Beautifully creepy and startlingly scary

Rating: 10/10 (12 December 2009)

Coraline is one of those films that adults will enjoy a lot better than the kids. Full of creepy imagery (the spider lady at the end terrified the dickens out of me) and even some sexual animation(Miss Spink's and Miss Forcibles's routine), this was not created with children in mind. Despite that this film has all the visual flair and edgy music to create a world of darkness within.
Coraline is a bratty, tomboyish little girl who wants nothing but to go back to her old town. She certainly does not like living in the Pink Palace, and her neighbor Wybie (short for Wyborn) is a pest. Her parents love her, but are such workaholics that they don't even pay attention to her. Who would blame her when she wants to go through the little door she found in the living room. Unfortunately, it's bricked up, until night that is, where it leads her to this other world.
There she is greeted by her Other Mother and Father, perfect replicas of her parents but better looking and with buttons for eyes. The world on the other side is perfect with every detail of the real world made better and brighter. Even the neighbors are more exciting. But as Coraline soon finds out, there is more to this world than first appears.
What helps this movie a great deal is the visuals and music which work together to create this impression that we are in the middle of a nightmare. In the real world, colors are dampened and animation is somewhat sluggish, but in the other world, colors are bright and the screen bursts into life. Yet, as this other world begins to reveal its true intention, the colors dissolve into shadowy blues and edgy, fluorescent purples. Some of the imagery is mesmeric, almost like you are going on an acid trip, and the character design has all the distortion that made the characters in Nightmare Before Christms memorable. Coupled with music full of dreamy choral interludes and hallucinogenic strings and you have an atmosphere that keeps you on edge.
This is one of the films that you want to take home, turn the light off and watch. Taffy monsters, a praying mantis tractor, a jumping mouse circus, all are freaky and disturbing in just the right amount. Voice work was excellent, and Dakota Fanning was the perfect choice for Coraline. Sarcastic and stubborn, she won't just be treated as a child, and she will stand up for herself when the going gets tough.
10/10 for style, 10/10 for music, 9/10 for voice work, 10/10 for visuals, and 9/10 for screenplay. A winner.