Simply stunning to watch, but a bit of a chore to love

Rating: 8/10 (26 November 2011)

Martin Scorsese directing a kid's movie? You cannot be serious.
That was the thought that ran through my head when I first read about Hugo, based on the children's book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. While it seemed like an intriguing idea, I was a bit skeptical that a man who has spent almost fifty years in the business directing violent gangster pictures and sweepingly violent period pieces would really be well equipped to direct something that was directed at youngsters. Add the fact that it is in 3D, and you have the first real time I had a doubt in Scorsese.
Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield) lives as an orphan rotating and setting the clocks properly at a train station near Paris post 1930s economic depression. He is caught by the local toy store shopkeeper (played by Ben Kingsley), who confiscates the sketch pad filled with inventions and ideas originally owned by Hugo's father. Hugo obviously wants to retrieve it, but there is something deeply troubling the shopkeeper. And with the help of his granddaughter Isabelle (Chloë Grace Moretz), the pair set out to find out just what is troubling him.
For all the critical praise it has and will continue to receive, it does not negate the fact that Hugo is two-thirds of a horrifically boring movie. It starts off interesting enough, but then it slows right down and barely picks itself back up. Until the subplots kicked in about the pioneering of the filmmaking medium, I had absolutely no idea where the film was going – and neither did the film. It just plays itself out without much concern, introducing characters, ideas and elements which may have proved valuable at the time, but are next to useless in the final end game. I found myself frequently questioning just what Scorsese was trying to accomplish, and found that the film was more often than not, at odds with itself. It is not a children's film by a long shot, but it is not necessarily an adult film either. There are moments of adventure and whimsy, but then there are some really dark and disturbing moments as well. It just does not know what it wants to be, and suffers as a result of it. When I am fighting the urge to pass out during one of the most highly anticipated films of the year because I am bored to tears, then there is clearly an issue.
While we can blame the lack of any semblance of plot development on the source material (I have not read Selznick's novel, but it sounds like a mish-mash of ideas that barely come together), I feel that Scorsese is a talented enough director that he should have been able to see through the problems, and fix them with relative ease. He is out of his element here making his first real "children's movie", but his craft is just as impeccable as always. Surely he could tell that he needed to make his thinly veiled plea for cinematic restoration and preservation a lot sooner and clearer than he does, right? He clearly has a passion for the material, but the film lacks that electric feel that most Scorsese films have. It lacks that jolt, that spark that really transcends the medium, and sets his work apart from everyone else's. If you had very little knowledge of the project and left Hugo before the cinema subplot kicks in, you may not even know the film was part of Scorsese's oeuvre. It may simply look like a very gorgeous film, with some intriguing characters and a total lack of a cohesive story.
But for all the story related issues, I must say that the film is very impressive to look at. The sets, the costumes, and the editing style – all of it is just as incredible as we have come to expect. Scorsese knows how to make a really authentic and meticulously designed period piece, and his work here is no different. But what really makes it dazzle and come to life, rather surprisingly, is the 3D. It is generously employed throughout the film very carefully, very rarely coming off as the gimmick it inherently is. Instead, it adds depth and a stunning realism to the film. It feels like you are in the movie, experiencing what Hugo sees and feels. It may look extremely fake when it hits Blu-ray, but there is no questioning how astonishing it looks here. Seeing the clocks in action is particularly wonderful, as is the subtle use of snow outside and dust inside. And even though it is used quite frequently, you never grow tired of it. You just sit in your seat, and wait for the next effect Scorsese throws at you.
Acting is strong across the board, from main players like Butterfield, Moretz, Sacha Baron Cohen and Kingsley, to bit players who serve very little purpose like Frances de la Tour, Richard Griffiths, Christopher Lee and Emily Mortimer, to blink-and-you-will-miss-them extended cameos like Jude Law and Ray Winstone. Everyone is on their A-game, and shines well above the dialogue and actions they are given. Particular attention needs to be played to Butterfield, who shoulders the majority of the film almost exclusively. His plight is the stuff of wonder and imagination, and would have been simply riveting had the film's content been a bit better focused.
While Hugo is a positively stunning experience to view, the majority of the story leaves a lot to be imagined. Even with the great acting and wonderful 3D, the film suffers from a horrendous element of boredom constantly. When the third act kicks in, it finally figures out what it wants to be and suddenly the film becomes the masterpiece it should have been all along. I did enjoy Hugo, but this is quite simply a good movie that could have been brilliant.
8/10.