THE ARTIST

How in the world did I not watch THE ARTIST when it screened in theaters near me?  A missed opportunity for sure.

THE ARTIST: Five out of five stars.

There is a moment at the beginning of THE ARTIST when we are introduced to the character of Peppy Miller and the actress portraying her, Bérénice Bejo, flashes one of the most winning smiles I've ever seen captured on film.  And at that point I was hooked.  While even in the recently watched (and loved) THERE WILL BE BLOOD there were moments that I felt a little tuned out on, there wasn't a single second in this film that I wasn't completely engrossed in the story of George and Peppy.

I didn't think a modern film could top HUGO when writing a love letter to cinema but here we are with one of the most beautiful odes to Hollywood I've seen in years.

I've long argued that if we view modern visual art (especially theater) through Aristotle's POETICS (which is still incredibly relevant) you'll find that viewers rely less and less on aural means of communication and far more on visual.  Or rather, that now Aristotle wouldn't rank language higher than spectacle in terms of necessary importance.  THE ARTIST proves what filmgoers in the 20s knew - language is no substitute for artfully shot cinematography and skillfully drawn characters.

A personal note: I'm almost positive Jean Dujardin spoke all of his lines in French as he was the only principal character whose lips I could not read.

Film List:
January 1: THERE WILL BE BLOOD (5/5)
January 2: BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (3.5/5)

January 3: THE ARTIST (5/5)

January 4: THE KING'S SPEECH