Les Aventures de Tintin : Le Secret de la Licorne

Since 1981, Spielberg has become an avid fan of this gorgeous "Tintin" comics and has been longing to create a film about it. Before he and "Tintin's" master, Herge could meet, Herge passed away. However, Herge's widow decided to give them the rights and began the adventure to re-create this marvelous wonder of art.

Adapted from three of the comics, Spielberg's re-creation of the comics introduces us to Tintin (Jamie Bell), a Belgian reporter who gets caught up in all sorts of adventures. One day, he found a model of a ship, the Unicorn and bought it and brought it home. However, when Tintin was buying the ship, two men came to try to buy the model, Sakharine (Daniel Craig) and Barnaby. Later, Tintin discovers that the model holds an important secret and somehow, the secret is linked to the real ship itself. On the way for answers, he meets the grumpy Haddock and head off to an adventure spanning around the globe with his white fluffy dog Snowy.

The animation is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen. It's not right to call it a CGI film as the motion of the characters are much smoother than that of CGI films. Tintin's animated self looks stunning (even though he looks kind of different from his comic-self) in his blue long sleeves. Snowy is fluffier than ever. Captain Haddock is grumpier than ever. All of the animation is simply breathtaking and the best I've ever seen.

I like how they change scenes. While most other movies just shift scenes normally, this film uses a little imagination and is ingenious in shifting scenes. They can change from a scene of shaking hands to a desert scene by using the outline of the two hands into the surface of the desert. This thing is just entertaining and great in its own right and deserves some reward.

The movie itself is fun to watch. The story is compelling, the lines are natural-sounding, and the action is plenty of fun to watch. It is great excitement to watch and I was hooked from beginning to end. Great plot + awesome action + breathtaking animation equals up to amazing movie.

The 3D is perfectly fine. The depth is seen and the 3D just makes the movie even more fun to watch.

I definitely recommend you to watch this film. "Tintin" fan or no, this is sheer fun to watch. If this movie is out in your country, watch it immediately. For U.S. citizens, I'm sorry if you still have to wait for a while but I promise you, this is like no other movie. This movie is over the top and is plenty of fun to watch. A full 10 out of 10! Thanks for reading my review on "The Adventures of Tintin". I do hope this review is of good use to you.

Before his passing in 1983, Hergé said that if any filmmaker was to adapt his collection of timeless tales following the adventures of a Belgian reporter to the big screen, Steven Spielberg was the only man for the job, and after two decades of trial and error, the cinematic version of Tintin has finally reached our screens with the desired director at its helm. Alongside Spielberg sits Lord of the Rings (2001-2003) maestro Peter Jackson as producer and three of Britain's brightest writers (Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish) who have that almost impossible task of translating the stories from comic strips to 35mm. This 3D motion-capture and CGI extravaganza combines three of Tintin's most beloved outings (The Crab with the Golden Claws, The Secret of the Unicorn and Red Rackham's Treasure) and hits UK multiplexes just before the school half-term.

After discovering an elegant model of the ship the 'Unicorn' at a market, Tintin (voiced by Jamie Bell) and his loyal dog Snowy are intrigued as to why so many desire it, and comment on the secrets it holds. When the model is stolen, more information surfaces and the pair set out to discover the truth, teaming up, after a surprise meeting, with the boisterous drunkard Captain Haddock (voiced by Andy Serkis). The group's adventure spans the globe, with each destination bringing more danger and that crucial step closer towards unravelling the mystery.

From the moment the picture opens, the film's tone and mood is set: mystery and adventure merged with fun and frolics. The classy, hand-drawn, animated titles use the signature silhouette imagery with style and sophistication, making the wit and wonder evident even before audiences have graced their eyes on the monumental motion capture work.

In a rather lacklustre year for animation, with the only true blossom of beauty being Studio Ghibli's impeccable 'Arrietty', Spielberg's latest thankfully ends this dry-run with a picture that explodes with vibrancy, craftsmanship and realism. Unlike Robert Zemeckis' motion-capture entries (The Polar Express [2004] and A Christmas Carol [2009]); The Adventures of Tintin is an entirely different bunch of blistering blue barnacles – every frame enforces impeccable detail and naturalism, and like the best animated pictures, viewers will forget they are watching digitalised representations in no time. Whether the visuals are mind-blowing as in the all-important action sequences – or brilliantly subtle – like the red, sweat-streaked cheeks and brows of Tintin and Haddock as they trek through a desert – this film is a clear example of just how magnificent technology is in this day and age.

