By Jeffery

Hugo
An English Essay

An important character of the lm Hugo, directed by Martin Scorsese, is Hugo. Hugo is an
important character in the lm because he portrays the key ideas of purpose and family.

Hugo is a young boy around the age of 13 who tries to nd the story behind his father's
death. He goes on an adventure, taking great risks to nd out the secret of the automaton. After
his father had died, he lived with his uncle, xing and maintaining the clocks at the station. Then
one day, his uncle didn't come back. In order to get food, he steals from the station.

Hugo is an important character because he shows the key idea of purpose. He
demonstrates this when there is a close up shot of him oiling gears and tinkering with it, which he
is fullling a small step to his true purpose. We see him demonstrate purpose again when he says
"Everything has a purpose, even machines. Maybe that's why broken machines make me so sad,
because they can't do what they're meant to do. Maybe it's the same with people." These
examples from the lm show that Hugo's purpose is xing things (even people) and Hugo slowly
starts to realise it. This is important because we learn that everyone has a purpose and that you
should fulll your purpose.

Hugo is also important in the lm because he portrays the key idea of family. After his
father died, he attempted to x the automaton, which led him all the way to Mlis. An example
from the lm is when there was a mid shot of Hugo, Mlis and Isabelle hugging. We see the
same idea again when Hugo tells the stationmaster "This is my only chance to work. You should
understand." Then Mlis walks over to Hugo and the Station Inspector and says "I do, I do.
Monsieur, this child belongs to me." These show that Hugo had lost his father when he was
young, but because of a machine, he found his way to a new family. This is important because
1 A STUDY OF HUGO
from this we learn that it is important to have a family to support you, and they don't necessarily
have to be related by blood.

In conclusion, it is clear that Hugo plays an important part in the lm Hugo directed by
Martin Scorsese. Hugo is important because he helps us understand two key ideas in the lm:
purpose and family. Scorsese wanted the audience/viewers to see Hugo as a brave young man
who did what he could to fulll his purpose, which led him all the way to a new family.
2 A STUDY OF HUGO