Within the musical film genre, the use of music is essential to the film narrative and plot structure. Many of the classic musicals, like Singin’ in the Rain, use this use of musical numbers to not only further the plot but also the individual character narrative. With this integration of music, these musicals are typically referred to as integrated musicals. This integration is usually expressed through a scene within a scene setting (ie. Make em’ Laugh sequence in Singin’ in the Rain)
Pennies From Heaven (1981) or through seemingly random outbursts of song and dance that adds energy, spontaneity, and alluding to the myth that this is a normal occurrence in real life that the musicals are trying to depict (ie. Singin’ in the Rain sequence …show more content…
The sequence begins with Arthur and the accordion man eating dinner together. It is important to note that while typical musical setting are vibrant, full of color and alluding to an almost too perfect world where nothing is ever wrong, the setting for this sequence is quite the opposite. The scene is dark and there is a storm raging outside the isolated and relatively depressed looking diner, which is a stark contrast to vibrantly colored scenes that are generally in the typical representations of the musical. For example, even the sequence that takes place outside the movie theater in Singin’ in the Rain doesn’t look nearly as dark and gloomy as this scene. While Arthur and the accordion man are sitting at the diner and conversing about Arthur not wanting to eat his food, the accordion man begins his song. Starting the song with a close-up shot of the accordion man’s face, the walls that surround the diner slide away and he begins to walk out into the storm. He then begins to walk from booth to booth, continuously singing to the other patrons. None of the patrons acknowledge his existence, which gives his singing a feeling of seclusion that would have been relatable for people during the Great Depression, to which this sequence is alluding. The sequence is a contrast to the typical representation of the musical because the traditional
Pennies From Heaven (1981) or through seemingly random outbursts of song and dance that adds energy, spontaneity, and alluding to the myth that this is a normal occurrence in real life that the musicals are trying to depict (ie. Singin’ in the Rain sequence …show more content…
The sequence begins with Arthur and the accordion man eating dinner together. It is important to note that while typical musical setting are vibrant, full of color and alluding to an almost too perfect world where nothing is ever wrong, the setting for this sequence is quite the opposite. The scene is dark and there is a storm raging outside the isolated and relatively depressed looking diner, which is a stark contrast to vibrantly colored scenes that are generally in the typical representations of the musical. For example, even the sequence that takes place outside the movie theater in Singin’ in the Rain doesn’t look nearly as dark and gloomy as this scene. While Arthur and the accordion man are sitting at the diner and conversing about Arthur not wanting to eat his food, the accordion man begins his song. Starting the song with a close-up shot of the accordion man’s face, the walls that surround the diner slide away and he begins to walk out into the storm. He then begins to walk from booth to booth, continuously singing to the other patrons. None of the patrons acknowledge his existence, which gives his singing a feeling of seclusion that would have been relatable for people during the Great Depression, to which this sequence is alluding. The sequence is a contrast to the typical representation of the musical because the traditional