Without a shadow of a doubt this is the year's finest animated entry – expect an Oscar nomination and a deserved win. As well as its tremendous visual flair, the feature's script is a revelation: beautifully written and whimsical dialogue that is frequently hilarious and manages to merge the three classic tales so seamlessly. Considering Hergé's stories are separate volumes, the typing trio behind this movie are able to make a sensible structure with the texts, making the film flow as gracefully as its perfect imagery. As well as the laughs, the script provides great character development for those new to the world of Tintin without insulting audiences with an hour's lesson. Young children will have no trouble picking up who's who in the early stages, before settling back for the incredible roller coaster ride of the second and climatic act.

Action fans will gain greatness from this movie too. Expect high octane chases, pirate swordplay and more bullets than a Sylvester Stallone entry – just a lot less gore and swearing. In fact, although The Adventures of Tintin is action-packed, its PG certificate is justified; I cannot recall anything remotely damaging or frightening for young eyes, so parents have nothing to fear with this one when deciding on their half-term picture.

The film also sees the much needed return of composer John Williams who provides yet another dazzling and effective score. The music captures the essence of the film in an instant and compliments it throughout.

The voice casting is collectively brilliant with Bell and Serkis being the obvious standouts. Bell's inquisitive tone and frequent high-pitched bursts mirror the speech bubbles Tintin utters in the comic panels. When reading a Hergé story, this is exactly how the character sounds in your head. Serkis steals the show as Captain Haddock and is given splendid dialogue to growl through bitter Scottish chords. Haddock's often stupid remarks and forgetfulness is beautifully represented through the animated character. Daniel Craig is also fantastic as the less-than-trustworthy Ivanovich Sakharine while Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are side-splitting as the lovable policing dunces Thomson and Thompson. Plus Snowy is absolutely wonderful.

There is no doubt that Spielberg's adaptation will be top of the box office upon release and hopefully those new to Tintin will be influenced to re-visit the books and television shows of yesteryear and become more involved with one of the century's most beloved and important literary creations.

Verdict: ••••• 'The Adventures of Tintin' is quintessentially the perfect family film and has plenty to offer audiences of all ages. This is an incredibly joyous, thrilling and comically genius adventure. Hergé was onto a winner with his thoughts towards Spielberg and he can rest easy now knowing his tales have been faithfully and beautifully translated into a cinematic masterwork. Great Snakes, it's good.

I went to see this film in a free screening and took my nephew and niece with me, seeing as it was a family film to try and get different reactions to the film.

Let me start off with my view of the film, I've been a fan of Tintin since I first saw the cartoon back in the early 90's, though never read the comics. When I saw the credits of who wrote, produced and directed the film, you think to yourself this film is going to be awesome, there is no way with all that talent they can't possible f**k this up (and they didn't). You have Spielberg directing, Peter Jackson as a producer. Also the writing team great with Steven Moffat, known for Sherlock, Dr who, Coupling and another of my child hood favs, Press Gang. Finally you have Edgar Wright, who wrote and directed Shawn of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.

The version of the film i saw was 3d, as it was a preview and i didn't have a choice. Normally i watch all my showing in 2d as i think its personally a fad and a rip off and the films i have seen excluding Avatar, i didn't think the 3d aspect improved the film going enjoyment one bit. This again is my option while the 3d is nice, and the shots going through glass and water was really good, there was nothing else that would have me pulling out another £2 a ticket. I would have been happy with a basic 2d version.

On to the film story, TinTin (voice by Billy Elliott's Jamie Bell) buys a handmade ship in market. As soon as he buys it he gets a number of offers of people willing to buy it from him, which TinTtn rejects. When he gets home Snowy, Tintin dog, breaks the ship and a hidden clue rolls out, which begins Tintin trying to work out what it means. Tintin then gets kidnapped by the evil Ivanovich Sakharine (Daniel Craig), who is after the clue. This where Tintin mets up with Captain Haddock as they set of trying to work out the meaning of Tintin clue.

The film is a really mixture of action and adventure. We see the heroes on board ships, rowing boats, fly airplanes, riding camels, having car\bike chases and crane fights. The time flew past for me and not once did i feel bored, this was probably down to the amount going with the film, the quick pace of the action and the different locations of the characters were always in. It reminded me of the Indiana Jones films a lot, where he is on the hunt for treasure, and he only has half of the clues, and the bad guys have the others half and both sides are trying to get the other half for the themselves. He then needs to go around the globe via different transportation to get the info he needs to find the treasure.

There is also a large amount of humour in the film, seeing as Moffat, who wrote coupling helped write it, this is no big surprise. While i got the jokes neither my nephew (3) nor niece (8) did. So I am assuming that these were aim at the adults watching.

