Entertainment Industry Drama backdrop

Entertainment Industry Drama movies

Fame and career drama in film, TV, music, or theater: ambition, image, exploitation, and the cost of success.

Two for the Money

1. Two for the Money

Comedy Crime Drama Thriller Con Artist Crime
6.2
20052h 2min

Overview

A former college athlete joins forces with a sports consultant to handicap football games for high-rolling gamblers.

Themes

Media exposure, Greed vs success, False persona, Image crafting, Gambling risk and addiction, Career volatility

Available on

Netflix
Amazon Prime Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Walk the Line

2. Walk the Line

Drama Music Romance Music Biopic Entertainment Industry Drama
7.8
20052h 16min

Overview

A chronicle of country music legend Johnny Cash's life, from his early days on an Arkansas cotton farm to his rise to fame with Sun Records in Memphis, where he recorded alongside Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins.

Themes

Drug dependency pressures, Family conflict and reconciliation, Fame versus personal stability, Partnership under strain, Creative ambition vs chaos

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Mrs. Henderson Presents

3. Mrs. Henderson Presents

Comedy Drama Adult Comedy Entertainment Industry Drama
7.0
20051h 43min

Overview

Recently widowed well-to-do Laura Henderson purchases the Windmill Theatre in London as a post-widowhood hobby. After starting an innovative continuous variety review, which is copied by other theaters, they begin to lose money. Mrs Henderson suggests they add risqué burlesque acts similar to the Moulin Rouge in Paris.

Themes

Risk and resilience in wartime venue, Wealth and social status, Artistic expression under censorship, Power dynamics and governance, Legacy and ownership transfer, Gendered spectacle and audience

Available on

Google Play Movies
YouTube
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Don't Come Knocking

4. Don't Come Knocking

Drama Western Entertainment Industry Drama Modern Western
6.6
20052h 3min

Overview

Howard Spence has seen better days. Once a big Western movie star, he now drowns his disgust for his selfish and failed life with alcohol, drugs and young women. If he were to die now, nobody would shed a tear over him, that's the sad truth. Until one day Howard learns that he might have a child somewhere out there...

Themes

Loyalty under strain, Absent mother obligation, Fading fame isolation, Past consequences memory, Family reunion tension, Pursuit and coercion

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Hustle & Flow

5. Hustle & Flow

Crime Drama Music Entertainment Industry Drama Organized Crime
7.3
20051h 56min

Overview

With help from his friends, a Memphis pimp in a mid-life crisis attempts to become a successful hip-hop emcee.

Themes

Midlife crisis drives ambition, Drug dealer impulses, Hip-hop aspiration grows, Rap music push, Prostitution risk rises, Pimp dynamics emerge

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
fuboTV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Wayward Cloud

6. The Wayward Cloud

Comedy Drama Romance Romantic Comedy Adult Comedy
6.5
20051h 54min

Overview

Hsiao-Kang, now working as an adult movie actor, meets Shiang-chyi once again. Meanwhile, the city of Taipei faces a water shortage that makes the sales of watermelons skyrocket.

Themes

Resource scarcity, Commodification of bodies, Performative sexuality, Urban voyeurism, Private/public boundaries, Misperception of identity

Available on

Amazon Video
BFI Player
BFI Player Amazon Channel
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Beat That My Heart Skipped

7. The Beat That My Heart Skipped

Drama Crime Entertainment Industry Drama Organized Crime
7.2
20051h 47min

Overview

A ruthless real estate agent discovers a passion for piano and auditions with help from a young virtuoso, but the pressures of his corrupt career threaten to derail his musical aspirations.

Themes

Loyalty vs ambition, Deception and betrayal, Class inequality in housing, Economic pressure from corruption, Pursuit of art under risk, Family ties and debt

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Aviator

8. The Aviator

Drama Entertainment Industry Drama
7.5
20042h 50min

Overview

A biopic depicting the life of filmmaker and aviation pioneer Howard Hughes from 1927 to 1947, during which time he became a successful film producer and an aviation magnate, while simultaneously growing more unstable due to severe obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Themes

Ambition vs ethics, Obsessive perfectionism, Public scrutiny and control, Media manipulation and influence, Risk for innovation, Relationships under pressure

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
fuboTV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Beyond the Sea

9. Beyond the Sea

Drama Music Entertainment Industry Drama Music Biopic
6.7
20041h 58min

Overview

Based on the life and career of legendary entertainer, Bobby Darin, the biopic moves back and forth between his childhood and adulthood, to tell the tale of his life.

Themes

Pressures of fame, Family secrecy and lineage, Artistic reinvention, Public life vs private life, Romantic strain with fame, Class-bound ascent

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Life and Death of Peter Sellers

10. The Life and Death of Peter Sellers

Drama Comedy Romance Entertainment Industry Drama Parody
6.9
20042h 2min

Overview

The turbulent personal and professional life of actor Peter Sellers (1925-1980), from his beginnings as a comic performer on BBC Radio to his huge success as one of the greatest film comedians of all time; an obsessive artist so dedicated to his work that neglected his loved ones and sacrificed part of his own personality to convincingly create that of his many memorable characters.

Themes

Deception in relationships, Artist life vs family, Family relationships under strain, Public persona vs private life, Coworker dynamics, Ambition and personal cost

Available on

Apple TV
BBC iPlayer
Timvision
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.