Aha !! So, Tintin babu and Kuttush are finally here on silverscreen. Good!! What it is personally to me... I guess a lot... Nothing less that a dream came true . A
dream cherished somewhere in the late 80s, when I first had a chance to put my hands in Bengali version of Tintin collected by my cousin brother in Varanasi. Some
where actually 'original' Casterman versions, while some were binded up pages from Bengali Children's magazine "Anandmela", in which Tintin was published in a
serialised manner.
****
That was a time !!
Lot many things have changed since then. May be just the media... from cellulose to CRT, may be a generation which has grown up with a staple diet may be the variances between the original Comics and the Eliipse-Nevalana
produced animation series with a soul stirring score by Ray Parker and Tom Szczesniak. First aired on DD Metro on Sunday mornings around 1995, and later on Cartoon
Network around 2000.
****
This creation of Herge or Georges Prosper Remi stands tall both in Time and Geographical space. I doubt if other creations of him, like "Totor","Quick & Flupke" or
"Jo, Zette and Jocko" enjoyed such a global fan following.
Speilberg/Jackson (SJ) 's Tintin boasts of Motion oops!! Performance Capture and perhaps the best in terms of Technical finesse. Tintin's and Snowy ( Kuttush in Bengali ).
SJ do it with elan and only Christmas weekend will tell if it goes down well with US audience,who by far,are 'sliiiiiiiiiightly' unaccustomed of the Tintin phenomena.
I beleive European and Indian response will be damn good.period.
Well, Adventures of Tintin does sets an introductory ground for movies to come. you ahve Thomson duo, friendship with Haddock, a character skecth of Madame Bianca Castaphiore. Yep, I agree that the Technical finesse was a bit let down in terms that how "Clear Line" drawing approach is gonna fit the screen. Outstanding 3D, yess sir.. full marks for that ! And trust me, better forget the fact that this movie is based specifically on a particular Tintin album, as it in bits and parts adapts story yarns from different albums/comics. But as a movie, yes, its worth.
The adventure spans around ancestral treasure belonging(?) to Captain Haddock, and how Tintin aids him fight Sacharine,the essential baddie,in recovering scrolls hiding pointers to the treasure, garnished with a solllid chase sequence, and a powerfuel flashback. Opening credits had references to a lot of Tintin albums. he he..
Ivan Ivanovitch Sakharine resembled less of Daniel-"sad James Bond"-Craige and more of Spielberg himself!! Snowy... Tintin's Wire Fox Terrier soulmate was worth a treat knowing the fact that it was fully Computer Genarated, and remained fluffy !! Andy Serkis gives a blast once again in 2011 as Haddock after portraying "Caesar" in "Planet of the Apes". No, sorry, Freida Pinto played the role of leading lady in that movie. It was Andy Serkis who was Performance-captured for the same.
Details like these should not be confused.
So, cutting it shaart , here are my fav scenes from the movie :
[ I think I have already mentioned about spoilers, and if you are here, it means you just simply dont care !! Well, on another note... Thanks for visiting this page and reading till here in the first place :-D ]
1.) Herge himself drawing a portrait of Tintin !!!! ( Say what Speilberg sir ??!!! )
2.) Tintin's reflections in the mirrors at different angles,
3.) Motorbike chase,
4.) Haddock's images thru Whiskey bottles,
5.) Facial expressions of Haddock ! #WIN,
6.) Snowy chasing a boxed-in Tintin, and the "udder" cow pen bumps. :)
****
The 1970-2000 era can be marked as the best in terms of the Peaks that Comics industry might have attained in India *ever*.
Be it translated versions of Tintin or its Indian counterparts like "Chacha Chaudhary","Ram Rahim","Motu Patlu","Madhu Muskan","Indrajaal Comics" featuring "Phantom","Bahadur","Shikari Shambhu" ( 1970s - 80s ),and later with advent of Comics along with Novellas targeted at a much younger audience including "Nagraj","Super Commamndo Dhruv","Angara","Rajan Iqbaal" "baal upanyaas" and with advent of more darker characters like Doga.
