Coraline
Rating: 5/5
By: Nathaniel Simpson
Stop-motion animation is a fantastic way to tell a spooky Halloween story. Consider Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, and how that film looks absolutely stunning due to the decision to produce it using stop-motion technology and techniques. Sixteen years after the release of Burton's iconic Halloween-themed film, director Henry Selick returns to this beautiful animation format to craft Coraline, based on the book by Neil Gaiman. This film is beautifully haunting and keeps the viewers on the edge of their seat, with Selick transporting the viewer into this whimsical world while also making it creepy and startling enough that will introduce younger viewers into the genre of horror.
Coraline Jones (Dakota Fanning) is an eleven-year-old girl who moves into a new home with her parents (Teri Hatcher, John Hodgman). Upset by the move and feeling lonely after her parents throw their whole lives into their work, Coraline takes it upon herself to explore by herself and try to find any source of joy in this new town, even making friends with the odd boy named Wybie (Robert Bailey Jr.) that lives next door. However, when she discovers a hidden door inside her new home and goes inside, she finds a mystical world with the Other Mother and Other Father, one where they make her feel special. Finding joy snd solace in this new world quickly goes away as the Other Mother has sinister plans for Coraline, ones to keep her locked up there forever.
Easily the best thing about this picture is the cinematography and stop-motion. This movie is absolutely beautiful, and the way Selick and his animators capture this world is simply some of the best stop-motion I have ever seen. The sets and character designs they produce for this movie are wonderfully animated and whimsical, really transporting the viewer into this fantastical world that would be seen in a Tim Burton feature. At the same time, they are able to use animation effects to capture the magic of the world, such as the point where Coraline and the cat (Keith David) walk off the grid of the Other World. I always have such appreciation for stop-motion due to the tiring and tedious task of producing a movie like this, but it always looks fantastic and works so well every time.
In addition to the film just looking absolutely beautiful, the story is amazingly-written and Selick does a great job of directing it onto the big screen. The story contains such complex themes as loneliness, the significance of family, and the danger of disguised perfection, to name a few. These themes are interwoven through these engaging characters, making the story relatable for many people. It's also admirable that they are able to tell a story like this for families as these messages start to engrain into the brains of children and allow them to learn such lessons from a younger age.
In terms of the creepiness factor of this movie, Selick and his team do just enough to not only make this incredibly spooky and, at times, startling, but also make it so kids can enjoy it too. It's hard to find a movie that is scary/creepy enough to get kids interested in the genre of horror as some are either way too scary or too tame. While this does have its creepy moments and does contain some material not suitable for smaller children, it does a wonderful job of introducing the scares and thematic material that older kids will see in horror movies later on. This is a perfect entry-level picture for those interested in the genre, and I don't think we see many of those.
The voice acting performances from the entire cast are done quite well, and they add such charm to each of their respective characters. Fanning is great at being a bratty child who is simply craving her parents' attention, and it's intriguing to see how her performance changes along the course of the movie as she learns more lessons about life and facts about herself. Fanning carries the movie quite well, and Coraline is such an intriguing character because of her voice actor. At the same time, I also want to point out how great Hatcher is in her effort at switching from the regular mom to the Other Mother, playing a middle-mannered mother who is doing her best to a psychotic, demon-like entity that wants to prey on children. The voice acting really brings these characters to life, and they did a fantastic job of playing those who can do it so effortlessly.
Coraline is a modern-day classic, one of those spooky movies that is brought up a lot during Halloween. This movie has inspired numerous films after it, and has even become a cult classic amongst fans who love and appreciate the story and animation behind this movie. In a way, Coraline is simply a product of its time, a time that didn't know where to go with stop-motion and how to tell compelling stories with it. This film thankfully hit every aspect right and set a precedent for what to expect when watching a stop-motion picture.
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