A gripping action adventure thrill ride for audiences young and old from none other than the two greatest film makers of all time, Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson.
The story is based on the comics of the same name from the 1940's. Tintin (Jamie Bell) is a young journalist who has solved many mysteries in the past with the help of his beloved dog Snowy. He has just gotten himself involved in another right at the beginning of this movie. As soon as he buys a beautiful model ship of the legendary sunken Unicorn at a market, two men are instantly interested in buying it from him making him suspicious as to their intentions. He sets out to find more information on the Unicorn and learns that the ship was carrying a secret cargo when it was sunk by pirates and that at least two model ships were created. When he gets back home his apartment is trashed and the ship gone, prompting him to go to Marlinspike Hall where Ivan Ivanovitch Sakharine (Daniel Craig) (one of the men who approached him at the market) has apparently got the other model of the Unicorn. We find out that these models have small scrolls hidden in the masts that contain clues to the whereabouts of the secret cargo of the Unicorn. Later on, Tintin is visited by Barnaby (the other man that approached him at the market) who gets shot by Sakharine's men, leaving a clue for Tintin before he dies that names the ship that Sakharine is boarding for his mission. Tintin then gets kidnapped by Sakharine's men and is placed on board the ship with Snowy following his trail. Snowy rescues Tintin and they then meet the ship's true captain, Haddock (Andy Serkis). Haddock is somewhat of an alcoholic and doesn't know what's going on aboard the ship. They both escape and are headed for North Africa, where they find out the third model ship is located. But they do need to get there faster than Sakharine, who also wants to get his hands on the last scroll. I will leave you guessing there as to what might happen next, but I will tell you that there are some really captivating revelations and chase sequences to follow that will absolutely blow your mind!
This film, despite the animation aspect actually used the performance/motion capture equipment that was prominent in another well done film of the year, "Rise of the Planet of the Apes". This gives rise to the question of whether or not it is time to include these types of movies as Oscar worthy candidates.
Although I didn't get to see this film in 3D, it still was very exciting from the beginning to the end and I would guess the 3D aspect would make it that much more spellbinding as other viewers have stated. The storytelling was absolutely spot on and there never was a dull moment during the span of the film. I especially liked the opening sequence that is reminiscent of another Spielberg film, "Catch Me If You Can". The dark lighting exhibited in some scenes made for so much tension that I nearly jumped when someone appeared out of the shadows, which kind of reminded me of some aspects from the film noir genre giving the fact that this is in part a mystery. There are also some scenes of the film that remind me of the Indiana Jones films, especially the parts set in the town of North Africa... classic!
There were some very important points that the character Haddock had made to Tintin when they had no way to go forward in the search and the one that resonated with me the most was "if there is a wall, you must push through it". You mustn't give up on your ambitions or goals, and you mustn't flee from a difficult situation and I think that's a very important message for children as well as anyone else. It is ultimately your determination and ambitiousness that gets you through anything that you have set your mind to. How do you think film makers like Spielberg or Jackson have got to where they are today? The message of this film is timeless and I can't wait for its DVD release in the near future.
Anyway, I advise all of you to watch this film whether or not it's in 3D. The quality of storytelling and visuals is just to good to pass up and I will give you a little spoiler that there will be a sequel, and I know it will be just as good as this if not better.
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