movie review on coco

“Coco” is the sprightly story of a young boy who wants to be a musician and somehow finds himself communing with talking skeletons in the land of the dead. Directed by Lee Unkrich (“ Toy Story 3 “) and veteran Pixar animator Adrian Molina , and drawing heavily on Mexican folklore and traditional designs, it has catchy music, a complex but comprehensible plot, and bits of domestic comedy and media satire. Most of the time the movie is a knockabout slapstick comedy with a “ Back to the Future ” feeling, staging grand action sequences and feeding audiences new plot information every few minutes, but of course, being a Pixar film, “Coco” is also building toward emotionally overwhelming moments, so stealthily that you may be surprised to find yourself wiping away a tear even though the studio has been using the sneak-attack playbook for decades.

The film’s hero, twelve-year old Miguel Riviera (voice by Anthony Gonzalez ), lives in the small town of Santa Cecilia. He’s a goodhearted child who loves to play guitar and idolizes the greatest popular singer-songwriter of the 1920s and ’30s, Ernesto de la Cruz ( Benjamin Bratt ), who was killed when a huge church bell fell on his head. But Miguel has to busk in secret because his family has banned its members from performing music ever since Miguel’s great-great-grandfather left, abandoning his loved ones to selfishly pursue his dreams of stardom. At least that’s the official story passed down through the generations; it’ll be challenged as the film unfolds, not through a traditional detective story (although there’s a mystery element to “Coco”) but through an “ Alice in Wonderland ” journey to the Land of the Dead, which the hero accesses through the tomb of his ancestors.

Family and legacy as expressed through storytelling and song: this is the deeper preoccupation of “Coco.” One of the most fascinating things about the movie is the way it builds its plot around members of Miguel’s family, living and dead, as they battle to determine the official narrative of Miguel’s great-great grandfather and what his disappearance from the narrative meant for the extended clan. The title character is the hero’s great-grandmother (Renee Victor), who was traumatized by her dad’s disappearance. In her old age, she has become a nearly silent presence, sitting in the corner and staring blankly ahead, as if hypnotized by a sweet, old film perpetually unreeling in her mind.

The machinations that get Miguel to the other side are too complicated to explain in a review, though they’re comprehensible as you watch the movie. Suffice to say that Miguel gets there, teams up with a melancholy goofball named Hector ( Gael Garcia Bernal), and has to pose as one of the dead with the aid of skeletal facepaint, but that (like Marty McFly returning to the 1950s to make sure his mom ends up with his dad in “Future”) the longer Miguel stays on the other side, the more likely he is to end up actually dead.

I’m reluctant to describe the film’s plot in too much detail because, even though every twist seems obvious in retrospect, Molina and Matthew Aldrich ’s script frames each one so that seems delightful and inevitable. Many of them are conveyed through a stolen family photograph that Miguel brings with him to the Land of the Dead. The deployment of the photo is a great example of how to tell a story through pictures, or more accurately, with a picture . Somebody’s face has been torn out; there’s a guitar that proves to be important later, and there are other ways in which visual information has been withheld from Miguel (and us) so that it can be revealed or restored when the time is right, completing and correcting an incomplete or distorted picture, and “picture.”

What’s freshest, though, is the tone and outlook of the film. “Coco” opened in Mexico a month before it opened in the USA and is already the highest grossing film of all time there. It assumes a non-American point-of-view on spirituality and culture—not in a touristy or “thought experiment” sort of way, but as if it were merely the latest product of an alternate universe Pixar Mexicano that has existed for just as long as the other one. The film’s stable of voice actors reads like a Who’s Who of Latin-American talent: the ensemble includes Edward James Olmos , Alfonso Arau , Ana Ofelia Murguia, Alanna Ubach and, in a small role, to my surprise and astonishment, playwright Octavio Solis , who was one of my teachers in high school back in Dallas. Michael Giacchino’s score is unsurprisingly excellent, as are the original songs—in particular, the future Oscar winner “ Remember Me ,” the greatest tear-eruption mechanism to accompany a Pixar release since the “ Toy Story 2 ” centerpiece “When She Loved Me.”

