Artifice and Escapism in Singin' in the Rain

     From the first scene in Singin' in the Rain, directors Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly establish it as a meta text. There are movie stars walking the red carpet and cartoonish, screaming fans; we are immediately placed in Hollywood, in a "movie about the movies". Within this setting, Kelly's character begins the narration, an origin story about how his fame was built (in the tradition of folk art) on physical talent. While the weaving structure of the narrative is admirably executed, the film's meta statement ultimately leads to a rather empty conclusion about the nature of stardom.

    The aesthetic of Singin' in the Rain is built around artifice. Every frame is staged, but some are stages-within-stages (notably the "Gotta Dance" sequence), adding an additional sense of artifice that contributes both to the meta narrative and the aesthetic. The shot composition and camera movements add very little to the film, but nonetheless it looks quite good. Aside from the actual performances in the film, the set design and color palette is probably the most noteworthy aspect of the production as a whole. 

    Don Lockwood (Kelly) is in the middle of a staged relationship with Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen) for publicity purposes. Lamont is Lockwood's co-star, and she hides her lack of acting talent behind the artifice allowed by silent Hollywood. She and Lockwood do not need to deliver their lines, they just maintain a face for the audience and allow the inter-titles to provide the drama. 

    Lockwood's true love is Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds), who is the opposite of Lamont: a Shakespearean actor, singer and dancer who is not marketable in Hollywood until synchronized sound comes along. The most clever use of the meta narrative in the film is in Lockwood's first successful courtship of Selden. The two walk into a soundstage, in front of a backdrop of dreamlike pink clouds. Although the feelings between the two are real, they are not able to connect until Lockwood frames their relationship in an artificial setting.

    Then, of course, comes the "Singin' in the Rain" sequence, which is sweet and borders on saccharine, and ultimately secures the film as a work of pop art. It is the tried and true theme that pop music has used for decades: eliciting the feeling of love that makes us forget about all our troubles.

    Donen and Kelly's thesis seems to come from the final staged scene, in which Lina Lamont is exposed for lip-syncing. How do Lina's actions compare to how the filmmakers treat the audience, though? Donen and Kelly use bricolage sequences to subconsciously make us think of their characters as great natural performers, though it is clear that these scenes are carefully engineered. This is where the thesis becomes muddled; using pop art techniques to make commentary against pop art.

    However, this is no reason to take away from the performances of Kelly, Reynolds and O'Connor. They are all remarkable physical actors, dancers and singers, and enjoyment of the film is ultimately contingent on appreciation of these skills. 


IHRTLUHC

    

Comments

  1. LaurenSeptember 29, 2020 at 9:46 PM

    I think it's interesting to think about what Feuer assumes of the viewer, because I think although the narrative positions us to believe in the character as amateurs, most viewers know the rigor it takes to become a legendary performer like Kelly or Garland. That's not to say non-choreography isn't acting on a level that's more than aesthetic though.

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  2. AmySeptember 30, 2020 at 10:56 PM

    I always find it interesting that there is the assumption that people wouldnt/couldnt identify with incredible hard work and dedication that it takes to become such a good performer even if they themselves are not great performers. I think that it has to do with the presumption that the audience will have an aversion to the very artifice that Tom is describing. While film rotates around a reality that is absolutely created, it works very hard to disguise this. Its interesting to think of this in relationship to the collapse of reality and representation that social media creates.

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