A rollicking 3D Adventure that bests Avatar

Rating: 7/10 (22 December 2011)

A great leap in 3D animation started with Robert Zemekis' "Polar Express". Meanwhile, James Cameron was bringing natural camera-work back to animation. All the trials and tribulations to get textures and movement through the last decade or so has culminated in Tintin. Spielberg has nearly reinvented 3D animation by finding camera movements that help energise the movie, not just a gimmick shot. Like Avatar, your eyes are unsure whether you are seeing something as photo-real or pure animation. Textures of the ground, skin, rusty walls, and so on have an incredible detail to them. Spielberg seems especially keen on the use of reflections in glass as part of his new bag of toys. There is nonstop movement from perspectives and transitions that are no different than a painter who makes optical illusions within his work.
I say Spielberg, along with Peter Jackson, have reinvented the genre, because the use of editing along with the camera choreography provides the benefits of editing in normal comics, where each panel acts as an edit. Each shot is essentially a work of art. In fact in this genre, it is less effective to try the action scene done all in one shot. It starts to feel too much like a video game. But what about story? George Lucas made similar advances with the new Star Wars Trilogy, but the story dragged. I am not familiar with the books the movie is based on. But you get a great idea of the tone as the young boy and his dog dodge bullets and find themselves in harm's way, albeit knowing that they can outsmart or basically allow the folly of the bad guys to do themselves in. So yes there is story. The adventures have a great deal of flair to them. One particular scene on a ship involves sneaking into the crews' barracks. The entire room is alive as the motion of the waves rocks the boat, causing the bodies and objects to slide back and forth with slapstick pratfalls that resembled an old Looney Tunes cartoon.
The extent of the boy's adventures is no doubt geared for young adults, there is no love interest. But it doesn't matter, when the momentum of the story and epic production cast a spell on the audience, you become a kid again yourself. One may actually experience that "Indiana Jones Magic", where you find yourself grinning as you watch the director spin a narrative that is as fun as a Disneyland ride. Part of that magic comes from the John Williams score (which borrows heavily on Indiana Jones). It ceases to amaze me how the man can still churn out intelligent music for so many decades. I didn't care for the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, although I liked some of the over-the-top action sequences that had a cartoon like quality. In Tintin, it IS a cartoon, and the action sequences go even more over-the-top. The only complaint you may find is that there is almost too much action. By the end of the third act, your stomach may start to get queasy as you spin around and around as the action unfolds.
I give this a 7 out of 10 only because it is entirely possible that the sequel could be even better than this.