The Adventures of Tintin
3/4
Starring (voices): Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig, Nick Frost, Simon Pegg
Rated PG for adventure action violence, some drunkenness, and brief smoking
Few will argue that when it comes to powerful men in Hollywood, Steven Spielberg is king. Eight of his 36 titles are widely considered to be classics, and the others aren't very far behind. Although "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn" is far from Spielberg's best, it is nonetheless solid entertainment.
Tintin (Bell) is an ace reporter who has just bought a cool model ship of The Unicorn. His curiosity about his new purchase is heightened almost immediately when two men aggressively try to acquire it from him. One is a man named Barnaby (Joe Starr), who after failing to convince Tintin to sell it to him, warns him that the boat is going to get him into a "whole mess of danger." Seconds later, a man named Sackharine (Craig) offers to buy it as well, but again Tintin refuses. His interest piqued, he begins to investigate about the history of the Unicorn. It's then that his ship is stolen, and later on he is attacked and kidnapped. Now, it's up to him and the captain of his captor's ship, Archibald Haddock (Serkis), to follow the clues to "the greatest treasure in all of history."
This is a straightforward adventure movie, and while it's well done, there are no little touches to give it the extra mile. Or even to let us know that it's from Spielberg instead of any other director who knows what he's doing. There's very little of that magic that we look for in his movies (his grimmer than grim movies, like "Schindler's List" or "Saving Private Ryan" excepting).
The voice acting is perfect. Jamie Bell makes for a heroic Tintin; he's smart and tough. Unlike many other adventure duos, he's the brains and brawn. Haddock, on the other hand, is constantly drunk, and needs to be looked after by Tintin. Serkis is unrecognizable as the captain with a few secrets of his own (none of which he knows about...unless he gets his hands on some booze). Daniel Craig is more recognizable, but being the consummate actor that he is, it doesn't take long for us to see only the character, and not the star.
The use of motion capture is peerless and inventive. The characters contain weight and depth that most animated movies don't have. The detail is also peerless (we can see every hair on Tintin's head). However, when characters move through the air, they look like marionettes. Lest some construe this as a flaw, it is not. It gives the characters an interesting feel, and there is no doubt in my mind that Spielberg had intended that they look like this.
Unfortunately, the screenplay is not as good as the animation is. There are a number of plotholes where characters seem to know more than we do. It's not like Spielberg to film a script that's this sloppy. If crucial pieces of dialogue were left on the cutting room floor, than he should have made sure that editor Michael Kahn (whom Spielberg has hired before) didn't cut out too much.
I liked "The Adventures of Tintin." It's not as good as one might hope, but it's still a good time.
Starring (voices): Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig, Nick Frost, Simon Pegg
Rated PG for adventure action violence, some drunkenness, and brief smoking
Few will argue that when it comes to powerful men in Hollywood, Steven Spielberg is king. Eight of his 36 titles are widely considered to be classics, and the others aren't very far behind. Although "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn" is far from Spielberg's best, it is nonetheless solid entertainment.
Tintin (Bell) is an ace reporter who has just bought a cool model ship of The Unicorn. His curiosity about his new purchase is heightened almost immediately when two men aggressively try to acquire it from him. One is a man named Barnaby (Joe Starr), who after failing to convince Tintin to sell it to him, warns him that the boat is going to get him into a "whole mess of danger." Seconds later, a man named Sackharine (Craig) offers to buy it as well, but again Tintin refuses. His interest piqued, he begins to investigate about the history of the Unicorn. It's then that his ship is stolen, and later on he is attacked and kidnapped. Now, it's up to him and the captain of his captor's ship, Archibald Haddock (Serkis), to follow the clues to "the greatest treasure in all of history."
This is a straightforward adventure movie, and while it's well done, there are no little touches to give it the extra mile. Or even to let us know that it's from Spielberg instead of any other director who knows what he's doing. There's very little of that magic that we look for in his movies (his grimmer than grim movies, like "Schindler's List" or "Saving Private Ryan" excepting).
The voice acting is perfect. Jamie Bell makes for a heroic Tintin; he's smart and tough. Unlike many other adventure duos, he's the brains and brawn. Haddock, on the other hand, is constantly drunk, and needs to be looked after by Tintin. Serkis is unrecognizable as the captain with a few secrets of his own (none of which he knows about...unless he gets his hands on some booze). Daniel Craig is more recognizable, but being the consummate actor that he is, it doesn't take long for us to see only the character, and not the star.
The use of motion capture is peerless and inventive. The characters contain weight and depth that most animated movies don't have. The detail is also peerless (we can see every hair on Tintin's head). However, when characters move through the air, they look like marionettes. Lest some construe this as a flaw, it is not. It gives the characters an interesting feel, and there is no doubt in my mind that Spielberg had intended that they look like this.
Unfortunately, the screenplay is not as good as the animation is. There are a number of plotholes where characters seem to know more than we do. It's not like Spielberg to film a script that's this sloppy. If crucial pieces of dialogue were left on the cutting room floor, than he should have made sure that editor Michael Kahn (whom Spielberg has hired before) didn't cut out too much.
I liked "The Adventures of Tintin." It's not as good as one might hope, but it's still a good time.
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