Rotten Tomatoes Rating:  97% (Critics) / 92% (Audience)
Directed By: Michel Hazanavicius
Written By: Michel Hazanavicius
Starring: Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo and John Goodman
Studio: The Weinstein Company

Synopsis: With the arrival of talking pictures the career of a silent movie star begins to fade into oblivion while the object of his affection sees her own star rise just as fast.

The Good:
Looking like a Mediterranean Gene Kelly, Jean Dujardin is effortless as silent film star George Valentin. Valentin is all charisma all the time except when it comes to his relationship with his dour wife (played by Penelope Ann Miller).
Bérénice Bejo was an apt co-star and her Peppy Miller evokes the It Girl’s of old Hollywood. She and Dujardin also have an immediate and easy chemistry that makes the slow build of a relationship between the two even more fun to watch.
The direction of Hazanavicius is so tight and precise without feeling like it was a modern film aping the conventions of the silent era. Instead every aspect of the movie felt like it was truly one of those silent films from the early days of Hollywood with just enough of a modern flair to keep you guessing (like Valentin’s sound filled dream sequence)
Uggy is the coolest pooch to grace the silver screen since Benjy.

The Bad:
I would have liked to have seen more time spent on the Valentin’s crumbling marriage.

The Ugly:
Its too bad not all films can be this good.

Final Verdict: This is an almost perfect film that left me feeling nothing but happy long after I finished watching it. For anyone who loves the wonder and magic of movies (especially those from a bygone era) then this film will likely make you leave the theater smiling from ear to ear like I was. A beautiful story, with amazing acting and skillful directing that was made to look almost too easy…I cannot heap enough superlatives on THE ARTIST except to say it deserves every award it receives and I recommend it to anyone. A