The Artist.
 

Truly great award winning entertainment and here's a great interview with DP Guillaume Schiffman, AFC.

The Artist's Cinematographer Speaks | Studio Daily

I noticed one possible continuity gaff .. in the early stages they spelt Peppi Millers name as er Peppi,
then later as Peppy. Could be they dropped an optional scene, in which her manager decided to alter her spelling, could be.

Hope they all have enough carry on luggage for the swag of Oscars. Interesting time going through the metal detectors at LAX. :)))

Cheers.

Re: The Artist.
 

Hi Allan.

I just caught the movie. With Jean Dujardin, I felt that "A Star is Born" - a genuinely engaging performance. And a terrific supporting cast too.

(Spoiler alert)
Speaking of which, I did leave the cinema feeling that I've just seen "A Star is Born" for the third time (1937, 1954 version and this one) and it would have been nice to have received a heads-up beforehand. It was set 8 years earlier than the original, of course. So instead of Norman Maine's decline being caused by his alcoholism, Valentin's is due to the talkies coming in. But the storyline was the same: young wannabe starlet meets established star, her star goes up, his star goes down. Despite various efforts, nothing can be done to save him, then he takes his own life. Although in this version, she interrupts him just as he's about to do it.

Or am I the only person who noticed this or feels this way (that it's a re-telling of "A Star is Born")?

That said, the writer/director came up with my favourite scene of the past year. The one where she sneaks into his empty dressing room and puts her arm into his coat. I absolutely loved it. To me, that was worth the price of admission just by itself.

Re: The Artist.
 

Hi David, very perceptive.

No I didn't directly connect the Artists plot with previous stories of that nature but you're right, however it didn't worry me probably because
it was so well produced.

And there's some great 'bits' from the vaudeville days. At 17yrs, my first boss Ron R. Beck was a retired vaudeville star from the Tivoli here in Sydney.
He told us some great stories and for a young impressionable kid, he was a great intro into the world of showbiz.

Speaking of receiving a heads up, at our local cinema now, there's a box office notice that says ..

'Please note this is a silent film, there's no dialogue it has a music background'

The mind boggles when you think about what caused the management to put that gem up.

Cheers.

Re: The Artist.
 

I absolutely loved this show. The two central characters are very charismatic, which for me was a big part of the reason that I enjoyed it. The initial scenes with them together, and her as the extra, were very engaging. John Goodman was classic as the studio boss. And the jack Russells performance was Oscar-worthy.

Allan, I read the miss-spelling on Peppi's name as simply that she was initially a nobody, so no one cared how her name was spelled. Then as she climbed up the cast list, her name was spelled properly. So I read it as an intentional gaffe.

Re: The Artist.
 

Ok Ken .. wouldn't it be wild if The Artist started off another era of silent feature films.

Shot on 4K digital no dialogue.

Cheers.

Re: The Artist.
 

Even if their little dog reads this, congratulations to them all for best picture. Standby at the Air France check in :)

http://theenvelope.latimes.com/award...,2701093.story

Cheers.

Re: The Artist.
 

At 22 fps.

Re: The Artist.
 

hey yeah Brian. Hey! we could form a production company and remake some of Charlie Chaplins silent hits.

But who could we get to play Chaplin? I know, BRAD PITT!! he'd be great.

We'd have to set the frame rate to 20 maybe 18 to give him more life.

We'd better get on it before Scorsese gets here.

Cheers.