Aside from my spouse, four guys can elicit from me feelings of sheer elation. Two are deceased, one resides in the U.K., and one begs for food every morning at 6:35 AM. Those who follow my Twitter stream and/or my Facebook Page will likely deduce that William Shakespeare and Colin Firth occupy two of these positions. My cocker spaniel Baxter is the hungry fellow, and the fourth is dancer/choreographer/director extraordinaire Gene Kelly. Consequently, when I saw that the Maumee Indoor Theatre would be screening Singin’ in the Rain (Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, 1952) on Sunday, May 2, I (along with the husband) made plans to attend. Gene Kelly and his cute little scar on the big screen: it can’t get much better than that!
Unfortunately, the film wasn’t shown through the cinema’s projector but via DVD and an LCD projector, the latter of which was hooked up in the middle of the large but old theatre (built in 1946). Honestly, I was expecting a fantastic 35mm cut of The Greatest Musical Picture Ever Made as well as crystal clear surround sound that would immerse me in “You Are My Lucky Star” and “Good Morning” in a way that I’ve never been immersed in them before. Oh well, at least the price of admission was only $5.00 and the popcorn was free. Plus, I was going to spend the afternoon with Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor, Debbie Reynolds, and Jean Hagen — and, oh yeah, the husband.
I have taught and have seen Singin’ in the Rain multiple times, and it is, as you can probably tell from the way this post is going, one of my favorite films. Accordingly, several scenes and lines come to mind when I hear the title mentioned.
- “Dignity, always dignity” — Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly).
- Cosmo Brown (Donald O’Connor) trying his damnest to entertain the viewer with “Make ‘Em Laugh.”
- The out-of-this-world tap-dancing that fills the screen in O’Connor’s/Kelly’s “Moses Supposes.”
- Gene Kelly — with that Cheshire cat grin — “dancin’ and singin’ in the rain.”
- The colorful and uber-sexy spectacle that is the “Broadway Melody” number (Gene and Cyd!).
- Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen) labeling herself “a shining, shimmering star in the cinema firmament.” (What great lines she gets. Quickly, here’s another: “If we can bring a little joy into your humdrum lives, it makes us feel as though our hard work ain’t been in vain for nothin’. Bless you all.”)
I imagine most people who’ve seen Singin’ in the Rain conjure up at least one of these scenes or lines of dialogue when they hear the title. But there is one shot that I look forward to every single time I watch the film. It’s random. It’s not funny. It’s not part of a song-and-dance number. Honestly, it’s not all that remarkable. But I am smitten and elated every time I see it. It falls about 70 minutes into the film — after Kelly’s iconic “Singin’ in the Rain” number and after Lockwood, Cosmo, and studio producer R.F. Simpson (Millard Mitchell) agree to adapt the ill-fated The Dueling Cavalier into the musical The Dancing Cavalier.
The shot begins with an extreme close-up of a microphone and dollies back to reveal Kathy Seldon (Debbie Reynolds) dubbing the song “Would You?” for the shrill-sounding Lina Lamont (trivia: Reynolds was actually dubbed here by singer Betty Noyes).
Then, the camera pulls back further to reveal Cosmo conducting a full orchestra. After that, it slowly pans to the right, from Cosmo and Kathy to Kelly’s Lockwood who watches the performance.
Now, just a small dolly forward, and there you have it: the one shot of Singin’ in the Rain that gets me every time:
As Don Lockwood, Gene Kelly rests his upper body on that baby grand piano and stares adoringly at Reynolds’s Kathy Seldon. The glamorous three-point lighting, Kelly’s olive complexion, and the use of shallow focus separate the song-and-dance man from the orchestra playing in the background. At this point, I don’t think of Kelly’s toupee or that less-than-sexy jacket he’s sporting. It’s just me and Gene/Don, with the latter looking affectionately at ME in the manner he’s looking at Kathy. The shot continues for a few more seconds. It pans left as Lockwood walks in front of Seldon, and then it centers all three players in the frame, Lockwood still gazing tenderly at the girl who “was meant for him.”
