cinemabon
01-16-2012, 10:41 PM
The Adventures of Tintin by Steven Spielberg
The film has no beginning, unless you feel the shot of a man’s peculiar feet, walking through a crowded market in England, is unusual or telling. In fact, the man in question has very little to do with the plot or the story. He is one of many comic diversions thrown in along the way to amuse us, a typical Spielberg ploy. Likewise, the film has an ambiguous ending – a telling prediction that Steven wishes to repeat the process in the future? We shall see. As spectators to this unfolding world, we seem to be picking up the action in the middle of the story, introduced to the main character through newspaper clippings spattered along the apartment wall in one brief but slow pan – nothing thrilling so far. This reveal appears to be a hint of what is to come, for Tintin’s exploits are already famous, at least according to two twin policemen, the clumsy duo that makes a cop like Barney Fife sound more like Sherlock Holmes.
The true pace of the film comes later, when the main character is thrust from one suspenseful harrowing escapade to the next – from car chases in London, to cargo ships at sea, to the past exploits of pirates, lost in the Sarah, or the pursuit of a treasure map from a speeding motorcycle while dodging bullets and innocent bystanders thrown in for fun. An experience showman, this intercontinental jumping tale is not new to the master director, as he clearly demonstrated his skill during the “Indiana Jones” series. However, this is Steven’s first animated feature as director and he brings all of the scope, all of the detail, and all of the excitement that are Spielberg trademarks to bear in this fun-filled adventure romp presented in lush 3-D.
“The Adventures of Tintin” are a series of comic books created by Belgium artist Georges Remi (1907-1983). The stories center around a young reporter, Tintin, who has a nose for trouble and is never without his faithful white fox terrier, Snowy. They have appeared in over 200 comic books put into 50 languages. Far more popular in Europe than America, Tintin was a heroic figure surrounded by a cast of unusual supporting characters including the bungling police twins and a sea captain named Haddock (yes, after the fish). Along the way, Tintin’s character often expressed satire, humor, and even made stabs at political commentary during adventures that were as wide ranging as its author was versatile. Remi, who wrote under the pen name of Hergé, often tried to introduce educational material about his subjects while Tintin uncovered clues to solve mysteries. Hergé wrote a series of graphic novels that today are considered collector’s items in the world of comics.
The film’s story is based on three early works by Remi – The crab with the golden claws (1941); The secret of the Unicorn (1943); and Red Rackham’s Treasure (1944) all created by Remi during the Nazi occupation of Belgium (He had to tone down his political commentary lest the Gestapo arrest him). Shortly after Remi’s death in 1983, Spielberg acquired the film rights to his work and delayed filming the project for many years until he received the green light from fellow director turned producer, Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings). Paramount and Columbia/Sony provided the capital while Jackson’s WETA Workshop provided the animation needed to tell the story in 3D.
While strolling through a local market near his home, Tintin comes across a very elaborate model ship that catches his eye. After dickering with the merchant, he buys the ship only to have a devilish man with cape, hat, glasses, cane, and pointed goatee offer him far more money…
Confronting stranger: Name your price…
Tintin: It’s not for sale!
Merchant: I sold it for a pound! You mean I was two minutes away from ‘name your price?’ (keels over)
Tintin refuses the offer and starts away when a heavy-set man in a suit warns him that unscrupulous men will do anything to take that ship from Tintin. Once inside his apartment, Tintin is curious and sets about to examine the model, only to have the local cat sneak in through the window. Tintin’s clever fox terrier and the cat chase one another around the apartment, knock over the model and break off the mast. Tintin does not notice a metal cylinder roll under a nearby dresser. Driven to find answers about the ship, Tintin discovers in the local library that the Haddock family once owned a ship called the Unicorn that mysteriously sank off the northern coast of Africa. Tintin next heads to the Haddock estate, only to encounter the odd man who offered to buy the model from him in the market – the man’s name is Rackham (Daniel Craig). Rackham has an identical ship in the mansion, which Tintin mistakes for his until he finds that the main mast on this model is not broken. When he returns to his apartment, Tintin finds the place ransacked. Snow barks and points out the metal cylinder that Tintin overlooked. Inside, it contains a small role of thin parchment upon which is written a riddle of sorts. Comotion outside brings Tintin out of his apartment, only to be struck on the head and off we go… Spielberg style.
The film is full of mirth from start to finish, and although sometimes Rackham comes close to being a bit too dastardly, we don’t really fear that Tintin won’t come through unscathed, despite the clumsiness of his sidekick, the drunken sea captain, Haddock, who is more interested in a bottle of whiskey than finding out the solution to any of the problems. Like Scorsese, Spielberg does not shy from showing off his homage to the world of animation, as in one very funny scene where the bungling twin policemen accidentally knock a man over and his head strikes a woman’s package that knocks her back into her car. The package contains canaries that buzz around the man’s head as if he were seeing stars while the shop keeper shows up with a net and catches them. The woman mistakes an innocent bystander for being the cause of the problem and begins to strike his head with her little umbrella, reminiscent of Sylvester and Tweety.
The detail, depth, color, and framing of the animation border on the absurd as the characters, held true to those penned by Remi, are put in the middle of very realistic backgrounds and settings. The lighting effects and depth of field are unlike any animated film I have ever seen and add to the sheer delight in watching this film made to capitalize on the three dimensional effect. Being his first and only animated feature, Spielberg hit this one out of the park. For his efforts, his film just received the Golden Globe best animated feature. Kudos, Steven… well done and highly recommended. Also kudos to Jackson and New Zealand WETA team for bringing the world of Tintin to life in such a thoroughly fun fashion. You have to see this one on the big screen to really appreciate its scale and scope.
