94% Hugo

All Critics (154) | Top Critics (38) | Fresh (144) | Rotten (10)

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.

Director Martin Scorsese brings us an enchanting Christmas gift ... a marvelously inventive and inspiring 3-D film that has a heartfelt holiday message.

'Hugo' was an amazing cinematic experience for me, even though I'm not a 3-D fan.

Hugo is a master filmmaker's gift to children. It teaches, in an age-appropriate way, why movies are important and why it's essential that we take care of them. One of Scorsese's best!

Opulent, dazzling, enchanting screen adaptation of a beloved children's book. It's family-friendly fun.

( ... ) goose down floating around the set takes Scorsese's hard-hitting career into soft new dimensions

Leave it to Martin Scorsese to use 3-D not as a gimmick, but as a means of drawing us into a unique and magical environment...

The lesson to be learned is that [Scorsese] should stick to what he knows best, for Hugo won't appeal to anyone, least of all kids.

The on-screen craftsmanship is impeccable, from Robert Richardson's stunning cinematography to Dante Ferretti's production design and Sandy Powell's costumes.

Hugo is cinema shining a light reverently up its own fundament.

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...

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

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