Hugo

Hugo is very fun and touching. It closely follows the story with relatively few plot changes. Like the book, the movie deals with death, the treatment of orphans in the early 1930's of Paris, and friendship. Scenes are made visual that in the book were described in pictures. There is a rather tense (if you've read the book) moment when you see Hugo's dad walking in the museum, as readers of the story may be nervous about the inevitable fire. If you haven't read the book it is a "jump scene" when suddenly a fire rushes at Hugo's father. Also, Hugo's uncle Claude is shown as a drunkard, and later described so. Hugo is almost run over by a train twice, though, it turns out that the first time was just a dream. He also has a disturbing dream that he is turning into the automaton and being crushed by giant cogs. One scene made visual is the demonstration of what happens to orphans: Hugo sees a boy start to steal food, only to be roughly dragged off and put in a puny cell by the station inspector. The next day, that boy is put in a police van and presumably taken to an orphanage. This scene really disturbed my 10 year old sister, though I doubt most kids her age would find it so. There is a sweet romance between three pairs of characters; the station inspector and the flower vendor, a cafe waitress and a man whom her dog hates, and Mr. and Mrs. Méliès. Hugo and Isabelle also become fast friends, and help each other out of (and into) realistic dangers. This film will have appeal to both boys and girls, but may be most enchanting to those who have read The Invention of Hugo Cabret.