 Tagline: The celebration of a lifetime Miguel Rivera (Anthony Gonzalez) is a 12-year-old boy in Mexico whose greatest desire in life is to be a musician like his idol, the mid-century legend Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt). Alas, Miguel's great-great-grandmother was abandoned by her musician husband, and the Rivera family has enforced an iron-clad policy against music ever since. Instead, each subsequent generation has gone into the family business of making shoes. But could it be that de la Cruz was in fact Miguel's long since written-off great-great-grandfather? That certainly appears to be the case. So in order to participate in a music competition on Día de Muertos, Miguel "borrows" de la Cruz's famous guitar, his own having been smashed earlier in the day by his grandmother. But with the very first strum, Miguel is transported to the Land of the Dead. There, he meets departed members of his own family and ultimately, with the help of a trickster named Héctor (Gael García Bernal), de la Cruz himself. Storyline: Despite his family's baffling generations-old ban on music, Miguel dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz. Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the stunning and colorful Land of the Dead following a mysterious chain of events. Along the way, he meets charming trickster Hector, and together, they set off on an extraordinary journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel's family history. Written by Disney/Pixar Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Martin Liebman, February 17, 2018 Coco may boast lavish production design, a big scope, great music, plenty of color, deep cultural saturation, and a sprawling roster of living and dead characters, but at its heart it's the story of a father and his daughter yearning to be reunited. It's no mistake the movie is titled Coco, so named for an elderly, wheelchair bound character who is the focal family's matriarch. It's not titled Miguel, who is the spunky little protagonist who only wants to play music, nor is it titled Day of the Dead for its abundantly colorful and visually arresting Mexican holiday setting. Like every Pixar movie, whether involving cars, robots, or toys, there's an extra-large heart at the center of the tale, a simple story of humanity and what it means to love, to remember, to cherish what's come before as a point of reference for moving forward into the future. For as strange as it might look on the surface, the movie is Pixar through-and-through, one of the studio's best and a film with so much heart beating through its characters, those in the flesh and those whose physical hearts may have long turned to dust but whose hearty spirits live on, if the living will allow, that is. The Rivera family has built a rich tradition of shoe-making but has, for several generations, banned music in the decades following a time when the family matriarch's father abandoned the family to pursue his dream of singing to the world. The matriarch, Coco, now an elderly wheelchair bound woman, is Miguel's (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) great-grandmother. Miguel secretly harbors a desire to play music. He's become quite the guitarist, but his family absolutely forbids him from practicing or even making mention of the word "music" in the home. His idol, Ernesto de la Cruz, an admired musician and movie star from way back when but who tragically died on-stage following a freak accident, guides Miguel's dreams of musical stardom. Just as Miguel has worked up the courage to be himself with his music, his family decides it's time to put him to work in the shoe shop. But when a family secret is revealed, he doubles down on his dreams, and his family doubles down on dashing them. The defiant Miguel desperately attempts to prove his musical worth by performing at the Day of the Dead festival with de la Cruz's own guitar, which is locked away in a museum. Before he can perform, Miguel suddenly finds himself caught up somewhere between life and death, unable to be seen in the land of the living but reconnecting with his deceased family in the land of the dead, a world through which he must undertake a remarkable journey to find a distant relative, chase his dreams, and put a misunderstood chapter of his family's history to peace. Pixar is a studio known for innovative films and daring animated ventures with heartfelt and wholesome messages, and Coco may be at the top of the list in terms of story creativity, narrative construction, visual dazzle, and heart. The film, which is constructed around the "Day of the Dead" Mexican holiday, may appear to be about a person who doesn't follow the rules but rather follows his heart, as his hero, Ernesto de la Cruz, says in an old video clip that Miguel has memorized. While the viability of chasing dreams, finding purpose, and following one's own path might make for a noble story, it would make for a fairly