Singing in the rain (revised)

Singing in the rain is and always will be one of the all time Hollywood greats ever made in modern cinema. With intricately crafted numbers like "Fit as a fiddle and ready for love", "Good mornin'" and even the show's namesake, "Singing in the rain", Singing in the rain will go down as one of the most beautifully crafted musicals in Hollywood. In each and every musical sequence, directors Stanley Donan and Gene Kelly pays detailed attention to every aspect of the mise-en-scene, from the choreography, costumes, setting, all the way to the lyrics and placement. In this essay, i especially want to highlight some of these songs which I find particularly intriguing. Interestingly, each and every song is perfectly placed at every important junction or turning point, to highlight the plot points the director intends to carry through.


Fit as a fiddle
In this beautifully choreographed number, we see Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor dancing on stage in a vaudeville fashion. This number was intercut between Gene Kelly's narration of his dignified childhood days. Ironically, in this number, instead of dignity, we see Gene Kelly making a fool of himself for the audience's entertainment. In the fashion of vaudeville, we can see the childlike playfulness of Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor as they performed, with jumping on each other's backs, tap dancing and what not. Also, the lyrics "Fit as a fiddle and ready for love", here reflect a pair of eager young men, ready to go out and conquer the world, naive as they may be.


The setting and costumes here play an important role in the narrative. The green striped suits the pair were wearing was aimed at drawing out laughs from the audience, while at the same time not fully exposing their vulnerabilities. The choreography seen here, while at the same time comic, is actually quite degrading. In fact, this is a stab at how Hollywood in actual fact is all a big lie, where so many things are made up to be more than what they are. Furthermore, this piece serves to introduce us to the two main protagonists in the movie, to show us who they really are on the inside, and their journey to achieving fame. Also, this piece injects a burst of energy into the audience, helping this film start off on a high note.

Good mornin'
We see our 3 protagonists at their lowest point in the film, where Gene Kelly is facing the end of his career with the flopped debut of his first talking picture, the "Dueling Cavalier". At the beginning of this number, Debbie Reynolds and Donald O'Connor renews his hopes by suggesting he turn the "Dueling Cavalier" into the "Dancing Cavalier". The lyrics and setting were precisely constructed to symbolize the optimism and new hope felt by the characters. With lyrics like "the sun was shining bright", and "sunbeam will soon shine through", this song serves to bring out the joy and optimism felt by the characters. The clearing sky after a storm also serves as a metaphor for the end of bad times. Also, the time, 1.30am, is right after the darkest hour of the night has passed, preempting the dawn of a new day.


The title of this song, "Good mornin'" also carries a double meaning where it is not just simply a greeting, but a celebration of a truly good morning. In this piece, the choreography is in itself brilliant. As the characters are dancing, they move from room to room, exuding energy, and to an extend of being boyish maybe. This type of choreography reminds us of the same playful boyish energy in the first number of this movie. Also, as the characters danced around the house, they began to pick up the same raincoats which they wore for the Dueling Cavalier's premier. When before, these raincoats served to protect them from the rain and the embarrassment, but now they were part of their celebration in the coming of a new dawn.


Singing in the rain
Lastly, we come to the film's titular song, "Singing in the rain". In a way, this is actually the most romantic song in the whole movie. In that simple gesture of sending his driver off, he metaphorically walked away from his previously glamorous Hollywood life into the simplicity of the rain, even as he is also walking away from the love and adoration of many to needing the sole love from Debbie Reynolds. This song is the culmination of Gene Kelly's passion and ecstasy that followed his kiss with Debbie Reynolds.


