The best dance movies of all time
The top 3 according to 72 votes from people: Singin' in the Rain (1952) · An American in Paris (1951) · Cabaret (1972). (Updated Apr 18, 2023.)
From Swing Time to Black Swan: the dance films dancers and critics rank highest (Dance Magazine, MovieWeb, CLI Studios).
Top 12
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1
Singin' in the Rain (1952)
Gene Kelly dancing through a downpour.
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2
An American in Paris (1951)
Gene Kelly and a 17-minute ballet finale.
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3
Cabaret (1972)
Directed and choreographed by Bob Fosse.
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4
Dirty Dancing (1987)
The most iconic dance movie of the 80s, and the lift.
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5
West Side Story (1961)
Jerome Robbins' choreography on the streets of New York.
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6
The Red Shoes (1948)
Powell and Pressburger's ballet masterpiece.
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7
Strictly Ballroom (1992)
Baz Luhrmann's killer ballroom debut.
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8
Save the Last Dance (2001)
Ballet meets hip-hop in this early-2000s classic.
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9
Swing Time (1936)
Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers at their peak, the gold standard.
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10
Saturday Night Fever (1977)
The disco film that made John Travolta a dancing star.
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11
Billy Elliot (2000)
A miner's son who wants to be a ballet dancer.
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12
Black Swan (2010)
Natalie Portman unravels as Swan Lake's lead.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
Is something missing?
Comments (1)
Dirty Dancing will always be my number one, nobody puts Baby in a corner.