The movie industry is the classic popular definition of insanity in action: doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome. Some of it more or less "works" and proves to the industry it knows what it's doing.
So which is it? Did The Artist win because it was the safe, least-challenging, most-reassuring choice? Was it chosen because it was a nostalgic gimmick?
The Artist didn't win the Oscar because it was a silent movie made 80-some years after silent movies were "over." It won because it showed us -- with a delicious and simple story -- that through the turbulent changes of technology, the basic human needs are the same.
The Artist reminds us, in a world where everyone is screaming to be heard, but not to hear, that silence is what you sometimes need to let your heart sing.