The curse of the crimson pirate.

Rating: 10/10 (11 November 2011)

Since 1947, they have been making movies starring Tintin; the first one was some kind of puppet show based on the "Crabe Aux Pinces D'Or", an extract of which was screened some years ago on TV. But the movie itself seemed lost before it reappeared on DVD. Then, in the sixties, there were two movies with actors starring a Tintin lookalike, Jean-Pierre Talbot, but only the first one was entertaining. It was Tintin Et Le Mystère De La Toison D'Or (1961) while Tintin Et Les Oranges Bleues (1964) was a disaster. Then, there were two full feature cartoons: Le Temple Du Soleil (1969) and Tintin Et Le Lac Aux Requins (1972). To be complete, we can mention two series of MTV cartoons, the Belvision ones in the sixties which haven't aged well and the Ellipse ones in the nineties which were faithful to the comic books.
Spielberg's work is the movie the "Tintinophiles" have always been waiting for. A cross between Le Crabe Aux Pinces D'Or and Le Secret De La Licorne with a dash of Le Trésor De Rackham Le Rouge thrown in for good measure, plus hints at On A Marché Sur La Lune (bubbles of whiskey) and L'Affaire Tournesol (the Castafiore breaking glass with her voice). The screenplay was carefully worked but begins to falter when Tintin and Captain Haddock are in Morocco. But it regains its strength in the basements of Moulinsart. The opening sequence is a delight: Hergé drawing a sketch of his hero is pure genius. Having replaced Haddock's visions (the bottle of Champagn) by the epics of his ancestor on the Unicorn in the desert is probably the best idea and shows Spielberg's and Jackson's knowledge of psychoanalysis latent in almost all Hergé's work. Turning Sakharine from a harmless collector into the villain was also an asset because it allowed an unexpected connection with the past.
Tintin and Haddock are close to perfect but the Dupondts leave a bit to be desired: their sensational comical power is not fully exploited. And if we appreciate the smart introduction of the "Milanese Nightingale", we may regret the absence of professor Tournesol. We hope they save him for the second installment.
No doubt about it: Spielberg and Jackson pulled it off with gusto. Even Milou isn't insignificant as he was in the sixties works. The scene with the sandwich on the ship belongs to him.
"Tintinophile"'s honor: this is superb entertainment. To be precise: this is superb entertainment