Silent film 'The Artist' an exquisite love letter to cinema
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Jean Dujardin as George Valentin in Michel Hazanavicius' "The Artist." -
Berenice Bejo as Peppy Miller "The Artist."
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Talk about a long Hollywoodland hello.
It's been eight months since "The Artist" had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and Frenchman Jean Dujardin was named best actor. Since then, critics, audiences and awards voters have showered it with praise, raising expectations with each passing week.
Today, after feeling like the last diners in the restaurant to receive their food, Pittsburghers can finally see "The Artist" at AMC-Loews at the Waterfront and the Manor Theater in Squirrel Hill, and it is worth the wait.
It is a wondrous delight about a matinee idol at the peak of his fame who slowly loses everything and a luminous actress who coincidentally begins the climb to stardom as silent pictures give way to talkies.
- Starring: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, James Cromwell, John Goodman.
- Rating: PG-13 for a disturbing image and a crude gesture.
As the movie begins, George Valentin (Mr. Dujardin) is the toast of the town, an actor and dancer who exudes easy elegance, charm and confidence at the premiere of his latest hit. Outside the theater, along the rope line, he has a meet-cute with an autograph seeker, Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo), who will turn up as an extra in his next picture.
But their paths soon diverge as he balks at the newfangled way of making movies -- by allowing the actors' voices to be heard. "If that's the future, you can have it," he says, although he has no idea how prophetic he will be.
It is the future, and he eventually is on the outside looking in, as Peppy graduates from background to bit player to supporting actress to leading lady and he spirals into despair, with only his faithful driver and Jack Russell terrier for companionship. But, as with all movies about star-crossed romances, the onetime screen idol and America's new sweetheart will meet again.
"The Artist," written and directed by Michel Hazanavicius, is a silent black-and-white movie, but it features title cards, lush music by the Flanders Philharmonic Orchestra steering you through the action, and actors who enunciate so well that you often can read their lips.
You will not feel lost or deprived without spoken dialogue, and if you have trouble hearing in movie auditoriums, this is one time when you won't miss a word.
Mr. Hazanavicius and his crew use light, shadows, mirrors and staircases to underscore the trajectory of the leads. It's no accident that George and Peppy encounter one another on the dramatic steps inside the landmark Bradbury Building in Los Angeles; he's alone shuffling down, she has suitors at her elbow as she bounces up.
The story, which opens in 1927 just as "Singin' in the Rain" did, condenses the transition of silent pictures to talkies and the all-too-familiar tale of a star who falls from fortune and grace due to changing audience tastes, economic calamity or a misguided project. However, it pays homage to loyalty from an admirer, an employee and even a superstar dog who could give Lassie a run for her money in fetching help.
If you happened to see "OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies," called a witty send-up of '60s spy films by the PG's Barry Paris in 2008, the leads will be familiar.
In "OSS 117," Mr. Dujardin looked like a young Sean Connery from "Dr. No," and here he has Douglas Fairbanks' derring-do, Fred Astaire's debonair dancing style and Clark Gable's mustache. Ms. Bejo, real-life companion to Mr. Hazanavicius and Mr. Dujardin's sexy collaborator in "OSS 117," makes a fabulous flapper and hoofer with expressive eyes and a heart of gold. Watch for the flirtatious dance scene where the couple's attraction ignites.
The cast also includes James Cromwell as a chauffeur; John Goodman as a cigar-chomping mogul; Penelope Ann Miller as George's wife, introduced in scenes that recall the marriage-on-the-rocks meals in "Citizen Kane"; and Malcolm McDowell as a butler.
Early in the picture, George advises Peppy, "If you want to be an actress, you need to have something the others don't." The same is true of any movie that wants to rise above the field of 265 best picture Oscar contenders, and "The Artist" does just that by offering a valentine to Valentin, love stories, comedies, melodramas, musicals and Hollywood present and past.
First Published January 13, 2012 12:00 am
