Hugo | |
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Directed by | Martin Scorsese |
Produced by | Graham King Timothy Headington Martin Scorsese Johnny Depp |
Screenplay by | John Logan |
Based on | The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick |
Starring | Asa Butterfield Ben Kingsley Chlo? Grace Moretz Sacha Baron Cohen Helen McCrory Richard Griffiths Frances de la Tour Ray Winstone Emily Mortimer Jude Law Christopher Lee |
Music by | Howard Shore |
Cinematography | Robert Richardson |
Editing by | Thelma Schoonmaker |
Studio | GK Films Infinitum Nihil |
Distributed by | Paramount Pictures (Worldwide) Entertainment Film Distributors (UK) |
Release dates |
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Running time | 128 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom United States France |
Language | English |
Budget | $150 to $170 million[2] |
Box office | $185,770,160[3] |
Hugo is a 2011 American 3D historical adventure drama film based on Brian Selznick's novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret about a boy who lives alone in the Gare Montparnasse railway station in Paris. It is directed and co-produced by Martin Scorsese and adapted for the screen by John Logan. It is a co-production of Graham King's GK Films and Johnny Depp's Infinitum Nihil. The film stars Asa Butterfield, Chlo? Grace Moretz, Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Helen McCrory, Ray Winstone, Emily Mortimer, Jude Law, and Christopher Lee.
Hugo is Scorsese's first film shot in 3D, of which the filmmaker remarked: "I found 3D to be really interesting, because the actors were more upfront emotionally. Their slightest move, their slightest intention is picked up much more precisely."[4] The film was distributed by Paramount Pictures and released in the U.S. on 23 November 2011.[5]
The film was received with critical acclaim, with many critics praising the visuals, acting, and direction. At the 84th Academy Awards, Hugo won five Oscars?for Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Sound Editing?and its 11 total nominations (including Best Picture) was the most for the evening.[6] Hugo also won two BAFTAs and was nominated for three Golden Globe Awards, earning Scorsese his third Golden Globe Award for Best Director.
In 1931, Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield) is a 12-year-old boy living in the walls of the Paris Gare Montparnasse railway station, where he tends the station's clocks. Previously, he was raised by his widowed father, a museum worker (Jude Law). His father had doted on Hugo, teaching him the art of repairing mechanical devices, taking him to movies, and showing him how he was repairing an automaton (mechanical man) that supposedly could write a message. After his father was killed in a museum fire Hugo was taken in by his alcoholic Uncle Claude (Ray Winstone) who showed little sentiment for Hugo but taught the boy how to maintain the clocks at the station. When Claude disappears, Hugo continues to maintain the clocks while eking out a living by stealing food and supplies. All the while Hugo lives in fear that if the vigilant Station Inspector, played by (Sacha Baron Cohen), were to discover Hugo, he would be turned over to an orphanage.
Hugo continues the work on the automaton. Relying on his father's notebook for insight, he steals the required parts wherever he can, including the shop of a toymaker who makes and sells mechanical toys. One day, he is finally caught by the bitter toymaker, Papa Georges (Ben Kingsley) who has long known that Hugo robs him. Georges looks through Hugo's father's notebook, is evidently strongly affected by it, and keeps it over Hugo's protests. Hugo is forced to trail Georges to his home to retrieve it. There, he meets Georges' goddaughter, Isabelle (Chlo? Grace Moretz), who promises to help.
At the station on the following day Georges gives some ashes to Hugo, referring them as the remains of the notebook. Later, Isabelle tells him that the note book was not burnt, adding that the notebook has somehow deeply disturbed her Papa Georges. Finally, Georges tells Hugo that he may earn his notebook back if he works in the toy store every day to pay for all the items Hugo stole. During his free time, Hugo continues to work on the automaton. When it is finished, however, it is still missing one part: a heart-shaped key that goes into the back of the automaton to make it work.