It would be kind of a crime if I do not mention "Baankelaal" and "Hawaldaar Bahadur" who my familiy's personal favourite! :-D
Tintin was however confined to Bengali Translations till mid-late 90's and just had a more "elite" fan following majorly in certain areas and yes,mainly in Libraries of well-to-do-public-schools or Colleges of high repute like IITs/RECs.
I am not sure that how much Hindi and other regional translations of Tintin **OR** other Indian Comic brands have worked out in terms of business, in the same era, because of :
1.) Early 80 born "sapoots" like me were banging their testicles on bicycle seats just to overcome the biggest challenge of their life:
"You-score-good-percentage-in-10th/12th,-or-consider-yourself-Eff-you-see-kay-eee-dee-for-life!!!"
2.) Pesky n sweaty Video Game parlors cropping up at an exponential scale in small towns, which was again considered to be an object of the elite in late 80s.
3.) Increased penetration of Cable TV, offering a variety of entertainment, which some how Doordarshan was lagging. I still remember "The Three Stooges", "Ghostbusters" every evening on Sony,or "Aladdin" on DD... YES, with some well crafted TV serials as well.
4.) Attending nearby all-girls-school after the final "bells" rang ( Yessir.... attending as in 'attendance' ), and understanding the fact that u need not to be a pimp to have pimples. Geez... Thanks Hamdard Dawakhana for manugacturing "Safi"... but no thanks for its side effects in the sense that after the dosage, the pimples cropped up in not-so-comfortable regions. Urgh ! That explains why those guys dint receive any Nobel for medicine.
5.) The sprouting of "Saas-Bahu-effect" on TV.
6.a.) Availability of cheap porn near Bus Stands.
6.b.) Ta - da -ding - dong - dung !!!! Internet at a blaaaazing speed of 56 kbps on BSNLs dial up !!!! in seedy Cyber Cafes. which eventually led to some self Information Technology oriented discoveries prior to advent of Google like:
6.b.1) How to make Pamela Andersdon's pics file hidden on a 20 Rupalli - 1.44 MB Amkette floppy, right clicked from a Knowledge oriented website whose name started with "desi" ?
6.b.2) How to copy a 5 MB Michalel Jackson song on a floppy ? or on how many floppies will I need considering the fact that 1MB is not actoally 1 guna 1000 bytes but 1024 ?
6.b.2.A) Which software would I need to cut that song into those 5 chunks?
6.b.3) How to re-incarnate a badly screwed up floppy using a shady Nehru Place Software? Floppy-drive-head-be-damned!!
A motivation of this proportion is needed to promote IT self - paced - learning in India :-D !!
7.) Advent of 24 hour Newd Channels to satisfy the Mental Dysentry and Diarrhoea, where the stones/cow dung filled inside the head of news reporters were filling up the vacant space inside the audience's head. [ Courtesy : Vikas Swarup ]
Sorry... That was "News Channels". Typo urrur .. you no ??
Life was really changing into instant mode.... "Why should I concentrate n read comics man??... Better lay down for an hour or so, munch on like a light brown colored elliptical belleyed cow and just-watch-TV!! don't I have my friggin Tutions to attend for each subject at different corners of the city?"
Yipps.. that too mixed with other mofussil responsibilities like normal household chores and usual candle light dinners.
( Its all post-mid 90s dude, when words like power backup, UPS and Inverter were heared only at Railway Reservation Counters. E-banking ..what ?? )
So, Tintin/Nagraj/Baankelal just started taking a back seat in the lives of us "We!! - early - 80 - born - pind - da - mundaaas" ( Please read it with the vigor and vitality of Akshay Kumar from "Singh is King"'s Panchaayat scene).
