[1] It was the second live-action film, with an original story based on characters from the comic book series The Adventures of Tintin, written and drawn by the Belgian artist Hergé.

Professor Calculus is kidnapped to help Zalamea perfect the blue oranges, which with neutron bombardment can mature in just five days, but they taste bitter and salty, making them inedible.

Thomson and Thompson turn up from Interpol, investigating Zalamea's disappearance, and have an unfortunate incident with a bull.

Tintin picks the lock and gets into his room, and when Fernando returns, overhears him talking on a radio set to his chief, about a rendez-vous.

Tintin and the Captain revive and find themselves in a grain silo, but are rescued by Snowy dropping a rope into it.

After successfully using animals with pans tied to their tails as a distraction, Tintin and Haddock find a radio identical to Fernando's in Estensoro's room, proving his involvement.

Haddock's decision to drink Estensoro's whisky accidentally leads them to discover Zalamea's secret documents, and his own suspicions about the identity of his enemies.