As the two grow close together, Hugo takes Isabelle to the movies, something that Georges would never let her do, while she introduces him to a bookstore owner (Christopher Lee) who has loaned her books in the past.
Hugo is surprised to find that Isabelle wears a heart-shaped key as a necklace. He asks to borrow it, but Isabelle refuses to lend the key to Hugo unless he tells her why he needs it. At first Hugo declines, but his desire to see the automaton operate eventually leads him to take Isabelle to see the automaton. They use the key to start the automaton, and watch as it draws out an iconic scene from the film Voyage to the Moon by the film pioneer Georges M?li?s. When the automaton writes a signature beneath the drawing, Isabelle recognizes the name as her godfather's own. They take the drawing to Georges' home for an explanation. They ask Isabelle's godmother Mama Jeanne (Helen McCrory) but she will not tell them anything. As Georges arrives home, Jeanne forces the children into a back room, where they find a hidden compartment in an armoire. In the compartment is a small chest containing a copy of the automaton's drawing and many more drawings besides. The noise of a collapsing chair draws Georges into the room, and he throws Hugo out, feeling betrayed.
Some time later, Hugo and Isabelle discuss M?li?s with the bookstore owner; he directs them to the library, telling them just where they may find a book on the history of film. As they read the book, its author, Rene Tabard (Michael Stuhlbarg), appears and describes his love for M?li?s's work. The book asserts that M?li?s died during World War I, but the children convince Tabard that the filmmaker is still alive. Tabard reveals he has the last known copy of Voyage, and Hugo suggests that they go to the Georges' house to watch it the next evening. That night, Hugo has a dream where he finds a golden heart-shaped key lying on a railbed in the station but is run over by an approaching train and his dream ends with images of the Gare Montparnasse accident of 1895.
The next evening, Jeanne is hesitant about letting them show the film until Tabard recognizes her as Jeanne d'Alcy, a frequent and beautiful actress in many of M?li?s' films. When the film finishes, Georges comes out, and emotionally reveals himself to be M?li?s, recalling his filmmaking career. He transformed his illusionist skills into the special effects he used for his movies to bring his vivid imagination to life. However, with the onset of World War I, his films lost popularity with a war-weary population, and he became ruined, selling the films to be melted down to chemicals, used to mold shoe heels and quietly, disappeared as a toy maker to sustain himself and Jeanne. Georges is despondent, believing all of his former film materials were otherwise destroyed in a museum fire, leading Hugo to recall the automaton.
Hugo races back to the station to get the automaton (intending to use it as a surprise for Georges), but before he can retrieve it, he is discovered by the Station Inspector who reveals that Claude's body had been discovered in the River Seine. The Inspector now knows Hugo is an orphan. During the ensuing chase, Hugo climbs up the clock tower and is forced to climb onto the clock hands to hide from the Inspector. When he goes away, Hugo quickly climbs back in and gets the automaton but is quickly cornered again by the Inspector and the automaton is thrown onto the railway tracks. Despite the approach of an oncoming train, Hugo jumps onto the tracks to recover the automaton. With no time to climb back up onto the platform to save himself and the automaton, Hugo appears to face certain death from the oncoming train. However, the Inspector saves Hugo at the last moment. As the Inspector decides whether or not to arrest Hugo, Georges arrives and asserts that Hugo is now in his care. Hugo presents the automaton to Georges.
Sometime later, a film festival is held showcasing over eighty recovered and restored M?li?s films. Georges tearfully takes the stage, and thanks Hugo for his dedication and to the other attendees for sharing his imagination with him. After the festival, in the Georges' house, Hugo has acclimated as Georges' son, while Isabelle begins writing a book on the recent events. The film ends on a shot of the automaton sitting at a writing desk in a pleasant room, posed as though prepared to resume drawing.
Michael Pitt and Martin Scorsese have cameo roles.
