Hugo

_This_ is why we go to the movies
Different people go to the movies for different reasons. Some of us want to be entertained. Some of us want to be dazzled. Some of us want to be engaged by a story, or by characters that stick in the mind after the film is done. Some of us want to be transported to a different time or place. And some of us want to see talented actors create a bit of magic in the hands of a masterful director. Martin Scorsese's Hugo does all of these things. It is, more than any other film I've seen this year, _why_ we go to the movies.

The film is based on the novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. If you've read the book, then you know the story already, but for everyone else I am going to be careful here and not reveal anything that might spoil the film. I will say that Hugo is about many things, but at its heart, it is about obsession, discovery and how one person's story can lead to - and become entwined with - another's.

The film is set in Paris in the...

No-Spoilers review of the 3D movie and the coming 2D DVD
Few read reviews to find out whether the reviewer liked the film. They want to know whether THEY will like the film--to decide whether to see the movie or not, and whether to see it in the theater or wait and see the DVD (or the download). That's the task I'll take on here.

As the Rottentomato website has already shown (it assembles and correlates scads of reviews from the press and the web, along with reader responses), the critics adore this film, the audience somewhat less so.

Part of this has to do with managing expectations. The marketing presents Hugo as an Avatar-ish 3D fantasy with a C3P0 (StarWars)-type flying robot. this is actively misleading, though that's not the director's fault.

What Hugo is, is a fable--not a fantasy--that's part tween adventure and part infomercial for the preservation and viewing of old silent movies. Most importantly--and this is a point that hasn't been made by most reviewers here and elsewhere--it's a film about...

Early review on blu-ray 3D
I was able to legitimately get an early review copy of the 3D version of the Hugo 3D blu-ray. I am not reviewing the film. I am not reviewing the acting. I am reviewing the 3D. It is incredible. Every bit as engrossing as it was in the theater. If you own a 3DTV, you owe it to yourself to buy this movie. Sure, the film itself is not everyone's cup of tea, but if you're just looking for reference quality, mind-blowing 3D? This movie will suck you in from start to finish. You are a part of the world of Hugo, from beginning to end. And, honestly, no 3D has been this engrossing since Avatar. If you love silent film, film preservation, or cinema in general, along with your three dimensions, this will be the absolute must own disc of the year! Even if they don't like the movie itself, your friends will be impressed with the 3D FX. This is one of the few films released where you can genuinely and proudly claim, "This is why I bought a 3D television!" Enjoy.

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