Filmology Rating: 3.5 out of 4 

Despite his family's generations-old ban on music, Miguel dreams of becoming a musician like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz. Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the Land of the Dead to find his ancestors and discover why his family hates music. After meeting a charming trickster named Héctor, the two new friends embark on an extraordinary journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel's family history.

I'm in love with the Coco! I'm sorry, I couldn’t help myself, had to make that reference! As cheesy as that was, it is 100% accurate because this movie was excellent. Disney/Pixar has made another wonderful movie. This was a brilliantly crafted film on so many levels. Let’s start with the most obvious….

CGI and animation is getting to a level that blows my mind. The hyperrealism is out of this world. From wrinkles on great grandmas face, to the miniscule details put into the Land of the Dead, to the detail put into characters clothing, everything was top notch and some of the best animation I’ve seen to date. This movie would be a must see for the colors alone. You think the color patterns are wonderful enough in the land of the living but just wait until you enter in the Land of the Dead because they are out of this world. The audience becomes transported into a world of awe and wonder as they witness this spectacular that the team behind this film envisioned. I cannot give enough compliments to the animators and everyone behind the visual aspects of Coco because they did a phenomenal job!

Not only was the animation superb, but the story was engaging as well. While some have critiqued that it borrows from too many films to be original enough, I didn’t see it that way. I can understand where they are coming from but never has this story been told in animation form and in this presentation style. Countless people will be able to relate to this film due to the theme of conforming to what your family wants and feeling pressure to make them happy; this pressure to please the family can only take someone so far before they reach a breaking point of realizing it’s not the direction you want to be going in life. While Miguel wants to respect his families wishes, he also knows he has to pursue what he loves and what he feels he was born to do. This was an intriguing, compelling, and emotion journey to witness.

Not only was this a feel good and heartwarming film, but it was surprisingly deep as well. Coco deals with death in a very real and emotion way that makes it easy for kids to understand. This approach also encourages a sense of pride in one’s ancestry and where they come from. I thought how the writers went about this was nothing short of brilliant. This writing style and emotional depth was right up there with the award winning Inside Out. Look for Coco as the frontrunner for Best Animated Film come Oscar season.

One more quick thing that I really liked was the music throughout. I couldn’t help for move with the music which both physically and emotionally moved me. Music is very powerful in film, especially when it is used correctly and Coco nailed it.

I cannot say enough good things about Coco! If you see it, I know you will be in love with the coco as well!

Rating: See It 

-Nick

Pixar has taken us to fantastic worlds: the Great Barrier Reef where a father learns that his son is stronger than he ever believed; the city of Monstropolis where the screams of children powered an entire city; and to the mind of a child who is on the cusp on adulthood; among many other breathtaking worlds.  Pixar is adding yet another fantastic world to their ever growing canon of films with Coco which brings audiences to the land of the dead.

While young Miguel, voiced by Anthony Gonzalez, has aspirations to become a musician, his family has banned all music from their lives after his great grandfather left the family to pursue his dreams to become a musician.  On Dia de los Muertos, Miguel leaves his family so he can seize his moment and become a musician like his great grandfather; but, in order to achieve his dream Miguel needs a guitar.  On the night where you are suppose to give to the dead, Miguel steals from the dead putting a curse on himself which leads him to the land of the dead.  

Some have been saying that Pixar had lost its touch and has been making mediocre products.  If those people are still saying that after Coco they need to reevaluate the word mediocre.  Coco wears its heart on its sleeve and you feel the emotional heartbeat of the film beating during every single frame.  While it should go without saying but the animation is outstanding, as it is with Pixar’s even the mediocre films. However a good looking film is a small aspect when looking at the film cohesively, the story is the aspect that needs to be strong in order for the film to work.  

The screenplay was written by Adrian Molina and Matthew Aldrich, both of whom are making their debuts with big budget films.  While the formula of the film is simplistic: boy wants something his family has banned, boy runs away from family to claim what he wants, boy realizes that his family was only looking out for his best interest.  If you have ever seen a children’s movie before you will recognize the theme, but for Coco the authenticity is key to the success of the film.  Molina and Aldrich clearly took many trips to Mexico to understand the family dynamics and traditions that occur.   

The voice acting for the film is outstanding, with each actor bringing a sense of authenticity to the role making each character relatable, while still having a plethora of emotions on display.  Each member of the cast is of Latino descent, which is yet another reason to praise Pixar for not trying to design the culture into a more caucasian focused demographic.  The two standout voice actors are the main protagonists of the film - Miguel and Héctor, voiced by Anthony Gonzalez and Gael García Bernal.  Gonzalez, who has never acted in a film before, brings an incredibly moving and relatable performance to Miguel.  You can tell the longing in his voice for something more but how he doesn’t want to move forward with his potential in fear that it will hurt his family.  As for Bernal, if the Academy offered an Oscar for best voice talent in an animated film he would certainly be the winner.  The amount of history that is given from Bernal within just a few moments of screen time is incredible, the amount of emotions poured into the performance is breathtaking and will at one moment warm your heart, while the next you will feel it shattering.  

One aspect of the film that I found to be weak was the cute animal sidekick, Dante.  Pixar has proven that they don’t need the animal sidekick trope that nearly every Disney film falls into.  The entire plot of the film would still happen without him, and I found myself getting tired of the dog tripping over his own tongue repeatedly.  Perhaps I expect too much from Pixar, if the character would have been in an Illumination or Dreamworks animated film I would have shrugged my shoulders and been numb to it because those companies are always appealing to the lowest age brackets.  Pixar, on the other hand, never seems to talk down to the audience.  If this is my only grievance with the film, a secondary character who gets fifteen minutes of screentime in a hour and fifty minute movie, then the rest of the film must be near perfection.    

A set of lyrics from the song “Proud Corazón” have stuck with me and represent my feelings on Coco perfectly.  “To a melody played on the strings of our souls.  And a rhythm that rattled us down to the bone.”  It has been five days since I have seen Coco and I have not been able to shake the film.  The importance of family, music, and memory are aspects of life that should be appreciated more often and are sadly set aside for the more material aspects of life.  Coco is one of the most spectacular and moving films that you could take your family to this holiday season and I strongly suggest that you take the entire family.    

Rating: See It

-Jonny  G