Every reason why we love cinema

Rating: 9/10 (26 December 2011)

features here in this bona fide masterpiece by the downright genius filmmaker Martin Scorsese! Usually I don't write user comments for popular high-budget blockbusters, but I specifically wanted to write about this movie because this is Scorsese's very own and personal ode to cinema and that urged me to write an ode to him and his work. Through using the most modern techniques and hypes – including 3D effects – Scorsese brings a deeply respectable homage to the pioneers and earliest basic techniques of the medium that loves so much and has been working for nearly half a century now. "Hugo" is a magical fantasy/fairy-tale, filled with absorbing characters, earnest emotional story lines, dream- like decors and hi-tech special effects that actually emphasize the plot details rather than diverting your attention from the plot holes. The titular character is a shy and introvert young orphan who lives inside the walls of a Paris' train station in the late 1920's. Hugo makes sure that the station clocks keeps running on time without being noticed by the strict station inspector, and at night he desperately tries to repair a broken automaton. The device is the only thing that still connects Hugo with his deceased father and the young boy strongly believes that it carries a hidden message. And is he ever right! When Hugo and his new friend Isabelle discover the automaton's hidden message, they embark on an adventure that will uncover some secrets on people that are very close and dear to them. I don't want to reveal too much, but cinema connoisseurs can more or less predict what the adventure's about based on Ben Kingsley's character name and the Paris setting. The acting performances are stupendous, from the young and clearly over-talented child actors to the ageing but still vastly honorable veterans in the supportive cast, like Richard Griffiths and of course the almighty Christopher Lee. The 3D effects are never bothersome or overly exploited, like so often the case in these movies, and pretty much every piece of scenery and technical aspect is a joy to behold. Everything is perfect to the tiniest detail. The entire finale and the sub plots happening inside the trains station hall are, albeit clichéd and rather predictable, genuinely heartwarming and moving. We had to wait until the end of 2011 to see the best film of the whole year, but it was definitely worth it. Martin Scorsese, I sincerely hope you win an Oscar for directing this movie  It'll even be more deserved than winning for "The Departed".