GK Films acquired the screen rights to The Invention of Hugo Cabret shortly after the book was published in 2007. Initially, Chris Wedge was signed in to direct the adaptation and John Logan was contracted to write the screenplay.[7] The film was initially titled Hugo Cabret. Several actors were hired, including Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chlo? Grace Moretz and Helen McCrory. Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Frances de la Tour and Richard Griffiths later joined the project. The venture was officially launched into production in London on June 29, 2010. The first shooting location was at the Shepperton Studios in London along with other places in London and Paris.[8] The Nene Valley Railway near Peterborough, also loaned their original Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits rolling stock to the studio.[9][10] The film's soundtrack includes an Oscar-nominated original score composed by Howard Shore, and also makes prominent use of the Danse macabre by Camille Saint-Saens and the first Gnossienne by Erik Satie.
Hugo was originally budgeted at $100 million but overran with a final budget of between $156 million and $170 million.[11] In February 2012, Graham King summed up his experience of producing Hugo: "Let?s just say that it hasn?t been an easy few months for me ? there?s been a lot of Ambien involved".
This section needs additional citations for verification. (March 2012) |
The overall backstory and primary features of Georges M?li?s' life as depicted in the film are largely accurate: he became interested in film after seeing a demonstration of the Lumi?re brothers' camera,[12] he was a magician and toymaker, he experimented with automata, he owned a theatre (Theatre Robert-Houdin), he was forced into bankruptcy, his film stock was reportedly melted down for its cellulose, he became a toy salesman at the Montparnasse station, and he was eventually awarded the L?gion d'honneur medal after a period of terrible neglect. Many of the early silent films shown in the movie are M?li?s's actual works, such as Le voyage dans la lune (1902). However, the film does not mention M?li?s' two children, his brother Gaston (who worked with M?li?s during his film making career), or his first wife Eug?nie, who was married to M?li?s during the time he made films (Eug?nie died in 1913). The film shows M?li?s as having been married to Jeanne d'Alcy during their film making period, when in reality, they did not marry until 1925.
The design for the automaton was inspired by one made by the Swiss watchmaker Henri Maillardet, which Selznick had seen in the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia,[13] as well as the Jaquet-Droz automaton "the writer".[14]
Several viewings of the film L'Arriv?e d'un train en gare de La Ciotat are portrayed, depicting the shocked reaction of the audience - although this view is in doubt.[15]
Emil Lager, Ben Addis, and Robert Gill make cameo appearances as Django Reinhardt, the father of Gypsy jazz guitar, Salvador Dal?, the Spanish surrealist painter, and James Joyce, the Irish writer, respectively. The names of all three characters appear towards the end of the film's cast credit list.[16]
The book that Monsieur Labisse gives Hugo as a gift, Robin Hood le proscrit, was written by Alexandre Dumas in 1864 as a French translation of a 1838 work by Pierce Egan the Younger in England. The book is symbolic, as Hugo must avoid the "righteous" law enforcement (represented by Inspector Gustave) to live in the station and later to restore the automaton both to a functioning status and to its rightful owner.
