Singin' in the Rain (1952) aggressively offers itself as a denial of the noir vision of America as a shadow-world of failure, and in Gene Kelly's solo title song and dance, marshals all of the musical's considerable expressive resources to affirm the vitality of the American dream in the very teeth of the noir climate, to retake the high ground — after nearly ten years of noir gloom and doom. Come on with the rain, I've a smile on my face. At one level, the number functions within the narrative as a sublime expression of the state of being in love. But what elevates this number to the status of the icon of American popular culture is its celebration and incarnation of quintessential American values, its paean to the common man, its testament to faith in the possibilities of success in the face of adversity.
— Jim Kitses: Gun Crazy (BFI Film Classics)
Synopsis: In 1927 Hollywood, a silent film production company and cast make a difficult transition to sound.