(Movie) The Adventures of Tin Tin

The Adventures of Tin Tin ReviewI don’t usually review movies on this site, unless it’s just a clever disguise for yakking about some grub I grabbed at a theater.  But I am inspired to write about “The Adventures of Tin Tin.”

From the people (Belgians) who brought us Smurfs, sprouts, fancy chocolate, waffles,pretty good beer, and French fries, the Tin Tin series of comic books is one of the most popular in the world (except in the US), and has sold hundreds of millions of copies.

From the fertile mind of Belgian artist Georges Remi (using the nom de plume of Herge), “Tin Tin” follows the exploits of a young reporter as he and his trusty sidekick dog “Snowy” perform various feats of daring-do, saving the world, rescuing people, finding treasure, and more.

Set during the 20th century, I became acquainted with these stories when I lived in Europe, and gobbled up various issues to bring back to the US to read to my daughter when she was a sprout.

I think we both enjoyed them, and thus, I was looking forward to this movie, which took director Steven Spielberg decades to get made.

This first installment (I am sure there will be more) follows Tin Tin on a quest for pirate’s treasure, and along with Snowy, and other regular series characters, Captain Haddock and Intepol operatives Thompson and Thompson, a rollicking, non-stop action adventure ensues, as our heros chase all over England and Morocco on their mission.

The movie is a fast-paced hour and 47 minutes, bound to hold the attention of kids and adults alike – especially the 3d version.

Performing non-stop stunts that Indiana Jones can’t even imagine, the writing is full of puns and “Chaplin-esque’ style violence, which  earned it a PG rating, but I can’t imagine that anything in the film will frighten children of any age.   This is a combination live action/animated epic, done in the same manner, and by the same technology used in Avatar.  That is, live actors did their bits and the action was subsequently animated and enhanced.

I enjoyed the time a great deal -and you will too, especially if you are channeling your  children, whom you should certainly take to see this finely crafted piece of film from director Spielberg and Lord of the Rings producer Peter Jackson. (a preview of Jackson’s highly-anticipated epic production of “The Hobbit” due next year, was shown prior to the feature).

 

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