Manny The Movie Guy /

At first glance, the marriage of director Martin Scorsese and 3D filmmaking seems off-putting. The greatest living American director does not need to succumb to the technical toy du jour.

But upon watching "Hugo" in 3D, one can understand Scorsese’s three-dimensional decision. Instead of using 3D as a gimmick, it becomes a vital part of the story, utilizing space as an element in the narrative.

Scorsese does something short of magical with 3D. He and cinematographer Robert Richardson heightened the emotion in the film. By using the 3D technology to embrace the actors’ faces, the audience and the characters bond in a very intimate way. It’s quite powerful!

The history of cinema is at the heart of "Hugo." No one can make a movie about the early days of filmmaking better than Scorsese can. "Hugo" is a true cinephile’s dream.

Based on the bestselling and award-winning illustrated book by Brian Selznick called The Invention of Hugo Cabret (A Novel in Words and Pictures), "Hugo" is a perfect movie in every sense of the word. It has a great story told by an astute filmmaker with fantastic actors embodying wonderful characters.

Hugo Cabret is played by Asa Butterfield ("The Boy in the Striped Pajamas"), a wildly resourceful boy who suddenly finds himself alone when his father (Jude Law) passes away. The one valuable thing Hugo has is an automaton (mechanical figures, robots if you may, powered by inner clockwork) that his father had left him. The automaton holds a secret that will take Hugo to a thrilling adventure.

Set in the magical world of Paris 1931, Hugo ends up living with his uncle (Ray Winstone) in a train station, the Gare Montparnasse, where he is subjected to doing a man’s job of maintaining the station’s clocks.

There, Hugo meets Pappa Georges (the wonderfully beguiling Ben Kingsley), a mysterious toy store owner who will inadvertently help to unlock the secrets of Hugo’s automaton.

Pappa Georges’ goddaughter, Isabelle (Chloe Grace Moretz of "Kickass" and "Let the Right One In"), is willing to accompany Hugo with his adventure. The two strike an indelible friendship that will assist Pappa Georges in rediscovering his true self.

The train station is filled with amazing characters reminiscent of the films by French auteurs René Pottier and Jacques Tati. There’s the station inspector played by endearingly sweet Sacha Baron Cohen ("Borat," "Sweeney Todd") who appears to be Hugo’s nemesis.

The station inspector is secretly in love with Lisette, the flower seller (Emily Mortimer). Even the legendary Christopher Lee shows up as the book shop owner, Monsieur Labisse. These characters shape the narrative of the world Hugo is living in.

As a cinema lover, it was thrilling to see the works of Georges Méliès and the Lumière

brothers displayed on the big screen in glorious 3D! Méliès’ "Le voyage dans la lune" ("A Trip to the Moon"), his 1902 masterpiece where the moon is poked in the eye by a rocket ship, is front and center in "Hugo’s" narrative.

The script by John Logan does justice to the book. The pace may be slow and deliberate, but hang in there folks, you will be rewarded with a satisfying ending that will make you cry with tears of joy.

I will not spoil the movie by revealing its thought-provoking secrets, but this I can tell you, Scorsese has created an utterly delightful movie that reaffirms the saying that life is beautiful. The director’s smart usage of 3D would have made Méliès, the father of narrative filmmaking, proud.