- "Coco" is a heartwarming movie that lives up to Pixar’s nearly flawless reputation.
- The story follows the young Miguel as he pursues his dream of playing music.
- The stunning exploration of Mexico's Dia de los Muertos traditions is well-executed.
- If you've enjoyed Disney's latest movies, definitely go see "Coco."
- Warning: Minor spoilers ahead for Pixar's "Coco."
Disney's new movie "Coco" is equal parts magic, family fun, and the deep emotional education fans have come to expect from a Pixar film. The movie follows the young Miguel, an aspiring musician forced to hide his love of playing guitar due to a deep-rooted family "curse."
Miguel confronts Abuelita's determination to stifle his musical dreams and accidentally enters the Land of the Dead on the evening of Dia de los Muertos. Miguel is then in a race against the clock as his journey among the dead leads to him uncovering the secrets of his family's history.
What's hot:
"Coco" deftly handles the terrain of Dia de los Muertos by using convincing character exposition to reach any viewer unfamiliar with the Mexican holiday and its traditions. As Miguel comes to understand the deeper meaning of celebrating his ancestors, "Coco" explores death, the afterlife, and the concept that those we've loved and lost aren't truly gone until we stop remembering them.
As fans and critics alike have come to expect from a Pixar movie, the animation and world-building in "Coco" is breathtaking. From the opening sequence's vibrant use of papel picados to the illustrious Land of the Dead, the colors and textures featured throughout the movie will leave you in awe.
The music is also spectacularly crafted, with one song in particular, "Remember Me," cleverly transcending its initial romantic implications into a tear-jerking ode to family. Other musical numbers will leave you grinning and full of the warmth only a Disney song can provide.
"Coco" is also being praised for its authentic representation of Mexican and Latino culture without becoming derivative or engaging with stereotypes in a disingenuous way.
"Pixar looking to exalt the colorful folklore of Mexico in all its splendor and it succeeds," Vanguardia reviewer Carlos Diaz Reyes wrote. "The homage is up to the task and is so beautiful that one can not help but feel a certain pride."
People felt rightfully skeptical ahead of the movie's release. Disney was faced with a wave of backlash in 2013 when it filed an application to patent Dia de los Muertos for the release of "Coco." After petitions were circulated and many members of the Mexican and Latino community spoke out, the application was withdrawn.
Business Insider's Jason Guerrasio spoke with director Lee Unkrich ("Toy Story 3") about bringing in outside consultants to help produce a movie that was culturally respectful.
"We ended up bringing in periodically big groups of all sorts of folks from the Latino community, from artists to writers to political figures to media executives, because we wanted to get a lot of different perspectives,"Unkrich said. "What we quickly learned is there is no one right way to tell a story set in the Latino community, there are a lot of different opinions. Part of our challenge was trying to navigate all those different opinions to figure out our path forward."
Despite the early hiccups of backlash, Unkrich and co-director Adrian Molina seem to have found their footing. "Coco" has already become the highest-grossing film of all time in Mexico (where it was released earlier than in the US to coincide with Dia de los Muertos).
What's Not:
At times, the plot required the suspension of disbelief just a smidge too much, especially when it came to a couple mysteries that many adult viewers will likely connect the dots on long before the characters get there on screen.
There are also a few underdeveloped characters and subplots that start weighing down the pace of the move about two-thirds of the way in, but the ending brings everything together in a way that will likely cause you to forget any qualms you had with the finer details.
But despite its predictability at points, the ending will leave you in a weepy state worth of Pixar's reputation.
The Bottom Line:
"Coco" is a spectacular family-friendly feast for the eyes and the heart. While it doesn't quite reach the peaks of entertainment recent Disney animated hits like "Moana" and "Zootopia" have hit, "Coco" is a worthy addition to the Pixar catalogue. And of course, it should leave you feel weepy at least once, as per Pixar standards.
Grade: A-
"Coco" arrives in theaters on Wednesday. Watch the final trailer below (though note that the modern pop music used to advertise "Coco" to US audiences is at odds with the actual music in the movie):
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