94% Hugo

All Critics (146) | Top Critics (38) | Fresh (135) | Rotten (9)

Scorsese transforms this innocent tale into an ardent love letter to the cinema and a moving plea for film preservation.

'Hugo': Scorsese's humbling hommage to his favorite art

Thematic potency and cinematic virtuosity -- the production was designed by Dante Ferretti and photographed by Robert Richardson -- can't conceal a deadly inertness at the film's core.

For all the wizardry on display, Hugo often feels like a film about magic instead of a magical film...

I have seen the future of 3-D moviemaking, and it belongs to Martin Scorsese, unlikely as that may sound.

It's a fairy tale for mature viewers, but the airy exterior hides emotional depth.

A dreamy triumph for Scorsese

The film demands patience from children and adults alike -- in fact, it's simply too slow for young viewers -- but like great literature, if you immerse yourself in it, the rewards are plentiful.

As a crazy mix of Cinema Paradiso, Cronos and David Copperfield it's unusually stimulating family fare.

The man responsible for Raging Bull, Taxi Driver and GoodFellas has tackled his first family film. Not only that: it's in 3-D, and a must-see for anyone who loves cinema.

The heart-shaped story may be the key that sets Hugo in motion, but this rediscovery of the cin?ma de papa is most memorable for its technical wizardry and astonishing visual trickery.

Hugo's best moments are those that aren't actually Hugo.

It is glorious to be thrown and blown about in this make-believe metropolis. The digitally enhanced shapes and colours suggest Jeunet and Caro reworked by a polychromatic Piranesi.

As soon as the lights went up in the theater, I told my viewing companions that I honestly felt that seeing the film was a privilege.

[T]here's certainly much to admire here... [but] Hugo feels like two very different films inelegantly spliced together...

It's possible to see the attraction, but when people break into applause over the credits, some are going to be left cold.

It's a deeply felt piece of work, something which only Scorsese could have brought to the screen...

Beautifully photographed and well acted but the storyline, especially when Kingsley's character takes center stage, is tediously tiring

Martin Scorsese unleashes his devotion to the magic of movies with a zeal that is enchanting.?

For youngsters with a secret sense of wonder about how the world works, Scorsese is offering a golden key to a limitless world of make-believe.

A masterpiece of visual storytelling and a heartfelt homage to the industry that Scorsese has triumphantly made his own.

Beautifully made and superbly acted, Hugo features terrific 3D effects and stands as a charming love letter to silent cinema, but it's let down by a weak central plot and the script never quite connects on an emotional level.

It might be curtains for celluloid, but Scorsese, a boyish 69, clearly isn't leaving the stage any time soon. He directs every film with the passion of his first. And it shows.

Director Martin Scorsese's well-documented affection for all things cinema has never been more evident than in the enchanting and imaginative Hugo.

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Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hugo/

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