The Artist is a 2011 French-Belgian comedy-drama film inspired by the style of black-and-white silent films or those with some spoken dialogue. It was written and directed by Michel Hazanavicius, produced by Thomas Langmann, and stars Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo. The story is set in Hollywood between 1927 and 1932 and follows the relationship between a young rising actress and an older silent film star as silent movies become less popular and are replaced by films with sound, called "talkies."
The Artist received praise from critics and won many awards. Jean Dujardin won the Best Actor award at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, where the film first showed. The film was nominated for six Golden Globes, more than any other 2011 film, and won three: Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Best Original Score, and Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for Dujardin. In January 2012, it was nominated for twelve BAFTAs, more than any 2011 film, and won seven, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor for Dujardin, and Best Original Screenplay for Hazanavicius.
The film was nominated for ten Academy Awards and won five, including Best Picture, Best Director for Hazanavicius, and Best Actor for Dujardin, making him the first French actor to win in this category. It was also the first non-American/non-British film to win Best Picture, the first mainly silent film to win since 1927’s Wings at the 1st Academy Awards in 1929, the first film in the 4:3 screen shape to win since 1953’s From Here to Eternity, the first black-and-white film to win since 1993’s Schindler’s List (which had some color scenes), and the first 100% black-and-white film to win since 1960’s The Apartment.
In France, the film was nominated for ten César Awards and won six, including Best Film, Best Director for Hazanavicius, and Best Actress for Bejo. The Artist has received more awards than any other French film.
Plot
In 1927, silent film star George Valentin is taking photographs outside the premiere of his latest film when a young woman named Peppy Miller accidentally bumps into him. Valentin responds with humor and performs for the cameras alongside Peppy. The next day, Peppy appears on the front page of Variety with the headline "Who's That Girl?" She takes advantage of the opportunity to audition as a dancer and is noticed by Valentin. He insists she be cast in Kinograph Studios' next film, even though the studio boss, Al Zimmer, objects. During a scene where they dance together, Valentin and Peppy work well together. With Valentin's help, including drawing a beauty spot on her cheek, Peppy gains recognition and earns more important roles in films.
Two years later, Zimmer announces that Kinograph Studios will stop making silent films. Valentin disagrees, believing that sound is only a temporary trend. In a dream, he begins hearing sounds around him but cannot speak. He decides to leave the studio to create, finance, and direct his own silent film, Tears of Love. The film opens on the same day as Peppy's new sound film, Beauty Spot, and the 1929 stock market crash. Valentin's only hope of avoiding financial failure is for his film to be successful. However, audiences choose Peppy's film instead, and only a few people watch Valentin's. With his money gone, his wife, Doris, leaves him, and he moves into an apartment with his valet/chauffeur, Clifton, and his dog. Peppy becomes one of the first major stars in Hollywood's new sound films.
Later, Valentin is forced to sell his personal items. After realizing he has not paid Clifton for over a year, he gives him his car before firing him. Depressed and drunk, Valentin sets fire to a stack of his old films. The nitrate film catches fire and spreads quickly. Valentin is overwhelmed by smoke and collapses inside the burning house, holding a single film canister. His dog draws the attention of a nearby policeman, who helps rescue Valentin. He is hospitalized for injuries from the fire. Peppy visits him in the hospital and discovers the film he saved is the one showing him and Peppy dancing. She asks to move Valentin to her home to recover. Valentin wakes up in her house and finds Clifton now works for Peppy. Hurt by his changed circumstances, Valentin shows ungratefulness toward Peppy, prompting Clifton to remind him of his changing luck.
Peppy insists to Zimmer that Valentin co-star in her next film, threatening to quit Kinograph if he refuses. After learning that Peppy bought his belongings at auction, Valentin returns to his burned-out apartment in despair. Peppy arrives and finds Valentin about to attempt suicide. She tells him she only wanted to help. They embrace, and Valentin says it is no use, as no one wants to hear him speak. Remembering Valentin's excellent dancing, Peppy convinces Zimmer to let her make a musical so Valentin can avoid speaking.
The audience hears sound for the second time as the film begins a dance scene with Peppy and Valentin. Their tap-dancing can be heard. After the choreography finishes, the dancers pant heavily. The director calls, "Cut!" Zimmer adds, "Perfect. Beautiful. Could you give me just one more?" Valentin, in his only spoken line, replies, "With pleasure," revealing a French accent. The camera pulls back to show the film crew preparing for another take.
Production
Director Michel Hazanavicius had long dreamed of making a silent film. He admired filmmakers from the silent era and believed that silent films, which rely heavily on visual storytelling, could be powerful. At first, his idea was not taken seriously, but after the financial success of his spy-film series, OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies and OSS 117: Lost in Rio, producers became interested. Hazanavicius wanted to work again with actors Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo, who had appeared in OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies. He chose to make a melodrama, a genre he believed had aged well in the silent era. He studied 1920s Hollywood and silent films to learn how to tell a story without using too many intertitles. The screenplay took four months to write and was inspired by the 1928 silent comedy Show People.
Douglas Fairbanks, a famous actor from the silent era, greatly influenced the film’s main character. A recent book and exhibition about Fairbanks by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences helped raise interest in his legacy.
