Hugo Cabret

There must be something unifying in our globes collective consciousness, as 2011 saw two films that looked back at the cinematic past. Strangely, it took a French film maker, Michel Hazanavicius, to release a movie that pays homage to early, silent American cinema (The Artist). Conversely, Martin Scorsese, a well-known cinephile, delights with his love of early European silent cinema, in his often beautiful 'children's' film, Hugo.

Set in 1930's Paris, the main focus of this cinematic love is the work of the first movie magician, Georges Melies. We are introduced to Hugo (Asa Butterfield), a young man whose father left him a automaton after his death. It was a project that they worked on together, but never finished it. Hugo's main mission is to get the object working. As an orphan, Hugo hides in the rafters of a train station, maintaining the clocks that his drunken uncle used to do. After befriending a young girl, Isabelle (Chloe Moretz), he finally gets the automaton working, and it opens up a mystery that leads to the forgotten cinema of Melies (Ben Kingsley), now working on a store in the station.

The film shows love for silent cinema, and particularly the magic of Melies. Sacha Baron Cohen's station inspector is occasionally funny, and his character seems to be filtered through both Peter Sellers' Inspector Clouseau, and Jacques Tati's Monsieur Hulot, but he just doesn't seem to really progress at all, and feels almost like a filler character. Scorsese, like Robert Zemekis and Bob Gale before, reference that iconic Harold Lloyd moment in Safety Last! (1923), as Hugo hangs from a clock face.

Like so many others who speculate about the choices of Oscar nominations, Hugo, I feel, is not a contender for the best picture Oscar. There were some far better films produced in 2011. That said, the film is beautiful, accomplished , and often fun. Also, the resurgence of interest in a forgotten father of cinema, is completely touching, and leaves a warm feeling in the heart. Unfortunately, I did not see this in 3D; as far as I am aware, Scorsese uses it to brilliant degrees, so perhaps this would have made the experience perfect (despite the fact that I care not for the dimensions of 3.

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Like many, I suspect, I went into this film ready to be dazzled by the cinematography and a rare, nice clean story by Director Martin Scorcese. I wasn't disappointed although I found the story lagging in a few brief spots. Cutting the film another 10 minutes might have solved that. Having said that, though, a month later I'm all ready to view it again!

To me, the most interesting and amazing scenes were not involving the two young main characters and the railroad station, but the ones in the last 30-or-so minutes which dealt with very early films and how they made them. It was incredibly colorful and an education to film buffs everywhere. Anyone who loves movies and appreciates the history of the art should love the last part of this story.

Meanwhile, the bulk of the story still offers many great sights and sounds and I have no quibbles with any of the actors. Youngsters Asa Butterfield ("Hugo") and Cholë Grace Moretz ("Isabelle") were both about 13 when they made this and seem to have good careers ahead of them. I didn't recognize Sacha Baron Cohen as the station inspector. He was great in that role. As for Ben Kingsley, when is he ever bland?

This is one of those "family films" that can be enjoyed just as much - and probably more - by adults. I wish Scorcese would make more of this kind of material.

What Martin Scorcese has managed to do is add story dimensionality to a family film that has 3D technology. Some of the dimensions he's included which don't always make into Hollywood blockbusters are an imaginative and original concept, thematic unity and resonance and deft homage to film itself, in the story of Georges Méliès, French film pioneer.

Saw the film in an advance screening and we were among the many there who were obviously not standard family film consumers. This being a Scorcese film is likely to bring lots of adults to Hugo and I would think many of them, like me, will feel the film stands up as entertainment for all age groups.

I especially enjoyed the resonance and intricacy of the theme of clocks, clockworks, animatronics and "the ghost in the machine"--our fear, in the post industrial age that perhaps we are just a rather complex machine, rather than a divine creation. This is all beautifully rendered cinematically. I doubt the little ones will be bewildered while older viewers can pick out levels and layers in the film.

Good fun and visually interesting throughout. The 3D is used in service of the story. I hope Hollywood is watching and notices that special effects are only special when they get the heart of the machine working, like Hugo's little man.

"If you've ever wondered where your dreams come from, just look around. This is where they're made."

Hugo Cabret's story was told so well that it felt like you were right there with him on his stunning adventure.

For those unfamiliar, this is the story about a young boy named Hugo. He lives inside the walls of a train station in Paris in the 1930's. His father dies, leaving behind a mysterious automaton that, when fixed, can write. Hugo makes it his mission to fix it, believing that it will reveal a message from his father. With the help of an eccentric girl named Isabelle, he tries to uncover a magical mystery about the old man at the toy booth (Isabelle's godfather) and enchanting early films.

I had been looking forward to this film for a very long time, and I was not disappointed at all. I was a bit unsure about the 3D at first, but it turned out to be superb. Every single object became part of the story, and the audience became immersed in this beautiful world created by Martin Scorsese and Brian Selznick. While every member of the cast was brilliant, there are two in particular I'd like to point out.

First, Asa Butterfield as Hugo. He carried the film with perfection and gave a truly incredible performance. His acting was very natural--you could hardly tell he was acting! He did an amazing job of bringing life to a complex, lost, sad character. Asa is one of the most talented young actors I've ever seen; a very likely Oscar nomination in his future.

Last (but certainly not least) is Chloe Grace Moretz. She is another young performer that never fails to amaze me. Chloe nailed the British accent and brilliantly portrayed a bright, energetic Isabelle.

This movie has it all: beautiful visuals, super-talented cast, magic, love, heart, feeling, emotion. Best Picture Nomination for sure, and quite possibly others. Overall, this movie is a must-see. It was the most enjoyable theater experience that I've ever had. The entire theater broke into applause once it ended. This film has something for all ages, and it's really something special.

Especially if you love adventure, mystery, wonder, and have a bright imagination, you will fall in love with this film just like I did.

"Come and dream with me."

I watched this movie without any expectations and with an open mind. I thought it started off kind of slow but once you realise what the story is about, you really enjoy it. Having been a film student, I particularly liked where the story was going. I watched a great number of Georges Méliès movies during my studies.

Hugo has great cinematography and I loved the themes of insecurity and doubt and the idea that creative people sometimes need a push in the back from someone else in order to realise what they're worth. Hugo is a very original story, although it does not always feel very coherent. I remember being left with a feeling that some questions were left unanswered and some details didn't quite add up if you really thought about them.

Hugo had a Frenglish steam-punk feel to it that generally doesn't really appeal to me but that often surprises me in a good way (a bit like the professor Layton games). I would certainly recommend this movie.