Watching The Artist is like being hugged warmly for one hundred minutes. The film successfully treads a fine line between old silent-movie tropes and a respectful modern sensibility, telling its story of the shift from silent film to the talkies against the backdrop of the late-1920s and early 1930s. An almost-completely silent but scored film in itself, The Artist tells archetypal universal stories of romance, the old versus the new and stardom's rise-and-fall which still resonate today in an utterly enchanting and engaging way. Writer/director Havanavicius crafts a clever and delightful tale, with some deft and creative filmic touches and brilliant interweaving of his central romantic tale with American and movie history. Jean Dujardin gives a stunningly charismatic performance as fading silent star George Valentin, with Berenice Bejo delightful as the appropriately-named 'Peppy' Miller, and the amazing John Goodman and James Cromwell seem natural fits for the silent screen. It was interesting to note that the audience was still and captivated throughout, a consequence of a silent movie that demands attention, in salutary contrast with a lot of modern blockbusters. Cynics might say that the film is schmaltzy and predictable, but The Artist uses those old-fashioned qualities in a wonderful, beautifully-crafted and winningly-played way from start to finish.
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