Brilliant...the best animated movie in years

Rating: 9/10 (3 October 2009)

First, let me point out that this film could easily have been rated PG-13. In fact, the 2nd half of this film is more frightening than most of the other PG-13 movies out there, even though it is animated. That being said, this movie is probably too scary for anyone under about 9 years old. I also believe its story is too complex for anyone under about 9 years old. Parents will have to make their own decisions regarding this, but just don't be surprised if your child is a little confused by the story or a little bored by the lack of action scenes. This is basically a character study film aimed at a more intelligent audience with somewhat developed attention spans.
One of the first things I noticed while watching this movie in the theaters (and I also have seen it about 4 times on DVD already) is how very little "action" is in the film, especially for an animated film. At 1 hour and 40 minutes long, it is about 10-20 minutes longer than most every other children's movie these days. Its focus is not on fun or adventure, but rather on telling a character study based on Coraline's lonely and insecure life. This will bore many kids who go to the movies expecting the loud, colorful, chase scenes that animated movies usually have to keep the attention of their target audience. No, instead of going for action Coraline is brilliant by taking its sweet little time to build up atmosphere and intensity. One of the ways Selick does this is by filming 95% of the film either inside Coraline's house or just outside the house, somewhere in the yard. As you watch the film, this claustrophobic feeling starts to build, as you realize that you are stuck in this house and in this yard, just like Coraline. This really creates the intensity and emotion, along with the fear that comes in the 2nd half of the film. The beautiful musical score contributes to this claustrophobic feel as well.
Unlike some animated movies that feel like they have about an hour's worth of script material, then spend the next 15 minutes on some climactic action scene (again, this has to do with a studio dumbing down the plot to please the attention spans of the kids), this movie has A LOT of story to tell during its running time. And it's a good story. A compelling, engaging, and complete story. And it is told so smoothly by Director Henry Selick. It does not at all surprise me that this book won the Newberry Award some years ago.
I'm just very pleased to see that studios have the guts to tell engaging, high-quality stories like this. Along with Wall-E, this is a positive sign that not everyone in Hollywood refuses to stifle creativity. Yes, it is scary at times, and yes parts of it are reminiscent of parts of the Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, Pan's Labyrinth, etc...but this film is still so original when compared to the crap Hollywood makes these days. This film is truly a work of art, and I hope Henry Selick starts getting more work!