tennyowithaberetta:

valkyrien:

wehadfacesthen:

Brigitte Helm in Metropolis (Fritz Lang, 1927). I have an obsession with this film having recently seen the newly restored version. Pass up The Artist and go see a real silent film instead!

 I agree entirely.

While I do think watching real silent films is a good idea, you shouldn’t knock The Artist because it acts as a segue into the movies it’s referencing, and after all, how many silent films have seen a wide release, much less win multiple Oscars within the last 70 years?

 I’m not knocking The Artist - I’ve already said that it’s a perfectly good film and that I enjoyed it, more than once, I believe - and in answer to your question, none, as we haven’t been bothering much with silent films since we’ve never really gotten over our initial infatuation with talkies and all the possiblities they present, and in all honesty, they’re easier to make anyway because dialogue and emotion doesn’t have to be as well-acted or condensed as it does in silent films, making The Artist an even braver and more valid contribution to film. Talkies require less than the silents to understand and invest in, and mediocre acting is easier to get away with in them because so much can be done with the right dialogue, even to the point where we can just about tolerate truly wooden or dismal acting to get through an otherwise not-so-shitty film because we have the dialogue to help us understand what’s happening even if the actor’s not up to conveying the emotions we’re supposed to be picking up on. In most silent films, the ‘dialogue’ we have to go on is rather minimal, and we have to glean the greater meaning and plot from the actions and expressions of the actors, meaning that more convincing acting is required. Any good silent film is made good by the quality of the acting we see, and The Artist is no exception.

What I agree to is that anyone who likes The Artist or just the concept of it, should turn their attentions to a ‘real’ excellent silent film such as Metropolis, because in doing so they’ll be better able to appreciate the references The Artist brings to the table, and the provenance of the quality they’re witnessing in a modern interpretation of silent film like The Artist. I would recommend that anyone wishing to immerse themselves in something like The Artist first sample some silent classics, and I will not apologise for personally preferring Metropolise to The Artist in this particular instance, which is really what my reblogged agreement was all about, and even that preference is more due to the plot and the aesthetics of Metropolis contra those of The Artist, because I personally find them more appealing. It is not a question of what is ‘better’ or ‘more valid’, but of what I personally prefer, and given the choice I’d pick Metropolis every time simply because it speaks to me more than The Artist does, and as this post referred to the excellence of Metropolis, that is the basis for my comment and reblog. I enjoyed both films, and I do feel The Artist deserved the awards it won, although my opinion of The Oscars as an institution in general is perhaps a little low.

I do hope you didn’t think I was disparaging what is no doubt a very well-made film.