In The Artist, James Cromwell and Penelope Ann Miller had to disregard decades of training in delivering lines to master the art of silent cinema. The Artist is a silent movie, in black and white, and provided the pair with a challenge they welcomed after years of masterwork for each. Cromwell and Miller sat down with Movie Fanatic for an exclusive video interview that provides priceless insight into the making of a modern classic.
The duo are central to the film, albeit with smaller supporting roles than ones they usually fulfill. Cromwell is Jean Dujardin’s driver while Miller portrays the silent movie star’s wife. The story follows the rise and fall of a silent movie legend while simultaneously following a starlet (Berenice Bejo) and her rise to the first star of talking cinema. Both Cromwell and Miller’s characters suffer because of the silent movie’s downfall, and they express that through body and facial gestures where once the uttering of lines served as their vehicle of performance. Don’t miss our The Artist review and exclusive John Goodman and Missi Pyle The Artist interview to discover the magic of silent cinema.