Nominated For: Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song "Remember Me" (written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez).
Won: Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song "Remember Me" (written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez).
Coco strums alongside a young, aspiring musician, Miguel, who aims to make it big like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz, despite the fact music is forbidden within his family. When Miguel tries to prove himself, he winds up in the surprisingly lively Land of the Dead. Miguel then sets off on a journey to learn the values and truth behind his heritage so he can retrieve his great, great grandfather's blessing and return to the Land of the Living.
Coco is Pixar's nineteenth feature length animated film, and their first original project since The Good Dinosaur two years ago, but it easily positions itself as the most emotional entry since Inside Out. The ending brought on a wealth of waterworks as I probably cried around three-to-four times, and thankfully, each and every single tear is earned on account of the filmmakers' astounding achievements interwoven throughout the film's sentimental storytelling.
Now while I'm obviously not incredibly familiar with Mexican culture, I took three Spanish courses in high school so I have a passing understanding of Día de los Muertos, and it seems that Pixar spent plenty of time ensuring an accurate and respectful portrayal of Mexican tradition. The animators stock Miguel's village and the Land of the Dead with the various decorations commonly associated with Día de los Muertos such as ofrendas (altar-like offerings paying tribute to lost family/friends), orange marigold petals bridging the two worlds, and even alebrijes (florescent piñata-patterned animal-like spirit guides) to great effect, making Coco one of Pixar's most colorful animated features yet!
Coco is brimming with vibrant visuals, compelling characters, and a heartfelt story comparable with the likes of Pixar's best and brightest, so it's not too surprising that the film's co-directors, Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina, are previous Pixar collaborators. Between the two of them, they've worked on quite a few of Pixar's prestigious projects, including the likes of Toy Story 2, Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo, Toy Story 3, Ratatouille, and The Good Dinosaur.
The animation is of course exceptional, as I'd expect nothing less from this premier studio, and Pixar's talented animators once again show a keen eye to seemingly insignificant details ranging from the colorful, culturally appropriate surroundings of the sprightly spirit world to the subtle guitar strumming (which was apparently one of the most challenging elements to animate authentically). The animation strikes a sweet balance between the look of their photorealistic projects and their more cartoonish ventures.
In the music department, Coco strikes a sweet chord with the versatile ballad "Remember Me," written by Frozen songwriters Kristen and Robert Lopez, that's sure to earn a Best Original Song nomination. Elsewhere, Michael Giacchino's sumptuous score swells as a pleasant, culturally appropriate undercurrent for the film.
The directing duo's familiarity with Pixar's process is especially evident in Coco's story structure. If you were worried for whatever reason that Coco might be lacking in regards to the studio's celebrated stirring storytelling, don't be. As I mentioned earlier, the film works to earn every tear you'll shed in the auditorium (because let's be honest, you're GONNA cry). Really my only criticisms lie with the plot's derivative nature and one predictable plot-twist, although I was only able to put a few pieces of the plot's puzzle together ahead of time. Trust me though, Coco will still have plenty of surprises in store for you aside from the one insignificant detail I'm referring to. Otherwise, the screenplay penned by Molina and Matthew Aldrich is filled with inspired heart and humor that will move audiences young and old.
Last but not least, Coco's all Latino voice cast doesn't disappoint as they each successfully breathe life into an array of charismatic characters. Anthony Gonzalez, in particular, imbues Miguel with abundant ambition and a beating heart to invest audiences while Gael García Bernal's straying spirit Hector turns out to be a surprisingly endearing addition.
Meanwhile, Benjamin Bratt is perfectly pompous in the larger-than-life role of Ernesto de la Cruz and Miguel's enormous family is voiced by the likes of Alanna Ubach, Renee Victor, Jaime Camil, Alfonso Arau, Herbert Siguenza, Ana Ofelia Murguía, and Edward James Olmos, who all do an excellent job.
Of course this wouldn't be a Pixar release without an animal sidekick, and Dante certainly proves to be a cute companion who's as charming as he is scraggily so don't discount the Xolo just yet!
As always, be sure and keep your eyes peeled for usual easter eggs like the Pizza Planet truck and the number sequence A113, but also watch out for a skeletal Michael Giacchino and past Pixar characters.
To strum strings up (Yes, the wording is intentional for the purposes of a pun as a play on words of "to sum things up"), Coco is one of Pixar’s best original works because of its ability to pluck the audience’s heartstrings while paying proper tribute to Mexican culture and telling an endearing, entertaining story along the way.
It is a beautiful movie! I watched it with my siblings. I am soon going to start with the shows by Andy Yeatman on Netflix. I heard that he doesn’t work with Netflix anymore but his content is worth watching. I hope to find some good ones online.
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