One of the best of these romance dance and song films--AMAZING

Rating: 10/10 (31 March 2011)

Singin' in the Rain (1952)
You gotta love a movie like this.
But--how in the world do you talk about a classic that has grown so big it defines its own genre? How can you mention, politely, that it's filled with flaws?
If there are parts that are frankly corny, to the point of being "stupid" if they appeared in some other movie, can you say so? (The first big opening night scenes where people are getting out of their cars might be one.)
If some of the dance scenes seem like throw-ins, adding nothing to the plot and offering only more lighthearted tap dancing and goofing around, isn't this a distraction? (The diction coach dance is one candidate.)
What if it's just full of itself? (The Cyd Charisse ballet scenes can be seen that way, for sure.) Or what if the plot is just too obviously a vehicle, and we can't get involved like we should in something more sincere, or more surprising? (The guy lands in the seat of a moving car and finds himself next to the girl, hello?)
Well, the answer to all these is you need to chill and lighten up and realize that that's how these musicals go. It's like you had Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds over to your house and everyone started hamming it up and dancing and being silly. And Donald O'Connor stopped by to play piano (and dance up the walls). And you blow it up and give it dazzling color and bright lights. Then rehearse a little so the dance steps aren't just fun, but they are astonishing, and choreographed exquisitely? And what if you, say, want to have a little history of dance thrown in, why not? And of course modern ballet is the counterpart to modern Hollywood musical dance numbers, so why not try to mix them a bit (this is Gene Kelly's doing, mostly)?
So if you ramp up the affair into a big budget, slickly filmed movie, but never lose sight of its origins as a kind of fun, not-so-serious romp, it's just a great time. A corny, silly, improbable, romantic, self-effacing, celebratory great time.