Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island is casting a mysterious spell over cinema audiences and his next project looks be an even more spellbinding prospect.
Blending mystery and illusion, The Invention of Hugo Cabret will tell the story of the titular Hugo, an orphan living in a Paris train station and his adventure, sparked by a dream, of museums and robots, and one of the magicians of early cinema, George Melies.
Deadline have kept a close eye on this one, and announced that Sacha Baron Cohen will play Hugo’s uncle and Sir Ben Kingsley will play Melies. They have just followed this up with the news of the two young leads for the film. Hugo himself will be played by Nanny McPhee star and the eponymous Boy in the Striped Pyjamas Asa Butterfield, and his female co-star is none other than Hit-Girl, Chloe Moretz, who will be seen next, post Kick-Ass, in the Matt Reeves directed English language remake of Let the Right One In.
I was sold on this project when I heard Scorsese became involved as its director, he has a demonstrable love of cinema and I can’t wait to see how he incorporates the work of Melies (see his best known work, Trip to the Moon below), and the cast is shaping up very nicely indeed.
The book’s premise, taken from the excellent and extensive Invention of Hugo Cabret website is here:
ORPHAN, CLOCK KEEPER, AND THIEF, twelve-year-old Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric girl and the owner of a small toy booth in the train station, Hugo’s undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message all come together…in The Invention of Hugo Cabret.
We’ll have more on this very interesting film very soon, I have a feeling this one will be something special.
