Some might be tempted to call this film a modern Alice in Wonderland but to stop a description there would woefully mischaracterize this film as something of a knock-off. Truth be told, Coraline is a breath of fresh air amidst a sea of paint-by-numbers animated kids films. Not only is it more mature in its approach to children but it also features a mesmerizing combination of stop-motion animation and computer effects.Coraline Jones does not like here living arrangements one bit. Her parents moved the family into an old house converted into apartments. While her parents work slavishly on completing a gardening catalog for a client, Coraline is left to entertain herself. The other residents of the apartment-house are old and very weird. The only young person around is the grandson of the landlady, who strikes Coraline as equally odd and a little annoying to boot. Feeling neglected and along, Coraline longs for an escape from her reality.
She gets just such an opening when she discovers a small door in the living room that opens up at night to a passageway to a much more desirable mirror world. In the Other World, Coraline’s Other Mother is affectionate and caring. Her Other Father is musically inclined and hard-working around the house. Coraline makes repeat visits to this Other World but is warned by a talking cat that all is not as it appears to be in this ideal getaway place. In time, Coraline learns the truth about the Other World, putting her in a dangerous conflict with her Other Mother.
There is a lot to like about Coraline, both the film and the character. Both are perfectly modern takes on familiar concepts. Coraline the girl is a believable creation. The creators clearly had a pulse on the tween attitude when committing this story to film. Kudos to Dakota Fanning for giving a voice to a charming yet witty young girl. Coraline has the right amount of sarcasm, venom and remorse in her voice and mannerisms to appease those film-goers who demand realism even in an animated film.
Accompanying the titular character is a well-rounded supporting cast. Even credit is again due to the animators and the voice actors (particularly to Terri Hatcher for being nothing short of creeptastic) for making the film flow with realism. This is not an old-school fairy tale where everything fits into certain generalizations or stereotypes. Lines are not so well-defined and intentions held back until just the right moments. Despite a few similarities to other child-fantasy-adventure tales, Coraline’s story is unique enough to avoid tipping its hand. This keeps the film fresh, entertaining and rewarding.
Like deep sea diving, Coraline gets darker the deeper you get into the tale. This is a great move because too few films are made for older children in mind. While it will probably be too scary for kids under eight years old, it’s perfect for everyone else. Tweens and teens will connect with the hip lead character while adults nod their head in agreement that Coraline is one sharp girl and the world presented is real enough (minus to gonzo neighbors at least). Parents may also see some of their own unintended failing in Coraline’s parents or at least see enough to vow not to be like that.
Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t going to be some John Hughes-ian tale that makes it seem like parents and children can find perfect common ground, living in harmony the rest of their days. It certainly won’t be a miracle film to bring families together but it will give them things to talk about. That’s at least a start, right? Then again, that’s a moot point because familial strengthening outside of the story isn’t one of the film’s goals to begin with.
As entertainment, it’s a hit. As art, it could very well be groundbreaking. The producers sank a lot of money into the technique behind Coraline’s seamless stop-motion animation, so you’re unlikely to see any indie directors springing for this kind of project. Still though, how many CGI films come out every year now? Even the good ones can get passed over because we’re becoming immune to the marvel of CGI. One could argue that, by using stop-motion animation, Coraline is taking the animation genre a step backward but consider this- as time-consuming as stop-motion is, Coraline was still less expensive than its CGI counterparts. I dare say that the choice to be different makes the film stand out all the more.
Everything about this film, foreground and background, is rich with detail you wouldn’t expect from a stop-motion animated film. A few digital effects thrown in help complete the illusion. There were times when I doubted Coraline was stop-motion. It just looks too good to be true. Thankfully, this is one case where it still is true.
Check this film out if you get the chance. It’s sassy, fun, scary and even has a good moral base to it. I may have to watch this one again. I fear I may have short-changed it on the rating.
RATING: 3.75 out of 5
