Martin Scorsese is the prefect director for this film. Sure it's a family film from the guy who gave us Goodfellas but I don't see why that matters. Only a masterful director of his caliber can fashion an emotional complex film in such a way that the whole family can enjoy it. Hugo (Asa Butterfield) is the secret clock caretaker of Paris' central station and he's working on a special project that his father was working on before dying. But Hugo needs more gears and doodads to complete it. Where better to steal such parts but from the Toy maker (Ben Kingsley) who has a booth in the station. So begins Hugo's adventure into an old man's past and taking this mystery with him is the old man's niece, a book lover named Isabelle (Chloë Grace Moretz). There are many fun eccentric side characters and Inspector Gustav (Sasha Baron Cohen) is the most memorable. There are a few hiccups in pacing and for some reason the build to the end left me slightly underwhelmed, but this is a fine film with a strong story. I had been wanting to read the book by Brian's Selznick for a long time and now I want to read it even more. Grade: A-.
Side note: while I think the use of 3D thematically echos parts of the story I felt like it didn't always work, especially when there's a lot of action. Such a film shows how imperfect 3D is and I can only hope that the technology improves (which it is from what I've read about The Hobbit) or I'll be avoiding this device for most films.
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