The film has no beginning, unless you feel the shot of a man’s peculiar feet, walking through a crowded market in England, is unusual or telling. In fact, the man in question has very little to do with the plot or the story. He is one of many comic diversions thrown in along the way to amuse us, a typical Spielberg ploy. Likewise, the film has an ambiguous ending – a telling prediction that Steven wishes to repeat the process in the future? We shall see. As spectators to this unfolding world, we seem to be picking up the action in the middle of the story, introduced to the main character through newspaper clippings spattered along the apartment wall in one brief but slow pan – nothing thrilling so far. This reveal appears to be a hint of what is to come, for Tintin’s exploits are already famous, at least according to two twin policemen, the clumsy duo that makes a cop like Barney Fife sound more like Sherlock Holmes.
The true pace of the film comes later, when the main character is thrust from one suspenseful harrowing escapade to the next – from car chases in London, to cargo ships at sea, to the past exploits of pirates, lost in the Sarah, or the pursuit of a treasure map from a speeding motorcycle while dodging bullets and innocent bystanders thrown in for fun. An experience showman, this intercontinental jumping tale is not new to the master director, as he clearly demonstrated his skill during the “Indiana Jones” series. However, this is Steven’s first animated feature as director and he brings all of the scope, all of the detail, and all of the excitement that are Spielberg trademarks to bear in this fun-filled adventure romp presented in lush 3-D.
“The Adventures of Tintin” are a series of comic books created by Belgium artist Georges Remi (1907-1983). The stories center around a young reporter, Tintin, who has a nose for trouble and is never without his faithful white fox terrier, Snowy. They have appeared in over 200 comic books put into 50 languages. Far more popular in Europe than America, Tintin was a heroic figure surrounded by a cast of unusual supporting characters including the bungling police twins and a sea captain named Haddock (yes, after the fish). Along the way, Tintin’s character often expressed satire, humor, and even made stabs at political commentary during adventures that were as wide ranging as its author was versatile. Remi, who wrote under the pen name of Hergé, often tried to introduce educational material about his subjects while Tintin uncovered clues to solve mysteries. Hergé wrote a series of graphic novels that today are considered collector’s items in the world of comics.
The film’s story is based on three early works by Remi – The crab with the golden claws (1941); The secret of the Unicorn (1943); and Red Rackham’s Treasure (1944) all created by Remi during the Nazi occupation of Belgium (He had to tone down his political commentary lest the Gestapo arrest him). Shortly after Remi’s death in 1983, Spielberg acquired the film rights to his work and delayed filming the project for many years until he received the green light from fellow director turned producer, Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings). Paramount and Columbia/Sony provided the capital while Jackson’s WETA Workshop provided the animation needed to tell the story in 3D.
While strolling through a local market near his home, Tintin comes across a very elaborate model ship that catches his eye. After dickering with the merchant, he buys the ship only to have a devilish man with cape, hat, glasses, cane, and pointed goatee offer him far more money…
Confronting stranger: Name your price…
Tintin: It’s not for sale!
Merchant: I sold it for a pound! You mean I was two minutes away from ‘name your price?’ (keels over)
Tintin refuses the offer and starts away when a heavy-set man in a suit warns him that unscrupulous men will do anything to take that ship from Tintin. Once inside his apartment, Tintin is curious and sets about to examine the model, only to have the local cat sneak in through the window. Tintin’s clever fox terrier and the cat chase one another around the apartment, knock over the model and break off the mast. Tintin does not notice a metal cylinder roll under a nearby dresser. Driven to find answers about the ship, Tintin discovers in the local library that the Haddock family once owned a ship called the Unicorn that mysteriously sank off the northern coast of Africa. Tintin next heads to the Haddock estate, only to encounter the odd man who offered to buy the model from him in the market – the man’s name is Rackham (Daniel Craig). Rackham has an identical ship in the mansion, which Tintin mistakes for his until he finds that the main mast on this model is not broken. When he returns to his apartment, Tintin finds the place ransacked. Snow barks and points out the metal cylinder that Tintin overlooked. Inside, it contains a small role of thin parchment upon which is written a riddle of sorts. Comotion outside brings Tintin out of his apartment, only to be struck on the head and off we go… Spielberg style.
The film is full of mirth from start to finish, and although sometimes Rackham comes close to being a bit too dastardly, we don’t really fear that Tintin won’t come through unscathed, despite the clumsiness of his sidekick, the drunken sea captain, Haddock, who is more interested in a bottle of whiskey than finding out the solution to any of the problems. Like Scorsese, Spielberg does not shy from showing off his homage to the world of animation, as in one very funny scene where the bungling twin policemen accidentally knock a man over and his head strikes a woman’s package that knocks her back into her car. The package contains canaries that buzz around the man’s head as if he were seeing stars while the shop keeper shows up with a net and catches them. The woman mistakes an innocent bystander for being the cause of the problem and begins to strike his head with her little umbrella, reminiscent of Sylvester and Tweety.
The detail, depth, color, and framing of the animation border on the absurd as the characters, held true to those penned by Remi, are put in the middle of very realistic backgrounds and settings. The lighting effects and depth of field are unlike any animated film I have ever seen and add to the sheer delight in watching this film made to capitalize on the three dimensional effect. Being his first and only animated feature, Spielberg hit this one out of the park. For his efforts, his film just received the Golden Globe best animated feature. Kudos, Steven… well done and highly recommended. Also kudos to Jackson and New Zealand WETA team for bringing the world of Tintin to life in such a thoroughly fun fashion. You have to see this one on the big screen to really appreciate its scale and scope.