The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (PG) ****
Dir: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Jamie Bell, Daniel Craig, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Andy Serkis
Synopsis: Strange goings on start occurring to young journalist Tintin after he buys a model of a Spanish Galleon, which sends him on a globetrotting adventure to discover the secret of the ship in this Indiana Jones-esque movie.
Verdict: The beloved children’s character comes to life on the big screen, complete with his dog, Snowy. Using CGI to create this latest offering of the adventurous young journalist turned out to be a good call. Keeping in touch with the old style of animation from the cartoon and comic, whilst giving a degree of extra realism means the producers can do things that the normal style wouldn’t have been able to achieve (although the film does start with a homage to the old comics and cartoons through street portraiture).
Of course, the voice acting is more important than the visual, and the cast don’t fail to impress. Jamie Bell is wonderful as Tintin, showing both youth and a depth of character that is typical of the Belgian. Pegg and Frost excel as the inept Interpol agents, Thompson and Thomson, delivering much of the comedy of the film. However, the funniest character is probably Captain Haddock (Serkis), whose drunken antics are a riot.
The comedy is appealing to both children and adults, as so many children’s films tend to be (with jokes that are funny to both, and jokes that are aimed at adults and to go over children’s heads), and a story line that has some predictable moments, but is still a very entertaining movie.
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