REVIEW: THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN – THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN
King of the blockbuster Steven Spielberg returns to the adventure genre with The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn, a thoroughly satisfying family popcorn movie based on Hergé’s classic comic book series.
As fans of Hergé’s opus will know, Tintin follows the eponymous boy reporter, his wire fox terrier Snowy and friendly seafaring drunk Captain Haddock as they trot the globe in search of adventure, this time in the form of an ancient secret buried within the bowels of a sunken ship. The plot – a hybrid made up from three early Tintin comics – serves as an effective introduction to the universe and its characters, and does a good job at introducing all the necessary information quickly in order to get to the true spirit of the thing: the adventure. In fact, at times Tintin feels closer in spirit to Spielberg’s original Indiana Jones films than 2008’s Kingdom of the Crystal Skull ever did. The screenplay is snappily written by Doctor Who writer Steven Moffat and lauded British filmmakers Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish, and it very quickly becomes clear that these are people with both a love for the source material and a deep rooted knowledge of Spielberg’s directorial strengths.
The Secret of the Unicorn’s most noticeable feature lies in the choice to produce the film entirely using motion capture CGI. Purists and naysayers have little to fear, however; Tintin is genuinely visually impressive, and a great leap from previous, wonkier mocap efforts (see: Beowulf, A Christmas Carol 3D). While those films were plagued by waxwork-esque characters with eerie dead-eyed stares, Tintin truly looks like a comic book brought to life, and this animation/Hollywood blockbuster hybrid is the perfect method with which to bring Hergé’s vision to the big screen. Most importantly, the technology allows for shots and sequences that would be impossible in live action, and allows Spielberg’s action direction to really shine. Fun and imaginative, the film features some genuinely memorable set pieces, including an extended single-shot car chase that stands out as one of the more remarkable action set pieces in recent history.
The comparison between Tintin and Indiana Jones is apt, and much like Raiders of the Lost Ark before it, Tintin is a rare ‘family’ film that can actually be enjoyed by the whole family. Great family movies like Toy Story, Spirited Away or Star Wars draw on the universal appeals of imagination, strong characters and a palpable sense of wonder, and Tintin is a film firmly set in this mould. Tintin neither panders to children nor shoots over their heads with pop culture references they won’t get – The Secret of the Unicorn may have the distinguished honour of being the only kids film this summer without a comedy rap sequence – and Spielberg & co. should be applauded for making a film that manages to be fun and rewarding without insulting children’s intelligence.
The majority of the film’s flaws, if you can call them that, land on the shoulders of Tintin himself. Boyscout-ish and squeaky clean, Tintin is hardly the most compelling of protagonists, but in a sense this just adds to the film’s old fashioned, boys’ own charm. Despite its strengths, the plot is also somewhat light and predictable, even for a family adventure movie, but the movie’s energetic pacing and compelling supporting characters – Andy Serkis’ Captain Haddock and Nick Frost & Simon Pegg’s Thomson and Thompson are particularly memorable- make it hard to care. Although somewhat disposable and formulaic, The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn is a solid and joyously fun action adventure that is, for once, truly for the entire family.
Words: Josh Hicks
