Silent Shouts Louder

Who swim hard in the world film industry these days? New technology so-called 3D is growing; advanced filmmakers race to release their products to win the market. Then we also have movies with twists everywhere; or the ones offer "different" or out of the box storyline. I believe these players aim for big money, big honey (the fans), and the academy (awards) or other appreciations.

While those movies are speeding in the strong current of industry, this movie is floating calmly on the river's surface, and surprisingly made many racers slow down and look back as it took the Oscar of Best Picture 2012, and four other recognitions home.

I thought "The Artist" would be a silence black and white thoughtful art film. Silence and black and white indeed, but the last two adjectives gave me some reason to "procrastinate", until.... it won the award.

The reason why I said it is a light floating piece is the point which contradicts my assumption. The movie is light as a feather. I did not have to think much while watching it, like most of the previous Oscar winners, just sit back and enjoy. The story is quite linear yet beautifully simple. It was not a boring picture at all.

Love story which started from a gossipy kiss between old silent film star George Valentin and fan Peppy Miller. Miss Miller got some small movie roles afterward, and rose into a top star. As the talk film entered the industry, Valentin's career was dropping. Love and hate relationship between the two occurred as each artist's career went to the opposite direction.

I think the key strengths of the flick were the music and actors. Fantastic scoring from the very beginning to the end sounds on its place. Salute to the scoring director who has worked very well with the grand orchestra and some detail sound effects too. Actors are also the keys, not to be missed the dog! They all act finely. The film would be worse than crap if it possess not these two elements.

Therefore, congratulations Ludovic Bource for the original score Oscar and French actor Jean Dujardin for the best actor in leading role (first time nominated yet he took it away from George Clooney and Brad Pitt). To make it believable, the costume designers work hard too. The Academy awarded Mark Bridges and friends the best costume design. And finally the guy who make everything happens, Michel Hazanavicius got the best directing award.

Two Best Actor of the Movie: Dujardin and... The DOG!!!

Venezuelan Embassy Celebrates Dignity with Hispanic Film Enthusiasts

The Fourth February National Dignity Day goes beyond a historical event for Venezuelan. While the celebration has started a day before in the Bolivarian country, The Embassy of Venezuela in Indonesia had a film screening party with Club de Cine Amigos Cervantes (Amigos Cervantes Film Club) to commemorate its 20^th anniversary.

Two embassy’s cars parked in front of Aula Cervantes Jakarta that afternoon, 4^th February 2012. Some Venezuelan light bites, brought by the embassy, were served before the film projection started. The friendly Charge d’Affaires of Venezuelan Embassy Elena Csiky, blended easily with the crowd although it was the first collaboration ever between the two groups.

A fifteen minute opening documentary “La Revolución de La Mayoria” (The Revolution of The Majority) gives the depiction of people movement in 1992, which brought down Carlos Andres Perez. The special program by Venezolana de Televisión (VTV) also put the ongoing President Hugo Chávez on limelight, as he led the coup d’état.

The Head of Mission of Veneuelan Embassy to Indonesia (in pink)

“Although he (Chávez) was losing at that moment, the morality of the occasion is to open people’s mind to move forward after the Bolivarian thought, for the people to have a good life and integration to make a big nation,” the Venezuelan representative explained the importance behind the day.

The winning movie of 2006 Trieste Festival of Latin-American Cinema’s Special Jury Prize “El Caracazo” (The Caracazo) kept the audiences on their seat for the 110 minutes after. The feature also portrays the biggest riot ever in Venezuelan history, which took place in the capital Caracas.

Raise Your Glass!

The event drew more viewers than the club’s previous film screenings. It also pulled off promoting participants’ knowledge on Venezuelan history. Club de Cine Amigos Cervantes was initiated by Spanish language course’s students of Trisakti Language Centre Grogol, and supported by Instituto Cervantes, a worldwide Spanish language and cultural centre owned by the Spanish government. The club however does not confine its activity covering movies only from Spain, yet it supports also Latin-American cinema. They schedule the screening on the second and fourth Saturday every month in Aula Cervantes.

Venezuelan Yumm