The Dirt is based on the bestselling autobiography that explores the lives of these four rock stars and their rise to fame. It has everything to do with sex, drugs, rock-n’-roll, and how it can change you as a person. Each film on this list is a biography of a musician or a dramatization of a rock star’s life. Hopefully, my list can provide you with similar films like The Dirt.
No one realizes the pain that they went through and how fame alters their mental state. Each one has their story and the hardships they went through to make it big.
10 Movies like The Dirt
Ray (2004)
This was the year Jamie Foxx was taken seriously as an actor. His portrayal of Ray Charles earned him his first Oscar. The film is the story of his life and career, from his humble beginnings in the South, where he went blind at the age of seven, to his meteoric rise to stardom during the 1950s and 1960s.
Love & Mercy (2014)
If you’re a Beach Boys fan, then this in-depth look at their lead singer, Brian Wilson, will change your perspective on the band. In the 60s, Wilson struggled with emerging psychosis as he attempted to craft his avant-garde pop masterpiece. In the 80s, he’s a broken, confused man under the 24-hour watch of a shady therapist.
The Runaways (2010)
In the early 2000s, no one could touch Kristen Stewart because of Twilight’s success. Even though her character, Bella Swan, wasn’t well received when she took on the role of Joan Jett, the perception that she wasn’t a good actress changed.
This is the coming-of-age biographical film about the 1970s teenage all-girl rock band The Runaways. It explores the relationship between band members Cherie Currie and Joan Jett.
Lords of Chaos (2018)
Lords of Chaos is about a teenager’s quest to launch a Norwegian Black Metal in Oslo in the early 1990s. Unfortunately for this band, there is a very violent outcome and it shows the way they navigate the craziness.
The Doors (1991)
The Doors did a lot for rock music, and this film is about the story of how they came to be with Val Kilmer playing Jim Morrison. As the lead singer and composer, Morrison was a film student at UCLA, and he had a desire to make music. Joining the 27 Club of untimely deaths, the film shows his death in Paris in 1971.
Last Days (2005)
After Kurt Cobain’s death from Nirvana, writer-director Gus Van Sant wanted to explore the musician’s life. So, instead of doing a biography, he loosely based the lead character played by Michael Pitt on him.
Almost Famous (2000)
The film that brought Kate Hudson to stardom is about a high-school boy in the early 1970s who is given the chance to write a story for Rolling Stone magazine about an up-and-coming rock band as he goes on tour with them. Writer-director Cameron Crowe explores the relationships within the band and how crazy life on the road can get.
Elvis (2022)
There have been many biographies about Elvis Presley’s life, but no one has fully grasped who Presley was like Baz Luhrmann and Austin Butler.
Luhrmann started from Presley’s roots, and what he listened to in his childhood helped shape the music he wanted to make in the 1950s. It also shows the complex relationship between Presley and Colonel Tom Parker.
Stardust (2020)
This chronicles the life of young David Bowie and the first time he set foot on US soil in 1971. This trip inspired the invention of his iconic alter ego, Ziggy Stardust. Although it flew under the radar, Johnny Flynn’s turn as Bowie is something to see.
La Bamba (1987)
Ritchie Valens was one of the passengers involved in the plane crash alongside Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper. He was only 17 when his career started to take off, and the young man came out of nowhere. He had one of the biggest hits and helped change rock music.
