War Horse/Tintin - 2012 Spielberg Double Review

I have to admit, I was never really a fan of Spielberg. Although not fantastic, I liked Empire of the Sun and Minority Report, but I must have been one of the few people who did not like his war films. Well, after my initial shock that two of his films were releasing within the same month, War Horse and The Adventures of Tintin, I went along and was pleasantly surprised. Both of these films are a must-see, although which one you like best obviously depends on your preferences. Incidentally, both films are adaptations: Tintin is a film of the comic, whereas War Horse was originally a novel and then adapted into a play.
So I've decided to bunch together my reviews of both to compare and contrast. Which film did I feel was better, and which one did I enjoy most? You'll have to read on to find out.
Warning: I do a lot of gushing in this review, and it's not particularly professional.


Plot

Tintin
Everyone knows the story. Tintin is a strapping young Belgian reporter whose curiosity gets him into all sorts of crazy situations. This particular film is based primarily on The Secret of the Unicorn, with features of other Tintin adventures. For those who haven't read the comic, it goes like this: Tintin comes into possession of a model ship, but when the ship is stolen from him, his eagerness to discover the mystery behind it takes him and Captain Haddock on a quest around the world to find a grand treasure. Fairly standard adventure fare, and it's good to see a return to the genre. In fact, Tintin feels like the film Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull should have been.

War Horse
When farmer Mr Narracott comes home with a horse for the farm, his wife is dismayed- after all, a thoroughbred couldn't possibly pull the plough, and they haven't enough money for the rent. But his son Albert takes a shine to the new horse, after all, he'd been there at his birth, and names him Joey. A little thing called World War One approaches, however, and they are forced to sell the horse to the army. The film chronicles the adventures of Albert and Joey through the war, through good and bad. It's better than it sounds!

Which was better? Honestly, it was difficult. Both are quite engaging and exciting, although Tintin seems to rush through a lot. That's why I'm going to have to award the point to War Horse. Tintin just seems to be over too fast, and while the former is an agonising 2 and a half hours long, you really become absorbed into the story because of it, and nothing seems to be superfluous; every scene advances the plot.

Characters

Tintin
Honestly, if you don't know by now, you need to hand in your pop culture license. All the characters, both major and minor, are written perfectly. Thomson and Thompson still get laughs! That's all I need to say. Seriously.

War Horse
The problem I have with the characters of War Horse is that most of them aren't around very long. Sure, you feel emotionally attached to them, but a number of characters are hardly in the film a few minutes before they tragically, um, expire. Such is life! But, the fact that you are emotionally attached to them, even if you don't know their names, is a sign of good writing.
The horse is the star of the show, and it's amazing how a single shot can establish such incredible emotion.

Which was better? I'm going to say that Tintin's characters were more memorable. Each had their own little quirks and uniqueness, whereas I never really got to know many of the stars of War Horse before their tragic demise. Maybe there's a point to be made here.

Visuals and Cinematography

Tintin
This is a bit unfair. Tintin is in 3D. And this is one of the films that I feel really makes the technology shine. Maybe it's the fact that the setting is just fantastical enough to pull you in while keeping your suspension of disbelief. Maybe it's the remarkable character design and uniform art style, or the sweeping, majestic landscapes. Or maybe it's that one awesome chase sequence that is all done in a single shot. And the cinematography is great! There are some truly nice shots. The opening credits sequence is quite fun as well, although I feel Spielberg blows his horn a bit in regards to how his name is treated in it.
We may have finally crossed the uncanny valley with this, though. I was blown away by how realistic some of the characters looked (while still maintaining that fun cartoony look, a hard task!)

War Horse
Also fantastic cinematography. Great use of location, lighting, saturation and weather effects for a perfect atmosphere. The landscape is amazing, although I'm not sure whether it complements or contrasts with Tintin. If there was any CGI I honestly could not tell, but the makeup effects are brilliant. Oh wait, there was one really bizarre scene blend which involved some CGI and looked really out of place, but luckily it's alone and you soon forget about it. I really can't stress how brilliant the camera work is, it's some of the finest I've ever seen. Interestingly enough for a war film, it's entirely bloodless, apparently to dodge an R rating. So I suppose you could take your kids to see it. Key word here being could.

Which was better? I honestly feel that with Tintin, Spielberg was trying to redeem himself for the critical nightmare that was Crystal Skull and make a good impression for the fans. Sure, it's great, but it really seems to come across as trying a bit too hard to impress, especially with all the effects in the climax. War Horse, however, seems so much more real and emotional, and I feel it was the better for it.

Soundtrack
The music for both films is composed by John Williams. I can't compare John Williams to himself.
Tintin's soundtrack is much more upbeat and erratic, while War Horse's is more melodic and subdued. Both are great soundtracks with different feels, and I can't objectively choose one over the other. It really depends on the mood you're in.

Overall
Both films are fantastic, that much I can't stress enough. But one is a war drama, and one is a fun 3D adventure. And while some will object to my comparing two films of entirely different genres, I felt it was an interesting exercise to look at how one director handles it.
Overall, I feel War Horse is the stronger film, but that's not to say that Tintin is bad, it's still great. I highly enjoyed and will recommend both.

Tintin 9/10
War Horse 10/10