Hergé mentality

FOR many, taking their children or grandchildren to the new Spielberg blockbuster Tintin was done with mixed emotions.
For the generations who grew up with the ginger-haired reporter and followed his globe-trotting exploits, the thought of someone messing with Hergé’s famous character was a little hard to stomach.
Would it be sanitised to suit Hollywood family values or Americanised so as not to scare off US audiences?
Thankfully, the latest adventure, “Tintin and the Hollywood Blockbuster”, saw the intrepid journalist come out unscathed and even with his reputation enhanced.
Loosely based on the “Secret of the Unicorn”, the “motion capture” animation creates a life-like feel while allowing the creative folk full scope to build stunning scenery, action and effects.
The story is fast-paced and doesn’t suffer from the holes in the plot that bedevil so many action films.
My eight-year-old son seemed a little confused and even bored by the more arcane aspects of the sometimes complicated plot. His 13-year-old brother enjoyed every moment.
Some of the themes are a wee bit adult, with Captain Haddock’s battle with alcoholism one example and a passing reference to bestiality another.
But overall this is not a film that suffers, as many “kids” movies do, by winking too much at adults.
The people behind the film seem to have understood what generations of children have loved about the books – the international intrigue, sharp humour and, most of all, rollicking action.
Do yourself a favour, as someone famous once said, and see Tintin on the big screen where it will be at its very best. Even better, a colleague assures me, is the 3D experience.
Great snakes, this is not a film to be missed.
-Danny Buttler