An enduring and memorable movie musical.

Rating: 7/10 (17 May 2018)

'Singin' In The Rain (1952)' is one of the most memorable and enduring movie musicals of all time, remaining a classic even after all these years. It is also, despite my well-documented reservations with the genre, one of the best of its kind, especially when it comes to handling its sing-song scenes. All of its song-and-dance numbers are diegetic, or otherwise make total narrative sense, and only a couple seem to slightly break from the presented world-space, with the occasional abandonment of actual scenes to long tap routines feeling like there'd be at least some objection from those being fobbed off in favour of dance - or those wandering why on earth the characters are dancing like madmen at these occasionally inappropriate times - and the players sometimes making eyes at the 'camera' as opposed to anyone within their vicinity. There's also one number in which three people simultaneously know choreography to a dance they're making up on the spot, though this isn't a massive issue as they're all professional dancers and doing fairly standard tap for most of the piece - plus, the song in question is pre-existing and so the dance could be inspired by it. Indeed, only two songs were actually written for this flick, despite the fact that most have become synonymous with it. Even the title song was already around, which has certainly been tied to its segment in the film but is actually supposedly the inspiration for the entire picture (somehow). What's most striking about the flick, for me, is its story. Sure, the musical aspects are wonderfully done and certainly some of the best of their kind. I can't express how impressed I was when Donald O'Connor ran up a straight wall and back-flipped off it. Sometimes, these dance-numbers go on for too long, though, especially towards the latter half once the choreography starts to repeat. They actually begin to detract from the narrative slightly. While the 'Broadway Ballet' sequence is a visual treat and a remarkable achievement, it is totally superfluous and kills the pacing. It takes away from the most important aspect, which is - and always should be - the story. Still, we're back on track before long. The tale is an interesting and rather well-told one, despite some unfortunate signs of its age. The silent star pulled into the sound era has been used in a number of films since this, though this puts its focus more on creating the first movie musical and therefore becomes a slightly meta experience. It is also nicely satirical, too, a self-aware look at cinema history seen from fairly fresh eyes (the fifties weren't far off from the late twenties, after all). It's this light-tone and moments of genuine humour that keep the piece afloat, with an endearing cast caught in an entertaining quest to keep their careers afloat. It's an enjoyable experience that provides all the spectacle you'd expect but does sometimes get a little too caught up in it. 7/10