Viewed in
2011 (2)
Formats
Movie theater 3D
Premise
Martin Scorsese's first foray into family films and 3D is about a 1930s Parisian orphan who lives in the walls of a train station who is wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father and an automaton.
Loved
Celebration of silent films, 3D mastery.
Liked
Everything else.
Thoughts
Not only was this one of the best 3D movies ever, it was also one of the best films of this year, as well as one of Scorsese's best.
The director out Scorsese'd himself with a breathtaking "one take" of a camera flying from the skies down the corridors of the Parisian train station. The attention to detail was exquisite, such as casting the angular doberman and Sacha Baron Cohen. He "over-lit" everything, so we could see specks of dust flying about in 3D. There was a mind-numbing sensation of just absorbing all the layers and forethought that these incredible artists achieved.
As a film buff, I adored this love story to the pioneers of movies, especially silent films, Chaplin, Fairbanks, Melies, and Lumiere brothers. Much like how I was hit with a tidal wave of nostalgic emotions when watching The Muppets, Scorsese evoked this great sense of wonder, history, and feeling for these great silent films. He didn't just do them justice, he reminded me why I love film, and why it can be such a vital artform, even in the current trend of bloated retreads.
I don't even need to get into the fantastic acting, or the ridiculous cast including Ben Kingsley, Jude Law, Chloe Grace Moretz, Christopher Lee, and Cohen. As a Harry Potter fan, I was amused by Uncle Vernon and Madame Maxime having a cute subplot.
I'm curious to see if casual moviegoers will love it as much as I did. Will they care about the shout outs to these influential old school films? Hugo was a freaking masterpiece. Much like how Scorsese reminded me how we sometimes take movies for granted, this film reminded me that we cannot take him for granted either.
