Brining together again Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo, the film is a loving portrayal of Hollywood at the time talkies came to
supplant the silent film. Dujardin plays a megastar adventure hero, something on the lines of Douglas Fairbanks, who takes
a shine to Bejo when she gets a bit part in his latest film. This propels her to stardom while he founders by not accepting that sound will change film-making for good. He tries to make his own great epic but this is a complete flop, outgunned in all ways by her latest film which premieres the same night. She saves him when he burns his archive in a fit of despair and nearly dies and, after the usual waverings, the film ends with the two of them dancing together in her new film. What gives the film its great charm is the virtual lack of dialogue though not sound which is used as to point and punctuate. It provides a celebration of that time in the history of the movies without really being an homage. The cast includes some Anglo-American veterans who perform well but the real scene stealer is, arguably, the hero's dog, his performance itself being a
reminder of the wonder dogs of yesteryear.
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1 comment:
Woof and double-woof...
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