25 best dance films for happy feet
Dance movies are never about just getting wallflowers to shuffle their feet. They’re about tapping into dormant rhythm, soft-shoeing through life’s tough times and learning to love the way you move through the world. Most of all, they’re about having fun!
There’s nothing that’ll pick up your spirit faster than watching a movie full of incredible dancing. Whether you partner with Jessica Alba, Channing Tatum, Gene Kelly or Ginger Rogers, these 25 films ready to rent or stream will help you trip the light fantastic — from the comfort of your own sofa.
‘Footlight Parade’ (1933)
This early James Cagney film is about an up-and-coming producer who tries to create live musicals for movie audiences, but encounters obstacles along the way. It’s most famous for its “By a Waterfall” sequence, which used hundreds of dancers.
Rent it on Amazon
‘Swing Time’ (1936)
It’s impossible to make a list of great dance movies without including at least one starring the legendary Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. In this film, a dancer is trying to make a splash in the business to prove he’s good enough for his fiancée.
Rent it on Amazon
‘The Red Shoes’ (1948)
A young ballerina is caught between a composer she loves and her demanding, obsessive instructor.
Stream it on Tubi
‘Singin’ in the Rain’ (1952)
One of the all-time greatest films, this 1952 classic features Gene Kelly as a silent screen star who has to pivot when talkies become all the rage.
Stream it on Max
‘Seven Brides for Seven Brothers’ (1954)
In 1850s Oregon, a woodsman and his bride return to his farm, where she meets his six wild brothers who get the idea they want to be married, too.
Stream it on Hulu
‘West Side Story’ (1961)
This re-envisioning of “Romeo and Juliet” set amid gang tensions in 1950s New York City won 10 Academy Awards and was remade in 2021 by Steven Spielberg.
Stream the original on Tubi
‘Viva Las Vegas’ (1964)
Elvis Presley and Ann-Margret make a spark as Lucky, a race car driver who needs money for a new engine, and Rusty, the sexy swim instructor he falls for.
Stream it on Tubi
‘Cabaret’ (1972)
Just ahead of World War II, an American singer in Berlin and her club’s master of ceremonies perform for audiences as the shadow of Nazism looms ever closer.
Stream it on Max
‘Saturday Night Fever’ (1977)
A young man in working-class Brooklyn tries to escape the inevitability of his dead-end life on the disco dance floor.
Stream it on Paramount+
‘Grease’ (1978)
It’s the word! “The Gift of the Magi” transported to a 1950s high school setting sees tough guy Danny and good girl Sandy finding it hard to connect … but plenty of time to dance.
Stream it on Hulu
‘Flashdance’ (1983)
A Pittsburgh welder who moonlights as an exotic dancer dreams of getting into ballet school.
Stream it on Max
‘Footloose’ (1984)
A city kid finds himself in a Midwestern town where dancing (and everything else fun) is banned. But that doesn’t stop him from falling for the pastor’s daughter. The 2011 remake is worth a watch, too.
Stream the original on Paramount+
‘Dirty Dancing’ (1987)
It’s the summer of 1963, and Baby is spending it with her family in the Catskills before she joins the Peace Corps. While there, she meets the resort’s dance instructor, Johnny, and before long, they discover they move well together. The 2004 sequel, “Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights,” takes its star-crossed romance to Cuba.
Stream the original on Hulu
‘Strictly Ballroom’ (1992)
A male dancer breaks the rules of ballroom to create his own choreography, which does not go over well with the establishment.
Stream it on Pluto
‘Billy Elliot’ (2000)
A miner’s son in Northern England doesn’t want to learn boxing — he wants to learn ballet. Cue the conflict at home.
Rent it on Amazon
‘Center Stage’ (2000)
The American Ballet Company’s owner puts a group of young students through their paces amid auditions, romances and performances.
Rent it on Google Play
‘Save the Last Dance’ (2001)
After her mother’s death, a small-town girl, who dreams of becoming a ballerina, moves in with her father in Chicago, where she picks up a few new moves.
Stream it on Paramount+
‘Chicago’ (2002)
This six-time Academy Award-winning film is based on the Broadway musical about two killer ladies who hire the same slick lawyer and end up fighting for celebrity.
Stream it on Paramount+
‘Honey’ (2003)
An aspiring dancer who teaches at an inner-city recreational center gets a dream gig to become a music video choreographer — but she’ll have to compromise her ethics to do it.
Rent it on Amazon
‘Shall We Dance’ (2004)
A beautiful dance instructor transforms the world of a bored lawyer when he signs up for ballroom dancing lessons.
Stream it on Paramount+
‘Step Up’ (2006)
A tough hunk falls for a classically trained dancer while fulfilling a community service requirement at a school for performing arts. The 2008 sequel, “Step Up 2: The Streets,” is also streaming.
Rent the original on Google Play
‘How She Move’ (2007)
A young, gifted dancer returns home to attend public school after her sister’s death. There, she joins an all-male dance troupe to prep for a major competition.
Stream it on Pluto
The ‘Magic Mike’ Franchise (2012-2023)
A male stripper, whose real ambition is to start a furniture-making business, tutors his protégé about hustling on and off the stage. “Magic Mike XXL” (2015) and “Magic Mike’s Last Dance” (2023) complete the trilogy.
Stream the original on Tubi
‘La La Land’ (2016)
A struggling jazz musician and aspiring actress fall in love in Los Angeles, but find their fortunes diverging.
Stream it on Hulu
‘In the Heights’ (2021)
In the mainly Dominican neighborhood of Washington Heights in Manhattan, several members of the community pursue their “little dreams” for a greater life.
Stream it on Max
The linked locations of the films and their availability to rent or stream are subject to change.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