I usually do not swoon over couples in romantic comedies. I rarely cry during movies or television shows. In short, I’m normally not the spectator that gets attached emotionally to her moving pictures, at least not in the lovey-dovey sense. But as I suggest above, there are a few onscreen men out there who can affect me that way e.g., Colin Firth in Love Actually (2003), Colin Firth in Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001), Colin Firth in Pride and Prejudice (1995), and…okay, Colin Firth in anything including A Single Man (2009) in which he plays a gay widower who’s on the path to suicide. (More on my appreciation of Mr. Firth here.)
Evoking similar feelings in me is that piano shot of Gene Kelly from Singin’ in the Rain.[1] So why? Why this one look from Kelly (or Firth), but nothing from Ryan Reynolds in The Proposal (2009), John Corbett in My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), Ewan McGregor in Moulin Rouge (2001), Mel Gibson in What Women Want (2000), Hugh Grant in Notting Hill (1999), Bill Murray in Groundhog Day (1993), or Billy Crystal in When Harry Met Sally (1989)? Or turning to classical Hollywood, why do I receive no little school-girl butterflies from Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady (1964), Gregory Peck in Roman Holiday (1953), Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca (1941), or Clark Gable in Gone with the Wind (1939)?
A visceral reaction to this question is that I find Gene Kelly physically attractive. In brief, he’s hot. (Perhaps it’s also that the shot from Singin’ resembles one of my favorite promotional shots of his, at right.) Second, I have an interest in Kelly that I do not with, say, Ryan Reynolds, Mel Gibson, or Clark Gable. While each actor/star may be good-looking and may perform well onscreen, none fascinates me in the way that Kelly does, which leads me to my third response. Finally, I experience such pure delight when I see Gene Kelly (and nada from few other leading men) because I am attracted to his talents — his dancing ability and choreographic skills as well as his innovations in staging and cinematography. Although a perfectionist and evidently hard-nosed on (and off) the set, Kelly is gifted, ambitious, and brilliant — and it shows.[2]
But again, these three answers are, some would argue, the easy way out. After all, stars function as much more than mere objects of attraction and/or lust.
- They are ideological texts on which viewers project their desires.
- They reinforce dominate cultural ideas about sex, gender, race, religion, politics, etc.
- They embody types (e.g., John Wayne as “the Good Joe,” Katharine Hepburn as “the independent woman”).
- They compensate for qualities lacking in our lives and “act out aspects of life that are important to us.”[3]
Therefore, a more analytical response to why I am enchanted by and attracted to Gene Kelly — and that brief (sexy) image of him from Singin’ in the Rain — should take into account what he reinforces, what he embodies, what he mirrors in life that is important to me. If that is the case, then I likely feel this way about Kelly not only because I find him physically attractive, but also because he represents a complicated form of heterosexual masculinity that is largely absent in cinema today.
Specifically, Gene Kelly — in his heyday — fits traditional conventions of masculinity. He is athletic; his figure is muscular, solid, and agile.[4] Moreover, his characters (and Kelly himself) wear conventional mannish garb: sweaters, blazers, t-shirts, khakis, and loafers. Additionally, his screen characters (and he personally) always get the girl. As well, Kelly’s onscreen romantic dances with Cyd Charisse and Leslie Caron, for example, exude intense (hetero)sexuality.
At the same time, Gene Kelly and his star image challenge conventional representations of masculinity. For example, he frolics about the screen in sailor hats (On the Town and Anchors Aweigh). He wears “Daisy Dukes” and pole-dances (The Pirate). And many of Kelly’s dancing partners are not women but
- children (An American in Paris),
- inanimate objects (the newspaper/squeaky board in Summer Stock),
- (male) cartoons (Anchors Aweigh, Invitation to the Dance),
- male costars (Cosmo in Singin’),
- or Kelly himself (Cover Girl, It’s Always Fair Weather).
