EMC/JOUR 3000 Singin' in the Rain Study Guide

Study GuideEMC / JOUR 3000

Edward Bowen

“Singin’ In The Rain” 1952

MGM Studios

Produced by Arthur Freed

Freed produced more than 40 musicals for MGM. His unit included Gene Kelly, Stanley Donen, and Vincent Minnelli.

“Singin’ In The Rain” 1952

MGM Studios

Produced by Arthur Freed

Directed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen

Written by Betty Comden and Adolph GreenMusic by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed

Starring Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell, Cyd Charisse

The Technical DimensionThe Hollywood Montage – “Yankee Doodle Dandy” (1942)

http://youtu.be/2690vyc8HRQ

The Technical DimensionThe Hollywood Montage

http://youtu.be/cHMuAA0gBYI

The Technical DimensionThe Full Shot

http://youtu.be/ZFxWkUkUsQA

The Technical DimensionThe Full Shot

http://youtu.be/qu4v5hB1dKk

The Technical DimensionCamera Choreography (Hey look, I’m dancing with Gene Kelly)

http://youtu.be/B0asbGJbLKchttp://youtu.be/_UmaFTEIZ84

The Technical DimensionDubbing

http://youtu.be/cirOHTYWi2k

The Technical Dimension

• How do camera work and editing integrate with music and performance to help tell the story and evoke emotion?

• What part does color play in evoking emotion, defining character, and setting mood?

• How are dance sequences shot and edited for maximum impact?

• What techniques are used to suggest the style of silent movies of the time in which the movie is set? Of early sound musicals?

• What style of lighting is used in the movie, and what effect does it have?

• How do the filmmakers use studio sets and back lots to stylize the world of the film? To stylize the “Broadway Melody” sequence?

The Dramatic DimensionThe Unreliable Narrator

http://youtu.be/hC1R_szNzDM

The Dramatic Dimension

The Unreliable Narrator

The Dramatic DimensionEmotion and Story Through Song

“That’s a reaffirmation of life.” Leonard Bernstein

The Dramatic DimensionEmotion and Story Through Song

http://youtu.be/33c3drAfcI0

The Dramatic Dimension• How does Don Lockwood change as the movie progresses? What forces are

at work in this change?

• What function does Cosmo serve to the story? Why include the proverbial “third wheel?” Why is there no love interest for Cosmo?

• Which characters change and evolve? Which remain stagnant? Why?

• What are the impediments to Don and Cathy’s relationship? How are they overcome?

• How are songs used dramatically and cosmetically to propel the story and reveal character?

• What function does “The Broadway Melody” serve to the story and characters?

• How are the plot elements connected and then resolved in the final climactic scene?

The Auteur DimensionDirector Stanley Donen

“On The Town” (1949)“Royal Wedding” (1951)“Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” (1954)“It’s Always Fair Weather” (1955)“Funny Face” 1957“Charade” (1963)“Moonlighting – Big Man on Mulberry Street” (1986)

The Auteur Dimension

“Moonlighting – Big Man on Mulberry Street” (1986)

http://youtu.be/HXvki5MKPAI

The Auteur Dimension

Director Stanley Donen

1998 Academy Awardshttp://youtu.be/JMC8kHycgwM

The Historical Dimension

1952

• Elizabeth II is proclaimed Queen of the United Kingdom• Organized baseball has its first African-American umpire• “I Love Lucy” is the first TV show to be seen in 10,000,000

homes• Dwight Eisenhower is elected president• Charlie Chaplin is refused reentry into the United States• Other movies – “The African Queen,” “The Greatest Show on

Earth,” “The Quiet Man,” “High Noon”

The Historical Dimension1927 – The movies begin to speak, and sing.

http://youtu.be/OTFCctdiS04

The Historical Dimension1927 – The movies begin to speak, and sing.

http://youtu.be/YMzV96LV6Cchttp://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/paleofuture/2012/02/musicians-wage-war-against-evil-robots/

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Technical Developments

• The soundproof “ice box” temporarily limits camera movement.

http://www.filmsite.org/30sintro.html

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Technical Developments

• A successful color photography system (Technicolor) is introduced but it not widely used.

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• The Big Five studios (majors) included Fox, MGM, Paramount, RKO, and Warners; and the Little Three included Columbia, United Artists, and Universal.

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• Dominance is fully established for studio production methods, which included vertical integration, block booking, and the contract system (which reduced stars’ salaries).

https://picasaweb.google.com/114656905726841638976/MGM?feat=flashalbum#5700597435138265986

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• The Film Program – Cartoons, Travelogues, Newsreels, Novelty Shorts, Comedy Shorts, Musical Shorts, Coming Attractions, Features, Double-Features

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• Cinema (single) screens are in every neighborhood.

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• Popular Genres – Musicals, Horror Films, Gangster Films, Screwball Comedies, Westerns

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• Popular Genres – Disney Innovates the Animated Feature

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• American film dominates (up to 80% of the world market), except perhaps in Japan.

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• Under pressure, especially from religious groups, the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors Association begins to administer a tough Production Code through an office headed by Joseph T. Breen.

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• Production Code

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• 1939

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAE60830901D8BA3E&feature=view_all

The Historical Dimension1930-1939 Business Developments

• 1939

http://dadsmovies.blogspot.com/2012/01/1939-montage-part-one-over-there.html

The Historical Dimension

• What if anything does the movie say about society in the 1950s?

• What can be learned from the movie regarding the period of time of its story, in particular relating to the transition from silent to sound movies?

The Genre DimensionScience Fiction?As Author Ray Bradbury has pointed out, if you apply the classic definition of science-fiction as a story in which new and unexpected technology impacts the lives of characters, then “Singin’ in the Rain” is science fiction.

