Review of Singin' in the Rain (1952) by Daniel C — 21 May 2013

Hollywood. 1927. The two most famous screen actors are silent movie stars Don Lockwood (Gene Kelley) and Lena Lamont (Jean Hagen). Their careers go well until The Jazz Singer comes out, which puts silent film stars in jeopardy. Manager RF Simpson (Millard Mitchell) decides to put Lockwood and Lamont into a "talkie", but when the preview screening goes terribly wrong, Lockwood, his real girlfriend Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds), and best friend Cosmo Brown (Donald O Connor) decide to make their film into a musical. The problem about that is that Lamont can't act, sing, or dance. Can they eventually get a production right without any technological advances screwing it up?

Singin in the Rain features many great numbers, including "Fit as a Fiddle", "Good Morning", "Moses Supposes", the hilarious "Make Em Laugh", and the most famous number "Singin in the Rain", featuring Gene Kelly singing and dancing in the pouring rain, while having a high fever of 102 while filming the scene. Him performing the scene while he was sick is impressive, considering that the choreography is some of the best choreography ever put into a musical.

There is also good comedy, especially in O Connor's "Make Em Laugh" number. It's just hilarious to see Donald get beaten up by a dummy, even after seeing it 100 times.

As a whole, Singin in the Rain is one of the best musicals ever made, and if you don't like musicals, you might enjoy this one just for the comedy.