The Artist (2011) | Inspired Ground

“If you want to be an actress, you need to have something others don’t.”

The Artist tells a relationship of two people, a famous silent film actor, George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) and a rising new actress, Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo) during late 1920s to the early of 1930s. George met Peppy at the peak of his career, famous, handsome and was in every girl’s fantasy. They meet again when Peppy auditioned as a dancer in one of George’s movies. George was distracted with her appealing presence, that they had to take the shot several times.

After a while, Peppy’s career begins to rocket as she play the small roles, supporting roles until she is the leading actress in movies. At the same time, Kinographic studio, the studio where George works, decides move on from silent films to the talkies. George, as proud actor as he is, laugh about the future of films, as the studio boss say, and tell him that he wouldn’t be a part of it. Al Zimmer (John Goodman), the studio boss was crossed with George’s reaction. He hires new actors and actress, including Peppy Miller, to take part of talking films. To make his point that silent films is still going to be successful, George directs and stars his new film with spending a lot of his money. But his movie fails to success as it is premiered at the same time with Peppy Miller’s new successful talking movies.

With his wife divorces him, run out of his money and all Peppy Miller’s movies become such a big hit, George’s life is sinking and reaching to its dark end. But is George’s career really end?

Never watched a full silent film ever, but The Artist sure made me realize that there were a simpler times for movies. The time where music, acting and black-and-whites was just enough to enjoy movies. In the world where filmmakers made us put 3D glasses to watch movies and robots and aliens wouldn’t be great without outstanding visual effects, The Artist felt simply magnificent.

The music were a big part on why the movie worked so well. The outstanding classic tunes were played in almost every scene, turned dramatic as needed in some scenes. I read that the music was played during the movie shots, and so that is why the acting, expressions and gestures felt so in sync.

Of course, none of the silent film worked without great acting from the leading stars, Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo. The thing with silent films that I noticed, acting becomes more magnified. You are forced to read expressions from the actors and surely some dialogues have more suppression by reading them in texts. The chemistry between Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo were also great. Besides John Goodman, Missi Pyle and James Cromwell also starred in the movie.

There’s nothing bad about The Artist. Michel Hazanavicius is brilliant for reminding us the beauty of silent films. Some sounds were used only in needed scenes, which makes it more perfect. Moral of the story was more about how late actors survive during changing time period of movie, how they must not hold on with the past and welcome new actors and technology. But one wouldn’t exist without the other, like talking films wouldn’t exist without silent films, and new actors exist because they idolized old actors when they were little.

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Movie of The Month : The Artist (2011)

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