The Artist - A difficult movie to review!

Rating: 8/10 (4 March 2012)

I thought The Artist was: brave, real, unique, daring. This movie is very simple on the surface, but makes many powerful statements in its simplicity. I believe it will stay with me, fresh in my mind, whereas many other movies I've seen recently will fade quickly away. The only somewhat negative is that it was a tiny bit predictable- I wish the plot would have been a bit more complex and surprising. And this is what brings me to the paradox of reviewing this movie. The simplicity is really part of the point of the movie- and in some ways I was happy for the broad emotions and the few straightforward intertwining arcs of the plot. It takes you back to experiencing what it must have been like when movies were new, and it makes you realize both 1) how far we have come, and 2) what we have sadly lost in the evolution of the art. So many movies babble on, little jokes, pointless dialog about things that matter to pointless characters. This movie had very few words in it, if any... but told a story as timeliness and universal as any movie ever made. While it was a silent- style, black and white movie, it felt fresher and more lively than many other color films with millions of dollars spent on visual and sound effects. And the lead actors, such charisma! Such talent! Like the stars of old Hollywood. One more thing; you just gotta love the little dog.