> REVIEW
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The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (2011)
A new 3D hero…
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By Conor Hunter | October 2011
DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg
WRITER(s): Stephen Moffat/Edgar Wright/Joe Cornish
The opening credits of The Secret of the Unicorn appear over stylish, silhouetted animation that sees Tintin as an Indiana Jones-esque adventurer, film noir detective and gun-slinging action hero, assuring newcomers that this young boy from Brussels has all the ingredients to be a Hollywood star. The scenes are also interspersed with countless references to the original Tintin comic books, reassuring die-hard fans this will be a faithful adaptation. Or perhaps it just conveys Spielberg and (producer) Peter Jackson’s hopes for a new profitable franchise.
The film opens with a painstakingly blunt scene in which original author Hergé (not hidden in the crowd as he was in the books) draws a picture of the famous protagonist in his inimitable style. He may look different, but this is the Tintin we know and love. Rather than try and imitate the comic-book style, the characters in Tintin are rendered hyper-real: you can see every hair and every pore on their cartoon-dimensioned bodies. The style works well with the motion capture technology, with the only character to hang on the edge of the uncanny valley is Snowy (with all their hair and fur, cartoon animals have become notoriously difficult to transfer into third dimension).
The Secret of the Unicorn is the perfect book to attempt to open a franchise with. Firstly, it revolves around firm favourite Captain Haddock, played by seasoned stop-motion actor Andy Serkis, although just as in the books, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s Thomson and Thompson provide the best laughs.
Secondly, it features a western antagonist, allowing the creators to avoid some of the more contentious issues with the series. Finally, it ends on a cliff-hanger, setting itself up perfectly for a sequel (Red Rackham’s Treasure and the introduction of Dr. Cuthbert Calculus). Elements of The Crab With the Golden Claws have also been added to provide the audience with more action, and the exotic locations that are the staple of the Tintin series.
The action has been heightened and the jokes are smuttier, but this film is undeniably Tintin. However, that fact brings problems in itself. Like Spielberg’s previous hero Indy, Tintin has often been criticised as conveying out-dated colonialist values and this film does little to try to overcome or disguise those issues. We are supposed to hope that the treasure goes to the descendant of the colonialist who stole it, rather than the South Americans from whom it was stolen. It’s hard to believe that there isn’t a more suitable hero for the twenty-first century, perhaps one who doesn’t have a back catalogue of twenty-three nostalgia-inducing adventures ready for sequels.
Though attempting a post-colonial adaptation of Tintin would be like attempting a Roman-centric adaptation of Astérix; and one stop-motion 3D film filled with colonial guilt was more than enough. Likewise, there are no strong female characters. In fact, there are barely any female characters at all.
Politics aside, Spielberg proves he is more than capable of directing 3D animation and he creates a perfect balance of action and comedy, consistent with the source material. Even so, he does seem determined to prove to the audience that the extra money for a 3D film is still worth it taking every opportunity to fill the screen with debris and nauseatingly spin the camera. The scenes that best display the director’s talent are the skilful transitions between a sea-fight and desert in the flashback scene and single-shot car chase down a steep hill in Bagghar, which features more shifts in focus than a Flaubert novel.
The plot twists and turns, requiring a lot of expository dialogue to explain what is happening to younger viewers. It feels like writers, Moffat, Wright and Cornish felt that Snowy didn’t feature enough within the film, which leads to a fairly flimsy final denouement, and the impression that the whole exercise could have been avoided if antagonist Rackham had just been a bit tidier.
Script…………………………………………………………………………………………….
The British trio of Stephen Moffat, Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish deliver a well-executed adaptation of the original source material. Dialogue suffers slightly
from exposition but the laughs more than make up for it. 3
Direction………………………………………………………………………………………..
In his first foray into 3D animation, Spielberg proves he is still one of the best
when it comes to directing family-orientated action adventure, even if he does
leave us feeling a little sea-sick at times. 4
Verdict…………………………………………………………………………………………..
Forgive the underlying issues of the source material and you will be rewarded
with a thoroughly enjoyable action adventure. Sure to leave fans of the ginger-
quiffed detective clamouring for more. 3
