2) Breathtaking Visuals
Let’s get straight to the point. Animation for the film is superb. Everything seems so fluid that at times I forgot that I wasn’t watching actual people. This is a great leap in terms of how movies are made. From the water steadily flowing in the ocean to Tintin’s rosy face, the attention to detail is just fantastic. Since they did not shoot a live-action version, they were able to maintain a closer relationship with the original comic book material. Kudos to the visuals!
3) Fun and Campy – Adventure Without Limits
To answer his questions, Tintin travels the world, meets some interesting people along the way, angers a lot of them, and manages to stay alive through all of this. When Tintin exclaims that he has discovered something, the audience discovers it with him. We are immersed in his adventure like we are part of his crew. We race with Tintin to the next destination and hope for the best! The whole film is full of comedy. It’s very fun to listen to the banter of Tintin and Captain Haddock, and Detectives Thomson and Thompson are just hilarious.
Of course, the film is far from realistic. Things are just too convenient and almost always work in favor of our young hero. If we didn’t know this was a Tintin movie thus making him invincible and extremely lucky, we’d be afraid for him. Although this takes away some element of surprise, you come to a Tintin movie to expect a great adventure anyway, and that is what is still given.
4) One Exciting Day at School
The Adventures of Tintin give off the vibe that you’re in school, except you’re enjoying every bit of it. Although I am not sure how much the facts presented in the film were sensationalized, you’ll get educated nonetheless. You come out of the film smarter, which cannot be said for a lot of movies nowadays. It’s like a history (pirates terrorized the oceans in the early days, a Man-o-War was THE battleship back then), geography (exploring the city, the waters, the desert, more waters) and shop lesson (Tintin and his reliable creativity) put into one class. In this class, however, if you fall asleep, you have to schedule an appointment with your doctor; there might be something wrong with you!
5) Grade A Talent
The Adventures of Tintin is just brimming with talent. How can you go wrong when your director is Steven Spielberg? Sure, James Cameron has taken the spotlight ever since the Avatar behemoth happened, but Spielberg still remains one of the best in the industry. Two of the screenplay scribes are Steven Moffat, who took the Doctor Who franchise to a whole new level, and Edgar Wright, the master of comedy responsible for films like Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. Acting was brilliant as well. Jamie Bell, who usually plays supporting characters in his films, shines as Tintin. Andy Serkis is Captain Haddock, and he proves that Gollum is so yesterday. Daniel Craig leaves his 007 gear this time and shows his diversity as Sakharine. Oh, and Peter Jackson is one of the producers. Beat that!
6) The Adorable Snowy
To kids these days, Snowy the Dog isn’t as popular as Scooby-Doo. The Adventures of Tintin should be able to correct this mistake. With his incredible agility, he saves his friend and master so many times than I care to count and is essential to the progression of the adventure. Basically, Snowy puts all talking animals to shame. He is not given the gift of speech (the film isn’t that unrealistic), and yet it feels like Snowy understands what’s happening around him more than the average human being. You deserve more than a bone, Snowy. You deserve a whole slab of juicy steak!
7) Unique Cinematic Experience
Taking the film as a whole, The Adventures of Tintin is one unique cinematic experience. It has set the bar for how animation should be done: something that both adults and kids can love. Filmmakers must put their thinking caps on -- it will be hard to top such a production.
Tintin: How’s your thirst for adventure, Captain?
Captain Haddock: Unquenchable, Tintin.
I’m already thirsty for a sequel.