"Hugo" Talkback (Spoilers)

[Lord Dalek]

One of the most legendary directors of all time takes you on an extraordinary adventure

Release Date: 10/23/11
Studio: Paramount/GK Films/Infinitium Nihl
Director: Martin Scorcese
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 (HDTV)
Starring: Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chloe Grace Moretz, Ray Winstone, Emily Mortimer, Jude Law

Plot Summary: Set in 1930s Paris, an orphan who lives in the walls of a train station is wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father and an automaton.

COMMENTS

LD Talkback #159

[Avaitor]

My initial thought: Marty's making a kids flick? And it's being released the same day as the Muppets and new Aardman movies are? This is destined for failure.

After seeing the trailer and reading up on it: Shit that looks good. Go Marty!

I'll try to find time to see this one as well.

[Daxdiv]

As far as family movies go this weekend, it's pretty stacked and all of them seem to be doing good in the reviews. Not sure when I'll get my time to see this film since Muppets take top priority.

[Avaitor]

So I actually went to see this on Friday instead of Muppets (we were initially going to see that, but that's a long story which I don't feel like getting into), and I really liked it. Like, I think it's Scorsese's best film in ages.

I mentioned before that I really love silent films, and it does great justice to the original age of cinema, and has tones of great little touches in throughout. For example, the scene that the poster comes form is inspired by Harold Lloyd's Safety Last, which the film itself is a decently important part to the movie. Nowhere near as much so as Méliès' A Trip to the Moon however, which is completely essential to the movie. Cohen's chase scenes with Hugo are inspired by the absurdity of other classic silent comedians and are reacted as such. There's even shades of Metropolis referenced with Hugo and his relationship to the automaton.

I can't really say how they're used and why they are without spoiling it. But even if you're not familiar with silent movies, the story is wholly engrossing, the settings are sensational, the acting is pitch perfect and it's just a great experience overall. My only beef with it is that it doesn't really feel like a Scorsese film at all, but even then, I think this is a much needed change of pace for him.

I do think that the movie is way too niche to catch on, however. It's too long and likely boring for kids, and it's marketed too much towards the child demographic for adults, who may not get what it's aiming for anyway. I think film snobs may get into it, though.

Still, I highly recommend it if you're interested. I don't want to say any more than I already have, since it'd be best to come in as a virgin, but it's such a good movie.