It may have premiered at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, but I am willing to bet that The Artist was not on the radar of a majority of moviegoers until the unconventional romantic comedy/drama tore through the Golden Globes with six nominations and three wins. The Weinstein Company hasn’t exactly made its name by selling traditional films, and the marketability of a black-and-white silent film amongst today’s audiences certainly provided one hell of a challenge, but no one could deny that critics everywhere were singing this Oscar contender’s praises. Lack of mass appeal aside, after over 100 reviews, there is very little that I am unwilling to see in the theater, and as a former film student, I was both curious and impressed by the sheer nerve it took to produce the project. However, there was one distinct problem, as excited as I was to see and review The Artist, I couldn’t find it at any of the theaters I frequent, and that fact certainly was unacceptable once the film was nominated for a staggering 10 Academy Awards. Thankfully, I was finally able to track down this testament to a simpler era of filmmaking in Hollywood, and I couldn’t wait to see if all the hype that had been generated over Awards Season was justified.
Beautiful and brilliant in almost every way imaginable, The Artist is one of the best films of the year, one that will leave you cheering and one that is fully deserving of every accolade it has thus far received. You wouldn’t think that a silent film would be easy to follow or get emotionally invested in, but the lack of dialogue forces you to pay attention and appreciate other filmmaking elements, the most notable being the mesmerizing soundtrack. When it comes to acting, Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo set a new standard, showing so much emotion and passion in their facial expressions that they not only help drive the themes of the narrative, but also display considerable chemistry…it doesn’t hurt that Bejo is intoxicatingly beautiful either. If there is any criticism to be offered, it is that the story does drag at a few points and that its format probably won’t appeal to the masses, despite its quality. Nevertheless, The Artist in its entirety is creative and resoundingly positive; something that should not be missed by anyone.
Overall Recommendation: Very High
