For those of you that have never seen The Artist or heard of Jean Dujardin, I am referring to the human in the picture above, not the dog. Yes, we begin our journey with this charming portrayal from 2011 - in a film that had audiences everywhere either falling asleep through utter boredom, or violently striking their palms together in adulation (clapping). Unfortunately I have to admit I found the film a little too black-and-whitey for my taste, but take nothing away from the wonderful efforts of Mr Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo, and Uggie (that is the dog in the picture), who all managed to hold my (admittedly fragile) attention throughout. I include Jean's performance of George Valentin on this list because it must be exceptionally difficult to play an intriguing, relatable character in a film that was based around a cinematic premise from the 1920's - everyone was so caught up in the novelty of the piece that we were almost surprised by how engaging the people in it turned out to be, and Valentin's amusing mannerisms and energetic personality is the kind of work that can keep you 100% entertained even with the volume turned way down. It turned out the Dujardin's tireless strive for perfection wasn't to be in vein, and he went on to pick up an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Cannes Film Festival Award, and Number 10 on WhatCulture's '10 Of The Best Acting Performances Of The Last Decade' article. Not bad going for an actor without any lines - no wonder he's fast becoming everyone's favourite French-born one-off modern-silent-film artists.
