So. As for the Coraline movie itself...well, lemme talk about the previews before I get to that.


I saw two different 3D trailers for Monsters vs. Aliens, and I havta say, it looks really funny. The human character designs are kind of ugly, but the monsters are cute and the script looks pretty sharp. The use of 3D will probably be fun and kitschy, like the cheesy 50's sci-fi films this movie is an homage to. I'm looking forward to this one, especially for the Seth Rogan blob character.

The Up trailer looked really nice and impressive, and again, I like how they're using 3D in these new CGI movies. It adds depth without being a "LOOK AT ME COMING AT YOUR FACE!" distraction. I don't know exactly what the story is, but I'm sure it'll be great. It's fuckin PIXAR, people.

That said, I'm more looking forward to seeing 9, which is a post-apocalyptic story about sentient rag dolls...or something. I think they're mini androids maybe? Not exactly sure. It's like Mad Max meets Toy Story, basically. It's based on a short film (seen here) by some awesome bastard named Shane Acker. The animated short is brilliant all by itself, and I worry that adding dialogue and a bunch of colorful characters voiced by a famous cast won't really improve on it. However, since Acker is directing the movie himself, I'm fairly confident about it. But I'm sure Tim Burton will get a lot of unwarranted credit for making this film because he's prominently listed as a producer. Hell, some people think he made Coraline, which I'm sure is a real pisser for Henry Selick.

The teaser short for Ice Age 3 was...meh. I'm getting tired of that ugly squirrel/chipmunk thing, and since Diego has been declawed and basically made irrelevant at this point, I'm not really interested in seeing any more of these films. But I DID like the female squirrel in the trailer.


Okay, and now onto our Feature Presentation.


Um. So. It's good. Yes, really quite enjoyable.

That's me being as restrained as possible about how much I worship this movie and desire to give birth to its babies and raise them to recruit others and form a CULT ARMY THAT WILL SPREAD TO EVERY CORNER OF THE GLOBE AND SING THE PRAISES OF ITS MAKER FOREVER AND EVER AMEN.

I haven't been this excited and inspired by a stop-motion film since, well A Nightmare Before Christmas. In fact, I'm pretty positive that I think Coraline is a better movie than NBC...or, at least it's great in a totally different way. The painstaking amount of detail and love put into everything just blew me away. I've never seen a stop-motion film with this level of sophistication. Henry Selick has never been in better form.

The story and characters are fleshed out in a way that doesn't detract from Gaiman's original book, and actually adds a lot of surprising realism. Again, it's all in the details. There are lovely little things you catch when you watch it a second time...for instance, Henry Selick's face on a one dollar bill. And I LOVE that they set the movie in Ashland, Oregon. Some of my best memories from high school come from the trips I took to Ashland's famous summer Shakespeare festival with my Drama class. You have to watch carefully and be in the know to catch that reference (the name of the town is on Mr. Bobinsky's mail), but once you get it, the odd appearance of Shakespearian weirdos walking around town suddenly makes sense. Lots of little throw-away in-jokes like that help to make this film all the more, well, three-dimensional.

Speaking of which, the 3D itself is unobtrusive and used in a way that I felt was really smart. It never felt gratuitously used to me. It just punctuated little moments of creepiness and made the experience of walking through this handmade world all the more immersive.

Because it's a Neil Gaiman story, it's all about myth and folklore (Duh). It's basically your run-of-the-mill fairy tale, really, with a unlikely hero going on a journey and defeating evil through cleverness and the help of magical forces. But it's a specific type of fairy tale which focuses on "girl power", although I DO hate to use that term.

Coraline is all about a certain specialness and magic that is unique to women. Every female in this story is, in some way, a witch. Some are overtly witchy, like the Other Mother, or a sort of witch-in-training, like Coraline (who is referred to as both a "twitchy witchy girl" and a "water witch" and mirrors the Other Mother in various ways, such as when she makes copies of her parents with pillows). Some are dabblers who believe in old wive's tales, like Spink and Forcible, and some only have a bare inkling of something beyond normal perception within themselves, like Coraline's mother, who locks the door to the other world because she senses something wrong with it and wants Coraline to "feel safe".

The males in this particular story are supportive and helpful, but always subordinate to the women in their lives. The Cat is the only male creature in this world who doesn't usually do what he's told, but since he's a cat it doesn't really count. Bobinsky is comic relief but also seems to fit the role of the lunatic wise man.

Not to get all English essay on you, but the general white witch vs. dark witch thing going on here is part of what really turns me on about this movie. Coraline is, frankly, a brat a lot of the time. But her tendency to be restless, devious, stubborn, and difficult is exactly what makes her into a kick-ass heroine. That's right, girls, EMBRACE YOUR INNER BITCH. For serious.

The visuals, of course, make up a good, say 65% of the awesome in this movie, but without the deftly put-together script and engaging characters it'd be an empty spectacle, like, say The Corpse Bride, which was kind of cute and sweet, but ultimately unsatisfying. For me, it's like the difference between a Pixar movie and any other CGI film. People who really care about the story they're telling and how they tell it are gonna kick the asses of people just trying to make another Shrek cash-cow sequel every time.


This is definitely my favorite movie of the year so far, and it'll take something truly special to knock it down from #1 status. It's without question in the top five of my "Coolest Animated Films I've Ever Seen" list. I know there'll be lots of competition coming up, but I'll be rather upset if it doesn't get Best Animated Picture at next year's Oscars.