Synopsis: Read on IMDB
Should you watch this movie? I think whether the topic appeals to you or not you should only because it’s really different from any contemporary movie put there. It also recently won an Oscar, so more reasons to watch it (then you can really judge if it deserves the award or not!)
George Valentin, played by French actor Jean Dujardin, is a movie star in 1920s Hollywood, when movies are silent. His life takes a turn for the worse with the avent of talkies (movies with sound, as we know them today). On the other end we have Peppy Miller, played by Argentinian/French actress Bérénice Bejo, an up and coming artist who gets a start as an extra in one of George Valentin’s silent films and from there rises up to become America’s sweetheart.
Let’s get some of the key facts about this movie that, unless you have not read the news by now, everyone has talked about since the movie started getting award season nods: First of all the movie is entirely in black and white. I read online mentioned even how sets and wardrobe were designed in black, white and different tones of grey, so the movie’s “colors” were more vibrant. The second aspect that makes this movie different from anything else out there today is that the movie is silent. Yes, you read that right, silent as in the only indications of dialog are the mumblings of the characters followed by titled cards with the actual dialog. And in order to fill in for all those awkward moments of silence in the entire movie, a beautiful score by Ludovic Bource acompanies the scenes. And by the way, the music was produced right here in Belgium, recorded by the Brussels Philharmonic.
The “technical aspects” and their novelty in today’s movie landscape, seems to be what made this movie such a strong contender. The story itself is pretty simple, but timeless and extremely powerful. Jean Dujardin’s Valentine conveys a whirlwind of emotions from beginning to end without saying a word. Bérénice Bejo’s Peppy Miller is absolutely charming and event in her ascend to stardom, she is still completely relatable. All under the direction and vision of French director Michel Hazanavicious. Of course, he also won the Oscar for Best Director.
Paola’s mood after watching this movie:
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