An experience...

Rating: 10/10 (29 January 2012)

To be fair there is little of substance happening in 'The Artist'. It tells a fairly conventional and frankly kind of cliché story about rags to riches to rags. 'The Artist' isn't really about anything other than pure emotion. It's a sentimental film designed to really invoke a response in it's audience and it does it beautifully. Is the film sappy? Yes, no doubt but it's delicious sap. Watching 'The Artist' is like watching the best of Capra corn, it invokes a feeling of joy that you can only get from watching a movie whose sole goal is to make someone smile. 'The Artist' achieves this effect far more effectively than any recent 'Forrest Gump' caliber knock off.
Jean Dujardin is absolutely brilliant in the title role. Silent film acting is more than just pantomime. There has to be give and take with your surroundings and your fellow cast members. Dujardin gives a performance that feels as if it could have come out of the 20's. He embodies Chaplin, Fairbanks, Keaton, and in the darker moments of the film I was pleased to see a little Lon Chaney as well. Dujardin while playing a humorous role gives his character a lot of dignity. That is why the silent clowns still endure. What makes this an exceptional performance though is that Dujardin really embraces the tragedy of this insecure character. I love the fact that this Fairbanks persona hides a deeply insecure man. The film is built around hearing his voice and there is a progression to it in the character which is very satisfying.
Overall, the film is in love with the silent era but I somewhat question whether it truly captured it's essence. The film for better or worse paints a very romanticized and verily predictable picture of silent era Hollywood. I don't really know if this is enough to sustain a film. We know the general story as it has been explained in countless Hollywood lure films like 'Singin in the Rain'. I kind of wanted to find out more about Valentin and where he came from. The film begins with him being on top of the world but I think it would have been interesting to see his beginnings. I'd like to see maybe Valentin doing a vaudeville act and him being discovered. I think it would have made the character rounder and would have allowed the audience a broader picture of the entertainment at the time. If this film had been made in sound with the same script it probably would have been forgotten despite it's sweetness. I think that is really what is to be said about the film.
Is 'The Artist' a gimmick? Probably but you know what it is a lovely gimmick that is done pitch perfectly. DuJardin is a joy to watch and the film looks beautiful. It may not be an ambitious or deep film but it is honest and sincere and fun.