The Artist

There are some film pitches that you would just love to be witness to. Imagine the scene - the director of critically and commercially indifferently received French Bond spoofs OSS117 comes in and says he has a wonderful idea for a new film- he wants to make a film about silent movies and he wants it to be silent.

Fortunately for said director, Michel Hazanavicius, and fortunately for us, somebody decided to take a chance on him, because the result is nothing short of brilliant. It has already won 3 Golden Globes and is among the front-runner (along with The Descendants) for the Oscars.

The film is both love letter to and a slightly humourous take on a forgotten art. It is both a great example of the kind of film that they just don't make anymore and also a film that still has a 21st Century feel to it. So, you get more of a peak behind the curtain, behind the smoke and mirrors of the movie business than you would have done in Hollywood's golden age, and yet the tone is decidedly respectful and loving. And so one scene where the star George Valentin (played by Jean Dujardin) has to compose himself facially for the right emotions, time after time through multiple takes is both very funny whilst also being appreciative of the forgotten craft of the silent film stars.

The story starts with Valentin  at his peak. He meets and young ingenu, Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo) and helps to set her on the road to stardom, but whilst her star rises, he fails to adapt to the new talking pictures and is all but forgotten. In true silent movie style, the film mixes moments of humour with melodrama with song and dance spectacle. Keep an eye out for how the films-within-the film seem to mirror reality for the stars both in their titles and their action. There are also some highly inventive sequences, including a dream sequence Hitchcock would be proud of, and some beautifully composed uses of light, shadow and reflections echoing classics like Citizen Kane (explicitly in one scene).

Hazanavicius is aided by some top notch performances. Having the likes of John Goodman and James Cromwell in the supporting roles was always going to be a good move, but his previous collaborators Dujardin and Bejo excel in the leads. Their achievement should not be underestimated - to act in a silent movie requires different skills. To act acting in a silent movie in a silent move is this no mean feat, and to do so with such engaging charm and conviction deserves all the plaudits they're receiving. The film also features one of the most amusing canine performances you'll ever have seen.

Overall - 9/10 Both a homage to and humourous look at a lost art, and brilliant at either level. The first standout movie of 2012!