‘The Sound of Silence’ could never be better conveyed than in a modern day black-and-white silent movie. Mingled with humour and drama, director Michel Hazanavicius has put forth with sheer brilliance the right ingredients to tickle not only your funny bone but also your brain, so much so that the movie could easily be mistaken for a classic. In the beautiful play of black and white, one gets to appreciate the ‘essence’ without much hindrance from ‘visual elements of color’. The movie in its truest sense gets the universal appeal from the audience as language hardly forms a barrier.
Jean Dujardin’s brilliance in playing the silent movie celebrity George Valentin truly upholds his words when he says, “I’m the one people come to see. They never needed to hear me.” His pride and adamance is vividly reflected in the movie which eventually brings his downfall. This is reflected right in the beginning when he is shown, to be tortured to the bone yet refuses to talk. This ‘anti-talkie’ artist goes on to meet Peppy Miller, a budding dancer in Hollywood. Peppy adores the hero in her very first encounter which is reflected multiple times in the movie. The most captivating of which is when Peppy expresses her gratitude for co-starring with her after which she almost impersonates him hugging her. Valentin discovers this and goes on to give her the ‘beauty spot’ which would ‘make her different from other actors’. Peppy eventually goes on to become one of the leading ‘talkie’ stars starring in Hollywood. Parallely Valentin is faced by downfall on rejecting to be a talkie in the dawning era of ‘fresh talking meat’. The audience is led to believe that Peppy has forgotten the influence of the ‘silent’ Valentin when during an interview she says, “Out with the old, in with the new. Make way for the young!” To this Valentin roughly answers to have made her way.
Meanwhile Valentin single-handedly tries to produce his own films which stand no chance against the flooding crowd outside ‘Peppy’s theatres’. Even his not so lovely marriage life falls apart; which primarily had a base of material goods. Valentin is found presenting her jewellery and his wife, Doris, simply orders him to leave the ‘house’ with all his ‘souvenirs’ after the relationship is over. One is led to dwell on Valentin’s answer to Doris’ grief: “I am unhappy, George”, when he says “So are millions of us”. This could also be a subtle hint to the fact that the everlasting smile masking the faces of superstars are only to be found on stage.
Peppy realizes her mistake in her being momentarily prided in fame and glamour. She goes on to follow Valentin through his phase of downfall, all the while trying to be of some help. In this phase the only constant companions of Valentin were his dog, Uggy and assistant, Clifton. Drunk by his pride he mocks his shadow—“You’ve been stupid! You’ve been proud!” In his misery even his shadow seems to have left him; leaving him, for a moment, totally alone. Unable to bear the gravity of his situation, he destroys all his tapes, excepting the one in which he stars with Peppy. He loses consciousness in the burning room, owing his life to Uggy who drags the police to the shack in the right moment. Peppy comes to discover this and shelters Valentin in her abode, urging all the while to work with her. Clifton warns him saying, “Beware of your pride sir, if I may say so”. As may suit his nature, the proud Valentin eventually discovers all his auctioned goods in Peppy’s place, which makes him storm out of her house. He ends up in the same old shack where Peppy once again discovers him. Peppy’s pep talk encourages him to play his part as a dancer. So they end up right where they started. The movie closes with them performing together something which is again a universal language, devoid of speech.
The Artist is truly the work of an artist featuring great artists! ‘Silence is not silent’, is what the movie portrays. Next to unparalleled classics like ‘Chaplin’, this movie encapsulates a world which is almost dreamy in the shades of black and white, but has emotions so real, so simple, and so deep! This movie is sure to leave a ‘beauty spot’ in the minds of the audience.
-Sanghita Chandra
