More Top Films: Grey Sky Happiness

“Singing in the Rain” is one of the best movies for so many reasons. It is a musical that was originally created for the screen, not adapted from the stage. It popularized songs that are an important part of the public conscious over sixty years later. Its production values are staggering. It is a multilayered story about stories and film making; a farce about farces within farces. The theatricality is breathtaking, especially in the “Broadway Melody Ballet” segment.

Maybe you think it is too old fashioned and doesn’t hold up to the demands of today’s audiences. It is admittedly long and it does have some excess fat around the middle that it could be argued is not essential to the story. Maybe it is such a part of your social memory that you think you don’t like it without having ever truly seen it. Its most famous bits can be a bit sentimental. Perhaps, however, that is the secret to its longevity and acclaim.

At its center this is a story about real love overcoming the masks and performances society demands from us. Many people feel like they have to play a role and live up to expectations others demand from them. Most people become so attached to their role that they begin to buy into the lies. When Don Lockwood discovers real love—the sort that makes him selflessly think of someone else over his own desires—it frees him to discover who he really is. That is the setup for one of the most famous scenes in film history.

When Don dances in the rain, carefree and happy simply to be alive, it displays the sort of freedom that true love brings. Accepting who we were created to be, and to do the selfless things for others that we were created to do, that is a joyous place to be.