Movie review: The Artist

I had a feeling that The Artist - made for the love of the black and white movies of the 1920s and winner of this year's Oscar for best picture - would be something special, although I admit that the thought of having to sit out a black and white movie with virtually no dialogue sounded like a challenge. I expected lots of overacting and irritating piano music.

It is 1927, cinemas are packed, and George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is the biggest star of silent film.

He has a brief encounter with cute young dancer Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo) and finds her so charming that he makes sure she gets an appearance in his latest film.

But times are changing, and movies are making the move from silent to sound. Miss Miller becomes the princess of the talkies and Valentin becomes old news.

For some, this film by director Michel Hazanavicius is a comedy, a love story, or even a document on film history.

For me it was a movie about loyalty.

It is fast-paced, funny and the reason why Valentin is not able to make it in the talkies is not revealed until the very end.

I never fancied the era of the flapper girls much in the past but I absolutely loved the dresses, the shoes, the suits, the cars and the decor.

The Artist also won the Oscars for best feature, best director, best male lead and best cinematography and I think it rightly deserves all the accolades it has reeled in.

The Artist (M)

Running time: 100 minutes

Rating: 4.5/5 stars