Review of Coco (2017) by Pipec — 11 Mar 2018

Death has never before been so alive. Oscar-winner Lee Unkrich and Seattle Film Critics Award-winner Adrian Molina seem to be consolidated as the kings of the present-day animation because, through the "hypothetical" inequality of years working in the field, they have achieved, in a magnificent way, to synthesize the characteristics with greater sensitivity and affinity from their previous works to use them in a plausible co-direction that allows the film to be what it is. Likewise, it was an outstanding job what they did with the general draft or/and the original story that plays a vital role for the success of the idea, in which it's possible to catch respectful and fresh reference parallelisms to certain functional aspects present in prior flicks such as the independence representation from "Finding Nemo", the overcoming of a specific problem in a gracefully dynamic way from "Monsters, Inc", and, of course, the most perceptible, an emotional and severe final message coming together harsh reality from "Toy Story 3." Additional to the aforementioned two directors-screenwriters, names of the caliber of Jason Katz and Matthew Aldrich stand out in the writing for their prestige and recognition in the company, leaving, as a result, an Aldrich-Molina explosive mix that provokes the correct working of the powerhouse script. In the case of this animated feature film, death, an openly polarizing subject at present, has got a subtle, clever treatment in order to capture, in a fantastic way, the truth hiding the loss of a loved one, using accessible analogies which stir up a proactive unique masterclass in core plot idea development. About this, the whole film moves with a comfortable margin among corny drama and circumstantial comical situations that achieve, within all that unreal and hopeful context, reflect difficult and pure reality, leaning, with respect, in the ideal Mexican holiday that fits perfectly with the leitmotiv. It's clear that what makes easier the excellent final cut is the charisma and the particular essence of the story and its characters, they are pawns serving as a bridge between message and audience.

Creatively, the film uses its tools in a way that exhibits the meticulous quality showed in the Pixar works. It follows the patterns of introduction and development evidenced in previous works, and although the most assiduous film buffs can feel repetitive this prototype, it's always estimable the effort to dodge the traditional through stories that transcend narrative barriers, unequivocally, through emotional scripts. While the first two acts are a complete enjoyment, the highlight is reserved for the final part because "Coco" has the luxury of having the second more emotionally disturbing and sentimentally dramatic climax in an animated film of the 21st century, only behind, no doubt, "Toy Story 3". It's overwhelming the set of emotions that an audiovisual extremely glorious moment can convey audience, one that has been fire engraved in the annals of cinema, one that will ensure the presence of hankies.

The visual section is a whole other story. After a beautiful graphic simplicity coming from "Cars 3", the studio goes back roots and decides to bet on sharply-meticulous landscapes again, using as tools bright colors, colorful textures and confections that are going to leave you open-mouthed, maybe, that's why many film attendees come to the theaters with each new release, they're aware of the dimensions of tidiness and the labor demands that the company portrays through its continuous masterpieces. In the same way, the sound aspect excels in counted periods, however, in which it succeeds, it does it in an unbeatable way. Although it does not reach near-perfect scores as Lin-Manuel Miranda's melodies for "Moana" or Randy Newman's for "Toy Story", the film extracts what can most of these in the drama set-pieces, undoubtedly highlighting "Remember Me" by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, which climatizes the most powerful emotional moment in the movie. "Coco" by Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina condenses a wide range of American cinema's strangeness and traditional elements, delivering the animated audiovisual work of the year par excellence. This enjoyable and deeply touching Magnum opus has reserved a gold place in the most prestigious movie awards, however, beyond critic acclaims or awards, its creators must feel fully fortunate that their film has gained a little piece of memory and love in the heads and hearts of millions and millions of people, perhaps, just like I did. We can breathe a sigh of relief, Disney pics keep to signify learning pillars for the growth of many people.