An Artistic Masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (3 March 2009)

I've been aware of Stop-Motion for a while now and never had any real opinion about it. Well, not anymore. I saw "Coraline" in theaters on opening day and I must say beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is a rare gem of a movie. I would equate to it being the equivalent of a breath of fresh air. A complete and utter far cry from the standard formula of Hollywood. This is one of those movies were you could watch it 10-20 times and you'll still catch/see/notice something new. There's just so much to take in be it the narrative, visuals, etc. Not only that but it did something I thought was impossible, it proved that 3D could be used as a story telling medium. "Coraline" is proof that 3D can used beyond the usual "Let's see how many times I can poke your eye out" gimmick. Personally, I'd say "Coraline" does to 3D movies what "Toy Story" did for CG movies. I wouldn't be surprised if an article comes out announcing how it has revolutionized 3D and Stop-Motion alike. I've seen most purely Stop-Motion flicks and "Coraline" out does every single one of them. The bar for stop-motion has been raised in virtually every way.
The story is indeed predictable, but is more than made up for by the sheer uniqueness of how it's told. I will admit that the pace of the story is rather slow and deliberate. Thankfully it is done within the context of the events driving the movie forward and ends up feeling very natural. Roughly speaking, the pacing seemed to characteristically follow through the motions of title character "Coraline," in short, the pacing became a subtle embodiment of her actions and situational difficulties (hard to accurately describe, very very subtle). A very interesting touch to be sure. I found myself liking the characters a lot, even if at times they can be a bit strange (read: over-the-top).
I really am not kidding when I say that "Coraline" has more imagination in it's 'toenail' than most movies do in their whole running time. It's hard to explain but there is so much that the 3D aspect of "Coraline" adds to every conceivable thing related to atmosphere, story, mood, characters and so on. This is the first 3D movie I've seen that made me forget that I was even wearing the glasses. Most of the time "Coraline" seems to forget that it's a 3D film at all; and benefits all the more because of it. It completely sucked me in on all fronts.
I could go on and on but to put it simply, any and everybody who appreciates Cinema in any way, especially as an artistic medium, owes it to themselves to watch "Coraline." Everything from the characters to the story and beyond is top-notch. Done very differently, but above and beyond nonetheless. One last thing, anyone who ever wondered what the proper dosage of dark, moody, even macabre elements in a family film can point to "Coraline" and say "pretty much that." Proof that blood and violence isn't needed to make one's heart beat fast. Weird thing is, "Coraline" leans more toward a lighter tone than not. Like "Return of the Sith" (Star Wars+PG-13= shock and worry) and the "Incredibles" (Pixar+PG=overreacting)this is one of those movies were a parent can easily freak out. In this case, issues involving the horror aspect. I stated my case above and meant every word. Note that this is coming from a man who has one. Weird thing is...
When a large group of kids are jumping around after the movie asking to watch it again AND other positive lines, you know something big has gone down. A gift of imagination and visual story telling. Watch it, you'll never see another movie like this for another 5-10 years.
To any worrying parents, there is a scene were a large lady is singing on a stage wearing a very very questionable bikini. The scene is there for laughs and is more in the context of "The Birth of Venus" by Botticelli than anything else. Still, if you're still iffy just know this; when Coraline utters the line "she's practically naked," the questionable outfit lady will show up in roughly 20 seconds. If it's too much, I would recommend having any infants with you simply close there eyes. After about a minute she is gone and will never return. There's no need to go farther than that.