A silent film star falls for a chorus girl just as he and his delusionally jealous screen partner are trying to make the difficult transition to talking pictures in 1920s Hollywood.A silent film star falls for a chorus girl just as he and his delusionally jealous screen partner are trying to make the difficult transition to talking pictures in 1920s Hollywood.A silent film star falls for a chorus girl just as he and his delusionally jealous screen partner are trying to make the difficult transition to talking pictures in 1920s Hollywood.
- Directors
- Writers
- Betty Comden(story by)
- Adolph Green(story by)
- Stars
Top credits
- Directors
- Writers
- Betty Comden(story by)
- Adolph Green(story by)
- Stars
- Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 7 wins & 9 nominations total
Videos5
John Albright
- Call Boyas Call Boy
- (uncredited)
Betty Allen
- Chorus Girlas Chorus Girl
- (uncredited)
Sue Allen
- Chorus Girlas Chorus Girl
- (uncredited)
John Angelo
- Danceras Dancer
- (uncredited)
Marie Ardell
- Chorus Girlas Chorus Girl
- (uncredited)
David Bair
- Chorus Boyas Chorus Boy
- (uncredited)
Jimmy Bates
- Boyas Boy
- (uncredited)
Mary Bayless
- Audience Memberas Audience Member
- (uncredited)
- Directors
- Writers
- Betty Comden(story by)
- Adolph Green(story by)
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
- All cast & crew
Storyline
1927 Hollywood. Monumental Pictures' biggest stars, glamorous on-screen couple Lina Lamont and Don Lockwood, are also an off-screen couple if the trade papers and gossip columns are to be believed. Both perpetuate the public perception if only to please their adoring fans and bring people into the movie theaters. In reality, Don barely tolerates her, while Lina, despite thinking Don beneath her, simplemindedly believes what she sees on screen in order to bolster her own stardom and sense of self-importance. R.F. Simpson, Monumental's head, dismisses what he thinks is a flash in the pan: talking pictures. It isn't until The Jazz Singer (1927) becomes a bona fide hit which results in all the movie theaters installing sound equipment that R.F. knows Monumental, most specifically in the form of Don and Lina, have to jump on the talking picture bandwagon, despite no one at the studio knowing anything about the technology. Musician Cosmo Brown, Don's best friend, gets hired as Monumental's ideas man and musical director. And by this time, Don has secretly started dating Kathy Selden, a chorus girl who is trying to make it big in pictures herself. Don and Kathy's relationship is despite their less than friendly initial meeting. Cosmo and Kathy help Don, who had worked his way up through the movie ranks to stardom, try make the leap to talking picture stardom, with Kathy following along the way. However, they have to overcome the technological issues. But the bigger problem is Lina, who will do anything to ensure she also makes the successful leap into talking pictures, despite her own inabilities and at anyone and everyone else's expense if they get in her way, especially Kathy as Don's off screen girlfriend and possibly his new talking picture leading lady. —Huggo
- Taglines
- Singin' Swingin' Glorious Feelin' Technicolor Musical
- Genres
- Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
- Re-Issue from 1952
- Parents guide
Did you know
- TriviaFor the "Make 'em Laugh" number, Gene Kelly asked Donald O'Connor to revive a trick he had done as a young dancer: running up a wall and completing a somersault. The number was so physically taxing that O'Connor, who smoked four packs of cigarettes a day at the time, ended up in a hospital bed for a week after its completion. He suffered from exhaustion and painful carpet burns. Unfortunately, an accident ruined all of the initial footage, so after a brief rest O'Connor agreed to do the difficult number all over again.
- GoofsDuring the Cyd Charisse nightclub dance number, when she's wrapped around Gene Kelly, her body completely changes position between frames due to a clumsy edit. According to commentary on the special edition DVD, this cut of only a few frames' duration dates back to the original release of the film and no one knows why it exists.
- Quotes
[Don Lockwood is being mobbed by several fans on the street]
Don Lockwood: [desperately] Hey, Cos! Do something! Call me a cab!
Cosmo Brown: OK, you're a cab.
Don Lockwood: [unimpressed] Thanks a lot!
- ConnectionsEdited from The Three Musketeers (1948)
- SoundtracksFit as a Fiddle
(1932)
Music by Al Hoffman (uncredited) and Al Goodhart (uncredited)
Lyrics by Arthur Freed
Originally from the 1932 stage revue "George White's Music Hall Varieties"
Sung by Gene Kelly (uncredited) and Donald O'Connor (uncredited)
Top review
Trot Out the Accolades--It's Unparalleled
This is my favorite movie musical with no stage forebear.
Consider what's in the mix: A cachet of songs, all tried-and-true from other movies. A cast that was at the top of its form, all the way from Kelly himself to the supporting leads played by Rita Moreno and Millard Mitchell. A script that is, at once, romantic and exciting and sharp and funny.
Stir together with a generous heaping of MGM color and a dash of a director with a stellar pedigree and the result is, well, something like "Singin' in the Rain."
There's not a misstep in the movie's entire 103-minute running time. I love the pokes at early filmmaking ("She never *did* figure out where that microphone was, boss!") and the sheer energy of the musical numbers ("Fit as a Fiddle," "Good Mornin'").
Not only that, but there's not a more romantic scene in all of filmdom that can compare with Reynolds and Kelly dancing to "You Were Meant for Me." Their side-by-side tap dancing says more about how they feel about each other than pages and pages of dialog.
Great stuff!
If you think this movie is just the sequence of Kelly splashing like a five-year-old in a puddle, you obviously haven't seen the entire film. Do so--now! You won't regret it!
PS: In the "rent-this-too" category, if you've seen and love "Singin' in the Rain," check out "The Band Wagon." It skewers the world of theater in much the same way as this film roasts Hollywood!
Consider what's in the mix: A cachet of songs, all tried-and-true from other movies. A cast that was at the top of its form, all the way from Kelly himself to the supporting leads played by Rita Moreno and Millard Mitchell. A script that is, at once, romantic and exciting and sharp and funny.
Stir together with a generous heaping of MGM color and a dash of a director with a stellar pedigree and the result is, well, something like "Singin' in the Rain."
There's not a misstep in the movie's entire 103-minute running time. I love the pokes at early filmmaking ("She never *did* figure out where that microphone was, boss!") and the sheer energy of the musical numbers ("Fit as a Fiddle," "Good Mornin'").
Not only that, but there's not a more romantic scene in all of filmdom that can compare with Reynolds and Kelly dancing to "You Were Meant for Me." Their side-by-side tap dancing says more about how they feel about each other than pages and pages of dialog.
Great stuff!
If you think this movie is just the sequence of Kelly splashing like a five-year-old in a puddle, you obviously haven't seen the entire film. Do so--now! You won't regret it!
PS: In the "rent-this-too" category, if you've seen and love "Singin' in the Rain," check out "The Band Wagon." It skewers the world of theater in much the same way as this film roasts Hollywood!
helpful•7226
- dweck
- Feb 1, 1999
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $2,540,800 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $1,884,537
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $13,643
- Nov 10, 2002
- Gross worldwide
- $1,923,485
- Runtime1 hour 43 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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