Singin' in the Rain

This one is a classic.  If you love musicals, chances are you've seen this one (if not, SHAME on you)!  Many consider it one of (if not THE) best musicals ever made (I wouldn't necessarily go that far...).  Starring Gene Kelley, Debbie Reynolds, Donald O'Connor, and Jean Hagen, the film tells the story of two silent era film stars, Don Lockwood (Kelley) and Lina Lamont (Hagen), as their studio moves to talkies.  Unfortunately, Lina's voice isn't very...attractive...to say the least, so the studio encounters problems trying to turn the pair into talkies stars.  It doesn't help that Lina is also - shall we use Don's word? - a viper.  She's also not the sharpest knife in the drawer.  When her beloved Don starts seeing Kathy Seldon (Reynolds), Lina turns downright dangerous...and rather annoying as well (though Hagan does an excellent job portraying her character!)

I really like this film.  My only issue is the one odd song and dance sequence right in the middle, where Don fantasizes about what their film will be like...it's just weird.  I don't even know how to describe it, really.  It doesn't fit well with the rest of the plot and even the color scheme and style is very different from the rest of the film.  Of course, it's difficult not to love the classic sequences of "Good Morning" and the film's namesake "Singin' in the Rain."  Gene Kelley splashing around, all in love and whatnot is rather lovely visually.  It makes it all the more impressive that Kelley had a high fever during the filming for the sequence.  Also, O'Connor in "Make 'Em Laugh" is quite the entertainer!  It's a wonderful film overall, and a must-see for any fan of either musicals or older movies (especially fans of both!).

One other thing I must mention: I'm not a very big fan of Gene Kelley, but if he sang to me the way he sang to Debbie Reynolds...I'd probably melt too, any dislike aside!

Hi!  This is Katelyn!

Victoria can say what she wants about that horribly disjointed Broadway number in the middle (and be right about all of it) but it had a beautiful dream sequence in a dream sequence.  Wonderful choreography with excellent utilization of silks and a bit of ballet technique in there for kicks.  I thought it was a great scene, even if it would have been better placed in a different movie or number.

With that out of the way, I have to admit that this is my first time seeing Singing in the Rain off stage.  It was even better than the low-budget production that I saw that was pretty brilliant for a community theater.  The tap was wonderful and the story line can't help but win you over.

Jean Hagen's comedic timing as Lina Lamont was nearly flawless.  Lina is one of those characters you love to hate.  She is quite the scene-stealer and even if Debbie Reynolds was good in her role Hagen was Lina.  Gene Kelley shone, and unfortunately outshone Reynolds in some of their scenes together.  Once again, I loved Reynolds and her performance but she was surrounded by very big personalities.

Victoria again!  Just wanted to mention: I agree^ :).

Well, we suppose we'll let you actually watch the film for yourself.  We don't wanna ruin it!  We hope you enjoyed our review and even more that you enjoy this lovely film!  We rate it a B+.

~V+K

PS: Remember: "Dignity.  Always dignity."  Except when you "make 'em laugh." :D

Small Update

I apologize for how long and rant-like my first review was.  I suppose that's what happens when I attempt to review a movie about something so dear to me (for that reason, I will probably never review a Harry Potter film!).

Second thing: Katelyn and I have to watch the film Sullivan's Travels for our film class this week, so you can expect a blog post about this film later in the week, probably either Wednesday night or sometime Thursday.  Next week's project will be Singing in the Rain.

Also this week, we are going to see the Academy Award-Winning film The Artist before it leaves theaters once again.  We shall see this film Thursday evening after Quidditch practice, and I'm sure we'll blog about it at some point in the days following.  So the blog should be fairly active this week!

Just thought I'd outline some of the immediate plans for blogs and let our dear reader(s?) know that we will be reviewing films (for real this time, not in a long-winded rant) very soon.

Thanks for reading, and check back later in the week for our thoughts on Sullivan's Travels and The Artist!

Victoria