Like most Pixar productions, this one is filled with homages to film history in general and animation history in particular. I was especially fond of the references to the dancing skeletons that seemed to pop up constantly in cartoon shorts from the 1930s. There’s a touch of Japanese master Hayao Miyazaki in the film’s matter-of-fact depiction of the dead interacting with the living, as well as its portrayal of certain creatures, such as a goofy, goggle-eyed dog named Dante (modeled on Xoloitzcuintli, the national dog of Mexico) and a gigantic flying dragon-type beast with the personality of a plump old housecat.

Also notable are the film’s widescreen compositions, which put lots of characters in the same frame and shoot them from the waist up or from head-to-toe, in the manner of old musicals, or Hollywood comedies from the eighties like “9 to 5” or “ Tootsie .” The direction lets you appreciate how the characters interact with each other and with their environments and lets you decide what to look at. At first this approach seems counter-intuitive for a movie filled with fantastic creatures, structures and situations, but it ends up being effective for that very reason: it makes you feel as though you’re seeing a record of things that are actually happening, and it makes “Coco” feel gentle and unassuming even though it’s a big, brash, loud film.

I had some minor quibbles about “Coco” while I was watching it, but I can’t remember what they were. This film is a classic.

Matt Zoller Seitz

Matt Zoller Seitz is the Editor-at-Large of RogerEbert.com, TV critic for New York Magazine and Vulture.com, and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in criticism.

Alanna Ubach as Mama Imelda (voice)
Edward James Olmos as Chicharron (voice)
Gabriel Iglesias as Head Clerk (voice)
Ana Ofelia Murguía as Mama Coco (voice)
Gael García Bernal as Hector (voice)
Benjamin Bratt as Ernesto de la Cruz (voice)
Renée Victor as Abuelita (voice)
Anthony Gonzalez as Miguel (voice)
Alfonso Aráu as Papa Julio (voice)
Cheech Marin as Corrections Officer (voice)

Writer (original story by)

Adrian Molina
Lee Unkrich
Matthew Aldrich

Co-Director

Cinematographer.

Danielle Feinberg
Matt Aspbury
Steve Bloom
Michael Giacchino

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Lord of the rings star ian mckellen was told the hunt for gollum will be 2 movies, all 19 nicolas cage movies from the 1990s, ranked, coco is a heartwarming story about family and a well-crafted coming of age tale steeped beautifully in the traditions of mexico's dia de los muertos..

Pixar's latest offering, Coco , is the animation studio's second premiere of 2017, following Cars 3 this summer, and the first original, non-sequel since The Good Dinosaur in 2015. Pixar has made a name for itself over the last two decades as an animation house that infuses compelling concepts with a great deal of heart in order to entertain audiences young and old. Though there's been a debate about whether Pixar should focus more on original ideas over sequels to their beloved films, Coco is proof the Disney-owned animation studio can still come up with new concepts with as much magic and heart as their first string of hits. Coco is a heartwarming story about family and a well-crafted coming of age tale steeped beautifully in the traditions of Mexico's Día de los Muertos.

Coco tells the story of young Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), who is descended from a family of shoemakers - but who has no desire to join the family business. Instead, Miguel dreams of becoming a musician and following in the footsteps of his idol, the greatest musician to ever live, Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt). However, there's one major factor preventing Miguel from going after his dreams: his family's decades-long ban on music that has been passed down through the generations. As the story goes, Miguel's great great grandfather was a musician who abandoned his family to follow his dreams, leaving Mamá Imelda (Alanna Ubach) to raise Miguel's great grandmother, Mamá Coco (Ana Ofelia Murguía), on her own.

