Singin' in the Rain

BFI Film Classics

by Peter Wollen

Forty Years after it first appeared, Singin' in the Rain remains one of the best loved films ever made. Yet despite dazzling success with the public, it never received its fair share of praise from the critics. Gene Kelly's genius as a performer is there for all to see. What is less acknowledged is his innovatory contribution as director. Peter Wollen has finally done justice to this landmark film. In a brilliant shot-by-shot analysis of the famous title number, illustrated by specially produced frame stills, he shows how skillfully Kelly binds the dance and musical elements into the narrative, and how he successfully combines two distinctive traditions within American Dance, tap and ballet.
Scriptwriters Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and indeed Kelly himself, were all under threat from the McCarthyism which menaced Hollywood at this time. The ethos in which the film was conceived could not long survive in the era of blacklisting. Wollen argues convincingly that Singin' in the Rain was the high point in the careers of those who worked on it.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction, Essays, Criticism

72 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 27, 1992

About the author

Peter Wollen was an English film theorist and filmmaker. He studied English at Christ Church, Oxford. Both political journalist and film theorist, Wollen's Signs and Meaning in the Cinema (1969) helped to transform the discipline of film studies by incorporating the methodology of structuralism and semiotics. He taught film at a number of universities and was Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Los Angeles, at the time of his retirement.

Reviews

[Behin · Rating 1 out of 5]

این میشه عبرت برام که دیگه کتاب سینمایی نخونم😂

[Meï Li]

intéressant ma foi

[David Klingenberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This thoughtful and, at times, brilliant meditation on the film is marred by devoting a disproportionate amount of space to the Hollywood blacklisting of the 1950s, but it should not be passed over.

[Tosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first introduction to "Singing In The Rain" was when Alex was raping a woman in "A Clockwork Orange." My second visit to "Singing..." is Peter Wollen's small book length study of the Gene Kelly/Stanley Donen film. Strange enough, for a hardcore cinema fan like myself I have never ever seen this film. Yes, I have seen every Fred Astaire movie at least twice, but "Singing In The Rain" never! Yet, that didn't stop me from enjoying this critical adventure into the world of Gene Kelly.

I read this book today, in one gulp on my couch, in a temperture that is around 90. Therefore by an open window with a slight breeze I was taken into an artificial world that Gene Kelly made - a world that was beautiful. At least conveyed in the text. This book works on many levels. One Wollen argues the importance of dance as an art, but also as an equal companion to the cinema art. Griffith to Chaplin and of course the Kelly/Astaire world had made a language for the film world that was and is totally open to dance. Wollen writes about the beauty of this combination, but with a strong critical eye. Also his in depth almost frame-by-frame look at the famous Kelly dance of the leading song here, is playful and informative. On top of that the reader also gets the political world of the early 1950's and how that played out in the Gene Kelly world. The book is an enlarged 70mm snapshot of a specific time with a very specific film with an iconic artist. Strange enough there isn't that many critical studies on Gene Kelly's work, which is a shame. But with this back in print....

And Wollen adds a kick-ass annotated bibliography that's extremely informative. It is sort of like him taking you by the hand and showing you the book titles that are important. For Dancers who need information regarding the dance history, this is a good book to pick up. For everyone else... well I am going to see the film! Peter Wollen wrote a beautiful tribute, analysis, and dance/film history in one slim 87 page book that has no wasted space. Essential!

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading Salman Rushdie's outstanding BFI Film Classic monograph on The Wizard of Oz, this was a mild disappointment -- although by no means a bad book. Peter Wollen starts with a quite good shot-by-shot analysis of the Gene Kelly dance to the title tune. Then we get some history about the making of the movie, followed by some new-to-me material regarding the role of the 1950s anti-communist blacklist in the careers of the cast and crew, including Gene Kelly. It's the author's theory that the blacklist was the real reason behind the demise of the Arthur Freed unit at MGM (I think people just got tired of musicals). Finally, in the weakest section of the monograph, Wollen attempts to explain why Singin in the Rain is regarded as such a great movie. He resorts to a bit more film theory and jargon than I care for, and seems to forget just how funny and entertaining this film is.

[Margo Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This essay on Singin' in the Rain focuses especially on the challenges of filming dance. It brings in discussion of Cover Girl, The Red Shoes, Hermes Pan, the Nicholas Brothers and Fred Astaire. The author's deep knowledge of film history is evident throughout. A detail that will stick with me is that they used aeroplane engines (did I read that right?) to make Cyd Charisse's white scarf blow around as she was dancing with Gene Kelly in one spectacular sequence.




Photos: Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse in Singin' in the Rain

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first two sections are pretty good, they get into the timelines of how the movie was made and what was going on in the world. I didn't know Gene Kelly left the country for Europe 19 months after Singin' in the Rain premiered to make movie overseas to take advantage of a tax break and to possibly avoid Blacklist witch hunt back home.

The third section got more into analysis and dance and it simply went over my head a lot of the time. Perhaps that section will interest you more than I. I still recommend the book if you're a fan of the movie, quick read with solid detail and check out the bibliography for even more books to read.

[Andrew Child · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Wollen's book on images in movies, and I've loved other books in BFI's classics series. At first, this is just a cut and dry analysis of the movie laced with historical tidbits. By midway through chapter 2 though, wollen lets loose and gets in deep at what is happening on the screen, how it mirrors what was going on behind the scenes, and what it can tell us about culture and art at this time. so happy i read this one!

[Russio · Rating 3 out of 5]

Organised into three parts: a load of stuff about dance, a load of stuff about Kelly, and a load of academic stuff (but not especially filmic stuff). I was interested in how it was made and its critical appreciation, and there was some of this but not enough for my liking.

[Justin Decloux · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid reading of the film that bounces around to keep things fresh. Wish it was double the length.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice balance of technical commentary and interpretation of the film itself, plus a nifty primer of dance on film for context. Well done.

[GJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great 70-page book about film, dance, fairy tales, and the disaster wrought by the House Committee on Un-American Activities

[Samuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well I read the script and I'm in the show but as part of the show we have to do theory lessons so in order to do my theory lessons on monday I have to read the book so I was very stressed out thinking that this book wouldn't be fun to read but now I am hooked and I had to struggle myself to write about it right now but I just had to tell my friends about it!

My show information:
August 1-8 (red cast performances only)
-at The JCAA
to buy tickets go to: www.shalomaustin.org
to get directions visit google maps!

The book is fabulous and the show will be even better!

Hope you enjoy the book!

-Sam

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book. The first two chapters are very dutiful about the way the movie grafts dance history into film, but:

(1) Pretty much neglects the overt silent -> talkie story, and its meaning;
(2) While narrating the political context of Kelly's relationship to HUAC etc., doesn't delve into the film's politics;
(3) Makes a very lite "theoretical" intervention into the film (using Derridean language but with no investment).

On the whole, a most read, but more for context than for changing your mind about the film.

[Richard Downey · Rating 5 out of 5]

a classic book on a classic film.

[Chrisanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally biased! Love this movie and love the book. Short little bio and interesting dissection on the styles.