trite story. Those are themes that Pixar has explored in the past, and the studio slyly makes Coco much the same, but only on its surface. The story takes shape and heart with a significant plot twist as well as an abundance of humanity and humility, even in the land of the dead, where the story's theme relays the message that it's the spirit and soul, not the physical body -- represented by the torn-off head in an old photograph that's central to the movie's story -- that makes an individual, and a family. The film dabbles in some clever plotting and basic animation antics and hi-jinx, with some catchy songs and cheerful moments and comic relief characters blended in, but the film ultimately evolves into an incredibly vibrant portrait of familial love with the bond between a father and a daughter at its very core, not evolving away from its central character Miguel but evolving towards its soul. The film's thematic resonance, story depth, and surprise final focus alone make it a treat, but so too does the film's attention to detail and sense of authenticity even in a film that journeys to an invisible world inhabited by the dead. The film is robustly constructed, with the filmmakers clearly pouring not only researched and recreated visuals onto the screen but doing so with an obvious passion for vibrancy and complexity, making the world a believable compliment to the story it hosts. The film is beautifully rendered, lacking nothing in terms of modern digital amenities including dynamic coloring and various environmental elements that are as dense and complex as the real world they recreate. Characters are richly detailed and perfectly voiced by an impressively talented cast that immediately falls into character and understands the movie's broad structural components as well as its intimately designed heart and soul. The film is the total package of visual and narrative excellence, unsurprising coming from Pixar, a studio that continues to place emphasis on narrative purpose and heart with its visuals, which are the best in the industry, serving as mere supports to something much more meaningful and beautiful than any computer could ever produce. For readers interested in learning a little more about The Day of the Dead, here is a good-read primer from National Geographic, along with several photos that show just how real the movie's setting has been made to be. Pixar's endless string of successful films doesn't trace back to a cinematic formula. It traces back to the humanity within each story. Coco may feature undead characters, but the movie is full of life and heart. Superficially it's the story of a musically inclined boy lost in the land of the dead but it's more appropriately defined as the story of a father and his daughter, one long deceased and the other an en elderly wheelchair-bound matriarch. It's one of the most heartfelt movies of its time and a jewel in Pixar's crown, a little strange at times but a beautiful canvas and a wonderful setting to reinforce the timelessness of human love and connection. Disney's Blu-ray delivers wonderful 1080p picture quality, a good 7.1 lossless soundtrack, and a healthy allotment of extra content. Coco earns my highest recommendation. [CSW] -4.8- I couldn't have said it any better than this reviewer: A Pixar's masterpiece, impeccably done in terms of research (about the Mexican culture), animation, script, musicalization, direction and production. A subtle yet charming and inspiring story; with a quality of animation worthy of an Academy Award (I wouldn't be surprised if it was one of the great winners of 2018); with an extremely powerful soundtrack; an excellent script; likable, well-developed and relatable characters; and extremely respectful of the cultural component in which the story is inspired. In short, one of the best landings of Pixar - perhaps repeating a bit its known formula, hence you can feel a "back to basics" in terms of the narrative, history and character development, but at the same time managing to stand out as a fresh and purposeful product that will undoubtedly give a lot to talk about.[V5.0-A4.5] MPEG-4 AVC - D-Box really enhanced this movie although the motion needed to be lowered a bit but not the vibration. Cast Notes: Anthony Gonzalez (Miguel [voice]), Gael García Bernal (Héctor [voice]), Benjamin Bratt (Ernesto de la Cruz [voice]), Alanna Ubach (Mamá Imelda [voice]), Renee Victor (Abuelita [voice] [as Renée Victor]), Jaime Camil (Papá [voice]), Alfonso Arau (Papá Julio [voice]), Herbert Siguenza (Tío Oscar / Tío Felipe [voice]), Gabriel Iglesias (Clerk [voice]), Lombardo Boyar (Plaza Mariachi / Gustavo [voice]), Ana Ofelia Murguía (Mamá Coco [voice]), Natalia Cordova-Buckley (Frida Kahlo [voice]), Selene Luna (Tía Rosita [voice]), Edward James Olmos (Chicharrón [voice]), Sofía Espinosa (Mamá [voice]). IMDb Rating (03/08/18): 8.5/10 from 122,966 users Top 250: #53
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