Here we see Gene Kelly shedding his outer raincoat, along with sending his driver off, symbolizing his move away from the need of the adoration of the people to the sole adoration of Debbie Reynolds, liberating himself from the conventions of Hollywood. His raincoat, which had previously always served to shield him, now was nowhere to be seen. As the song progresses, Gene Kelly waves and smiles to random strangers he meets, and dances around on lampposts, regardless of his own dignity. After awhile, he feels the raindrops, and simply closes his umbrella, his shield, in a way embracing the new life he now has. The symmetry of the film is also starkly ironic, in a hypocritical way, the very same man who previously bragged about the way he lived with dignity, was now without a trace of it. The mise-en-scene in this number is also very powerful. Water is used abundantly and freely drenching Gene Kelly from head to toe. Traditionally, water has been a symbol of purification, freedom and also new life.


From the lyrics, with lines like "Such a glorious feeling, I'm happy again", and "The sun's in my heart, I'm ready for love", we can see and feel Gene Kelly's unbounded joy and happiness, along with his euphoric love for Debbie Reynolds. This indicates Gene Kelly's sincere joy from his breaking free of the conventional norms that had tied him down due to his position in Hollywood. As the song reached its climax, Gene Kelly jumps and dances around in a puddle of water by the roadside. In that very instant, he became a kid again. The playful boyish energy that he had once had had returned, marking his transition into a man, fully confident of who he is.

Citizen Kane (Revised)

As the credits roll and the lights are turned up, we are left with a crucial question, nonetheless center concerning the interpretation of the film Citizen Kane. Citizen Kane is widely regarded by many to be the greatest movie ever made, but who actually is this man? Citizen Kane is about Orson Welles. In making a movie about William Randolph Hearst, Welles incorporated the very essence of his himself into the character of Charles Foster Kane. Though he was portraying another man, he was very much telling us a story of himself. We see many clues he left behind for us which concerned him more than the man whom the movie was based on. For instance, in the opening sequence, a young Kane was given away by his parents; stands in similarity to the tough childhood of Orson Welles, where he desired the love of his parents. For in telling one man's story, he was actually telling his own.

From the very start, we see the image of a man's lips, uttering his dying words. As those words came off his lips, a snow globe rolls down from his hand. Then we hear silence. In this short montage of the last moments of Charles Foster Kane's life, albeit not knowing it at the moment, we had already learnt the true identity of this man. The cracking of the snow globe in a way resembles how Kane's life has fallen into shambles. And in the same way Kane could not control his death, he was rendered powerless in life as well, losing his grip the things that mattered to him the most.

In the establishing sequence, we are greeted with a "No Trespassing" sign, that we are about to enter the life of a man, cut off from the world. He never explains his actions to anyone, nor does he need to. This is especially evident in the scene where Emily confronts him about his affair with Susan Alexander, Kane gave up his wife and son, and chose to stay in the election. Contrary to what the audience would have expected, Kane shocks us when he chose his ambition and mistress over his wife and son. When we think about it, we never really see Kane for who he really is, we never actually know what motivates him to make the decisions he makes. In a way, even as we think we know who Citizen Kane is, we are never really able to trespass into the deeper workings of his being. In choosing Susan Alexander over Emily, Kane was actually choosing more than simply just a woman. In this scene, for the first time, we actually see Kane not being in control of the situation. In choosing Susan, it was a vain attempt to prove that ultimately, it is he who makes his decisions and not his situation, and no matter how outrageous his choice, it will be him who will ultimately bear the consequences. Kane had always done everything right up till that point, but when he chose to seize control, it was the beginning of his downfall.

Another key character crucial in explaining Citizen Kane is Jedediah Leland. Before we even got to know him, his hebrew sounding name had already impressed upon us that Jedediah was someone who upheld honor and morality. In a way, the story of Kane is also the story of Jedediah Leland. Jedediah acts as the moral conscience which holds up the story of Charles Foster Kane. Every action Kane makes eventually comes back to Jedediah Leland.  As Leland's life unfold, from his humble beginnings to the peak of his career, and finally ending up as an unsightly drunkard, in a way, it is the personification of Kane's moral conscience. As we are introduced to Leland, we see how Kane and himself drafted the declaration and principles, setting in place codes of honor. This stands in stark contrast to the scene where a drunk Jedediah Leland lies asleep on the typewriter over an unfinished review of Susan Alexander's horrid performance, which was also the point in the film at which Kane's moral standards were at its most corrupt. In part, Jedediah Leland was THE reason behind many if not all of Kane's decisions. Or more accurately, Kane wanted to prove something to himself, his own moral conscience, that what he did was infallible, and that no matter how wrong his decisions, that he was always right. 

