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As the Stars Turn

© Emily Woodward

Singin' In The Rain, the 1952 MGM classic directed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, may be described as a musical hybrid. The film's plethora of songs -- e.g. You Were Meant For Me, Singin' In The Rain -- are largely borrowed from earlier Hollywood musicals, few of which are still shown today. In this way, Singin' In The Rain shows itself to be a self-reflexive musical, as defined by the critic Jean Feurer.

Popular songs are not the only medium reflected in this musical. Virtually every element of Singin' In the Rain is synthesized out of developments that took place early within the genre. There are the flapper dresses and the costumes reminiscent of 1920's period dramas, e.g. those featured in The Dueling Cavalier. The film also highlights the comically primitive forms of technology -- the microphones planted on Lena Lamont --which beset early "talkies". In these ways, Singin' In The Rain evokes the "feel" of an era in which the musical genre was in its infancy. This era has been classified as "The Golden Age of Musicals" by such film scholars as Charles Champlin and Leonard Maltin. Their classification stems from the great popularity in the late 1920's and 1930's of films -- e.g. Gold Diggers of 1933 and Footlight Parade -- which borrowed heavily from the vaudeville tradition. This tradition did not always adhere to narrative conventions involving casualty of action and character development. Instead, it allowed for departures from plot, which were often comically sparse, so that the performers could step out of character and execute "star turns." They could showcase the talents for which they were best known.

I would argue that Singin' In The Rain evokes the feel of early musicals in order to justify its own adherence to vaudeville tradition. The film is arguably replete with "star turns" intended to showcase the talents of established performers. These performers include Gene Kelly, who actually stars in the film, and Al Jolson, whose presence -- according to Jean Feurer -- "looms over the entire musical genre."

To be continued.

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