Its initially hard to get your head around the whole
idea that a Director famous for gritty violent R rated movies is going to film
a children’s story, but when you discover that the Director is Martin Scorsese
then you know that this is going to be something totally out of the
ordinary. It all happened because his
wife told him that for once he should make a film that his 11 year old daughter
could see, and the book that his family persuaded him to film was 'The Invention
of Hugo Cabret'.
Set in the 1930’s, it’s the story of Hugo an orphan
who has been abandoned by his alcoholic
Uncle who is the official timekeeper of a Train Terminus in Paris. Not wanting
to be dispatched to on orphanage, Hugo takes over his absent Uncle’s
duties. He lives alone in a dark dusty
apartment hidden deep in the station’s interiors and when he is not attending
to all the clocks, he is trying to fix a broken automaton that his father had
left him.
Hugo is missing one vital key to get his the automaton
working, and he discovers this by chance during an adventure involving the
station’s toy shop owner and Isabelle his goddaughter. Thanks to Hugo fixing the automaton we find
out that the miserable grumpy old shopkeeper is none other then Georges Melies who was a magician
turned celebrated moving-picture pioneer before he fell on hard times and out
of vogue. And that’s the cue for the
pieces to start fitting together for a
happy ending for all.
The movie begins with a stunning long opening sequence
with the camera dive bombing in and then zooming in on Hugo being chased
through the entire busy bustling station by the Police Inspector. It’s a marvelous
sight especially of the spectacular breathtaking sets. These are the work of Dante Ferritti, the Designer that picked up Oscars for creating Sweeney Todd’s
old London Town, and a world for all the blue people in Avatar. This has to be his 3rd Oscar!
Aside from this, for me the best part of the truly delightful
film was the latter part when Mr. Scorsese is obviously in seventh heaven
showing clips of George Melies remarkable films. They just don’t serve in putting a real
perspective to the story, but are a real treat in their own right. (The story may be fiction BUT M. Melies was
very real).
As for the cast :Hugo is sweetly played by Asa
Butterfield (‘The Boy in The Striped Pyjamas’), Isabella was Chloe Grace Moretz
who reminded me of a very young precocious Helena Bonham Carter. The one outstanding performance was Sasha
Baron Cohen as the Station Inspector who had all the best funny lines and
really played them well. The rest included some fine Brit actors such as Ben
Kingsley, Jude Law, Emily Mortimer, Frances De La Tour, Richard Griffiths,
Christopher Lee who were all very good, but I have to confess that the sets
outshone them most of the time
This enchanting and captivating movie is also
Scorsese’s first venture in 3D which has meant a lot of muttering by cinematic
purists who believe that this is a mere gimmick that only enhances the box office
takings ( cos the ticket prices are higher). Personally I think he has really
utilized the process brilliantly to make
the visual impact that much more stunning.
And although we have young Francesca Scorsese to thank
for her father making his first ever movie with out even a single hint of
violence, but I don’t think this is a children’s film at all (as borne out by
the packed crowd I saw it with that only included one child). It’s a charming sentimental story that is
told in style and with a great deal of wit and I think is a great addition to
Mr Scorsese’s already distinguished body of work.
★★★★★★★★★★
