So here I am again, reviewing a live action Tintin movie from the 1960s, this time Tintin and the Blue Oranges from 1964.
Yes, three years later and a sequel (of sorts) was made, with Tintin still played by a (slightly older) Jean-Pierre Talbot, but much of the rest of the cast changing. More on some of that later. Let's start with the plot.
On this occasion, Professor Calculus dreams of ending world hunger, a task aided by by the discovery of a desert-proof blue orange that's been created by Professor Zalamea in Spain. But the 'orange' sent over by the Spanish professor is stolen, leading to a Spanish trek for Tintin, Snowy, Calculus and Haddock to find out what's going on. Not long after they arrive, both professors are kidnapped and taken to a secret lab - and it's up to Tintin and the Captain to once again, save the day. Will they? I think you know the answer to that.
Some years back, I was in a movie memorabilia store in Paris and encountered a vintage poster for a live-action Tintin movie. I'd never heard of it and to be honest, I'd heard little of it since. Perhaps because it has never been available in the UK and was only ever shown once on TV - a bank holiday Monday in 1978 according to the booklet. So I was very pleased to see the release of Tintin and the Mystery of the Golden Fleece on DVD - not least because I was (and still am) a huge Tintin fan.
To be honest, I expected the worst. A kids' version of the comic strip classic, played out for laughs with little or no budget. How wrong I was. Tintin and the Mystery of the Golden Fleece is a big budget number, described by the BFI, quite rightly, as a James Bond film for kids and with creator Herge apparently on-set and watching over things, a very faithful screen adaptation, right down to Captain Haddock's dodgy facial hair.
