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Pop Music Movies

Rebellion, romance, anarchy, excitement. Mark shows how the fusion of pop music and movies are a double act like no other.

Mark looks at a genre that combines his twin passions, music and movies. Pop movies encompass many forms, from drama and comedy to fantasy and documentary, producing some of the most potent and emotive moments in popular culture.

There’s the classic pop star vehicle, where the biggest acts play themselves, or a version of themselves, in exuberant films that promote their brand and help sell their music. Then there are pop biopics, dramatised accounts of the stars’ lives that dazzle us with musical set pieces while playing on our fascination with the darker side of fame. Even rock documentaries, or 'rockumentaries', feature recurring themes and situations, both on and off stage. Mark also sees what happens when actors play musicians, and when musicians take on acting roles, and he celebrates some of the true cinematic oddities that have come from pop stars putting their wildest ideas on screen.

Rebellion, romance, anarchy, excitement. Mark shows how the fusion of pop music and movies has been a double act like no other.

59 minutes

Music Played

  • Kendrick Lamar & SZA

    All The Stars

  • Bill Haley and His Comets

    Rock Around The Clock

  • Little Richard

    Ready Teddy 

  • Eddie Cochran

    Twenty Flight Rock

  • Bessie Smith

    St. Louis Blues

  • Queen

    A Kind Of Magic

  • Cab Calloway and His Orchestra

    Jumpin' Jive

  • Cab Calloway, The Blues Brothers

    Minnie The Moocher

  • Bing Crosby

    Be Careful, It's My Heart

  • Elvis Presley

    Heartbreak Hotel

  • Elvis Presley

    Love Me Tender

  • Elvis Presley

    Jailhouse Rock

  • Elvis Presley

    Mean Woman Blues (Alternate Film Version)

  • The Beatles

    A Hard Day's Night

  • Charles Ray, Griffiths Brian, Hutchinson Johnny, The Big Three

    What'd I Say

  • ´¡²Ô²Ôâ€M²¹°ù²µ°ù±ð³Ù

    Appreciation

  • Elvis Presley

    Jailhouse Rock

  • Prince

    When Doves Cry (2015 Paisley Park Remaster)

  • Prince & The Revolution

    The Beautiful Ones

  • Larz-Kristerz

    Purple Rain

  • Diana Ross, Gilbert Alexander Askey

    Mean To Me

  • Paul Dano

    God Only Knows

  • The Beach Boys

    Wouldn't It Be Nice

  • Kristen Vigard

    God Give Me Strength

  • The Jimi Hendrix Experience

    Wild Thing (Live at Monterey, 1967)

  • The Beach Boys

    Wouldn't It Be Nice (Stereo Backing)

  • Joe Cocker

    With A Little Help (Live)

  • Aretha Franklin

    Amazing Grace

  • The Band

    The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down

  • Portrait

    In Another World

  • Aretha Franklin

    Amazing Grace

  • Amy Winehouse

    Back To Black

  • Ray Heindorf, The Warner Bros. Orchestra, Judy Garland

    The Man That Got Away (Expanded Version)

  • Roy Orbison

    Blue Bayou

  • David Bowie

    Magic Dance

  • Jimmy Cliff

    You Can Get It If You Really Want

  • Freundeskreis

    20 $ Skit

  • Toots & The Maytals

    Sweet and Dandy

  • Whitney Houston

    Queen Of The Night

  • The Temperance Seven

    Everybody Loves My Baby

  • The Monkees

    Porpoise Song (Theme From Head)

  • Redbone

    Come And Get Your Love

  • Donna Summer

    Hot Stuff

  • Elvin Bishop

    Fooled Around and Fell in Love

  • T. Rosamund Johnson, Hall-Johnson Choir, Bessie Smith

    St. Louis Blues Soundtrack

  • Kendrick Lamar, SZA

    All The Stars

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Mark Kermode
Writer Kim Newman
Writer Mark Kermode
Series Producer Nick Freand Jones
Executive Producer John Das

Broadcasts