Henry Selick's Newest Masterpiece

Rating: 9/10 (12 February 2009)

When first hearing about this movie in 2003, I was a little weirded out by the ideas that Nightmare before Christmas director, Henry Selick, had in mind for this film. But I guess I learned from viewing this movie that the stranger the plans, the better the story.
After his unfortunate, "Monkeybone," I believe that Selick had to really pull something off along the lines of "Nightmare" standards to surpass this mess of his. He successfully beat his Monkeybone (ha ha, I know, I know) and brought us, the audience, something that joins the ranks of "Nightmare" and "James and the Giant Peach." Having read the book before seeing the movie and then seeing the trailer, I was a little skeptical as to how true they were going to be to the wonderfully imaginative novel by Neil Gaiman. When hearing about the addition of a new character named Wybie Lovat and changing Mr. Bobo's name to Mr. Bobinsky, I knew that asking for a true adaptation would be asking too much. Fortunately, I was proved wrong as the movie keeps true to its adaptation and even has a few pleasant surprises in store.
What really won me over was the brilliant idea to present this movie in 3-D, because this is just one of those movies that deserve to be seen in three dimensions. With 3-D technology, the audience will be immersed the story and even get a feeling of pure surrealism the likes of which no one has ever seen. One scene I really enjoyed in 3-D would have to be when the character, Coraline, goes to see her theatrical spinster neighbors, Ms. Spink and Ms. Forcible in the other world, put on a show of high flying acrobatics and even involve Coraline in their act. Very well done if I do say so myself.
The only thing I would have against this movie is the way that story plays out. It's almost like a roller coaster in some ways. There are some parts that take you high in the sky and go for a thrilling drop, i.e. the mouse circus put on by the "other" Mr. Bobinsky, and then there are those parts that seem to make the roller coaster into a slow and boring train ride, i.e. the scene where Coraline is begging her mother for a pair of gloves. It's too bad that this movie is already out in theaters as the pace could be changed in a few spots.
Other than that, if you are a fan of "The Nightmare before Christmas" and "James and the Giant Peach," a devoted follower of Neil Gaiman's astonishing novella or just in need of a good movie, I highly suggest you find a theater that shows movie in 3D and go see Henry Selick's latest masterpiece, "Coraline."