Tintin Films Collection (1964 – 1972 Animated Feature Films/Madman Entertainment/PAL Region 4/Four DVD Import Set)

 

Picture: C     Sound: C     Extras: C     Films: B+

 

 

PLEASE NOTE: This DVD set can only be operated on machines capable of playing back DVDs that can handle Region Four/4 PAL format software and can be ordered from our friends at Madman Entertainment at the website address provided at the end of the review.

 

 

Welcome back a blast from the past, Tintin. Along with his faithful fox terrier, Snowy, the young freelance Belgian reporter finds himself more often caught up in the story than reporting it.  Anything from political unrest, unsolved mysteries, to pure science fiction can happen.  Tintin always seems to fall right into the middle of things.  Along with his friends Captain Archibald Haddock, Professor Calculus, Thomson and Thompson they'll cross over land or sea, to fight evil, dictators, or even the supernatural to protect the peace of the world (or each other) from time to time.
 
Tintin is a well known comic and loved throughout the world and captured the hearts of millions.  Created by Georges Rémi, Hergé. Tintin portrays how an average citizen can do heroic acts and feats.  With the help and support of his friends they always manage to solve the case, the alcohol loving Captain Haddock helping him out from one scrape to another, Professor Calculus with his various inventions and knowledge, and the bumbling Thomson and Thompson detectives with the uncanny knack to show up anywhere.  They fight for friends, justice and the common good of the people.
 
These films are a classic of the 20th century animation.  It is reflective of some of the ideas of the time period, from social reform, to new technologies to paranormal phenomenon.  The characters are funny, touching and comical at times, as they portray a common day characters that people can relate to.  A young man with his faithful dog and his friends...  and not some superhero(s) or special task force.

 

Though created in Belgian and popularized in France the characters do not particularly represent their nationalities but are more neutral and you can imagine them to be more like a next door neighbor.
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The Calculus Affair / L'Affaire Tournesol (1964)
Professor Calculus has invented a new weapon which uses ultrasonics and is capable of destroying anything.  Unfortunately, a Syldavia general gets a whiff of Calculus's latest work and wants it for himself.  The general kidnaps Calculus to force him to perfect the machine in order to take over the world. It's up to Tintin and his friends to rescue him from the army's research facility.
 
Prisoners of the Sun / Le Temple du Soleil (1969)
When a team of European explorers uncover the tomb of an ancient ruler of Peru a terrible curse was unleashed, everyone who came in contact with the tomb fell into a mysterious coma and was unable to awake.  When Professor Calculus gets kidnapped Tintin follows the trail all the way to South America, can he stop the curse before it claims them all?
 
The Mystery of Shark Lake / Tintin et le Lac Aux Requins (1972)
Someone is stealing the world's masterpieces and treasures and replacing them with forgeries. Professor Calculus has just invented a new duplication device and that is just what the thieves want next!  Tintin and Captain Hammond’s vacation gets cut short as they search for the missing national treasures and the location of the thieves' secret base.

 

 

The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image is simple and clean, while the Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono sounds as good as it can for its age, though dated.  The 1964 film is not listed in some key records (IMDB) as of this posting and a few of these are already on Blu-ray in Europe.  U.S. fans should note that the Dal McKennon English dubs are not on any of the films in this set and the films are barley available in the U.S. DVD market.

 

With Steven Spielberg making a live-action feature film version, you might want to see these before just to have the experience on hand.

 

 

As noted above, you can order this PAL DVD import set exclusively from Madman at:

 

https://www.madman.com.au/actions/channel.do?method=view

 

 

-   Ricky Chiang