When Miguel's family discover he's been idolizing the music of Ernesto de la Cruz and teaching himself how to play guitar in secret, they forbid him from pursuing a career as a musician. In order to prove he can follow in the footsteps of Ernesto, Miguel steals the famed musician's guitar on Día de los Muertos and accidentally transports himself to the Land of the Dead. Though Miguel meets his deceased ancestors, they also don't understand Miguel's love of music, and he sets out in search of Ernesto with the help of charming con man Hector (Gael García Bernal), who needs Miguel's help in order to visit the Land of the Living. However, Miguel must find a way home before the sun rises, marking the end of Día de los Muertos, or else he'll be trapped in the Land of the Dead forever.

For Coco , Pixar assembled a team that are well versed in the animation studio's offerings - and it shows insofar as the film presents the best of what the studio is known for, while offering a completely new and compelling adventure. The movie was directed by Pixar veteran Lee Unkrich ( Toy Story 3 ), and co-directed by Adrian Molina ( The Good Dinosaur ); the latter co-wrote the script with Matthew Aldrich ( Cleaner ), based on a story by Unkrich, Molina, Aldrich, and Jason Katz ( Toy Story Toons: Hawaiian Vacation ). Unkrich reteamed with Toy Story 3 producer Darla K. Anderson, while fellow Pixar vet Michael Giacchino ( Inside Out, Jurassic World ) served as composer. Music is, of course, an integral aspect of the film, so Gonzalez and Bratt lend their voices to a number of catchy and fun songs in Coco - though it's not quite a musical in the vein of Disney's typical animated offerings.

The story of Coco is a rather typical hero's journey/coming of age tale, with Miguel going on a grand adventure in the Land of the Dead and learning an important lesson about both himself and his family along the way. Miguel's motivation throughout the movie - wanting to follow his dream, but not feeling understood by his family - provides for an exceptionally universal jumping off point, and acts as the anchor around which the entire film's emotional arc revolves. Even so, there are plenty of twists and turns throughout the movie that prevent the story from feeling stale; in that way, Coco somewhat resembles a telenovela, with a big third act twist that completely upends the status quo of the movie. Still, this twist only helps to further develop the main theme of the movie, which is the identity of self vs the identity of family.

Still, while the story of Coco is a major strength, it's heightened and contrasted by the colorful backdrop of the Land of the Dead. The expansive world is beautifully animated - from the wide shots of the Land as Miguel enters, to each setting as he journeys through the world's various neighborhoods. As varied as as any real world city, and populated by skeletons resembling calaveras as well as neon-colored spirit guides, the Land of the Dead in Coco is absolutely eye-catching and a wondrous thing to behold, brought to life superbly by the animators at Pixar. Further, the mythology of the world is well established so that viewers with all ranges of knowledge about Día de los Muertos and Mexican culture can understand the rules of this afterlife.

Beyond the Land of the Dead, Coco brings Miguel's home and family to life with bright, vibrant colors in the Land of the Living as well. On the whole, Coco utilizes Pixar's typical 3D CGI animation style to craft a rich world full of depth - both for the living characters and those who are dead. Additionally, Miguel and his entire family are brought to life with varying levels of development. Because the family is so large, Coco mainly focuses on Miguel and his great great grandparents, since the ancestors started the rift in the family that's felt by Miguel in present day. Still, the story provides little details about Miguel's various family members to give them some characterization and offer more depth to the characters than viewers may expect. The result is a story full of heart and drama following characters that the audience can't help but love like their own family.

All in all, Coco is a fantastic addition to the Pixar library with all the heart and emotion of the animation studio's best offerings, as well as visuals that surpass even the company's most eye-catching films. Its story is heartwarming and universal, and richly textured thanks to its roots in Mexican culture. Though some elements of Coco are a bit dark for very young children, Pixar's latest is perhaps the perfect holiday film for families - and it will no doubt be entertaining for Pixar fans of any age. Additionally, with the exceptional visuals, Coco may be worth a 3D or IMAX viewing. Altogether, Coco has all the makings of another Pixar classic, proving the animation studio's original ideas are just as strong as they ever were.

Coco is now playing in U.S. theaters nationwide. It runs 109 minutes and is rated PG for thematic elements.

