Magical. My favorite movie of the year.

Rating: 8/10 (11 January 2012)

After seeing Hugo, I am 17 films away from seeing all of the top 250 IMDb films. Perhaps I should have saved it for last, since Hugo is a celebration of great films. There is both a snippet and a homage to Safety Last! (1923), for example. The entire early history of film is given.
But it's "great" 3D, so I thought I should catch it in the theater. I'm very glad that I did, because the 3D effects are spectacular. Gears, steam, pendulums, and crowds are everywhere, making the film a delight to the eyes as the camera swoops around all over the place.
Georges Méliès is worth looking up here at IMDb, as he is the star of the film, played wonderfully by Ben Kingsley. Buster Keaton, Charles Chaplin, and other greats also get to star through the snippets.
I did not like the trailer for the film. Seemed too slapstickish. Part of it showed Baron Sasha Cohen as the Station Inspector about to run into a huge cake. The trailer is rife with trickery -- he doesn't run into the cake. Don't be put off by trailers you've seen.
If you're a fan of the top 250 IMDb films, you'll love this movie.