There’s just something about a well done kid’s film. The very best of them are like so many childhood memories: a little bittersweet, a little funny, a little strange, and a little scary. Coraline is all of these, wrapped in an absolutely gorgeous hand-animated package done frame for frame by the talented Henry Selick, creator and animator of The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach. Here, Selick’s awkwardly gothic visuals find a kindred spirit in the work of author Neal Gaiman, weaving this tale of alternate realities and negligent parents into a dark fantasy filled with charm and fright in equal measure. There’s a spirit of childlike innocence running throughout, but the darker threads are what take the fore and it’s a film that is all the better for it, giving the whole a nuance and impression of the most creative of bad dreams. Helping it all along is some extremely capable voice work, including an exceptional performance by Dakota Fanning as the titular lead. The few drawbacks to the films approach are almost all to do with whether or not the content might be too creepy for children, as while the film may only be rated PG, the atmosphere speaks to an older audience. At it’s core though, it’s an hour and a half of breathtaking visuals and exceptional creativity.
9 out of 10.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Coraline (2009)
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1 comment:
I have to completely disagree. I think you are looking at it from an adult perspective, not a child's perspective. I took my two girls (age 9 and 7) and it was a huge mistake. My youngest told me that she would have rather have seen Hotel for Dogs, and my older daughter told me that she did not like that movie at all. She said it made her sad and scared. What the hell kind of children's film elicits those sentiments? The death imagery was overdone, the spider-mother idea was way too frightening for children, the T and A was uncalled for (as was the humanist rant during the Vegas-like show) and once again we have the theme that adults are incapable and children must fend for themselves or save those same parents. I spoke to another mom (a woman I didn't even know!) on the way out, and she felt the same. All in all, I felt it was totally inappropriate for a children's film and actually regret traipsing on my girl's psyches by taking them to this film. Just my $.02.
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