Let us know what you thought of the film in the comments!

Despite his family’s 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 a journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel’s family history.

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Coco Reviews

It is an incredibly resonant, emotive work, even if its story feels a little cobbled together from past Pixar films.

Full Review | Mar 1, 2024

Coco is a story full of emotion and deep entertainment. The proposal emphasizes the importance of traditions and family, but stripping them of their mandates to offer their members listening and understanding.

Full Review | Original Score: 9/10 | Dec 28, 2023

A dance of layered visuals and eye-popping patterns, Coco is well balanced with the understated...

Full Review | Dec 14, 2023

Coco is an incredible film, that moves me emotionally more with each viewing. The story, the animation style, the colors, the look at family, and the wonderful music never fails to make me cry.

Full Review | Apr 26, 2023

A fine addition to the Pixar legacy… a very sweet film about family, very thoughtfully put together. It has that unmistakable mixture of comedy and sentiment that you associate with a Pixar movie. Great fun.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | May 27, 2022

Coco is a film that reminds us of the effect and importance of mise-en-scène, even when it has been assembled by animators and computers.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/4 | Mar 17, 2022

The film falls in line with some of Pixars best films and is an absolute must watch for any fan of film especially the Latino community. Coco gives the community more reason to be proud to be Latino.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/4 | Feb 18, 2022

It's a feast for the eyes, the cast is pitch perfect, and the music is wonderful.

Full Review | Dec 29, 2021

Coco is a colourful, joyous and utterly charming Pixar film.

Full Review | Oct 29, 2021

Coco bursts with color and life, just like we might expect of a film by Pixar Animation Studios...

Full Review | Aug 24, 2021

It's just about a perfect combination of heart and authenticity (to a culture and place) in a story that delivers laughs, gasps, and sniffles in ample amounts.

Full Review | Jul 28, 2021

It's tender and kind, but doesn't shy away from the reality we all must face.

Full Review | Jul 21, 2021

Coco is another brilliant installment into an already near flawless collection of films (okay, all but those Cars movies).

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jun 8, 2021

Coco isn't a musical, but the soundtrack will top your Spotify Most Played list for weeks.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 28, 2021

An unexpectedly brilliant and dynamic story about lineage, connection, and self-discovery.

Full Review | Mar 4, 2021

A heartfelt tribute to Mexican culture but more than that it is a universal story about the importance of family that is heartfelt but never saccharine.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Feb 3, 2021

What makes the film so heartfelt and resonant is its rich exploration of family, love and memory.

Full Review | Dec 29, 2020

Thematically, Coco shows the importance of family, while respecting the elderly and remembering the dead. It's not too often family films highlight that...

Full Review | Dec 23, 2020

Equal parts jokey and mature, fun-loving and melancholy.

Full Review | Original Score: 8/10 | Dec 5, 2020

A profound film going experience that is fun for the whole family as well.

Full Review | Oct 9, 2020

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Coco Movie Poster: Miguel and Hector stand back to back on a path made out of marigold petals

Common Sense Says
Parents Say 150 Reviews
Kids Say 174 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

Stunningly animated, poignant tribute to family and culture.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 7+?

For those who aren't familiar with Day of the Dead traditions (skeletons, makeup

Adult characters drink in a couple of scenes: a shot in one scene and drinks at

Discussion of Mamá Imelda and her husband's love story. A married couple embrace

Infrequent use of words including "stupid," "dumb," "jerks," "hate," and "bum."

Nothing in the film itself, but Disney/Pixar films always have plenty of merchan

Any Positive Content?

