"Tintin" is not in the top ten-ten of my favorite movies of the year, but I liked it!

Rating: 8/10 (16 January 2012)

Steven Spielberg's first computer-animated movie "The Adventures of Tintin" marks another gold cinematic star on this master's legendary directorial resume, and also signifies that there is no genre Steven cannot helm. The protagonist Tintin is voiced by Jamie Bell. Tintin is a young intrepid reporter always looking for an adventurous story. He sails on one when he buys a model ship called the Unicorn that includes a scroll that might be the key to a fortune. The problem is that the villainous Sakharine (voiced by Daniel Craig) is hot on Tintin's tail to devour him of the Unicorn with its scroll. However, Tintin is no tonto; and with his magical dog Snowy there is no adventure Tintin can't handle. I love Tintin's cool, calm, and collective demeanor in facing even the most challenging of situations. Tintin teams up with Captain Haddock (voiced by Andy Serkis), whose ancestor was the Unicorn's first ship rider, in order to find the other model Unicorns with their treasured scrolls. Spielberg does incorporate the movie with some of his infamous storytelling themes and directorial techniques of his past iconic movies such as "Raiders of the Lost Ark", "Catch Me If You Can", and even "E.T."; but in a more fast-paced family entertainment mode. Spielberg's team of screenwriters (Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright, and Joe Cornish) verbally insert the movie with plenty of wit and exhilaration. And how can one not be impressed with the movie's "true-to-almost-life" animation. The only knock I have against Tintin , like the movie business itself, is that there was a bit too much piracy in it; at times it seemed like a computer animated version of "Pirates of the Caribbean: At Tintin's End". Nevertheless, "The Adventures of Tintin" is tintinlating enough to garner a viewing adventure. **** Good