Notable music biopics and documentaries

A collection of noteworthy biopics and documentaries that explore the personal and professional lives of musicians.

In “I Saw the Light,” Tom Hiddleston, best known for his role as Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, portrays country music pioneer Hank Williams, who died at age 29.

“Miles Ahead” focuses on jazz trumpeter Miles Davis’ return from his late-1970s silent period. Don Cheadle directs himself in the title role. Previously titled “Kill the Trumpet Player,” the film is set to be released in 2016.

“Straight Outta Compton” follows the meteoric rise and fall of the seminal hip-hop group N.W.A., which burst onto the music scene in the mid-1980s with a sound that reflected the violence and desperation of its gang-ridden surroundings.

Netflix’s “What Happened, Miss Simone?” chronicles the life of singer and activist Nina Simone.

“Amy” offers an intimate, unflinching gaze into the life of singer Amy Winehouse, exposing the perils of celebrity and addiction and how Winehouse fed off the two. 

Director Brett Morgen’s HBO documentary “Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck” offers an intimate look at the life of the late musician from his childhood in Aberdeen, Wash., through his rise to stardom with the grunge band Nirvana to his death in 1994.

Directed by producer-financier William Pohlad, “Love & Mercy” chronicles the complicated, eccentric personal saga of Beach Boys cofounder Brian Wilson. John Cusack and Paul Dano play Wilson in different periods of his tumultuous life, with Paul Giamatti as his tormentor, psychologist Eugene Landy.

This observational documentary offers a final opportunity to witness the singer in lucid moments, with his artistry movingly intact. He moved into an Alzheimer’s treatment facility in March 2014, three years after filming began.

This biopic examines the dramatic rise and fall of Brooklyn rapper Notorious B.I.G., played by Jamal Woolard, right, with Dennis White. Domestic gross: $36,843,682.