Rotten Tomatoes reported that 187 out of 200 reviews were positive, for a score of 94% and a certification of "fresh".[17] Similarly, Metacritic gave the film an average score of 83 based on 41 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[18]
Roger Ebert of Chicago Sun-Times gave the film four out of four stars saying "Hugo is unlike any other film Martin Scorsese has ever made, and yet possibly the closest to his heart: a big-budget, family epic in 3-D, and in some ways, a mirror of his own life. We feel a great artist has been given command of the tools and resources he needs to make a movie about ? movies."[19] Peter Rainer of the Christian Science Monitor gave it a "B " grade and termed it as an "an odd mixture: a deeply personal impersonal movie" and concluded that ""Hugo" is a mixed bag but one well worth rummaging through."[20] Christy Lemire of the U-T San Diego said that it had an "abundant love of the power of film; being a hardcore cinephile (like Scorsese) might add a layer of enjoyment, but it certainly isn't a prerequisite for walking in the door" besides being "slightly repetitive and overlong".[21] Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune rated it 3 stars and described it as "Rich and stimulating even when it wanders" explaining "every locale in Scorsese's vision of 1931 Paris looks and feels like another planet. The filmmaker embraces storybook artifice as wholeheartedly as he relays the tale's lessons in the importance of film preservation."[22] Joe Morgenstern of The Wall Street Journal gave a negative review, saying "visually Hugo is a marvel, but dramatically it's a clockwork lemon.[23]
Hugo was selected for the Royal Film Performance 2011 with a screening at the Odeon, Leicester Square in London on 28 November 2011 in the presence of TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall in support of the Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund.[24]
Richard Corliss of Time named it one of the Top 10 Best Movies of 2011, saying "Scorsese's love poem, rendered gorgeously in 3-D, restores both the reputation of an early pioneer and the glory of movie history ? the birth of a popular art form given new life through a master's application of the coolest new techniques".[25]
James Cameron called Hugo "a masterpiece" and that the film had the best use of 3D he had seen, surpassing even his own acclaimed films.[26]
Hugo grossed $73,864,507 in North America and $111,905,653 elsewhere for a worldwide total of $185,770,160.[3]
The film has appeared on the following critics' top ten lists for the best films of 2011:
Critic | Publication | Rank |
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David Denby | The New Yorker | 1st |
Harry Knowles | Aint It Cool News | 1st[27] |
Shawn Levy | The Oregonian (Portland) | 1st[28] |
Noel Murray | A.V. Club | 2nd |
Glenn Kenny | MSN Movies | 2nd |
Peter Hartlaub | San Francisco Chronicle | 2nd |
Richard Corliss | Time | 2nd |
Roger Ebert | Chicago Sun-Times | 4th |
Lisa Schwarzbaum | Entertainment Weekly | 4th |
Richard Brody | The New Yorker | 4th |
Peter Paras | E! Online | 5th |
N/A | MTV | 5th |
Todd McCarthy | The Hollywood Reporter | 6th |
Peter Travers | Rolling Stone | 6th |
N/A | TV Guide | 7th |
J. Hoberman | Village Voice | 8th |
Mark Kermode | BBC Radio 5 Live | 9th |
Kim Morgan | MSN Movies | 9th |
Keith Phipps | A.V. Club | 9th |
Sean Axmaker | MSN Movies | 10th |
Glenn Heath Jr. | Slant Magazine | 10th |
Jeff Simon | The Buffalo News | N/A |
Manohla Dargis | The New York Times | N/A |
Phillip French | The Observer | N/A |
Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipients and nominees | Result |
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Academy Awards[29][30] | 26 February 2012 | Best Picture | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Adapted Screenplay | John Logan | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Won | ||
Best Original Score | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Best Art Direction | Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo | Won | ||
Best Costume Design | Sandy Powell | Nominated | ||
Best Visual Effects | Robert Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossmann and Alex Henning | Won | ||
Best Film Editing | Thelma Schoonmaker | Nominated | ||
Best Sound Editing | Philip Stockton and Eugene Gearty | Won | ||
Best Sound Mixing | Tom Fleischman and John Midgley | Won | ||
Alliance of Women Film Journalists[31][32] | 10 January 2012 | Best Picture | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Adapted Screenplay | John Logan | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Best Editing | Thelma Schoonmaker | Won | ||
American Society of Cinematographers[33] | 12 February 2012 | Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in a Feature Film | Robert Richardson | Nominated |
Art Directors Guild[34] | 4 February 2012 | Period Film | Dante Ferretti | Won |
Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards[35] | 27 January 2012 | Best Film?? International | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Direction?? International | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Boston Society of Film Critics Award | 11 December 2011 | Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Won |
Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated 2nd place |
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Best Editing | Thelma Schoonmaker | Nominated 2nd place |