The characters the film makers can't chance much from the original Hergé comics, but Tintin I did find too goody goody, the captain is great character, who is drunk loser, but has a kind heart and wants to do the right thing. The bad guy, Sakharine, is perfect, scary enough to make you believe that he is ruthless killer who is a greedy and after revenge, but on the other had not going over board to make the kids feel scared or afraid of him when he was on screen. There is also the two comic relief characters of inspector Thomson, who are on screen just enough to make you smile at the pratfalls and their stupidness, but not too long for the jokes to wear thin so you're sick of seeing them.

My rating of the film would be 4 out of 5.

On to the kids view of the film. 1st my nephew who is 3 years old (4 in November). He told me he liked the film a lot especially the pirate bits, but he didn't understand why the pirates were bad. He also said he liked the motorcycle chase because the bikes were cool. As i was sitting next to him i could tell the film was slightly too long for him as he started to fidgit a bit in the last 15 mins.

My niece who is 8 (9 in December), i didn't get a lot of information from her, when i asked if she liked all her answer was yes it was good, and when i asked what her favourite bit was, she told me all of it.

As a reference for taking children during the half term break, i would say 4 and under while enjoy the film like my nephew did, but they won't fully understand the plot of the film or why certain things are happening, but for 5 years old and up this film and adults included this is a must see.

I never saw the original Tintin cartoons and before this film new nothing about it.

I watched this film this evening, two years after its release .. and i'm left thinking, why did I not watch this film before now?!

This was such an enjoyable film, it was much, much better than i thought it was going to be, there are so many great things about this movie:

THE VISUALS: Easily one of the most visually stunning films I have ever seen, i wish i had watched this at the cinema - especially in 3d. The animation is perfect. it's bright, colourful and scarily lifelike. The characters, scenery and landscapes all look incredible and so creative. Even the opening credits look fantastic! I can't stress how good the visuals are in this film.

THE DIRECTION: Spielberg has done an incredible job here, nothing could have been improved in this aspect. The way the movie flows and the way the scenes intertwine and change is beautiful. There are scenes where it switches from past to present and back again in such a way that you just get lost in it.. you will understand what i mean when you see the movie. There are scenes of fights and chases which are so creative and so imaginative, the way he uses angles and the way everything links on is a real joy to watch. Its hard to explain, watch the film and you will know exactly what I mean.

However, the film is not just a visual feast like many films are. It has a good solid story with likable, interesting characters - I found the story line kept my attention throughout. A very original adventure/quest film, searching for hidden treasure and defeating the bad guys along the way!

I cannot recommend this film enough, i was so surprised by just how good it was. As i said earlier I am sorry I didn't go and see this in the cinema as it really would have been a fantastic experience.

Watch it!

What begins as a fun, nimble little mystery in the first act soon kicks into comedy-action-adventure high gear when junior reporter Tintin, with his brave dog Snowy, stumbles upon boozy Captain Haddock (an excellent Andy Serkis), whose family legacy may prove pivotal in a race to uncover the secret of the Unicorn.

From that point on, it's more or less non-stop comedy—some fizzles, most of it works—with gags ranging from jaw-dropping blockbuster chase antics to throwaway background humour. Captain Haddock works brilliantly for the most part: he's unpredictable, endearing, and colourful in all the ways Tintin himself isn't. While the youngster is well played by Jamie Bell, he's mostly just there to work out the clues for the audience. Tintin and Haddock make for a good double-act, though: brains and brawn, cunning and in-over-his-head rashness; together they'd make a good Indiana Jones.

The plot is a by the numbers mystery/adventure/treasure hunt, complete with bumbling detectives (so-so comic support from Simon Pegg and Nick Frost), exciting sea plane action and hidden clues, but it's brought to life in gorgeous visual style. While the script only comes alive in fits and starts, the whole film is bursting with rich detail, and is given added depth by a good, solid use of 3D. The virtual camera-work throughout is stupendous.

One extended chase sequence through the flooding streets of a North African city is so dazzling and dizzying it reminded me why no other filmmaker can match Spielberg when he lets his imagination out for a spin. Another action scene, told in flashback, depicts a breathless pirate showdown in a storm, and features some of the most playful transitions I've seen since Ang Lee's Hulk. There's a pretty good villain, too, played by a wily Daniel Craig.

Snowy, while definitely smarter than your average cute canine, is also given to chasing cats, digging up fossilised bones from the desert, and gobbling sandwiches at decidedly inopportune moments. In other words, he's an instant audience favourite.

All in all, it's a rollicking good adventure, one of Spielberg's most fun movies in a long time, and I'll be buying it on Blu-ray next year.