Singin’ in the Rain (1952) is a comedy musical about the difficult transition Hollywood actors faced when film went from silent to talkie. But on top of that, it’s also a portrait of the phoniness of Hollywood, frequently giving us a peek behind the curtain of how things come together.

Of course, more than 60 years later, audiences are better versed in the illusions of filmmaking and already know everything the film reveals about Hollywood deception. We’re smarter, we have access to behind-the-scenes information, and we have a generally richer understanding of the filmmaking process through the Internet and media that didn’t exist in the ‘50s. But that doesn’t change the fact that many of the tactics employed back then are still commonplace today.

Plus, Singin’ in the Rain gives us a look at how Hollywood phoniness extends beyond the screen and into the lives of everyone involved. We see this from the very beginning, when Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly) and Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen) arrive at the red carpet for a big premiere. They’re Hollywood’s “it” couple despite the fact Don can’t stand Lina, and the two arrive together under the guise of a happy pair.

Don is asked by the reporter to tell the story of how he became such a sensation, and in this moment, the film sets us up for a recurring trend: We’re going to be told one thing and shown something else. As Don recounts all the illustrious ways in which he cultivated his talents into a Hollywood A-lister, we see the reality of his low-class, bar-room Vaudeville acts and embarrassingly humble performances with his lifelong performance buddy Cosmo Brown (Donald O’Connor).

It’s the film’s way of telling us that everything in filmmaking is phony, through the medium of an equally phony film.

Later on, Don finds an actual love interest in Kathy Selner (Debbie Reynolds). As he attempts to confess his love to her, he first has to bring her into the movie studio to fabricate the perfect fictional setting. There’s something very telling in this; he can’t connect with his true feelings unless they’re under the mask of production. It reminds us how everything in film is fabricated, as Don uses the studio set pieces and equipment to craft the perfect lighting, setting, and mood to confess his interest in Kathy.

One of the most wonderful bits of trivia about Singin’ in the Rain relates directly to this point. Throughout the film, the characters are working on creating the first talking picture for a movie studio - The Dueling Cavaliers. The running issue during Singin’ is that Lina Lamont, a wonderful and glamorous silent film star, has an absolutely hideous speaking voice. To hide this from the public, Kathy Selden becomes the “voice” of Lina, as the filmmakers record and dub her voice over everything Lina says and sings. Today, we’re all very familiar with dubbing, but in the movie, they debate whether or not it will work, and if audiences will buy it. The fun fact is that Kathy Selner’s singing voice used to replace Lina’s is actually the singing voice of Jean Hagen, the actress who played Lina. Thus, the reality is that Kathy’s character is dubbing over Lina’s character’s vocals using Lina’s real-life voice. It’s a hilarious bit of fun, as the film puts so much emphasis on whether or not they can pull off the stunt convincingly in The Dueling Cavaliers, only to be doing it right under our noses in Singin’ in the Rain.

It’s this manner in which Singin’ in the Rain is constantly playing with the audience, reminding them they’re watching a movie. Gene Kelly caps it all off by breaking the fourth wall on several instances throughout the film, which serves as a reminder that the film’s cheeky tone is intentional and premeditated.