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Martin Scorsese's Hugo: a kids film in name only |
Director: Martin Scorsese
Cast: Asa Butterfield (Hugo Cabret), Chloë Grace Moretz
(Isabelle), Ben Kingsley (Papa Georges), Sacha Baron Cohen (Inspector Gustave
Dasté), Ray Winstone (Claude Cabret), Emily Mortimer (Lisette), Jude Law (Mr
Cabret), Helen McCrory (Mama Jeanne), Michael Stuhlbarg (René Tabard),
Christopher Lee (Monsieur Labisse), Frances de la Tour (Madame Emilie), Richard
Griffiths (Monsieur Frick)
Martin Scorsese isn’t exactly the first name you think of
when your mind turns to directors of children’s films. So perhaps it makes
sense that, in Hugo, he directed a
children’s film aimed at virtually anyone except children. A huge box-office
flop, Hugo was garlanded with awards
and critics’ acclaim – but I’d be amazed if you find any child with a DVD of
it. It’s a film made by a passionate lover of cinema, aimed at lovers of
cinema, which just happens to have a child at the centre of it.
Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield) is an orphan, living in the
Paris train station fixing the clocks, and attempting to fix a curious
automaton which his late father (Jude Law) had taken from the Paris museum to
repair. After being caught by Monsieur Georges (Ben Kingsley) stealing parts
from his toy shop in the station, Hugo must earn back his confiscated notebook
on the workings of the automaton. Hugo starts a friendship with Georges’
god-daughter Isabelle (Chloë Grace Moretz), and together they begin to
investigate the mysterious past of Papa Georges – and his connection with the
early days of cinema.
Any understanding of what makes a good film for children is
missing here. It’s not exciting, it’s not engrossing, it’s not particularly
fun, it doesn’t place the child (really) at the heart, and most importantly it
doesn’t have a story children can relate to. The characters spend a lot of time
talking about the glorious adventure they’re on – but none of the excitement
translates to the screen. Instead the action creeps forward uncertainly, with the
motivations of Hugo himself unclear. There are half hearted attempts to aim at
a universal fear children can relate to – losing your parents and searching for
new ones – but the film doesn’t run with it.
Its real interest is the power of the movies. So Hugo’s
story gets lost halfway through the film, as Scorsese focuses in on the
redemption of famed cinema auteur and pioneer Georges Méliès. The children’s
adventure is nothing more than visiting a library to find out who Méliès was –
after that, they are effectively superfluous to the story. Details about Hugo’s
relationship with his father, or with his distant uncle, are completely dropped
– and the automaton that seemed like it held the key to Hugo’s purpose, becomes
a MacGuffin. It’s a film about a giant of cinema, made by a giant of cinema.
So let’s put aside the marketing of this film as children’s
film. The only element of the film that feels remotely like it is part of some
sort of kids’ flick is Sacha Baron Cohen’s slapstick, funny-accented railway
inspector – and as such Cohen’s hammy mugging sticks out like a tiresome sore
thumb. The rest of the film is what you would expect from a cinema enthusiast
making a film about the movies – a glorious, loving recreation of old silent
movies and the methods of making them, shot and told with a sprinkling of movie
magic.
The film looks wonderful. The cinematography is gorgeous,
the production design astounding. It’s beautifully made and has a light and enchanting
score. Scorsese goes all out to homage the shots and set-ups of old silent
movies. In fact the film only really comes to life in its second half, where
flashbacks show the methods Méliès used to make his films. The recreation of scenes
from these old classics is brilliantly done – and Scorsese’s designers delight
in filling the screen with the sort of colour that you couldn’t find in the
original. The photography also goes out of its way to give these scenes the
sort of colour tinted look that the hand-painted prints of old movies had. Even
the editing is designed as much as possible to replicate these old films.
Truly, these sequences are delightful – and Scorsese’s joy
in making them is evident in the camerawork, and the emotional force he gives
to Méliès’ story (helped as well by Ben Kingsley’s sensitive underplaying as
the depressed genius). It’s just a shame that he couldn’t get as engaged with
the first part of the film. Hugo’s story is largely dramatically inert – in
fact the whole plotline around Hugo feels like a hook on which to hang the
second half of the film. As if Scorsese couldn’t make the second part of the
film without making the first.
That’s why this film doesn’t work for children, but works
better for film-loving adults. The ins and outs of Hugo’s early story just aren’t
that interesting – and we aren’t given any real reason to relate to Hugo or to
feel any empathy for his journey (whatever that might be). In fact the film
stretches this plot line long past any actual content – already I’m struggling
to remember exactly what happened in the first hour of the film. This is no
comment on the performances of Butterfield or Moritz, who are both very good
(even if Moritz is saddled with sub-Hermione Grainger character traits). While
it always looks great, it never really finds the heart to get us engaged with
Hugo.
So Hugo is a film
for cinema-fanatics. Scorsese directs with great invention – but it’s all too
clear where his heart is: and that’s why the film failed so spectacularly as a
kids’ film. Compare this to Toy Story 3
say, and it’s clear which one most children are going to want to watch. However,
if you want to see Scorsese make a charming film about his passions, one that
is overlong but looks gorgeous, that playfully recreates the silent cinema era,
even while its narrative is basically pretty dramatically inert, you’ll love
it. There are moments in this film to treasure – it’s just not really for kids.
Just because Scorsese made a film without someone’s head in a vice or zipped
into a bodybag, doesn’t suddenly mean he’s going to find a new audience.
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