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Adventures of Tintin to Close AFI FEST: Building Awareness, Oscar Buzz

The fact that Paramount and Columbia have added The Adventures of Tintin as the AFI FEST’s closing night gala on November 10 suggests that the studios harbor Oscar hopes—or Steven Spielberg does. It’s not unusual for a studio to make a fuss over a marquee filmmaker like Spielberg. But the 3-D performance capture movie has played well to critics and audiences alike in Europe—where the Herge comics are better known—and the studio wants to build awareness here. Spielberg is a past AFI Achievement Award-winner.

The movie, produced by Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy and Peter Jackson with VFX from his Weta studio in Wellywood, stars Jamie Bell as the titular fearless adventurer, Andy Serkis as craggy Captain Haddock, who helps him chase after lost treasure, Daniel Craig as the nefarious Red Rackham, and Nick Frost and Simon Pegg as the Thompson twins. The story is adapted from the Herge comics by Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish. As usual the score is by John Williams, marking the 25th time he has worked with Spielberg. Now that makes me feel old.