From the words of Jedediah Leland, we truly begin to catch a glimpse of Kane's true character. "He married for love -- that's why he did everything. That's why he went into politics. It seems we weren't enough. He wanted all the voters to love him, too. All he really wanted out of life was love.  You see, he just didn't have any to give." From Leland's narration, we begin to learn a bit more about the real Kane, what motivated him to do what he did. Kane wanted to be in control, in control of people's love and adoration, in control of the people around him, and above all, in control of his friendship with Jedediah Leland, his own moral conscience. Yet in cruel irony, these were the very things he couldn't control. In the scene where Leland sent him the copy of the declaration of principles he himself had drafted, it was the culmination of his own hypocriticism, like a stab in the back by his own conscience. Also, that declaration of principles was also his last chance at redemption, however, pride won over, and he ended his life in shambles. 

For in Citizen Kane, Orson Welles has erected a lasting monument to himself, just as how Charles Foster Kane had Xanadu. Through this, Orson Welles shows us a part of his true character, the good, bad and even the ugly. And little did he know, the life of Charles Foster Kane foreshadowed his own. For in telling one man's story, he was actually telling his own. This repeating theme of power and control is reflective of Orson Welles' own life, where he yearned to be in control of his own destiny, to have the power to shape his future. The story of Citizen Kane is actually the story of Orson Welles, hidden behind the cover of William Randolph Hearst, just as Citizen Kane hid behind the "No Trespassing" sign. It is story of what makes Orson Welles Orson Welles, the things that motivated him to do what he did. It is the last piece of the puzzle, the key to his life. 

ET: 16 ROSEBUD

What is Citizen Kane about? How is it about what it is about?

As the credits roll and the lights are turned up, we are left with a crucial question, nonetheless center concerning the interpretation of the film Citizen Kane. Citizen Kane is widely regarded by many to be the greatest movie ever made, but who actually is this man, Charles Foster Kane? We know that the he is played by a young prodigy by the name of Orson Welles, and many references have been made in and out of the film regarding a very powerful gentleman at that time by the name of William Randolph Hearst. But who actually, is this film about? Orson or William Randolph Hearst? Or maybe someone else entirely. Citizen Kane is the story of Orson Welles, yet it is not. It is a narration of Hearst's grand rise to power, yet it is also not. So who or what exactly, is Citizen Kane about?

Essentially, this movie revolves around a single word "Rosebud". From the very start, we see the expressionistic genius of Orson Welles, at Kane's deathbed, the last words uttered from his dying lips -"Rosebud". As these words were uttered, the one object he treasured and desired, a snowglobe, fell from his grasp, and was smashed into pieces. We hear silence, marking the end of the life of a man. In this short montage of the last moments of Charles Foster Kane's life, albeit not knowing it at the moment, we had already learnt the true identity of this man.

In the establishing sequence, we are greeted with a "No Trespassing" sign, that we are about to enter the life of a man, cut off from the world, yet still very much a part of it. And this sets the tone for very much the rest of the movie, that we were about to enter the life of a man secluded and cut off from the world. The narration in Citizen Kane is also brilliant, where director Orson Welles manages to tell us the story of this man's life using individual accounts of the people Kane's life to allow us to piece together and  understand who the man was. Using rosebud as the McGuffin in the movie, Orson Welles sends us on a wild train ride exploring the life of one Charlie Foster Kane.

