The Artist took respectively five Awards, most of which were in the major categories: picture, leading actor (Jean Dujardin), director (Michel Hazanavicious), along with costume design and original score.
Martin Scorsese's Hugo in 3D won for art direction, cinematography, sounding editing, sound mixing and visual effects.
I can't but express my sincere admiration towards Meryl Streep who deservedly got her another Oscar for the best leading actress. And although the Iron Lady did not leave a strong impression on me as a movie, Meryl Streep with her incredible talent was impeccable as always. Another pleasant surprise was the best original screenplay Oscar for Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris. Very original, indeed!
And here we have our two main winners: the Artist and Hugo Cabret, both of which are fantasies set in about the same time (1920-1930s). Martin Scorsese takes on a trip to the very beginnings of the Hollywood, in 1895, which is an wonderful treat for all the lovers of true Hollywood. There is no doubt the two main Oscar-winning pictures are very different. While Michel Hazanavicious stakes on the acting and the original emotional power of the movie, Martin Scorsese creates a film that is not performance-centered. Hugo is rich and full of incredible special effects, which reminds us of another 3D picture, Avatar. Both movies, depending on technique, did not take the main Academy Awards.
Why do we love the Artist so much? I've already written this in my previous post: this picture took a very special place in my heart. It is different from everything we see in cinema these days. It could be that the director himself made this difference so clear. You understand that he is expressing his sincere and very personal view, not only of what he loves about movies or Hollywood, but about what he loves and values most in life. I think this is a precious, rare gift from the director. You can feel his impeccable style not only in costumes and behaviour, but in life. The Artist a gracious, witty and aesthetically beautiful picture.
In my opinion, the Artist can take a place in everyone's heart with all its elegance and style. It is particular as it opens the places in your soul that were hidden, the dark places. It penetrates you with its sincerity and fill you up with light and freshness. Artist is a dessert. And I am quite aware of the fact that there are a lot of critics out there who will not agree on this, saying that the black-and-white mute movie died in 1929. No, it did not. The mute movie lives, it will live inside of everyone, as a parallel world, another reality, another country. And I do advise you taking a ticket and travelling to this magic world of the modern black-and-white mute movie.
