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Movie Review: The Adventures Of Tintin
Nachiket 'therapist' Mhatre, Nov 16, 2011 1036 hrs ISTHow Hollywood adaptations should be done.
Excellent mocap work; Superlative set pieces; Stays true to the franchise; Impressive CGI cinematography; Strikes a fine balance between Tintin's art style and realism; Great voice acting.
No Professor Calculus.
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The Adventures Of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn
Running Time: 1 hour, 47 minutes
Director: Steven Spielberg
Cast: Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig, Simon Pegg
Hollywood is on a roll slaughtering all your beloved comic book franchises with hackneyed movie adaptations. It's little wonder why I wasn't too stoked when a friend asked me to tag along to the theatre for the latest Tintin movie. I'm not a big fan of getting all dressed up, driving over, queuing up, and then donning cardboard goggles just for a movie, but The Advetnures of Tintin seemed promising for some compelling reasons:
- Steven Spielberg's Directing It: With the exception of the Jurassic Park sequel, the man hasn't directed too many below-average movies. When Herge himself had insisted on Spielberg, you know that he would put in a genuine effort to live up to the Tintin creator's last wish.
- It's Animated: At the very least, CGI ensures that we won't have to deal with the possibility of Mark Wahlberg ruinage all over again.
- Peter Jackson: You can't go wrong when you entrust special effects and motion capture to the man behind Gollum and The Lord of the Rings.
- It Has The Guy Who Wrote Jekyll: With writing credits including the sublime Jekyll and Doctor Who TV shows, Steven Moffat would have to try really hard to screw this one up.
Billions of blue blistering barnacles!
Tintin is essentially a boy-scout version of Indiana Jones sans the women and a somewhat questionable sexuality. Spielberg, therefore is right at home helming the celluloid makeover of the 80 year old comic book series. By that I mean the Indiana Jones part, of course. The director maintains a fine balance between fan service and creative liberty by basing the premise off three Tintin books - The Crab with the Golden Claws, The Secret of the Unicorn, and Red Rackham's Treasure, while introducing characters in way that is palatable to newbies as well as Tintin veterans.
Therefore, even if you have read all the comics, this re-imagining means that you still have something new to look forward to, as the fanboy in you is humoured with an undiluted three-dimensional rendition of Herge's 2D world. And boy has that been painstakingly crafted!
An Undiluted Rendition Of Herge's Vision
Spielberg made the smart choice of going full CGI on this project. Peter Jackson and his visual effects house Weta Digital deliver a brand of motion capture that achieves realism without deviating too far away from the distinctive Tintin look. The Hollywood version's quest for authenticity is evident in the fact that I saw James Bond's (Daniel Craig) name in the opening credits; however, I couldn't tell what character he portrayed until I went home and fired up IMDB.com. I consider this a sign of a good performance, as the actors seamlessly blend into the characters that they have essayed. The movie boasts of big names such as Andy "Gollum" Serkis who's superlative in the shoes of the drunken Captain Haddock, Jamie Bell (Billy Elliot) taking on the eponymous role, and Simon Pegg, who was born to play the Thompsons.
Voice acting, as expected, is top notch. Ditto for motion capture, which lends a fluid, life-like realism to character animations, without detracting from the comic book art style. Unlike most animated features, Tintin employs a great deal of creativity with camera angles and a painstaking attention to detail while maintaining the retro look of the franchise. Spielberg and Jackson's combined vision and technical expertise conjure some spectacular action set pieces, which are reminiscent of Uncharted 3, both in terms of the setting and frenetic action sequences.
The set pieces are spectacular.
Sensibly Going Hollywood
Die hard fans may rue the omission of Professor Calculus; however, that's something reserved for the inevitable sequels. Spielberg shows his Indiana Jones adventure roots and lends them to a narrative focusing on all-out action and intrigue. It would be criminal to mark this movie down for a lack of character development and depth, because lets not forget that it's a big-budget Hollywood production catering to the kids as well as the adults who have grown up reading the comics. The action and comedy keep coming in steady doses, with nary a dull moment. I don't mind all this as long as the movie's interesting, which it indeed is by all means.
What's more, the 3D effect is bearable too. This is pretty good coming from someone who avoids stereoscopic projection like herpes. The verdict is pretty straightforward. If it's entertainment that you seek, go for it by all means. Fans of the comic books will be delighted to have their favourite franchise done justice for a change. Heck, there's enough spills and chills to keep the kids glued to their seats too. Tintin, then shows that its possible to make a money-making Hollywood adaptation without screwing over the original franchise.
Plot: 3.5/5
Performances: 4/5
Visuals: 4.5/5
Sound: 4/5
Mojo: 5/5
Overall: 4/5
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Hitzy
,Baroda, on Nov 21, 2011 10:47 AM
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Sreekanth Yelic
,Mysore, on Nov 16, 2011 01:44 PM
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,Mysore, on Nov 21, 2011 12:49 AM
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,Bangalore, on Nov 16, 2011 07:05 PM
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,Mumbai, on Nov 16, 2011 02:04 PM
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