Review: Coraline

A kid’s film done right

One movie already being talked about as an awards contender for 2009 is Coraline.  I watched it in 3D recently, and I very much agree with this sentiment.  This animated stop motion film, based on the Neil Gaiman book of the same name, is a wonderful example of great animation and great writing, something many movies aimed at children fail to do.

The movie is about a girl named Coraline, whose family moves to Oregon.  Her parents are busy writers, leaving Coraline a bored girl.  She explores her new home and finds a small hidden door that reveals a bricked up wall.  During the night, however, the wall disappears and becomes a passageway into a home markedly different.  Coraline is charmed by the well-furnished Other World, with its caring and interesting inhabitants, and begins to favor it over her dreary daytime life.  However, just as the movie’s tag line warns, “be careful what you wish for,” the Other World is not as innocuous as it seems.

While seemingly simple (and cliché, if you insist on pointing out over-arching similarities to Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland), the story is strong and engaging.  There are no simplicities or plot holes that leave older audiences dissatisfied and the creativity of the Other World also allows a more fantastical nature to the story that keeps the viewers alert and interested.  The characters are interesting individuals and have depths that draw in the audience (though they may not be apparent to all audience members; my sister and I are sure Coraline’s downstairs actress neighbors starred in peek shows).  The combination of continuous plot, fanciful setting, and interesting characters helps give us a movie that is at times funny, touching, and scary.

I also liked the aural aspects of the film.  The big Hollywood names attached to this film were Dakota Fanning, who voiced Coraline, and Teri Hatcher, who voiced Coraline’s mother and the Other Mother.  Both did a fantastic job- in fact, the whole film had a wonderful voice acting cast.  Never once did I feel like the lines were being read or recited, nor was I distracted by thoughts of how the characters sounded like various actors.  Each character believably sounded like an individual.  The music was also good; though nothing stood out as particularly extraordinary, it fit the moods of the scenes well.

However, where Coraline really shines is in its visuals.  They are amazing.  The detail, color and creativity are breathtaking.  I was captivated from the beginning by the details you could see in the characters and settings, such as strands of Coraline’s hair (actually arranged strand by strand by hand).  The Other World only expounded on this, throwing in a creative mix of props, such as cannons that shot out cotton candy.  It’s rather difficult for me to go on about how wondrous the visuals are without throwing images at you, so I’ll just say that fans of director Henry Selick (who directed The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach, as well as contributed stop-motion animation to Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou) will not be disappointed in the least.  As for the 3D part of the film, while I didn’t think it was necessary (I am not a fan of 3D), I found it to be a nice aesthetic bonus to the film.

So, to sum this review up: the plot is strong, the characters are interesting, voices are done right, the music fits, and the visuals are astounding.  Go see this film(And go see it in 3D if you have the money and the chance- the Jonas Brothers movie will be replacing it in 3D theaters soon).  If you don’t like it, it’ll be because you have no taste and appreciation for art.

Bonus links:
Posters
some video clips on Gaiman's blog, including 'making of' clips
another 'making of' clip, about the water in the shower
Neil Gaiman's blog - tags of "Coraline movie"