Principal photography for The Artist began in November 2010 and lasted 35 days. The film was shot in the 1.33:1 screen ratio, commonly used in silent films. Though it appears in black-and-white, it was filmed in color by cinematographer Guillaume Schiffman. Technical details, such as lenses and lighting, were designed to match silent films from the 1920s. To recreate the slightly faster look of 1920s silent films, the film was shot at 22 frames per second instead of the standard 24. Most of the film is silent, except for two short scenes with sound and the non-diegetic soundtrack. During filming, Hazanavicius played music from classic Hollywood films while actors performed.
The Artist was produced by La Petite Reine and ARP Sélection for 13.47 million euros. It received support from Studio 37, France 3 Cinéma, StudioCanal, and CinéCinéma. The cast and crew included French and American members. Most scenes were filmed in Los Angeles, particularly in Hollywood, as well as in downtown theaters, restaurants, and homes, including the house where Mary Pickford lived. Soundstage work was done at Red Studios, which also doubled as the fictional Kinograph Studios. The iconic Bradbury Building in downtown Los Angeles was used for the film’s staircase sequence. The closing dance scene required 17 takes and five months of tap-dancing training for Dujardin and Bejo.
American costume designer Mark Bridges created the film’s wardrobe.
The film’s music was composed mainly by Ludovic Bource, with contributions from other composers, such as Alberto Ginastera’s Estancia. The soundtrack was recorded by the Brussels Philharmonic in Belgium and conducted by Ernst Van Tiel. The Brussels Jazz Orchestra also participated. Recording took place over six days in April 2011 at Flagey’s Studio 4 in Brussels.
The film’s climactic scene features Bernard Herrmann’s Scène d’amour from his score to Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo. In Vertigo, this piece also accompanies a long scene without dialogue. Only one song, “Pennies from Heaven,” is used in the soundtrack. It was sung by Rose “Chi-Chi” Murphy and released in France on October 10, and in the U.K. and U.S. on October 21, through Sony Classical Records.
Release
The film premiered on May 15, 2011, at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival. It was first announced as an out-of-competition entry but was moved to the competition a week before the festival started. The French regular release was on October 12, 2011, through Warner Bros. France. The Weinstein Company purchased the distribution rights for the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. The film also sold to Comstock and GAGA in Japan and Delphi Film in Germany. The film had a limited release in the United States on November 23, 2011.
After winning awards at the 69th Golden Globe Awards, Warner Bros. announced a re-release of the film in France, showing in 362 theaters on January 25, 2012. It was also re-released in Belgium on February 22, 2012.
The Artist was released on region 1 DVD and Blu-ray on June 26, 2012. It was released in the United Kingdom by Entertainment in Video on May 28, 2012.
Reception
The film The Artist made $44,671,682 in North America and $88,761,174 in other countries, totaling $133,432,856 worldwide. After winning awards at the Academy Awards, the film had a small increase in box office sales the next week in North America. It was on the top 10 list that week and had a 34% increase in sales while expanding from 966 theaters to 1,756.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film received a 95% approval rating from 327 reviews, with an average score of 8.8 out of 10. The site’s summary says, “A happy tribute to silent movies, The Artist is smart, fun, and full of great acting and beautiful visuals.” At Metacritic, the film scored 89 out of 100 based on 41 reviews, meaning it received very good praise. Audiences at CinemaScore gave the film an “A” grade, which is the highest score on their scale.
Mark Adams of Screen Daily said the film was “a real pleasure” and praised the acting by Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo, calling it an “unlikely feel-good movie.” He noted the film felt a bit slow early on due to repeated music and infrequent text on screen but added that the director gave it charm and warmth. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian said the film made him “cheer throughout the final credits” and that he wanted to watch it again.
Geoffrey McNab of The Independent called the film both a “crowdpleaser” and a “magnificent piece of filmmaking” in his five-star review. Rick Groen of The Globe and Mail said the film used old technology in a way that looked amazing to show how new technology changed the film industry. Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com said the film was well-researched and an instant classic. David Thomson of The New Republic called it “an accomplished and witty entertainment” and suggested the director might need to prove he can make more films without relying on silence. Roger Ebert of Chicago Sun-Times gave the film four stars, calling it “one of the most entertaining films in many a moon” and praising its story and performances.
Jaime N. Christley of Slant Magazine gave the film one-and-a-half stars, saying the director ignored interesting facts about the era and focused on general knowledge instead. America magazine said Jean Dujardin was the film’s strength, but Bérénice Bejo’s acting was not as strong.
On January 9, 2012, actress Kim Novak said the film’s use of a part of Bernard Herrmann’s score from Vertigo felt like a “violation” of her work. She said the film should have used its own music instead of borrowing from another film. She called it “morally wrong” to use famous music for attention.
The film’s director, Michel Hazanavicius, responded by saying using the music was not illegal and that they had permission to use it. He said he felt sorry for Novak but believed using music from other films was common.
In May 2011, at the Cannes Film Festival, Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter said using Herrmann’s music was effective but made viewers think of Vertigo instead of The Artist.
At the 65th British Academy Film Awards, The Artist won seven awards, including Best Film, Best Actor for Dujardin, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, and Best Original Score. At the 69th Golden Globe Awards, it was nominated for six awards and won three: Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Best Actor – Musical or Comedy, and Best Musical Score.
At the 84th Academy Awards, The Artist received ten nominations and won five: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Costume Design, and Best Original Score.