Best movies like The Pirates of Penzance
Last updated March 2024
Looking for movies similar to The Pirates of Penzance? Leverage your insights to direct others toward movies and tv shows you've seen before that they might like also. Help broaden the community of people suggesting videos to each other. We welcome your engagement!
Plot Summary:
This Pirates of Penzance is primarily a historical document, part of the Broadway Theater Archive television series. It presents, with some inevitable, tiny technical shortcomings, a live 1980 performance in Central Park, not the 1983 movie of the same name that also starred Linda Ronstadt and Kevin Kline. Those who remember that film, which had the benefit of retakes and editing, a lavish production budget, and the spaciousness of a Hollywood studio, may find this video less polished. On its own terms, it is nonetheless thoroughly enjoyable.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 446
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags:
Best tv shows and movies like The Pirates of Penzance (1980):
Similar in 82%
Carmen (1987)
Plot Summary:
Carmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies (1824) by Alexander Pushkin. Mérimée had read the poem in Russian by 1840 and translated it into French in 1852.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 114
Genere: Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 172 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 83%
It's a Complex World (1991)
Plot Summary:
A band of would-be terrorists threaten to blow up the Heartbreak Hotel, Providence's most notorious rock club. Featuring extended live performances by The Young Adults and Morris Brock.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 143
Genere: Action, Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 81 min
Plot tags: independent film
Similar in 86%
Barbra Streisand: The Television Specials: Barbra Streisand... and Other Musical Instruments (1973)
Plot Summary:
A mulitcultural musical potpourri, Barbra's fifth television spectacular is her most adventurous. Performing a startling array of new songs and classic hits, with genre-bending arrangements, Barbra Streisand... and Other Musical Instruments is a feast for the eyes and ears.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 286
Genere: Music, Musical
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 52 min
Plot tags: entertaining
Similar in 87%
Let's Make Love 2 (1989)
Plot Summary:
Lepa Brena goes to one of the islands of the Adriatic, on a working holiday, but due to the holidays and planning the next tour, false news that the notorious island Lepa Brena requested a special guest for the tour. The news will completely disrupt the thrill and to potential tour guests, tourists and members of the Sweet Sin and the whole island.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 657
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: Yugoslavia
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 87%
The Mikado (1987)
Plot Summary:
Nanki-Poo, the son of the Mikado, leaves home and disguises himself as a musician to escape a distasteful marriage - and meets a beautiful girl, Yum-Yum, with whom he falls in love. He desperately wants to marry her, but obstacles are cast in his way by Yum-Yum's guardian, Ko-Ko, the Lord High Executioner, who is also in love with Yum-Yum and has every intention of marrying her, himself. Also causing problems is Katisha, Nanki-Poo's jilted bride, who arrives in Titipu in the company of Nanki-Poo's father, the Mikado.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 32
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: Australia
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 75%
It's All Judas' Fault (2009)
Plot Summary:
A prison-set musical about a female theater director who sets up a reinterpretation of the Crucifixion.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 213
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: Italy
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 88%
The Hit (1981)
Plot Summary:
.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 334
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: Czechoslovakia
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: campy
Similar in 79%
It Was Beyond the Narva Gate (1981)
Plot Summary:
.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 41
Genere: Comedy, History, Musical
Country: Soviet Union
Duration: 76 min
Plot tags: period piece
Similar in 87%
Apollo Goes on Holiday (1968)
Plot Summary:
Prince Jan is spying on beautiful tour guide Elena from his helicopter while touring Greece. He escapes from his entourage and joins the girl's group, posing as a humble visitor. The two fall in love, but Prince Jan, knowing that he has duties and responsibilities to his country, leaves her, never revealing his true identity.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 223
Genere: Comedy, Musical, Romance
Country: Greece, Sweden
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 75%
Forever Plaid (2008)
Plot Summary:
