Framing Tintin
Cinebeasts Presents: Framing Tintin from Cinebeasts on Vimeo.
In anticipation of the incoming Hollywood adaptation, "Framing Tintin" is a crack at reconciling the world-renowned boy reporter with his murky cinematic past, and get at the truth of why Herge's beloved hero has never made a perfect journey from the page to the screen. A total of five Tintin features were made over a 25-year period, most of them never before screened in the US; additionally, Cinebeasts and Spectacle Theater are proud to present the 2003 documentary Tintin et Moi, as close a psychiatric evaluation of Herge as has ever been made public.
TINTIN ET MOI
(2003 / color / Anders Høgsbro Østergaard / English / 73mins)
Anders Høgsbro Østergaard's 2003 PBS documentary peels back the mythos surrounding Tintin's creator Georges Remi, aka Hergé. Much of it was a self-imposed defense mechanism; behind the comics, Østergaard finds a slippery, obsessively detailed craftsman. The bulk of the creator's life and times are paralleled in the Tintin bibliography; his oppressive childhood, boyscout adolescence, controversial alliance with occupation forces during WW2, initial embrace (and later, rejection) of Belgian colonialism - it's all here. The documentary is lovingly culled from rare 1970s interviews, firsthand testimonies by artistic collaborators and remnants from unfinished projects, amounting to a deep exploration of a practically unclassifiable artist. Friday, December 16th at 730pm.
THE CRAB WITH THE GOLDEN CLAWS
(1947 / black and white / Claude Missone / French / 60mins)
This is Tintin's first-ever film appearance, an art deco stop-motion puppet show dubbed over by a mysterious cast of actors whose first names were never publicly listed. Following its debut 64 years ago, the film was seized to pay for producers' debts in a tale of intrigue worthy only of Hergé himself! It's a straightforward enough adaptation of Tintin's 9th adventure, with jaw-dropping sight gags (watch as a rag doll of Captain Haddock gets tanked on rum) and boundlessly creative solutions to the logistical nightmares inherent in the original book. NEVER BEFORE SCREENED IN THE UNITED STATES! Friday, December 16th at 930pm.
TINTIN AND THE TEMPLE OF THE SUN
(1969 / color / Eddie Lateste / English / 76mins)
Eddie Lateste's frequently surreal animated riff on the Seven Crystal Balls / Prisoners of the Sun storyline boasts music by Francois Rauber & Jacques Brel, alongside scads of faithfully reproduced Tintin tropes: the mysterious curse, the hospital ward chock full of insane archaeologists, the sprawling Incan society, moderate xenophobia, and of course Captain Haddock getting spat on by a llama. Originally aired on Belgian TV in 1969. Saturday, December 17th at 3pm.
TINTIN AND THE MYSTERY OF THE GOLDEN FLEECE
(1961 / color / Jean-Jacques Vierne / French / 93mins)
Tintin's first live-action outing was scrutinized on set by Hergé, but is nevertheless a richly cinematic adaptation painted in broad comedic strokes. Tintin (Jean-Pierre Talbot), Snowy and Captain Haddock intrepidly set out on the Golden Fleece in search of long-lost treasure, encountering the Thompson Twins and Professor Calculus along the way. Although designed for children, anyone young at heart will applaud the sun-bleached antics of Hergé's regulars come to life with uncanny precision, alongside lush panoramas of the Greek and Turkish locations. Saturday, December 17th at 5pm.
TINTIN AND THE LAKE OF SHARKS
(1972 / color / Raymond Leblanc / English / 81mins)
Sunday, December 18th at 3pm.
The 100% original plotline of this Tintin permutation speaks volumes about its production: along with Captain Haddock, our hero is sent to the Balkans to safeguard Professor Calculus' transmogrifier. He ends up getting involved in the kidnapping of two innocent young children, resulting in a submarine chase featuring the shark-sub originally employed in Red Rackham's Treasure. Frequently fun and stuffed with cliffhangers, the film was supervised by Greg, another French comic book artist of similar renown, working at Hergé's studio at the time.
TINTIN AND THE BLUE ORANGES
(1964 / color / Philippe Condroyer / French / 93mins)
Sunday, December 18th at 5pm.
This handsome followup to Golden Fleece boasts the same syrupy color palette and slap-happy sense of humor, with the gang in hot pursuit of a batch of - you guessed it - mysterious blue oranges mailed to Professor Calculus. Their journey takes them to Spain, where the professor is (as usual) kidnapped by thugs. Talbot is especially good here as Tintin, melding wide-eyed pubescent curiosity with brawny fight scenes and never breaking a sweat (or mussing his hair.) The intolerable Bianca Castafiore makes a cameo appearance as well, much to Captain Haddock's chagrin.
