Disappointing

Rating: 1/10 (30 November 2011)

With all these wonderful and glowing reviews of this film, I can't even believe I saw the same movie. First of all, why do the characters in this film speak with English accents? This is set in Paris, France, not London, England. Secondly, everything visually in this film looks artificial, and the CGI isn't even all that good. 3D moments are few and far between. Corny romantic moments between various characters in the film seem forced and fake. The comedy falls flat on its face, clearly they were geared towards children 5 and under to laugh. The dialogue was weak, and the acting was bland and uninspiring. So what was Scorsese's motivation for doing this movie, if it feels like it was phoned in? Was it greed? Kids movies rake in more money than films that are rated R. Add 3D to it, and you have a better chance for a higher return on investment. Sadly, this film is soulless and boring, and I think it will be something Scorsese will wish he didn't make.
This is an add on to the review: Can someone please explain to me how the automaton could have drawn the man in the moon with the rocketship in its eye? Are we to assume that Melies had drawn this image years before he actually made the film? Because he mined the automaton for parts when he was building his first camera, so I can't see him 'reprogramming' it to draw an image from a film he would complete later on.