Forever Plaid is an affectionate musical homage to the close-harmony 'guy groups' that reached the height of their popularity during the 1950s. This quartet of high-school chums, and their earnest dreams of recording an album, ended (symbolically, and even literally) in death, when their cherry red '54 Mercury collided with a bus filled with Catholic schoolgirls on their way to see the Beatles' American debut on The Ed Sullivan Show. The girls were fine. The play begins with the wondrous and wondering Plaids returning from the afterlife for one final chance at musical glory.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 87
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 75%
Radio City Christmas Spectacular (2007)
Plot Summary:
The Radio City Christmas Spectacular is an annual musical holiday stage show presented at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The show features over 140 performers, lavish sets and costumes and an original musical score. The 90 minute revue combines singing, dancing and humor with traditional scenes in spectacular stage settings. The star performers are the women's precision dance troupe known as the Rockettes. Since the first version was presented in 1933, the show has become a New York Christmas tradition seen by more than a million visitors a year.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 114
Genere: Family, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 78%
The Jinkx and DeLa Holiday Special (2020)
Plot Summary:
The story of two queens who set out to create a classic Christmas TV variety show, but just can’t agree on how. DeLa tries her hardest to uphold the cheery Christmas traditions of her childhood. Meanwhile, Jinkx is much more interested in bawdy jokes, cute boys, and boozy libations.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 541
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 65 min
Plot tags: christmas special, independent film, slapstick comedy, queer cinema, campy
Similar in 83%
Clambake (1967)
Plot Summary:
The heir to an oil fortune trades places with a water-ski instructor at a Florida hotel to see if girls will like him for himself, rather than his father's money.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: feel good, humorous, realistic, experimental, semi serious, psychotronic, light, sexy, bad ending, melancholic
Similar in 84%
Paradise, Hawaiian Style (1966)
Plot Summary:
Blacklisted by the major airlines for endlessly chasing female staff, pilot Rick Richards returns to Hawaii to set up a helicopter charter company with his friend Danny. Having a girl on every island is a good way to get business but it becomes clear that romance and flying don't always mix.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: psychotronic, humorous, realistic, stylized, semi serious, exotic
Similar in 75%
Never Say Macbeth (2007)
Plot Summary:
Danny; a science teacher, tries to reunite with his ex-girlfriend Ruth, who has dumped him to become an actress in Hollywood. Stumbling into an LA theater during auditions asking: "Is this the audition for Macbeth?" he starts a series of unfortunate events that not only curse the production, but his ex-girlfriend as well, all but ruining his chance for love. Never Say Macbeth is a high-spirited no holds barred comedy about the biggest taboo in theater. Macbeth is believed to be cursed because it is the only Shakespeare play based on black magic and witchcraft, which is why this film, Never Say Macbeth, is also cursed.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 74
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 88%
The Pirates of Penzance (1983)
Plot Summary:
In spite of being apprenticed to a Pirate King as a child, Frederic has led a very sheltered life. So when he arrives in Penzance with his boisterous shipmates, there are a few surprises in store for him! It all ends happily, but not before he's dodged the Old Bill, fallen in love and made some rather inconvenient discoveries.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy, Musical, Romance
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: humorous, feel good, semi serious, light, romantic, atmospheric, sexy, clever, unusual plot structure, sweet
Similar in 81%
Billy Rose's Jumbo (1962)
Plot Summary:
The daughter of a circus owner fights to save her father from a takeover spearheaded by the man she loves.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Musical, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 123 min
Plot tags: retro, feel good, humorous, stylized, semi serious, crying, romantic comedy
Similar in 78%
Elvis Has Left the Building (2004)
Plot Summary:
Harmony had an encounter early in life with the young Elvis, and can't seem to shake his influence. Now a Pink Lady selling cosmetics, she seems to inadvertently bring harm to any Elvis impersonators she encounters. After a bizarre car accident leaves a slew of them dead, Harmony goes on the run from the authorities, hooking up with a downtrodden ad exec who has Elvis troubles of his own.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA, UK, Germany
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, entertaining
Similar in 78%
You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (1973)
Plot Summary:
