Review of Hugo (2011) by Hoops2448 — 09 Dec 2011

The main mystery in Hugo is one so lovingly unraveled that you are taken along for one of the most viscerally entertaining films of the year. Hugo tells the story of Hugo Cabret a young boy who lives in a train station in Paris following the death of his father and his subsequent taking in by his unpleasant uncle. When the film starts, Hugo has been along for a long stretch of time, his uncle having disappeared. He is slowly collecting spare parts to repair a machine left to him by his father but while doing so he is interrupted by many different characters coming through the station. It's a marvel of a film in the way its presented with long sweeping shots through station platforms and beautiful lobbies into the clock towers Hugo visits throughout the station. It just looks brilliant with the 3D being some of the finest I have seen since Avatar, possibly better.

Scorsese has assembled a fantastic cast with Asa Butterfield giving a touching performance as Hugo as he desperately tries to fix the machine as he believes it may hold a message from his father. Chloe Moretz puts on a great British accent and performance as a young girl just looking for a good adventure. However the films finest performance has to be Ben Kingsley as the man who has lost everything in his life and has to live with the shame of it. The comparisons between him and Hugo are both tragic and intriguing. The film skillfully tells a tale not only of loss but of the early days of cinema with the best use of classic cinema like Voyage to the Moon I have ever seen. The comparison of the adventure that is Hugo to the adventure experienced by film makers in its early days is one shown skillfully and elegantly by some fantastic directing by one of the true greats of film making. With some great cameos by the likes of Christopher Lee, Richard Griffiths and a great "villain" in Sacha Baron Cohen it is an absolute joy to watch, a real film lovers film.