"One of the most legendary directors of our time takes you on an extraordinary adventure"

Rating: 10/10 (11 May 2012)

When I first saw the previews of Hugo, I was met with mixed expectations. It was that sort of thing that makes you half interesting, half "meh." It seemed like just another film to me, albeit the director Martin Scorsese. My expectations further went down when I kept scrolling through the forums, seeing the mainstream viewers outraged about how bored they were. And I consider myself a mainstream viewer, so this goes for me. When people review something, I have a 70% that I agree with them as well. But Hugo was way different than I would ever think.. It was, and I say this with all seriousness, a masterpiece...
The movie has a slow-pace, and there's no doubt about that. But it was no reason to call it "boring." The movie had me laughing, enjoying, and grinning throughout the entire film. And even viewers are calling the movie too long? Really? Dark Knight had a two hour and thirty minute run time. Avengers had a two hour and thirty minute run time. All the Transformers movies had a two hour and thirty minute run time. And yet people call this "long" because they weren't met with action-packed nonsense and cheesy one-liners. I loved this film, there's no way around that one.
The only thing I absolutely adored was this thing right here. People called this film a homage to this old French director. But the movie has far more to that. This movie is a homage to movies themselves. It's an entire two hour epic expressing it's appreciation and love for the power of film making. And it was meant for viewers like us, to appreciate how great movies are. But you're probably taking this as a bad thing, the movie has way more to that. Great acting, great story, and great lush directing. It's everything you would want a more. But maybe the film was too much for people to take. Maybe they expected way too much...
Side-note: The 3D! In 2D, I could already see this movie as good as it was, and the 3D is no enhancer. But adding onto the fantastic cinematography, the fantastic directing, and the fantastic environments: the 3D adds everything you want. And it's not that type of 3D that uses the old "pop-out" gimmick that makes us jump out of our seats. It's the kind that adds depth to the entire experience and appreciate how great the film was itself. And the 3D reaches heights films like Avatar had, maybe even surpassing it...
I loved this film. You read all these bad reviews, but Hugo is to be watched with an open-mind, and not exactly what you are getting from the previews. It contains everything you want and need from a movie: heart, depth, and the love and appreciation of movies themselves. Is that not enough?
10/10.