Priorities .. you know !!!!!
dream cherished somewhere in the late 80s, when I first had a chance to put my hands in Bengali version of Tintin collected by my cousin brother in Varanasi. Some
where actually 'original' Casterman versions, while some were binded up pages from Bengali Children's magazine "Anandmela", in which Tintin was published in a
serialised manner.
****
That was a time !!
Lot many things have changed since then. May be just the media... from cellulose to CRT, may be a generation which has grown up with a staple diet may be the variances between the original Comics and the Eliipse-Nevalana
produced animation series with a soul stirring score by Ray Parker and Tom Szczesniak. First aired on DD Metro on Sunday mornings around 1995, and later on Cartoon
Network around 2000.
****
This creation of Herge or Georges Prosper Remi stands tall both in Time and Geographical space. I doubt if other creations of him, like "Totor","Quick & Flupke" or
"Jo, Zette and Jocko" enjoyed such a global fan following.
Speilberg/Jackson (SJ) 's Tintin boasts of Motion oops!! Performance Capture and perhaps the best in terms of Technical finesse. Tintin's and Snowy ( Kuttush in Bengali ).
SJ do it with elan and only Christmas weekend will tell if it goes down well with US audience,who by far,are 'sliiiiiiiiiightly' unaccustomed of the Tintin phenomena.
I beleive European and Indian response will be damn good.period.
Well, Adventures of Tintin does sets an introductory ground for movies to come. you ahve Thomson duo, friendship with Haddock, a character skecth of Madame Bianca Castaphiore. Yep, I agree that the Technical finesse was a bit let down in terms that how "Clear Line" drawing approach is gonna fit the screen. Outstanding 3D, yess sir.. full marks for that ! And trust me, better forget the fact that this movie is based specifically on a particular Tintin album, as it in bits and parts adapts story yarns from different albums/comics. But as a movie, yes, its worth.
The adventure spans around ancestral treasure belonging(?) to Captain Haddock, and how Tintin aids him fight Sacharine,the essential baddie,in recovering scrolls hiding pointers to the treasure, garnished with a solllid chase sequence, and a powerfuel flashback. Opening credits had references to a lot of Tintin albums. he he..
Ivan Ivanovitch Sakharine resembled less of Daniel-"sad James Bond"-Craige and more of Spielberg himself!! Snowy... Tintin's Wire Fox Terrier soulmate was worth a treat knowing the fact that it was fully Computer Genarated, and remained fluffy !! Andy Serkis gives a blast once again in 2011 as Haddock after portraying "Caesar" in "Planet of the Apes". No, sorry, Freida Pinto played the role of leading lady in that movie. It was Andy Serkis who was Performance-captured for the same.
Details like these should not be confused.
So, cutting it shaart , here are my fav scenes from the movie :
[ I think I have already mentioned about spoilers, and if you are here, it means you just simply dont care !! Well, on another note... Thanks for visiting this page and reading till here in the first place :-D ]
1.) Herge himself drawing a portrait of Tintin !!!! ( Say what Speilberg sir ??!!! )
2.) Tintin's reflections in the mirrors at different angles,
3.) Motorbike chase,
4.) Haddock's images thru Whiskey bottles,
5.) Facial expressions of Haddock ! #WIN,
6.) Snowy chasing a boxed-in Tintin, and the "udder" cow pen bumps. :)
****
The 1970-2000 era can be marked as the best in terms of the Peaks that Comics industry might have attained in India *ever*.
Be it translated versions of Tintin or its Indian counterparts like "Chacha Chaudhary","Ram Rahim","Motu Patlu","Madhu Muskan","Indrajaal Comics" featuring "Phantom","Bahadur","Shikari Shambhu" ( 1970s - 80s ),and later with advent of Comics along with Novellas targeted at a much younger audience including "Nagraj","Super Commamndo Dhruv","Angara","Rajan Iqbaal" "baal upanyaas" and with advent of more darker characters like Doga.
