The first trailer for the Steven Spielberg/Peter Jackson co-production THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN has finally been unveiled. Watch it here, then come back and let us know what you think.

We’re still a little unsure to be honest, especially as this preview seems to suggest they barely have any fully finished footage – notice how nobody utters a line throughout the whole thing, barring the narration? Odd. And is it a conscious decision to hide the fact that it’s motion capture (sorry, performance capture) for style reasons, or are they losing confidence in the technology?

Another giveaway that this project is on shaky ground is the absence of the SECRET OF THE UNICORN subtitle. The movie was conceived as a trilogy, the first part of which was to be directed by Spielberg and produced by Jackson, the second Jackson would helm and Steve produce, the third they would double-team.

We’ll ultimately have to wait until October until we can all properly cast judgment, but this writer thinks TINTIN might be the last nail in the mo-cap coffin – it has its uses of course, but entire movies utilizing the technology seems to still be off-putting to audiences (see MARS NEED MOMS for most recent example.)

The only ace that I can see up their sleeve here is the stellar writing team – a screenplay by DOCTOR WHO show-runner Steven Moffat, SHAUN OF THE DEAD’s Edgar Wright, and ATTACK THE BLOCK’s Joe Cornish, two of which are geniuses.

TINTIN will be released in Europe on the 26th October, and arrive in US theatres on the 23rd of December.

Let’s do a poll – how many Starburst readers were looking forward to this project? And how many Starburst readers are ‘still’ looking forward to it after seeing the trailer? Let us know with your comments below!