Oscar Buzz 2

With just about a week until the Oscars, it seems like The Artist is the frontrunner for best picture. I wouldn't exactly call it a masterpiece, but it's a strong film: entertaining and, in its own way, kind of daring. I mean, a SILENT film, right? At a time when all the emphasis is on IMAX, 3-D and every other technical innovation, it would be quite a statement for the motion-picture academy to give its top prize to a movie that could pretty much have been made in, say, 1917. And in any case, Jean Dujardin, who plays the male lead, deserves some kind of recognition.  He's got that great Maurice Chevalier/Charles Boyer (no relation) charm, plus he can dance!

Comedy Seminar: First Day

Some good discussions in my first class with the comedy seminar. Amazing that most of the students said they'd already seen at least one silent film (not counting The Artist). Lots of laughter from the class during Buster Keaton's Cops and Charlie Chaplin's Easy Street. One student said she generally enjoys black-and-white films more than color ones, which is rare (and nice) to hear these days.