Among the film's four directors and writers, Adrian Molina is Mexican American a

Many positive messages: Remember that your family loves and wants the best of an

Miguel is talented, gifted, and enthusiastic. He makes some impulsive, risky, if

Viewers may learn about some of the cultural traditions (and creatures) surround

Violence & Scariness

For those who aren't familiar with Day of the Dead traditions (skeletons, makeup to look like skeletons, beheaded/limbless skeletons, etc.), there's potentially frightening imagery throughout the movie. Some violent moments are played for humor, like scenes in which a character is crushed by a large bell. Skeletons come apart frequently. A character falls from a great height. Another is shown succumbing to poison. Characters are chased/pursued; some tension/peril as a result. Sad moment when a Land of the Dead figure dissolves into dust; later, another popular character appears to fade, which could upset kids. Tear-jerking climactic sequence. Pepita, a large spirit guide animal, is like a huge flying griffin/panther, and she can be intimidating (growling, pouncing, etc.). Arguing; grown-ups yell at a kid.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Adult characters drink in a couple of scenes: a shot in one scene and drinks at a party.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Discussion of Mamá Imelda and her husband's love story. A married couple embraces. Kissing/romance in a movie-within-the-movie. A "nude" skeleton poses for an artist (played for humor).

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Nothing in the film itself, but Disney/Pixar films always have plenty of merchandise tie-ins, from apparel to games to toys.

Diverse Representations

Among the film's four directors and writers, Adrian Molina is Mexican American and openly gay. (The other three filmmakers are White men.) Though the film had a rocky start with Latino communities, Disney/Pixar course-corrected and ended up receiving generally positive reviews by Mexican and Latino critics . Coco has a nearly all-Latino voice cast, with most actors of Mexican heritage. It showcases a Mexican holiday and, through Disney and Pixar's massive scale, brings Day of the Dead traditions to a global audience. Though the main characters are all boys/men -- Miguel, the celebrity he idolizes, and his dad -- women have important supporting roles and are portrayed as strong matriarchs. The film has age diversity and encourages a deep respect for family elders. A character with dementia has a backstory and is loved.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Positive Messages

Many positive messages: Remember that your family loves and wants the best of and for you. Love and accept who you are, and try to persevere and follow your dreams. Running away doesn't solve anything. Teamwork and asking for help are important. Gifts and talents shouldn't be ignored or suppressed; you shouldn't have to choose between your family and doing what you love. Unconditional love is powerful. It's never too late to forgive someone. Be grateful for what you have.

Positive Role Models

Miguel is talented, gifted, and enthusiastic. He makes some impulsive, risky, iffy decisions (from stealing de la Cruz's guitar to running away from those who want to help him), but he ultimately recognizes the value of his family. Mamá Imelda and Abuelita are very strict but also loving and affectionate; it takes time, but they eventually listen to what Miguel is trying to tell them. Hector is a trickster, but he also wants to redeem himself in his family's eyes.

Educational Value

Viewers may learn about some of the cultural traditions (and creatures) surrounding Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead and what it's like to live in a Mexican family dedicated to a craft (in this case, shoemaking). Kids may also learn a bit about Mexican music styles.

Parents need to know that Coco is a vibrant Disney/Pixar film that explores the traditions of the Day of the Dead, a child's desire to become a musician despite his family's wishes, and the power of unconditional love. Told from the point of view of Miguel (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez ), a young boy who ends up in the Land of the Dead, the movie -- which features an all-star Latino voice cast (including Gael García Bernal and Benjamin Bratt ), as well as a Latino co-director and many Latino crew members -- is a tribute to Mexican traditions and customs. The Land of the Dead has some potentially disturbing imagery, but most kids will probably get used to all of the skeletons quickly. A few moments of life-or-death peril are fraught with tension, but none of the major characters die (at least, who aren't already dead). There's also some drinking by adult characters (a shot, cocktails at a party) and a few uses of words like "stupid." While all is well in the end, the movie can be sad (as with most Pixar films, it's likely some viewers will cry), especially for those who've lost beloved relatives. But it also has powerful themes of perseverance, teamwork, and gratitude and encourages audiences to love and appreciate their family and always follow their dreams. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Parent and Kid Reviews

Parents say (150)
Kids say (174)

Based on 150 parent reviews

It was too soon for my 6 years old son.

Not for kids - bad message, what's the story.

