Saturday, December 02, 2017

‘Coco’ Strikes a Chord and Plucks Heartstrings

With every new Pixar movie, there are at least three things that are guaranteed about it.  First, the animation is going to be masterful, highly detailed, and gorgeous.  Second, at some point, it’ll pull your heartstrings and make your eyes well up with tears.  And, third, (save for maybe a Cars installment) it’s going to be a classic, or if not, at the very least, it’s going to be one of the year’s best animated films.

These three are true about Coco.  It’s a fantastic animated film – probably the best one I’ve seen this year.  It does an impeccable implementation of the Pixar formula, but at the same time, it’s also one of Pixar’s most original films – as well as one of its darkest and most mature.   It’s somewhat similarly themed with 2014’s Book of Life, but no way is it a copycat.  It’s an entirely different film.  It’s simply another case of Antz and A Bug’s Life – two good, distinctive films that just happen to share some common things about their respective premises.
Coco tells the story of a boy named Miguel Rivera (Anthony Gonzales) who dreams of becoming a renowned musician like his idol, the late Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt), who also happens to hail from the same town Miguel lives in.  However, he’s hindered by his shoe-making family’s perplexing tradition – the utter ban on music.  Thus, he carefully hides his passion from the rest of his family, and the only audience of his musical talents is a stray Xoloitzcuintli named Dante.  One day, Miguel discovers an important clue that makes him conclude that Ernesto de la Cruz must be his great-great-grandfather, making his determination to showcase his talents to the world despite the disapproval of his family grow stronger.  And this mysteriously leads him to the majestic Land of the Dead.  With the help of one of its residents, the trickster Héctor (Gael García Bernal), Miguel sets off to search for de la Cruz in order to gain his blessing, and return to the Land of the Living before sunrise, or else, his stay is going to be a permanent one.
Again, magnificent animation goes without saying with Pixar movies.  But let me mention it nonetheless.  The Land of the Dead, specifically, is sheer, glorious eye candy.  It’s full of vibrant colors and is totally breathtaking.

Meanwhile, the script is as superb as its visuals.  There’s humor, of course, but the writing’s greatest strength lies in the storytelling, not in the gags.  The narrative is very well-constructed and well-told.  It’s thoughtful and poignant, and during the third act, it really gets emotionally heavy.  Moreover, it does a great job in delivering impactful surprises through fantastic twists and turns.  Ironically, though, it’s because of the thought that it’s definitely subverting expectations that led me to predict its biggest plot twist.  Nonetheless, the fact that I predicted it doesn’t discount the great quality of its execution.  I was just perceptive and lucky, I guess.
Coco’s storyline is very relatable because it primarily deals with family.  It explores the upsides and downsides of family culture and dynamics.  Yes, family is valuable, but sometimes, family may create obstructions in our lives, especially when it’s contrary to their established worldview.  And this is at its most painful when this comes up when we want to pursue our heart’s desire – our dreams, our passions.  Then, we have to make the difficult task of choosing between our family or our dreams.  This is the dilemma that Coco presents.  But this can be transposed into other similar scenarios as well, where we have to sacrifice one thing in order to pursue another – love or career, security or freedom, etc.  The struggle is to find a balance between the two, or if that’s not possible, to make the hard choice of going for what we think is more important to us, and hoping we won’t regret the decision we make.  In addition to this, it also offers the reflection that we must be wary that our chase for glory may become dangerous, coming to a point where we will even willingly cross the line just so we can get what we want.
Lastly, music is an important part of this movie, not only ambiance-wise but also narrative-wise.  To be honest, in my opinion, compared to most Walt Disney animated films, its soundtrack is far from being as memorable, and there’s no splendid musical number with huge replay value.  Nonetheless, music is the linchpin for many of the film’s most powerful scenes.  And “Remember Me” definitely deserves an Oscar nomination.

To sum it up, Coco is another Pixar classic.  Through stunning visuals and the essential presence of music, it delivers a charming, absorbing, and affecting fantasy tale inspired by Mexican folklore that tackles multifaceted themes centered on family, dreams, life, death, and memories, and the complexities that come along with them.

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