the time, but they weren’t willing to accept the movie just because their favourite band was in it. It received very negative reviews due to poor acting, a drab script, and the fact that the band hated it themselves. The story follows the band trying to stop robotic versions of themselves from trying to destroy a theme park. Despite the poor reception, the film has since received cult status.
Lisztomania (Ken Russell, 1975)
Released in 1975, Lisztomania is a surreal movie about the composer Franz Liszt. The movie depicts Liszt as flamboyant and the world’s first pop star. It’s a haphazard film that blends fact, fiction, and downright fantasy. It also stars a plethora of musicians who were keen on bringing the movie to life.
Starring as Lisztomania is The Who’s Roger Daltrey, as he rides the band’s success, given this film came out the same year that The Who released Tommy. Also starring in the movie are fellow rock stars Rick Wakeman and Ringo Starr for a strange blend of musical genius and movie madness.
Phantom of the Paradise (Brian De Palma, 1974)
Paul Williams is recognised for the number of excellent songs he wrote for other artists. These include ‘An Old Fashioned Love Song’ and ‘Out In The Country’ for Three Dog’s Night, Helen Reddy’s ‘You and Me Against the World’ and The Carpenters ‘We’ve Only Just Begun’. He has also written compositions for films. However, in 1974, he wrote his own movie, Phantom Of The Paradise.
In the film, which takes from Phantom of the Opera, a disfigured composer sells his music to the woman he loves. Instead of her singing it, though, the music is stolen by a record tycoon who uses the money from the songs to open up a rock palace called The Paradise.
Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny (Liam Lynch, 2006)
While Tenacious D’s movie The Pick of Destiny may well be one of the best things the band have been involved in, that doesn’t stop the film from being strange. The musical, which is centred around the struggling duo, sees them try to write the best rock music of all time, only to realise the artists they idolise have been faking it.
The revelation that the likes of Jimmy Hendrix, Angus Young and Slash all use the same guitar pick leads to the duo trying to locate it so they can use its powers. It turns out the pick is the tooth of the devil, who is disguised as a music promoter in Hollywood who tries to take it back.
Rock ‘n’ Roll High School (Allan Arkush, 1979)
You thought Grease was good? This film has all the cheese of the John Travolta flick but in a rock and roll setting. The Ramones bring the movie to life as they star as rebellious characters who try to overthrow a school so that rock can prevail.
In the film, Riff Randall is a big fan of the band, so much so that she has written a song she wants to take to them at their upcoming show. Riff’s teacher decides enough is enough, so he cracks down on the music-obsessed kids. Enter the Ramones to save the day.
Studio 666 (BJ McDonnell, 2022)
Foo Fighters have never done things by halves when it comes to their music, and it turns out this also applies to the silver screen. In the build-up to their tenth studio album, Medicine At Midnight, the band decided to record a movie about creating the album.
This fictionalised tale sees the band move into a grisly-looking mansion to work on the new album. It turns out the mansion has a bloody history of music surrounding it, so things take a turn for the worst when they sit down to begin working.
A Hard Day’s Night (Richard Lester, 1964)
As The Beatles cemented themselves as one of the biggest bands in the world in 1964, film producers were keen on having them appear in a movie. The movie is one of the only watchable ones on this list, as the group’s natural humour shines through in every frame.
The plot is relatively straightforward, as the band rehearse for a fictional TV show. What is strange is how much of a real-world impact it had on the band, as their characters on the big screen ended up being the characters assigned to them in the real world. John was the sarcastic Beatle, Paul was handsome and charming, George was quiet, and Ringo was… Ringo.
200 Motels (Frank Zappa, Tony Palmer, 1971)
When Frank Zappa described the idea for this movie, he simply said, “Touring makes you crazy.” The idea for the film came to him when he was on tour with the Mothers of Invention, a band renowned for their commitment to the flamboyant when they took to the stage.
The movie contains clips of the Mothers of Invention performing live and is a tale of life on the road. It becomes clear that the band’s main concerns while on tour are getting paid and searching for groupies.
Moonwalker (Jerry Kramer, 1988)
This film receives mixed reviews. It’s hard to see clips of Michael Jackson performing and not be completely in awe of him; however, what makes this movie so strange is how haphazard the clips are. It jumps from real-world footage to parodies of the singer to a fictionalised version of him without warning.
The movie starts with the music video for ‘Man In The Mirror’ before showing a montage of his career. After that, there is a parody video of Michal Jackson’s ‘Bad’, which is performed by children. Jackson then plays a superhero who is chased by a drug dealer and rescues three children.
ABBA: The Movie (Lasse Hallström, 1977)
There are no prizes for guessing who this movie is about. ABBA also starred in their very own picture, as this mockumentary saw them followed on their Australian tour by a DJ who was desperate to interview the group.
The film was originally released in 1977 in Sweden before it went overseas in the following couple of years. It received positive reviews from critics and also appealed to ABBA fans, who got to see a funnier side of the band they loved.
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