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Hugo may be the most beautifully-realized film since Avatar. Every frame is a work of art. The sets are gorgeous, the costumes perfect, the lighting and cinematography are somber delights. Too bad they felt the need to populate this exquisite landscape with characters that move like clockwork to advance the all-too-familiar plot. Mind you, everyone involved plays their parts with the perfection of a fine Swiss watch. I found myself appreciating the performance but I could never get past the fact that all the characters were nothing more than cogs in a machine. (Still, that well may have been part of the movie's message so maybe I shouldn't complain.)
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Asa Butterfield (in the title role) doesn't exhibit a lot of emotional highs or lows in the role but he manages to rise to the challenge. Sir Ben Kingsley (Georges) is a grumpy old man with a mysterious past. Sacha Baron Cohen dials downthe crazy as Station Inspector. (He has a side story involving a cautious romance with a young lady who runs the cafe in the Paris Train Station.) Christopher Lee, Jude Law and Ray Windstone have small but well-done roles in the movie. I didn't recognize any of the rest of the cast but they all played their parts with precision.
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Now for the big bitches: I saw this is 3D (the only way it was showing anywhere close to me) and this is one of the many movies that didn't benefit from 3D technology. The 3D added nothing but $3.75 a ticket--and I could really have done without that. Likewise several times I found the script and direction seeming to shout "look at how clever I am!" and that was a bit bothersome. (I want to discover the cleverness for myself--not have it shoved in my face.) Every character, every nuance exists for the sole purpose of advancing the story and there isn't a genuine moment in the entire movie.
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I think the saddest thing I can say about Hugo is this: "I'm glad I saw the movie but I can't say I enjoyed it." Yes, the beauty of each and every shot deserves to be seen on a big screen. That being said, there's not a lot of action or drama and if I wasn't so fascinated by the shots I'm afraid I'd have been bored to tears. The movie moves slow and, in spite of the marketing campaign, isn't for families: kids won't enjoy the movie--it just doesn't move fast enough. I wanted so badly to enjoy this movie--and I just couldn't make myself do it no matter how hard I tried.
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FINAL GRADE: C
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