Coraline - The GloBELL ROAR

Rating: PG

Advisories:
Thematic elements, scary images, some language, suggestive humour

Rating: 5/5

On Valentine’s Day, the day of love, I paid tribute by pampering my love for excellent movies and extraordinarily priced popcorn. One movie appealed to me right from the get-go, with a stunning art style reminiscent of “The Nightmare Before Christmas”. “Coraline” instantly grabbed my attention, and it succeeded as the first must-see film I saw come out of 2009 so far (although “Slumdog Millionaire” is still on my list).

The movie is advertised in commercials as a 3-D film released in IMAX theatres. Sadly, as a result of discrimination against people in our immediate geography, most of us won’t be allowed the privilege to witness Coraline’s immaculate stop-motion animation in the most stunning quality. There are effectively no local iMAX theatres, so expect to make a long pilgrimage to Gloucester or even out of town if you want to take in Coraline in all its glory.

Thankfully, you can still take it in at a normal, more local theatre cinema, like the AMC in the Kanata Centrum, or the Famous Players Coliseum in west-end Ottawa. I took the former option, and I can assure you, you will appreciate the visuals no matter which way you plan to see the movies. Although, if the option comes up to see it in three dimensions, by all means take it and tell me how it went, because I understand it’s quite a treat. Jennie Punter of the Globe and Mail heralds Coraline as “the best 3-D movie ever made”, so it must be worth the drive. Henry Selick the visionary director of “The Nightmare Before Christmas” has placed intricate care in this delightful film based on the award-winning novel by Neil Gaiman, and this translates well in the visual entertainment factor, whether you decide to watch it in 3-D or not.

But a good movie isn’t all visuals and animation, so on to the movie itself. I’ve tried to keep spoilers to a minimum, so I’ve tried to be vague about plot details. It really is a tale you must watch yourself to appreciate to its full extent.

The movie starts with an eerie, bony hand un-stuffing, inverting and then creating a creepy little doll that looks much like the main character, Coraline Jones, an eccentric 11-year-old girl. Coraline, along with her mother and father, has recently moved from Michigan to Pink Palace Apartments (bonus points for my favourite colour!), which they share with a number of strange people, including a pair of retired, fortune-telling actresses, and a former gymnast who trains mice to prepare for a circus act.

She is an avid explorer and demands excitement to her dreary, monotone life, but her parents are always much too busy to spend time with her. While they genuinely love her, Coraline feels resentful towards them and their mundane lifestyle (as well as the father’s disgusting delicacies), but she is most annoyed by the fact that no one seems to listen to her, with her neighbours frequently mistaking her name for “Caroline”.

All this changes quickly when she discovers a secret doorway to a parallel universe, where the world explodes into Oz-like colour. Everything is delightful and perfect, everyone is caring and fun, and every nook and cranny explodes with vibrant colours. The mother prepares lavish, tasty banquets, the father breaks out into song and dance with his mechanized piano (and his Bing Crosby-esque tenor), the actresses put on an amazing show for both us and Coraline, and Mr. Bobinsky’s mouse circus rivals The Greatest Show on Earth – on a two-inch scale. The delightful blend of music, colour and imagination is a powerful combination. I had to tell myself not to clap after the circus performance.

Coraline keeps jumping in between our world and the Other World. It’s interesting to note the sheer contrasts between both realms, our world being drab, grey and boring, the other one being fun, colourful, imaginative... but Coraline gets vague warnings that she is in terrible danger as she continues to sate her thirst for adventure and fun. We, as well as Coraline, are left in the dark of this apparent danger, until it is far too late. The story takes several dramatic turns, and although the story may seem a bit linear at times, you are still left to be guessing exactly what will become of Coraline and this strange new realm.

The button eyes are a very creepy touch initially, but one gets used to them quickly, because The Other characters are very likable. After the musical, colourful displays, it takes a very creepy turn; Coraline is obligated to leave her old family and stay with her unblinking, unwavering Other parents, compelled to sew buttons over her eyes.

After that, there is no escape. She’s been ensnared in the web, and we watch in fascination how her perfect world (along its inhabitants) decays around her. Gone are the joyfully innocent hues of Coraline’s garden, replaced with vicious weeds and dying nature all around her. The circus no longer rocks with vibrant life. The theatre stage is all but abandoned. The denizens of this realm having taken on new, terrifying forms as the final confrontation is set up. While many of these forms are very creepy, at least one of these encounters did little to satisfy me; it ended more quickly than it should have. Still, in the greater scheme of things, these events leading up to the climax were in all quite thrilling.

Potentially the most interesting character I found was “The Cat”, being one of the few characters without an “Other” counterpart, and one that becomes increasingly important as the movie continues. Never giving a straight answer, you can expect to spend some time thinking over the meaning behind his lines, as he freely goes between our world and the Other world (like the Cheshire Cat, only more ominous).

“Coraline” is a smart movie that gives you a lot to think about, with various re-occurring plot devices stemming as far back as the introduction. Its entertaining visuals and sense of humour can appeal to the younger ones as well (although it can get quite scary at times, so take care of the youngest siblings). I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I recommend the title to anyone with a hundred minutes to burn. Consider it some of the best time you will spend in 2009 watching a movie.