To many people including several of my film students, these images are often read exclusively as gay or feminine — and this is generally meant derogatorily. But to me, much more is going on here. First, these unconventional images point to both a particular place and a (highly successful) genre in cinema history. Second, they denote an element of creativity and sense of oneself that is sorely lacking from much of Hollywood’s current fare and which has been replaced by blue CGI people, bomb explosions, bromances, car chases, and tacky romantic comedies. Finally, these more “feminine” representations of Gene Kelly in conjunction with the relatively conventional “masculine” ones listed above signify, for me anyway, a layered and more accurate form of heterosexual masculinity than we currently see at the local Cineplex — one that is unabashedly virile and exposed, commanding and playful, sexy and inventive, physical and refined.[5]
Further Reading: “Putting the Ass in Assets: The Objectification of Gene Kelly (and Other Men) on Social Media”
NOTES
[1] There is a shot in Summer Stock (1950) that affects me similarly. It comes at the end of Judy Garland’s song “Friendly Star” when we learn Kelly’s character has been eavesdropping on this performance the entire time (right).
[2] For examples of Kelly’s giftedness, ambitiousness, and brilliance, see the opening sequence of On the Town (“New York, New York”), the first film musical ever shot on-location; Anchors Aweigh in which he dances alongside Jerry the mouse (yes, we know that he dances with Family Guy‘s Stewie too); and/or the elaborate and costly (half a million dollars) ballet sequence in An American in Paris.
[3] Richard Dyer, Stars 32, 55, 60; Dyer, Heavenly Bodies 17.
[4] It’s no secret that Kelly was keen on (or obsessed with?) demonstrating to viewers the parallels between dance and athletics (see Kelly’s film Dancing: A Man’s Game for more here).
[5] Special thanks to Adrienne McLean for introducing me to Gene Kelly.
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Professor of film and Shakespeare. Advocate of social media. Lover of popular culture,
I agree! I grew up watching an old VHS copy of this and I think Kelly is a great role model for young men in his characterisation and career – combining all the things you suggest. He was also a bit of a bad boy in some of his films – gambler, ladies's man – and was 'tamed' by Cyd, Judy and others! I just LOVE the sequences using roller skates and the one with the metal dustbin lids! Decades before Stomp! (I did tap for about eight years – because of Gene Kelly!)
PS I have sent you the link for the Darcy gift page on FB! I am drafting a paper about Firth and the phenomenon of his popularity as Darcy as it happens!
Gaby x
Ohhhhhh, I just got all “hot and bothered” again when I read that you’re writing a paper on Mr. Firth! For a conference? Journal? Please, please let me know when it’s finished — would LOVE to have a look.
With that said, I should be honest: I haven’t seen his PRIDE AND PREJUDICE in its entirety. I have, however, seen the water/wet shirt scene — oh my. And that’s really all that matters, isn’t it?! =)
As always, thanks for reading and commenting on my ramblings!
PS. Yes, I have one “I love Mr. Darcy” t-shirt; a good friend bought it for my birthday one year. =)
I think it's great you can get a Colin Firth/Darcy portrait and Pemberley goodies at the Jane Austen shop – what would Jane think??
I will be delivering it at the Ideograms seminars at the University of Leicester in the autumn so will let you see it when it's written.
G X
Last year, I was lucky to see a 35mm print of *Singin' in the Rain* with my wife, who had never seen the film before. There are very few films that fill me with such elation for so long, and I remember glancing at my wife every few minutes to see her first-time reactions.
When I was a kid, I would usually watch the first half (until around "Moses Supposes"), because it was the humorous half. Even as a kid I was aware that the "Singin' in the Rain" number was iconic, so I would sometimes watch that, but it was less interesting to me. I was also really torn between loving Donald O'Connor in the "Make 'Em Laugh" scene and wishing it was Danny Kaye performing (he was my favorite film performer at the time).