It would be kind of a crime if I do not mention "Baankelaal" and "Hawaldaar Bahadur" who my familiy's personal favourite! :-D
Tintin was however confined to Bengali Translations till mid-late 90's and just had a more "elite" fan following majorly in certain areas and yes,mainly in Libraries of well-to-do-public-schools or Colleges of high repute like IITs/RECs.
I am not sure that how much Hindi and other regional translations of Tintin **OR** other Indian Comic brands have worked out in terms of business, in the same era, because of :
1.) Early 80 born "sapoots" like me were banging their testicles on bicycle seats just to overcome the biggest challenge of their life:
"You-score-good-percentage-in-10th/12th,-or-consider-yourself-Eff-you-see-kay-eee-dee-for-life!!!"
2.) Pesky n sweaty Video Game parlors cropping up at an exponential scale in small towns, which was again considered to be an object of the elite in late 80s.
3.) Increased penetration of Cable TV, offering a variety of entertainment, which some how Doordarshan was lagging. I still remember "The Three Stooges", "Ghostbusters" every evening on Sony,or "Aladdin" on DD... YES, with some well crafted TV serials as well.
4.) Attending nearby all-girls-school after the final "bells" rang ( Yessir.... attending as in 'attendance' ), and understanding the fact that u need not to be a pimp to have pimples. Geez... Thanks Hamdard Dawakhana for manugacturing "Safi"... but no thanks for its side effects in the sense that after the dosage, the pimples cropped up in not-so-comfortable regions. Urgh ! That explains why those guys dint receive any Nobel for medicine.
5.) The sprouting of "Saas-Bahu-effect" on TV.
6.a.) Availability of cheap porn near Bus Stands.
6.b.) Ta - da -ding - dong - dung !!!! Internet at a blaaaazing speed of 56 kbps on BSNLs dial up !!!! in seedy Cyber Cafes. which eventually led to some self Information Technology oriented discoveries prior to advent of Google like:
6.b.1) How to make Pamela Andersdon's pics file hidden on a 20 Rupalli - 1.44 MB Amkette floppy, right clicked from a Knowledge oriented website whose name started with "desi" ?
6.b.2) How to copy a 5 MB Michalel Jackson song on a floppy ? or on how many floppies will I need considering the fact that 1MB is not actoally 1 guna 1000 bytes but 1024 ?
6.b.2.A) Which software would I need to cut that song into those 5 chunks?
6.b.3) How to re-incarnate a badly screwed up floppy using a shady Nehru Place Software? Floppy-drive-head-be-damned!!
A motivation of this proportion is needed to promote IT self - paced - learning in India :-D !!
7.) Advent of 24 hour Newd Channels to satisfy the Mental Dysentry and Diarrhoea, where the stones/cow dung filled inside the head of news reporters were filling up the vacant space inside the audience's head. [ Courtesy : Vikas Swarup ]
Sorry... That was "News Channels". Typo urrur .. you no ??
Life was really changing into instant mode.... "Why should I concentrate n read comics man??... Better lay down for an hour or so, munch on like a light brown colored elliptical belleyed cow and just-watch-TV!! don't I have my friggin Tutions to attend for each subject at different corners of the city?"
Yipps.. that too mixed with other mofussil responsibilities like normal household chores and usual candle light dinners.
( Its all post-mid 90s dude, when words like power backup, UPS and Inverter were heared only at Railway Reservation Counters. E-banking ..what ?? )
So, Tintin/Nagraj/Baankelal just started taking a back seat in the lives of us "We!! - early - 80 - born - pind - da - mundaaas" ( Please read it with the vigor and vitality of Akshay Kumar from "Singh is King"'s Panchaayat scene).
Priorities .. you know !!!!!
:) good one
ReplyDeletei would like to mention.. being ignorant is a bliss and that's what we are perfect at. But keep writing people like me can understand things you wrote here :)