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STORY STUDY - MEDIUM: FILM - “Hugo”

Jeffrey Tung
Jul 17, 2017
3 min read

When I was younger, and was still getting into watching as many movies as I could, I simply just ignored the classic/black and white movies. It was only after attending film classes did I have to watch some of the best ones. It was then I had a lot of respect for them.

I feel like everything about Hugo, from the characters, the story, and the overall feel of it represents that love and respect for classic cinema.

Directed by Martin Scorsese, written by John Logan, and based on The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick, the film is about 12-year-old Hugo Cabret who lives at the railway station of Gare Montparnasse. He is constantly avoiding Station Inspector Gustave in fear of being discovered and thrown into an orphanage.

Hugo has in his possession an automaton, basically a wind-up robot toy, who he believes is programmed to have a special message for him left by his dead father.

One day, Hugo tries to steal a toy mouse, but he is caught by the store owner, Georges. Georges notices Hugo’s notebook that contains the image of the automaton. Seeing this makes him angry, and threatens to destroy it.

With the help of Georges’ goddaughter, Isabelle, Hugo aims to get it back, setting off a series of events that slowly solves the mystery of the automaton.

It’s honestly really hard to simplify the story of Hugo. Typically, I try to write down the events that happened in the first act that leads up to what needs to be done throughout the film. Hugo, however, begins when Hugo gets caught stealing the toy mouse, which happens in the first five to ten minutes. Every scene and every minute is a step closer in his journey of getting his notebook back, and overall learning the importance of the automaton. His life and backstory is told through a flashback.

I wrote in the beginning about classic/black and white cinema, but I never mentioned this topic anywhere in my description of the plot. It’s only when this famous image is drawn that it slowly begins to make sense, for the audience and the characters.

This is an illustration of the iconic shot from the short silent film Le Voyage dans la Lune or A Trip to the Moon, directed and written by Georges Melies. Melies is considered a pioneer in narrative filmmaking, and A Trip to the Moon is highly praised for its production value and special effects.

Speaking of special and Academy Award winning visual effects, Hugo delivers that on such a grand scale, despite being primarily set in a railway station. It’s beginning establishing shot of 1931 Paris that slowly zooms through the railway station and finally leading up to a giant clock where we see Hugo spying on the people is beautiful. Using very minimal dialogue, the film sets up the occupants and workers of the station through Hugo’s point of view, as well as establishing Hugo’s job in the station.

There is a sequence where a train derails and crashes through the building, and one where Hugo slowly turns into the automaton. Both are very impressive to look at, but ultimately, it doesn’t add up to anything, as it’s a dream sequence.

My favorite scene is the flashback to Georges’ backstory, and his life as filmmaker working in a studio that was made of glass (to let all available light in), and how he would shoot his films, a lot of which using costumes and clever camera placing in order to get the shots he needed.

Add the fact it was the most nominated film at the 84th Academy Awards, during a time when I was still learning about filmmaking and film history, and you got the perfect film to catch my attention.

I would also recommend watching A Trip to the Moon, which you can easily find on the internet, as well as many other Melies films so you can see how influential he was.