105 min
8.2
2017
USA
Coco, a computer-animated fantasy movie based on an original idea by Lee Unkrich, follows a 12-year-old boy named Miguel who accidentally ended up in the Land of the Dead. With his deceased great-great-granddad's help, he aims to take him back to their family and thus reverse his family's ban on music.
The events unfold in Mexico on the Día de Muertos, a holiday celebrated in many Latin American countries. It is believed that on this day, the souls of the deceased relatives visit their homes, and their living loved ones should welcome them with peculiar altars, sweets, and favorite drinks of the dead.
Miguel comes from a hereditary family of shoemakers, but his dreams belong to music – the boy wants to play the guitar and sing. Since music is prohibited in their family because of his great-great-grandfather, who left his great-great-grandmother for the big and bright future in show business, the boy decides to change this by visiting the world of the dead and finding his relative.
This Pixar cartoon is an homage to Mexican culture: its national cuisine, music and traditions. The storyline is extremely simple and straightforward, but the story is told in such a touching and tender way that we come to realize that Coco is actually about how much meaning and value our family holds in our lives.
Coco tells us about death in simple and clear terms. And not only about naturally caused death, but also about violent death. It tells us that losing loved ones, though painful, is ultimately not scary as we will all die and join them sooner or later. The main thing is to remember those who have passed away.
Coco is an unusually warm cartoon both in terms of color and content. An almost ancient Greek myth about what is most important in the world. And even if you do not believe in what is happening on the screen, just remember yourself at the age of 10, when your mom and dad were young, and the future was bright and full of amazing possibilities.
Gimly wrote:
