Even if you are the sternest critic of 3D, you cannot help but appreciate the lovely masterpiece called Hugo. The depth of field is beautifully captured so that the use of 3-D technology makes complete sense. The film draws you in immediately and you become part of a spectacular world created by veteran filmmaker, Martin Scorsese.

Hugo, based on a Brian Selznick’s New York Times bestseller The Invention of Hugo Cabret, is the story of a young orphan named Hugo who lives in a Paris railway station in the 1930s. He befriends a girl named Isabelle who has a key that fits into Hugo’s late father’s automaton, a robot-like structure that seems magical and otherworldly to the children. What they don’t know is that this automaton was built by Isabelle’s godfather, Georges Méliès, a former filmmaker who now works as a shopkeeper in the same station where Hugo lives.

Martin Scorsese has created a gem of a film that screams “I am a Scorsese film” despite the fact that there is no sociopath taxi driver or any raging bulls. Georges Méliès is a real character, portrayed excellently by Ben Kingsley. A French master filmmaker and inventor, best known for his film studies essential, A Trip to the Moon, Méliès in real life actually ended up working at a train station. Scorsese, an ambassador for film restoration, re-creates many scenes from Méliès’ films in Hugo, proving that his passion for cinema is still very much alive.

Just as J.J. Abrams paid tribute to Steven Spielberg with his film Super 8, Martin Scorsese pays tribute to his own personal hero and avant garde pioneer of cinema, George Méliès. Hugo is partly adventure and partly a film-history lecture, but the stirring treatment makes it a winner all the way. This is one of 2011’s best films.

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This movie review is part of a Newsline series that looks at some of the Oscar-nominated films for 2012. Hugo received 11 Academy Award nominations.

Click on the links below to read more reviews on Oscar-nominated films:

• The Artist
• The Descendants
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo