Dark and inventive film even if it is perhaps too scary for particularly young children who will not understand the context and only see images

Rating: Null/10 (6 June 2009)

I had not heard of the book on which this film is based but the involvement of Selick was enough to convince me that it was worth a look even before the uniform spread of five star reviews of it starting appearing in the media. I wanted to see it even more when some of the same media outlets starting having "complaints" from parents who had taken their toddlers to an animated film safe in the knowledge that NOBODY had ever, ever made an animated film that wasn't aimed at toddlers. Well, actually it turns out that, as well as countless other films, this is not a film for very young children – by which I mean children who are not yet old enough to be able to cope with a narrative and be able to take their heads into a story, there is not a specific age on that, which is why generally one expects parents to do the job of weighing that up on behalf of the humans they created.
As I'm not a parent I'll not pretend to be able to advise others but I certainly know that the film will scare kids because it is dark enough to make me enjoy it on that level as an adult. This is not to say that it is not a family film though because outside of those being overly protective, this is the modern equivalent of a Gothic fairytale or a ghost story around a campfire – something that will chill and grip a child with a fear but not to the point where reason or hope goes out the window. As such it is a great film because the story is strong at the core with an engaging scenario that reminds me of the "ideal" world of David Lynch, where the darkness is only just below the surface. So it is for Coraline where the supposedly perfect family behind the door turns out to be much more sinister. Throughout the telling the delivery makes it fun and engaging – with a patient pace that isn't ever slow but never seems to be rushing things. The "message" isn't rammed down our throats but is there for children old enough to think through what they are watching.
Although I didn't see it in 3D the film still manages to look great. Whether it is the warmth and softness of the perfect family home, the weird and wonderful creatures or the effects in the later reveals of the "other" mother. It all looks great with the animation being technically impressive but the imagination also being a big part of it. Some of the images will be too dark for younger children but, aside from providing age-appropriate scares for older children, it is well pitched. The voice work helps things without being particularly distracting in the way that some of the "who is that" voice work in other animated films can be. Fanning seems to have gotten past her precocious-sounding stage and does a solid turn in the title character. Hatcher is better though, capturing sweetness while being sinister and easily being evil later. Saunders, French, Hodgman, David and McShane all do good turns but again do so without being themselves, if you know what I mean.
Coraline is not for everyone and should certainly not be seen as being for all ages simply because it is animated. It is an engagingly dark fantasy with content and imagery that provides an effective Gothic fairy tale for those older children able to process it beyond what they see. Of course it is another sign of quality that, in the absence of any child of any age, adults can still easily enjoy it.