I saw it on my 7th birthday, and it was the first film I saw at the cinema. So that film and this studio are important to me.
Since then, they have given some of the greatest animated films of all-time, such as Wall.e, The Incredibles, Monsters Inc, Finding Nemo and many many more. I could be cruel and say that they are not quite on their A-game in recent years. But it's like saying that a Star Wars film just about getting over $1billion dollars in the box office is seen as under-performing. We should remain grateful for what they have done for this genre and as they always give us high-quality entertainment.
In its latest feature, we see them embracing Mexican culture, particuarly Dia De Muertos a.k.a The Day Of The Dead. As expected with many Pixar films, it was very moving and touching.
What makes it work is that it takes its time in telling the story and you can get heavily invested with these highly memorable characters. We get introduced to this Mexican culture and it is wonderfully portrayed, explained and in such an educational way that I can appreciate their ethics a lot more than before.
Whilst all of that is happening, the story is moving along at a strong pace and I got invested in the development and the twists it makes. The final act is wonderfully sentimental, but never over does it. There is a scene towards the end that will definitely get the tears flowing. It certainly watered mine.
Outside of the story, a lot of Pixar's films from a technical stand-point are second to none.
I have noticed that Pixar's animation quality is getting particuarly strong lately. I noticed it in the landscape of The Good Dinosaur, and Coco is no different. It is almost getting a bit too real. I wonder when animation will get so real, that we can't tell whether it is digital, photo realistic or live action?
The Mexican inspired score by Michael Giacchino is just wonderful. The native music just instantly transported you to this vibrant and colourful land, and it has many catchy and vibrant songs with lots of energy, especially the big Oscar contender 'Remember Me'.
The voice work might not be up there with other Pixar classics, but they work well in this particular environment. Anthony Gonzalez was great as the leading character and gave us a perfect introduction into his potential. It was great knowing that legendary Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal was part of this project, and gave us a highly memorable and entertaing actor to get heavily invested with.
On the whole, it was fantastic to see virtually the entire voice actors be Mexican or have Mexican roots.
The only gripes I had was the familiarities with the story structure and themes. It has many things that you have seen in other Pixar films. But it was only a minor one as the story-telling and memorable characters were pretty strong and made my viewing experience a very enjoyable one. Plus, I liked how personal it was.
Also, if you are aware of a 2014 animation call The Book Of Life, you will see similarities to it. As I have seen both, I can safely that Coco is not a rip-off. It might use a Mexican annual celebration as its backdrop, but the story is totally different.
Despite that small problem, I feel this is another welcomed addition to the studios highly-impressive catalogue. Like many of its other films, it works well for both the old and young generations. It's great for kids for so many things. But for me, the most important part was understanding Mexican culture. It was a lot like what Moana did for the cultures from the Pacific Islands. There are dark moments in this, but not enough that I feel will upset younger kids.
This is essential family viewing and make it special as the animation genre continues to get stronger and stronger.
Rating: 8/10
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