In the opening minutes, we see the narration of Charlie Foster Kane from the view of the media, of the people and of the public. To them, Kane was a mere newspaper tycoon, a rich and powerful man, a person who had lots of promised yet failed to lived up to them. He was neither hated nor loved, just a man. We see him for what he has done, but not for who he really is. The media tribute by news on the march to Charlie Foster Kane was never about him as a person, but merely about him as an object. And in this way we are introduced to Kane, distant, unattached; a mere figure in their lives. In this manner, the Kane whom we are introduced to is distant and far away. Throughout the movie, we are never really able to see into his heart, he never really explains his decisions to anyone, for instance, choosing the stay in the election even at the cost of losing his son, we never really know what motivated him to make that decision. Merely knowing that he did it because he could.

As the narration progressed, we begin to see Kane from the eyes of his guardian, Tatcher. In an unbiased narration, we see how Kane was taken away from his home, on the very same snowy day in his snowglobe, just before his death. We see how he was given away by his parents for something they deemed more valueble, money. Before he was taken away, we saw the very Kane for who he really was, innocent, carefree and youthful. The symmetry in the movie here is beautiful. In cruel irony, as Kane slid closer and closer to his end, we see him vainly buying everything with the very thing his parents gave him away for, money, yet he could not get what he wanted the most. Also, as we see Kane grow older, we see him lose his childhood innocence, his freedom and his boyish energy.

Next up was the narration of Kane's life through the eyes of Jedediah Leland, the man who was Kane's closest friend. In him, we see Kane's moral conscience. The story of Kane is also the story of Jedediah Leland. As we are introduced to Leland, we see how Kane and himself drafted the declaration and principles, announcing to the world how they were unafraid to tell the truth, to uphold their moral principles and to be righteous. This stands in stark contrast to the scene where a drunk Jedediah Leland lies asleep on the typewriter over an unfinished review of Susan Alexander's horrid performance, in a vain attempt to prove to Jedediah that he still held firm to those principles, Kane finished the review for Jedediah. From the words of Jedediah Leland, we truly begin to catch a glimpse of Kane's true character. "He married for love -- that's why he did everything. That's why he went into politics. It seems we weren't enough. He wanted all the voters to love him, too. All he really wanted out of life was love.  You see, he just didn't have any to give." From Leland's narration, we begin to learn a bit more about the real Kane, what motivated him to do what he did. Yet however, in a cruel twist of fate, in the culmination of his humiliation, after his second wife flopped at the theaters, Leland sent him the very copy of declaration of principles he himself had drafted, a sorry reminder of how Charles Foster Kane had strayed from the very road he set for himself.


So what exactly, is Citizen Kane REALLY about, and how does Rosebud fit into this? To some, it is just a mere fictional biography of a man by the name of Charles Foster Kane, a man with great promise, yet failed to live up to it because of his own vanity and obsession for love. Yet, many see this movie to be about the life of William Randolph Hearst, a stab by Orson Welles at the media tycoon, about his rise and fall from power, and the self absorbed vanity of the man. And rosebud? Maybe it was all just a joke in reference to the nickname of William's mistress' private parts. 


Yet at the same time, Citizen Kane is about Orson Welles. In making a movie about William Randolph Hearst, Welles incorporated the very essence of his himself into the character of Charles Foster Kane. Though he was portraying another man, he was very much telling us a story of himself. We see many clues he left behind for us which concerned him more than the man whom the movie was based on. For instance, in the opening sequence, a young Kane was given away by his parents; stands in similarity to the tough childhood of Orson Welles, where he desired the love of his parents. For in telling one man's story, he was actually telling his own. And there is where the brilliance lies. In many ways, this movie foretells the life of Orson Welles even before he lived it out. Welles was Kane, and Kane was Welles. It was the story of the rise of fall of a great man, and as many have said about Welles, this was really his first and last movie ever made. To me, Citizen Kane was really about Orson Welles. And rosebud? It is a representation of all the things that made Orson Welles Orson Welles, the very thing that motivated him to do what he did, love. It is the last piece of the puzzle, the key to the life of a man. In the closing scene, we see the sled being thrown into the fire, gone forever along with Rosebud. And in the words of Jedediah Leland, Citizen Kane was the story of how he lost it.