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BAFTA[36][37] | 12 February 2012 | Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Best Original Score | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Best Sound | Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty, Tom Fleischman and John Midgley | Won | ||
Best Editing | Thelma Schoonmaker | Nominated | ||
Best Production Design | Dante Ferretti and Francesca Lo Schiavo | Won | ||
Best Costume Design | Sandy Powell | Nominated | ||
Best Makeup and Hair | Morag Ross and Jan Archibald | Nominated | ||
Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Picture | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated | |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Young Actor/Actress | Asa Butterfield | Nominated | ||
Best Adapted Screenplay | John Logan | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Best Editing | Thelma Schoonmaker | Nominated | ||
Best Production Design/Art Direction | Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo | Won | ||
Best Score | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Best Costume Design | Sandy Powell | Nominated | ||
Best Visual Effects | Robert Legato | Nominated | ||
Best Sound | Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty, Tom Fleischman and John Midgley | Nominated | ||
Chicago Film Critics Association[38][39] | 7 January 2012 | Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Best Score | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Detroit Film Critics Society[40] | 16 December 2011 | Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards[41] | 19 December 2011 | Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Won |
Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Production Design/Art Direction | Dante Ferretti and Francesca Lo Schiavo | Won | ||
Golden Globe Awards[42][43] | 15 January 2012 | Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Won |
Best Motion Picture ? Drama | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Original Score | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Hugo Awards (Science Fiction Achievement Awards) | 2 September 2012 | Best Dramatic Presentation (Long Form) | Martin Scorsese and John Logan | Nominated |
Indiana Film Critics Association | Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated | |
Best Musical Score | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Las Vegas Film Critics Society | 13 December 2011 | Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Family Film | Won | |||
Best Film Editing | Thelma Schoonmaker | Won | ||
Best Youth in Film | Asa Butterfield | Won | ||
National Board of Review[44] | Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Won | |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Won | ||
New York Film Critics Circle Award | 29 November 2011 | Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated 2nd place |
Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated 3rd place |
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Online Film Critics Society Awards | 2 January 2012 | Best Picture | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Phoenix Film Critics Society | 27 December 2011 | Best Picture | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Adapted Screenplay | John Logan | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Best Production Design | Dante Ferretti | Won | ||
Best Costume Design | Sandy Powell | Nominated | ||
Best Visual Effects | Robert Legato | Won | ||
Best Live Action Family Film | Nominated | |||
Satellite Awards | 19 December 2011 | Best Picture | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated |
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Art Direction and Production Design | Dante Ferretti and Francesca Lo Schiavo | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Best Visual Effects | Robert Legato | Won | ||
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards | 14 December 2011 | Best Production Design | Dante Ferretti | Won |
Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Adapted Screenplay | John Logan | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Best Editing | Thelma Schoonmaker | Nominated | ||
Best Score | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Saturn Awards[45] | 20 June 2012 | Best Fantasy Film | Nominated | |
Best Actor | Ben Kingsley | Nominated | ||
Best Performance by a Younger Actor | Asa Butterfield | Nominated | ||
Chlo? Grace Moretz | Nominated | |||
Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Writing | John Logan | Nominated | ||
Best Music | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Best Costume | Sandy Powell | Nominated | ||
Best Production Design | Dante Ferretti | Won | ||
Best Editing | Thelma Schoonmaker | Nominated | ||
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards[46] | 5 December 2011 | Best Director | Martin Scorsese | Won |
Best Art Direction | Dante Derretti | Won | ||
Best Film | Graham King and Martin Scorsese | Nominated | ||
Best Acting Ensemble | Nominated | |||
Best Adapted Screenplay | John Logan | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Robert Richardson | Nominated | ||
Best Score | Howard Shore | Nominated | ||
Young Artist Award[47] | 6 May 2012 | Best Performance in a Feature Film - Leading Young Actor | Asa Butterfield | Nominated |
Best Performance in a Feature Film - Leading Young Actress | Chlo? Grace Moretz | Won |
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