The Artist review

I guess it's been a year and a half since I have reviewed a current film on the blog. 2011 was a dismal year for film. There hasn't been anything I wanted to see until The Artist. I first saw the trailer when it premiered at Cannes in May. It's a tribute to a time when the Hollywood studios were transitioning from silent films to talking films. Some actors were unable to make that transition. Emil Jannings won a Best Actor Oscar in 1928 and then went home to Germany and never made another film in Hollywood. Supposedly John Gilbert's voice was so nasal that the studios wouldn't hire him anymore. In The Artist, George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is a silent film star similar to Douglas Fairbanks. His studio head Al Zimmer (John Goodman) shows him a film clip with sound and Valentin thinks it's a passing fad. Meanwhile, Valentin meets aspiring actress Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo) and starts to see her. He's married but is having marital problems. While Peppy climbs the Hollywood ladder to stardom, Valentin's attempt to finance his own film is a dismal failure and he begins to drink heavily. His wife leaves him and he has to auction all his possessions. If that reminds you of A Star Is Born, you're right on target. It almost ends like A Star Is Born when Valentin almost kills himself in a fire. But Peppy nurses him back to health and then gets an idea about how to get Valentin his stardom back. She pitches the idea to Zimmer. As some of you may be aware, I am a huge classic film fan. It seems all I do is watch TCM. And I love silent films. But I am aware that many younger fans have never seen a silent film or a black and white film. So I loved this film but I'm not sure others would enjoy it. French director Michel Hazanavicius wrote and directed the film and there's no question that doing a mostly silent film is a big risk. But it should get some awards season buzz that should help the film financially. Hazanavicius has been directing in France for over a decade. His OSS spy spoof films were very popular there. And Jean Dujardin was the star of those films. Because he doesn't speak in the film, Dujardin depends a lot on facial expressions and body movement. He has excellent timing. His movements remind me of Cary Grant. Berenice Bejo was born in Argentina but she is married to Hazanavicius. She's very appealing playing against Dujardin. John Goodman is great as the studio head and James Cromwell is great as Valentin's ridiculously loyal servant Clifton. But the other big star of the film is Uggie who is just billed as The Dog. He reminds me of Asta from The Thin Man. I understand that Uggie is currently promoting The Artist in England. The only negative is I thought the ending was a little flat. I enjoyed the references to other films but I don't know if others would like that. If you have an open mind to something different. you might like The Artist. Check out the trailer.