You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown is a musical comedy with music and lyrics by Clark Gesner, based on the characters created by cartoonist Charles M. Schulz in his comic strip Peanuts.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 292
Genere: Comedy, Family, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 75%
Shock Treatment (1981)
Plot Summary:
Janet and Brad Majors, unhappily married, are separated after appearing on a game show. Janet becomes a superstar while Brad is thrown into a mental hospital. But what does fast food magnate Farley Flavors have up his sleeve?.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: surreal, cult classic, allegory, spoof, horror musical, black comedy, horror comedy, dark comedy, offbeat, humorous
Similar in 77%
Blue Hawaii (1961)
Plot Summary:
Chad Gates has just gotten out of the Army, and is happy to be back in Hawaii with his surf-board, his beach buddies, and his girlfriend.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: light, melancholic, stylized, intense, feel good, humorous, semi serious, touching, psychotronic, retro
Similar in 81%
Beach Ball (1965)
Plot Summary:
Edd Byrnes tries to get an ethnic-music-studies grant to buy instruments for his rock and roll group.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 196
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 83 min
Plot tags: psychotronic, independent film, sentimental, touching, offbeat, feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, slang
Similar in 82%
Frankie and Johnny (1966)
Plot Summary:
Elvis plays Johnny, a riverboat entertainer with a big gambling problem. Donna Douglas plays Johnny's girl, Frankie. A fortune teller tells Johnny how he can change his luck. Enter a new lady luck played by Nancy Kovack and the cat fight begins.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Musical, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: psychotronic, feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, light, road movie, sexy, clever, bad ending
Similar in 81%
Viva Las Vegas (1964)
Plot Summary:
Lucky Jackson arrives in town with his car literally in tow ready for the first Las Vegas Grand Prix - once he has the money to buy an engine. He gets the cash easily enough but mislays it when the pretty swimming pool manageress takes his mind off things. It seems he will lose both race and girl, problems made more difficult by rivalry from Elmo Mancini, fellow racer and womaniser.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: retro, psychotronic, hilarious, offbeat, feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, entertaining, exciting
Similar in 88%
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1967)
Plot Summary:
A young but bright former window cleaner rises to the top of his company by following the advice of a book about ruthless advancement in business.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 121 min
Plot tags: funny, humorous, witty, stylized, technicolor, feel good, realistic, not serious, parody, light
Similar in 86%
Bye Bye Birdie (1995)
Plot Summary:
Rock-and-roll icon Conrad Birdie is about to go into the Army, and plans are being made to arrange his final going-away concert.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 904
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Musical
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 135 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 83%
The Pirate Movie (1982)
Plot Summary:
A comedy/musical utilizing both new songs and parodies from the original (Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance), as well as references to popular films of the time, including Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark. In your typical boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy fights girl with swords plot, the story revolves around Mabel.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Musical, Romance
Country: Australia
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: parody, cult classic, humorous, spoof, feel good, semi serious, erotic, fairy tale, light, romantic
Similar in 89%
Bye Bye Birdie (1963)
Plot Summary:
A singer goes to a small town for a performance before he is drafted.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: funny, retro, black and white, hilarious, feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, satirical, vintage
Similar in 89%
Freak Dance (2010)
Plot Summary:
A spoiled rich girl who wants to be a dancer finds herself caught into between two rival dance groups set to do battle at an underground competition.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 358
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: humorous, not serious, light, captivating, parody, realistic, alternative comedy
Similar in 84%
Cry-Baby (1990)
Plot Summary:
A prim and proper schoolgirl goes against her mother's wishes when she dates a motorcycle-riding juvenile delinquent.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 64000
Genere: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: humorous, sentimental, light, parody, teen, feel good, surreal, cult classic, dark comedy, retro