The Genre Dimension2012 – A struggling NBC, still reeling from the loss of “Must See Thursdays” and the Jay Leno Prime Time debacle. places the hopes of it’s stock holders and the might of its marketing department behind one new show. And it’s a musical …

http://youtu.be/qtWTAN7ykcw

The Genre Dimension2012 – Why is NBC struggling. Some blame the earlier firing of Kevin Reilly as entertainment president in 2007. Reilly moved to Fox and launched a breakaway hit series, and it was a musical …

http://vimeo.com/28788094

The Genre Dimension

1927 – “The Jazz Singer” Alan CroslandAl Jolson

http://youtu.be/j48T9BoKxlI

The Genre Dimension1933 – “42nd Street” Lloyd Bacon / Busby BerkeleyThe Great Depression, Sugar Daddies, The Casting Couch, Inebriation, Attempted Rape, Murder, Sex and Violence

http://youtu.be/SuqJJMSK15U

The Genre Dimension

1935 – “Gold Diggers of 1935” Busby Berkeley

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/76736/Gold-Diggers-Of-1935-trailer.html

The Genre Dimension

1935 – “Top Hat” Mark Sandrich

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/462008/Top-Hat-Movie-Clip-Isn-t-It-A-Lovely-Day.html

The Genre Dimension1936 – “Swing Time” George StevensFred Astaire and Ginger Rogers

http://youtu.be/mxPgplMujzQ

The Genre Dimension1937 – “Shall We Dance” Mark SandrichFred Astaire and Ginger Rogers

http://youtu.be/Fb-G07i35eE

The Genre Dimension1937 – “Shall We Dance” Mark SandrichFred Astaire and Ginger Rogers

http://youtu.be/sdi6V6dsTKk

The Genre Dimension

1955 – “It’s Always Fair Weather” Gene Kelly / Stanley Donen

http://youtu.be/KgAmXb5UZlY

The Genre Dimension1944 – “Anchors Away” George Sidney Gene Kelly and Jerry Mouse

http://youtu.be/LiDeGrtjt2k

The Genre Dimension

1961 – “West Side Story” Robert Wise / Jerome Robbins

http://youtu.be/yA_aFprGzyc

The Genre Dimension1964 – “A Hard Day’s Night” Richard Lester

http://youtu.be/Lkk-tspdZl8

The Genre Dimension1964 – “Umbrellas of Cherbourg” Jacques Demy

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/05/16/movies/100000000818582/the-umbrellas-of-cherbourg.html

The Genre Dimension

1977 – “Saturday Night Fever” John Badham

http://youtu.be/tXsdH8XKy-8

The Genre Dimension

1979 – “All That Jazz” Bob Fosse

http://youtu.be/C74Pae3PpMo

The Genre Dimension

1979 – “All That Jazz” Bob Fosse

http://youtu.be/J5YRfCdeyOchttp://youtu.be/pr2JAlnV1eY

The Genre Dimension

1979 – “All That Jazz” Bob Fosse

http://youtu.be/fZS8LN4R9rU

The Genre Dimension1980 – “Fame” Alan Parker

http://youtu.be/geWBJxWxT3M

The Genre Dimension1983 – “Flashdance” Adrian Lyne

http://youtu.be/yJ6MtRfChg0

The Genre Dimension1983 – “Flashdance” Adrian Lyne

http://youtu.be/8NjbGr2nk2c

The Genre Dimension1991 – “The Commitments” Alan Parker

http://youtu.be/3paf2TLrgsg

The Genre Dimension2001 – “Moulin Rouge” Baz Luhrmann

http://youtu.be/dtEgAx80NC4

The Genre Dimension2002 – “Chicago” Rob Marshall

http://youtu.be/8IxcfbldgBY

The Genre Dimension2002 – “Chicago” Rob Marshall

http://youtu.be/HVyg4MchBYM

The Genre Dimension2002 – “Chicago” Rob Marshall

http://youtu.be/YW3MIixEps4

The Genre Dimension2004 – “Bride and Prejudice” Gurinder Chadha

http://youtu.be/PoLtHqS_LhA

The Genre Dimension2009 – “Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench” Damien Chazelle

http://youtu.be/H2NWRydVjA8http://www.guyandmadeline.com/

The Genre Dimension2009 – “Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench” Damien Chazelle

http://youtu.be/KJUzALdI--k

The Genre Dimension2011 – “The Artist” Michel Hazanavicius

http://youtu.be/Z2s9ZlenQm8

The Genre DimensionProposition – All movies are and always have been musicals.

http://filmusik.com/eislers-ghost-or-what-the-devil-is-going-on-in-this-picture/

The Genre DimensionProposition – All movies are and always have been musicals.

http://filmusik.com/eislers-ghost-or-what-the-devil-is-going-on-in-this-picture/

The Genre DimensionProposition – All movies are and always have been musicals.

http://filmusik.com/eislers-ghost-or-what-the-devil-is-going-on-in-this-picture/

The Genre DimensionProposition – All movies are and always have been musicals.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/12/priceless-silent-movie-mu_n_925643.html

The Genre DimensionProposition – All movies are and always have been musicals.

http://youtu.be/2fBrpTHe9kk

The Genre Dimension• What expectations do you have of a musical? How does “Singin’ in

the Rain” meet those expectations, and violate or subvert those expectations?

• How have musicals changed over the decades?

• In what ways do musicals reflect the mores, attitudes, and fixations of their eras?

• How do you react when a character in a movie bursts into song? Why do you react this way?

• How does the factor of verisimilitude play in to the acceptance or rejection of musicals as a genre?

• Are animated musicals more palatable than live action musicals? Why?