Coraline is a joy to watch.

Rating: 8/10 (29 July 2013)

So for a long time I've been fan of The Nightmare Before Christmas, as well as other Tim Burton productions such as: Sweeney Todd; Edward Scissorhands; Corpse Bride and the like. So when I saw the trailer for Coraline I instantly thought that this was another Tim Burton film, but too my surprise it was not, I was half right though. Coraline is directed by Henry Selick, who also directed The Nightmare Before Christmas as well as James and the Giant Peach (1996). I liked the look and feel of the trailer, and soon enough went to check it out.
Let me start off by saying, this film is truly a gem of film making. The visual style of stop-motion animation, as well as the musical score, make Coraline a film that definitely qualifies under the "Films are art" category. The imagination that went behind the script is ever present in the film, and is brilliantly shot. I don't mean to sound as though this is the greatest film ever, because it isn't. What it is however, is one of the best films that I have seen and quite possibly, one of the best you'll see.
The film starts off with Coraline and her family moving in to a new apartment which is named, "Pink Palace Apartments", if you hadn't guessed already the apartments are all painted pink. After the movers and their van drive away, we are introduced to Coraline, she uses a stick she has ripped off from a nearby Oak bush to find water or a well. The contrast between the bleak grey of the surrounding world, and the brightness of Coraline's yellow jacket and bright blue hair sets the tone of the movie very well, as well as the accompanying music. Whilst she is searching for a source of water, she is stalked by a black cat, who she then meets again at the well. The cat however, is not alone, we are then introduced to the character Wybie. After the two have met, Wybie reveals the well to Coraline and to her surprise she was standing on it all along! He also explains to her, that the stick she was using to guide her to the well was made of poison oak, before being called away by his Grandmother.
After this Coraline returns inside and here we get the first look at her parents, who are dull, job-obsessed and downright boring. Coraline attempts to get permission to go outside in the rain, her mother denies and so she ventures upstairs to her father and asks the same question... only to get the same response. Her father then tells her to go around the house noting down all the squeaky doors and leaky windows that are in the 150 year old house, she does this with a due sense of dread and boredom. Eventually, she discovers what seems to be a passage way in the wall, to her dismay it's locked. She calls for her mother to open it only to find a brick wall, after having dinner she heads to bed. This is where the film truly starts, and Coraline ventures into the "Other World" with the "Other" characters.
The performances from most of the characters are very strong, but I found that the dialogue some of them were given was a bit weak and cliché. With that said, the voice actors do a very good job of keeping you immersed and not one seems out of place that ruins the atmosphere. Also I found that the cast was fairly unknown to me, which helps the film to keep its atmosphere. When you hear a character speak, you don't think: "Hey, that's FlamingHobo!" Instead you think what any good director wants you to think. The characters are themselves, not actors. Oh, and for you Mass Effect fans, you'll hear from Captain Anderson in the film, but I won't spoil it for you just what part he plays in the film.
The stop-motion animation is spot on, even if you have seen this similar art style from Selick's previous film The Nightmare Before Christmas. Coraline does not copy The Nightmare Before Christmas's art style completely, Selick has done enough to give Coraline a life of its own, which in-turn makes it beautiful to look at. This also keeps the credibility of the film intact, as I could not imagine this film in any other form, if we were to swap the puppets with the actors in their bodily forms... the film just would not be the same and some of the magic would be lost with a move like that. The contrast between the brightness/darkness of the world between the brightness/darkness of the characters is ever present and keeps the film look fresh, scene to scene.
The music is used to good effect, though it is not quite memorable, save for the opening and closing music. The score of any film such as Coraline, is one of the many keys needed to keep your audience interested and locked into the film. Bruno Coulais has done an admirable job at creating a fantasy music set that keeps the mood of the film just right.
This film isn't really for very young children as it may suggest, the dark scenes may frighten them so if you're a parent who would be wanting to show this to your younger children, I would recommend watching it with them. Coraline is a gem of film making, and genuinely beautiful to look at. Though the story may have been done a thousand times over, Coraline does enough to justify itself as unique and interesting. I definitely recommend that you see this film.