Now, to be clear, “Singin’ in the Rain” isn’t a bad movie either. It’s just a musical so I don’t really think of it as a movie. Not because I want to viciously devalue an entire genre, but just because it seems there are certain cinematic elements that are missing in the typical musical, like substantial dialogue, character development and plain believability. Also, it seems the timeline tends to be different, taking place over a short time rather than covering a significant amount of time. Though, to “Singin’ in the Rain”’s credit, it does employ some relatively creative flashback sequences that manage to streamline much of the backstory, particularly during the opening segment.
At an old-time Hollywood premier at Mann’s Chinese Theater, the principal characters are paraded along the red carpet while an emcee tells us everything we need to know about them in their introductions. One of the studio’s contract musicians, Cosmo (Donald O’Connor) gets a very tepid response from the audience which is the first of many indicators that the film will be largely satirical of Hollywood culture. The ones people really want to see are Cosmo’s best friend Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly) and Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen), who he works with so often and so believably that people are sure they are banging in real life (ala Garth & Trisha). There is a cleverly presented “autobiographical” speech Don gives the press about his rise to stardom. As he describes his early life with Cosmo as being that of a child star, the truth of them dancing for nickels in seedy bars is shown in flashback as his narration turns out to be a lie, though the viewer is the only one who sees this. The lies pile up as he exaggerates their saloon musical acts and corny slapstick shows as “fine symphonic halls” and prestigious artistic training: all of this an obvious reference to the façade that the film industry puts on everything.
More significant to the plot (as well as providing an interesting perspective as to exactly how long this type of thing has been happening) is the revelation through further flashbacks that Don and Lina’s relationship has been manufactured by the studio and fed to the media for publicity. Every effort is made to indicate to us exactly why Lina is nothing short of completely unlovable as she throws a backstage diva-esque tantrum, talks herself up to megalomaniacal proportions and has a squeaky, crude voice on top of it all. Also, one of the most telling aspects of her character comes when we see her utter disinterest in Don years earlier until she overhears him being offered a well-paying movie contract.
While on their way to a post-party Don and Cosmo’s car breaks down and Don is mobbed by fans. In his effort to escape a rather absurd scene unfolds which not only serves the purpose of storyline convenience but also rubs our noses in the fact that we are watching Gene Kelly. Much the same way as the dance around his tiny apartment in “An American in Paris” is shown, a totally unrealistic sequence where Don dances atop a cable car and jumps into a convertible occurs seemingly for no other reason than to remind us how great a dancer Gene Kelly was. The car he lands in is driven by a wannabe theater actress named Kathy (Debbie Reynolds) who immediately begins shrieking and accusing him of being a criminal. After the confusion is cleared up the two bicker about the legitimacy of their respective artistic endeavors; which of course in old timey movie clichés means they are already in love with each other.
At the post party, another unorthodox but at least unique tactic is used. The antagonist is finally introduced but it is not a character, but a technological advancement. The host of the party shows a demonstration of a “talkie” which everyone immediately dismisses. The attendees discuss the inevitable failure of Al Jolson’s “The Jazz Singer” which of course foreshadows the grim future of their industry. In the very next scene we learn that “The Jazz Singer” is the biggest thing to hit the cinematic world and all of Hollywood is scrambling to make the transition to sound. Despite the fact that the truth was much more complicated and there was much more resistance to the sound transition, I admire the attempt to tell the story using true events.
“Lina. She can’t act, she can’t sing, she can’t dance. A triple-threat!” (Cosmo Brown, “Singin’ in the Rain”)
Since Hollywood is apparently a small town, Don and Kathy wind up working together at Monument Studios, which allows their inevitable relationship to blossom. Though it is contrived and predictable, their courtship yields two of the most memorable scenes in the movie. The famous and oft-referenced scene of Gene Kelly dancing down a rainy street singing the title track while splashing around and swinging on a lamppost is the most obvious but for artistic purposes I actually prefer an earlier number that takes place on a soundstage between them. In another jab at the artificialness of the movies, Don is able to “create” the perfect scenario for them to fall in love- a spotlight moon, a summer breeze courtesy of an industrial fan and a gorgeous view that is just a painted backdrop. This scene’s excessive cheese is outshined by its sheer creativity.
The studio’s first attempt to make a talkie with the pairing of Don and Lina is a joke largely because of her penile-shriveling voice. Test audiences laugh at all the wrong things and it becomes clear that Lina is a liability to the movie. However, they are too close to the end of production to pull the plug. Cosmo, Kathy and Don conspire to try and salvage what they can of the project when they decide to turn the movie into a musical, that way Cosmo’s composing and Don’s singing and dancing can carry it and Kathy’s voice can be dubbed in over Lina’s after filming.
Their deception works all the way up to and after the film’s premier, which is received warmly. Unfortunately for Lina, the crowd is so impressed with “her” singing that they demand she perform an impromptu encore. Kathy is forced to sing for Lina again, this time from backstage. Driven by hatred for Lina and love for Kathy, Don raises the curtain and exposes Lina for the fraud she is and everyone who deserves to lives happily ever after.
This film does still suffer from many of the same setbacks I mentioned earlier that most musicals suffer from- the lack of seriousness and depth, the minimal timeline and the confined sets. However it does still have many things going for it; the unconventional conflict of films vs films, the vastly underrated talents of Donald O’Connor, the clever satire and the well thought out costume designs which reflect the characters they belong to (Lina’s are loud and obnoxious, Don’s are refined and classy, Cosmo’s often have silly patterns etc). However, for me personally, the one thing I appreciate above all is the fact that “Singin’ in the Rain” does not have to be jaded or mean-spirited in its assault on Hollywood. It is good natured and kind of light-punch-on-the-knee in its criticism of L.A.
And nobody fucks with L.A. on my watch…
No comments:
Post a Comment