The 25 Must-See Titles at the 2017 TCM Classic Film Festival

Poster from Singin’ in the Rain. Image via MGM

Singin’ in the Rain (1952)

A Hollywood star (Gene Kelly) struggles to make his way in the world of talking pictures while falling in love with a young ingenue (Debbie Reynolds).

Every film I’ve included here is a classic in its own right, but Singin’ in the Rain is the definition of classic. A legendary musical that hearkens back to the Hollywood of old, for 1952 at least, there’s something for everyone. Gene Kelly sings and dances like there’s no tomorrow, Debbie Reynolds is cute as a button in her debut role, and Donald O’Connor can “make ‘em laugh.” Honestly, for as great as they are, Singin’ in the Rain soars on the back of Jean Hagen as the squeaky-voiced Lina Lamont. Her work in this should have garnered her an Academy Award, in my opinion.

This is the second of two films meant to honor actress Debbie Reynolds – the other being Postcards From the Edge. This was the film that put Reynolds into the stratosphere, though it is the last serious time she played a woman in her Hollywood career. After this she mainly played young girls with the body of a woman. Regardless, I’ve watched Singin’ in the Rain a hundred times, and I’m ready to make this screening 101.

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