Watching it this last time, I was struck by the running commentary on stardom. I remembered that the film was about the transition to talkies. ("Ann I caaan't stannhim.") But the film also has a lot to say about the manufacturing of celebrity, the trouble it causes to maintain public image, and the complex ways that stars and ordinary folk interact. So this seems like the perfect film to explore the star image of Gene Kelly. One thing to consider: the film suggests that Don Lockwood has natural star power, unlike Lina Lamont, whose image is constructed (limited access by press, not speaking for herself). And that only works if the viewer is willing to buy (as you clearly do) that Gene Kelly has the natural star power. And it's not only a power he has in himself, it's also the power to create, to form another into a star.
First, I’m jealous that you experienced such great filmmaking in 35mm print! One day, one day, I keep telling myself.
Second, yes, you’re so right: the “running commentary on stardom” and “the manufacturing of celebrity” are such prominent themes in SINGIN’. And that’s probably another reason I find it — as well as other films about the industry (SUNSET BOULEVARD, CHAPLIN, THE PLAYER) — so intriguing.
Thanks for reading and commenting!
PS. And may I ask: how did your wife react? =)
Forgot to add this earlier. Does Kelly's "complicated" masculinity get reinforced by Don's relationship with Cosmo? Cosmo is never given a female partner (as I remember) in the film. Don is his partner. I've wondered if there is a sexual subtext there, specifically that Don is the object of Cosmo's affection. Either Don does not reciprocate, or there is a past history that is now 'water under the bridge.' Do you think this suggests that Kelly is a man that both women and men desire?
It's funny you pose that last question whether "Kelly is a man that both women and men desire." I was just performing a search on Twitter for "Gene Kelly" — http://twitter.com/KelliMarshall/status/135107836… — and found that both men/boys and women/girls gush over him:
male: I've decided I want my life to mimic a Gene Kelly musical.
female: I needs me a man with the finesse of Gene Kelly or Frank Sinatra. A mix would be nice.
male: Forget Cinco de Mayo, let's talk France! #WatchThis post on Gene Kelly's "An American in Paris."
female: Why did I never register how HAWT Gene Kelly was?! I'm going to have to watch Singing in the Rain all over again!
female: I love how Gene Kelly could seem solid and masculine and weightless and graceful, simultaneously.
male: in the long time Astaire vs Kelly battle, I'm firmly in the Gene Kelly camp. The man knew how to dance for/on film.
In short, I guess it depends on what you mean by "desire."
Re: Cosmo, yeah, you're right: he has no dancing partner in SINGIN' other than Kelly (and Seldon in "Good Morning"). But I've never read a "sexual subtext" there — although I'm guessing some scholar, somewhere out there has.
PS. I commented earlier on your post on THE PROPOSAL. You receive it?
Ahh, this one's a good one too: http://twitter.com/katreeny/statuses/13399453799 =)
Hi,
I was thrilled when reading your text.
I completely understand and totally AGREE with you.
Kelly is the embodiment of one perfect male stereotype!
Where do you teach film?
I loved the way you described everything.
I'm a film student myself and I would LOVE to attend a class… although I live too far away probably…
xo Jess
Thanks for reading and commenting, Jess. And thanks for your help on Twitter! =)
I currently teach film classes at the University of Toledo (Ohio).
So refreshing to read this…I thought I was the only one! I've always said that Gene Kelly in American in Paris is the sexiest man ever…even when he's cavorting around in tights. It's ironic that in those days "masculinity" seemed to include a much wider range of movement, dress and taste.
He's also someone who could be the leading man but not be afraid to play the fool, such as the Pinky Benson character in What a Way to Go.
No, you're definitely not the only one. I've talked with several women — and men! — on Twitter who feel the same way. In fact, I've compiled several tweets on Gene Kelly and plan to write a follow-up post to this one at some point. Thanks for reading and commenting!
Hi Dr. Marshall – just some random musings here.
