This is such a great time of year! There are so many amazing movies out. (Skip true January releases; anything released anywhere in the U.S. by 12/31 is an Oscar contender for the year. Late releases are positioning themselves as award hopefuls.)
I finally saw The Artist. This baby is a joy to watch. From the first frames I was amazed at how the director made a silent film in this day and age, and I was entranced. In the opening scene, we watch the Artist watching the audience watch him on the big screen at a movie premiere. We watch him watch himself. By changing the angles of our view, we watch the captivated audience react to shots and are able to watch the movie ourselves. This director, Michel Hazanavicius, is a genius. And then there's Jean Dujardin. As the silent film star we watch him get into character - again and again. It a stellar performance. I wanted Gary Oldham to win for Tinker Tailor, but the award should go to Dujardin. I think Clooney will win, but he is not the Best Actor this year.
The protagonist, Valentin, is a silent film star who loves life until talkies come about and he is out of a job. We watch him at the top and we watch his fall. I think this film may contain the most clever scene I have ever seen in a movie. Dujardin's character discovers sound is here to stay in a scene so subtle that you may almost miss it. But you won't. Think about this afterward. How did the writer and director know this would work? Did they try other scenes? Or did they always know this particular scene would be perfection?
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