So much average

As Good As It Gets

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

I don't know why The Adventures of Tintin didn't get an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature. The animation is as interesting as Rango's, the voice work is as good as it is in Kung Fu Panda 2 and it's just a better movie than Puss in Boots. It's not a great film, but it has some fun action sequences and an entertaining story. It's like Indiana Jones, but, you know, for kids.

Although a Belgian, I've never been particularly fond of Hergé's work : when I read the Tintin series as a child, I liked it well enough but I did not adore it. As an adult, I can recognize its technical prowess and abundant imagination, but I still don't think it's as stellar, innovative or unique as some critics would have it. (Still, credit where credit is due : with "The 7 crystal balls" Hergé created one of the most scary comics of all time. The moment where a grinning Rascar Capac, both alive and dead, enters a building can wipe the floor with about 99% of the horror scenes contained in movies, comics or novels. It is the essence of nightmares.) As a result of my lukewarm attitude, I began watching "The adventures of Tintin" without particular expectations. I'm pleased to say that it's both a clever, respectful adaptation and a pleasantly watchable movie. There are (at least) two brilliant set-pieces worth the price of admission alone : the first is the episode where captain Haddock tells of the heroic adventures of his ancestor, and the second is a long and bonkers pursuit through a North-African country. All over the movie there are touches of wit, satire and invention, just as there are moments of clever observation : note the scenes, for instance, where the poor have to queue for water in order to survive, while the idle rich surround themselves with fountains, canals and swimming pools. Authors have written 500-page works on social inequality that say less. I watched the movie with some youngsters, who all left dazzled and enchanted : no mean feat in these modern times.The scene where Bianca Castafiore sings is very well done - there is a truly glorious stream of music coming out of her mouth - but I was somewhat amazed by the choice of music : if I remember correctly, the various comics had her singing "The jewel aria" from Faust. The jewel aria too is delightful, plus it would have allowed the great diva to perform in Germanic peasant costume, complete with blonde braids. Perhaps some Tintinologists can help me clear up this matter.

The Adventures of Tintin is an Indiana Jones-type adventure, spanning across the globe, with likable characters, and a cunning villain, voiced by Daniel Craig. The animation is fantastic, and it really helps you feel like you're part of the action. My favourite scene is when Captain Haddock (played by Andy Serkis) has a flashback to his pirate ancestor, fighting off intruders. My one criticism is when Captain Haddock fights the villain. With a crane. A crane sword fight. It's fun to watch but it's so unbelievable. A movie that should be brought up more. 8/10

A kidnapping and a mutiny kick off the start of what becomes a dangerous and profitable journey for that most famous of Belgian boy detectives and his loyal fox terrier, Snowy.What you get in the end is minor Spielberg and minor Tintin. At least its heart is in the right place.As a drink-plagued captain with a bulbous nose tells his young friend: "You care about something, you fight for it. You hit a wall, you push through it."Here's hoping they follow their own advice and come up with a long- awaited sequel!Revisiting the joys of childhood can be a perilous experience, and so it proves here, even if what's good outweighs what's bad. Director Steven Spielberg serves up an enjoyable lark of a cartoon adventure featuring that marvel of European comics, Tintin. If it lacks the cohesion and charm of Hergé's original, it keeps you in your seat till the end.Spielberg's enthusiasm and talent is on bright display. Too bad the film veers more in the direction of his old "Raiders Of The Lost Ark" than Tintin himself. This adventure involves three lost scrolls which together present a key to finding a great treasure. To get them, Tintin (Jamie Bell) and his new friend, Captain Haddock (a note-perfect Andy Serkis) will have to brave the wiles of the evil Sakharine (Daniel Craig), a "sour-faced man with a sugary name."I'm not a fan of motion-capture animation, even well-done animation such as this, which is presented with a nod to Hergé's "clear-line" style. Colors are deliciously bright, with a strong sense of depth and detail in every frame. Yet the adjustment from print to film medium gives the original characters a whiff of the grotesque.After some opening credits that employ the clear-line style as well as a John Williams score and animation that seems a nod in the direction of Spielberg's classic beginning to "Catch Me If You Can," we are dropped quickly into our fast-moving story. Hergé himself pops up to say the first line of dialogue, seemingly blessing the enterprise with his presence, before Tintin finds himself in a case of mast distraction involving a search for a missing piece of a ship model.This opening section is so enjoyable you wish it could continue forever. It does last a while, all the way up to the point where Tintin and Haddock fly a seaplane in the desert wastes of Bagghar. There's a couple of welcome appearances from the Thom(p)sons (Nick Frost and Simon Pegg), and some harrowing battles that allow the director to recycle old tricks in motion-capture form.Humor, too. Asked if he can fly a plane, Tintin replies: "I interviewed a pilot once!" Haddock and Snowy later vie for a drop of the hard stuff in zero-G, a film highlight. After that, Indiana Jones takes over. The result is too crowded and chaotic by half. In a March 2015 review here, jc-osms describes his "battle fatigue" with some of the setpiece action scenes, and I heartily concur. As dams burst and derricks clash, Hergé's gentler approach is missed.But "The Adventures Of Tintin" did connect with audiences, especially outside Spielberg's native land. That provides motive for a long-promised sequel, hopefully involving second-unit director and co-producer Peter Jackson, who unlike Spielberg grew up reading Tintin and will perhaps invest a film with more of the original spirit, like he did with his Tolkien adaptations.As it is, I don't think the film stands well enough on its own to be remembered. But as a foundation stone, it could yet prove the start of something quite grand and fun for generations of Tintin fans yet unborn.