Firstly, have you seen Rex Harrison in Preston Sturges' Unfaithfully Yours? Like you, Gene will always be my "red hot pash" of the cinema, but I get a few goosebumps for Harrison in this movie because he is so smart, so witty, so quick. The script is Sturges at his most condensed, and for that reason it's almost too much – but howlingly funny in spots. I have similar feelings for William Powell in, well, pretty much anything. It's almost purely cerebral, that type of attraction.
Someone mentioned that there is a suggestion of a "gay subtext" in Singin' in the Rain. I can sort of see that, if I look hard enough, but I see more of a parallel between Gene & Stanley Donen in the Don/Cosmo relationship. I don't think Donen was a comic; I'm referring more to the way that Cosmo was behind the scenes and responsible for so many great ideas, but didn't always get the credit that he deserved because he wasn't the on-screen hero with metric tons of effortless charm and a grin that could turn cold stone to hot lava… oh, sorry.
For gay subtext in the world of Gene films, one need look no further than Take Me Out to the Ball Game. The clues are obvious enough to anyone who's familiar with the film. I'm not sure what the "purpose" of it is as we know neither Gene nor Frank Sinatra were homosexual. (If we can assume that a subtext is intentional – I'm not convinced that we can.)
So sorry for the delay here, Jennifer!
No, I've not seen Rex Harrison in UNFAITHFULLY YOURS. In fact, the only film I think I've seen Harrison in is MY FAIR LADY. *gasp*
Re: a gay subtext in SITR, BALLGAME, etc., yes, some scholars point to that, citing Gene Kelly's many non-female dancing partners as evidence (children, inanimate objects, animated characters, and of course many men). While I've not sorted all of that out in my head just yet, it is interesting to note, especially when contrasted with Astaire/Rogers and/or Astaire/Charisse. Fodder for a future post perhaps?!? =)
Hi!
And thank you for the posts. I really enjoy them!
I'm 22 and I have to say that I only discovered Mr. Kelly a few weeks ago when I first watched Singin' In The Rain.
I mean I knew a few things about him but I was completely into Astaire.
And I fell in love with Gene Kelly, I must say.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who got stunned by that shot you mentioned in Summer Stock. I only managed to watch the movie today. I first saw that shot on a YouTube video and I was instantly desperate to find out where that scene came from. I looked around and couldn't find the movie anywhere (I'm brazilian and a few of his movies are very hard to find in here) so I "rented" it on iTunes.
About Singin' In The Rain I just adore that scene where Don and Kathy are arguing in the car about acting/not acting and how perfect I think Mr. Kelly is when Lockwood says: "Fear? not, sweet lady. I will not molest you. I am but a humble jester and you, you are too far above me." with all the hand motions. I never get tired of that.
Oh well… I apologize for the English mistakes.
Hi, Caroline! Sorry it's taken me so long to respond; I've been out of town.
Thanks for sharing your experience(s) with Gene Kelly. I'm constantly amazed that so many people today STILL identify with and are enamored by his talent. Then again, how could one NOT be?! =)
I laughed out loud when I read this article because you were so spot on! I watched Singing In The Rain last night and afterward it left me thinking of that exact shot you wrote about. Doing a google image search of gene kelly today I was holding out hope that one other person would have been affected the same way I had and perhaps posted it online. Sure enough here is an entire post dedicated to the same few frames!
Thank you so much for posting and explaining why this is the shot that stays with you long after the credits have rolled.
Hi, Beth — thanks so much for stopping by and commenting! It's great to know that people are still affected by classic films, Gene Kelly, and that one shot from Singin' in the Rain. =) If you're interested, a few of us have started a Gene Kelly Fans site: http://genekellyfans.com
Thanks so much, Salina. And thanks for stopping by.
Great review of a timeless classic movie. Thanks from Singing In The Rain Tickets London for this post.
Thanks! And best of luck with your production!
It’s so nice to know that I’m not alone. As much as I love Singing in the Rain, it’s that shot in Summer Stock that gets me everytime. Also check out Les Girls, if just for the boat scene alone!
Oh no, you’re definitely not alone, Krista.