20 music documentaries you must watch if you liked A Star is Born

Madonna: Truth or Dare

Why not start with an iconic music documentary? Any fan of Madonna definitely knows about the Queen of Pop’s behind-the-scenes doc, but if you haven’t seen it, you need to check it out ASAP.

Madonna: Truth or Dare, also known as In Bed with Madonna around the world, was a 1991 film that followed the singer on her 1990 Blonde Ambition tour when she the hottest performer in the world. To say it was a success would be an understatement, because it was actually the highest-grossing documentary ever until it was passed by Bowling For Columbine in 2002.

The documentary was filmed in black and white, with live performances from the tour shown in color throughout the film. It shows all the behind-the-scenes drama that a pop icon like Madonna faces while on a world tour: uncooperative weather for outdoor shows, meeting celebrity guests, fighting against The Man when they say you can’t do something, and of course, bonding with the dancers.

The dancers were an integral part of Truth or Dare. They became characters of their own, and the film showed them in their personal lives, reuniting with family, attending gay pride events and, in a moment that made the movie rather infamous, also showed them bonding with each other. Madonna and the dancers play a game of Truth or Dare — hence the title of the film — and it leads to Madonna deepthroating a bottle of alcohol and two male dancers making out. Almost all of the male dancers on the tour were gay, not surprising by today’s standards, but the way the film celebrated and showed them living their lives was groundbreaking, but also controversial.

Truth or Dare inspired a follow-up documentary in 2016 titled Strike a Pose, which checked in on the famous dancers from the Blonde Ambition tour and talked about the impact Truth or Dare and Madonna had on their lives. Some were still working in dance, others had normal jobs, while some lost their battle with AIDS.