A unique treat

Rating: 8/10 (29 February 2012)

I always worry when I go to movie that has received a lot of hype. I'm afraid that I will be disappointed but that certainly wasn't the case with "The Artist".
How can a black & white silent movie work in this day and age? Perhaps it is because the most important thing in any movie is the story and the characters. In "The Artist" both of these draw the viewer in so much that the lack of dialogue is irrelevant.
The acting, especially that of Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo, also helps to sweep the viewer along in the simple tale of the contrasting fortunes of the silent movie star and the young starlet at the start of the talkies era in Hollywood. The scene where Bejo pretends to dance with her idols jacket is surely destined to become one of the all time great movie scenes. Dujardin brilliantly portrays the voyage from cocky superstar to has-been.
The score in a silent movie is vital and it succeeds brilliantly in setting the mood of each scene.
You can argue, and indeed you would be correct, that the lack of dialogue is a gimmick. If the same director and cast decided to make another silent movie it probably wouldn't work. However with this story it does work and it has resulted in the creation of a treat for movie fans.