When people think of Singin’ in the Rain two things automatically come to mind: the famous
song that inspired the movie and the extravagant song and dance numbers. There
is no question that the choreography Gene Kelly put together, while also
directing and taking the lead role, is part of the reason that this is known as
one of, if not the, greatest musical
of all time. However these are not the only aspects that make this a great and
notable movie in film history. One aspect that adds to the effect of this movie
is the façade that builds the fame and fortune of Lina Lamont and Don Lockwood,
and the overall plot of the movie being the transition from silent movies to
talkies.
The façade of fame and fortune
This
starts in the opening scene of the movie when Don Lockwood is begged to tell
the story of his success from the very beginning. During his story he mentions
multiple times that his motto through his success was always “dignity, always
dignity.” The irony of this statement seeps through his whole story; as he is
telling a grand tale of success starting from his childhood, what we see played
out is a much different story. Don and his friend Cosmo actually took a rather
long, weary, and pathetic path to get to where they were at the point of the
premier they find themselves at. Starting with “performing for Mum and Dad’s
society friends,” who would “make such a fuss over me”; while they were
actually performing in front of a group of people and getting dragged away.
They finally got to California where they were “stranded”, which seemed to be
the only true part of the story; and while we are seeing the two of them leaned
up against a wall in the pouring rain, he is telling everyone how offers were
pouring in.
Also,
we have the start of “fan magazines” talking about and making rumors of
celebrity relationships. While the couple was very famous for the individual
acting careers they carried, the theory of “wedding bells ringing” added to the
fame and desire of these two in the movies, especially together. This is an
aspect of celebrity life today that has not only continued but gotten much
worse and more personal. But, it is a way to generate talk which is the way to
fame and fortune.
Transitioning from silent to talkies
This
actually made for a great plot in itself. This changed not only what we expect
to see in movies but what we expect out of actors themselves. This posed an
especially difficult change for Lina Lamont and many others. While Lina was not
the best actress around, she also had a voice that made everyone laugh at her
and not take her the least bit seriously. The film they were creating also
struggled because they had to create real dialogue and say every word of it. The Jazz Singer caused a lot of problems
for The Fighting Cavalier so they had
to play to their own strengths which caused further problems for Lina Lamont. The
façade of her own success was furthered with the dubbing of her regular voice
and singing voice by Kathy Selden. The narrative of one crew struggling to make
this ever important transition was very symbolic of how the whole industry had
to do the same thing.
Conclusion
The
singing and dancing certainly make this movie one of the greatest of its genre.
However we have to look past the superficial effects to recognize what exactly
makes this movie as great as it is. The façade of fame and fortune and the
narrative of transition make this movie stick out.
-Wyatt Butler
I liked the symbolism you used to compare the movie with how the movie industry was changing. This movie is a perfect example to show how the whole film industry was turned upside down by sound. One of my favorite scenes in the whole movie is, when Lina is on stage getting ready to film her scene and they are trying to figure out where to put the microphone. They try hiding the microphone in the bush but when Lina moves around the set it loses her voice. This scene shows how the movies had to invent new ways to hide the microphone so that the actors could move around the scene and still be heard.
ReplyDeleteAnother way the film industry had to adapt was to find people who were talented in not just acting but had a pleasing voice to hear. In Lina’s case she was a gifted actor but had a terrible singing voice. This became a problem for many famous actors that were stars in the silent film era. This was also portrayed in Sun Set Boulevard with Norma Descent an old famous silent movie star forgotten by the onset of sound. In the final onstage performance when Kathy was revealed to the world leaving Lina to run off stage in embarrassment. This scene portrays a new generation of celebrity stars that are taking the film world by storm. The new wave of stars over took the scene forcing all the old stars who couldn’t adapt to sound to be chased off stage.
Eric Shacklette