COCO follows Miguel (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez ), a young Mexican boy born into a family of zapateros (shoemakers). For generations, the family has imposed a ban on playing or listening to music because, decades earlier, Miguel's great-great-grandfather left his great-great-grandmother Imelda ( Alanna Ubach ) and their young daughter, Coco (Ana Ofelia Murguía), to become a musician. But Miguel secretly plays the guitar and yearns to become a famous musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz ( Benjamin Bratt ), the long-dead singer/actor from Miguel's hometown. On the Day of the Dead, Miguel fights with his family, steals de la Cruz's guitar from a crypt, and somehow gets transported to the Land of the Dead. There, Miguel meets up with his deceased relatives and learns that he can only return to the world of the living with a dead ancestor's blessing. Because Mamá Imelda inserts a no-music clause into her blessing, Miguel flees her and the rest of his skeletal relatives in search of de la Cruz, whom he believes to be his great-great-grandfather. Instead, Miguel teams up with Hector ( Gael García Bernal ), a scheming skeleton who claims to know de la Cruz, on his journey to find the dead idol and earn his blessing, musician to musician.

Is It Any Good?

Colorful, beautifully animated, and culturally vibrant, Coco is an affecting, multilayered coming-of-age drama. Miguel just wants to make music, even though it's forbidden to him because his family believes that music cursed them. Gonzalez, a tween who performs Mariachi music, is an ideal pick to voice the movie's main character. It's clear that, like his animated alter ego, he's a talented performer. Featuring "Remember Me," an original song from Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez (the husband-and-wife team behind the Frozen soundtrack), and other songs written and produced by a team of Mexican songwriters and consultants, Coco boasts an authentic soundtrack and a memorable score by award-winning composer Michael Giacchino.

The voice cast is nearly all Latino (and most have Mexican heritage), with internationally renowned Mexican American actor Edward James Olmos and comedians Cheech Marin and Gabriel Iglesias voicing supporting characters. Bratt (who's half Peruvian) has just the right timbre of gravitas to play de la Cruz, a famous and vainglorious musician who died at the peak of his career. As for the titular character, she's Miguel's great-grandmother, and her scenes with Miguel will bring a tear to even the most jaded viewer's eyes. The movie will be especially moving for anyone who's had to separate from their family, whether because of death or another reason. But of all the movie's relationships, it's really Miguel's with Hector that's the most nuanced and fascinating. Bernal's Hector is so much more than he seems, and whether he's pretending to be Frida Kahlo (the ghost of Kahlo herself also makes an appearance), playing the guitar, or pleading his case to be remembered, he's the film's second hero. Like the best Pixar movies, Coco is ultimately a story about the power of relationships and why familia is so important.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the popularity of stories about young characters who must go on a dangerous journey to find out about themselves. What does Miguel learn in Coco ? How do his experiences in the Land of the Dead help him grow?

Talk about the movie's theme of family duty vs. personal ambition. Which characters in Coco are role models , and which character strengths do they demonstrate? How are gratitude , perseverance , and teamwork especially encouraged?

Did you think any parts of the movie were scary ? How much scary stuff can young kids handle? Who do you think is the ideal audience for this movie? Why?

Did you already know about the Day of the Dead? If not, what did you learn about the holiday? How does your family pay tribute to relatives and loved ones after they've passed away? Which other Mexican traditions and values does the movie promote? Which holidays, music, and other cultural traditions do you celebrate with your family?

Did you notice that characters speak both English and Spanish in the movie? For bilingual and multilingual families: Why do you think it's important or useful to speak more than one language? How does language connect you with your heritage -- and your family?

Movie Details

In theaters : November 22, 2017
On DVD or streaming : February 27, 2018
Cast : Benjamin Bratt , Gael Garcia Bernal , Anthony Gonzalez
Directors : Lee Unkrich , Adrian Molina
Inclusion Information : Latino directors, Indigenous actors, Latino actors, Latino writers
Studio : Pixar Animation Studios
Genre : Family and Kids
Topics : Magic and Fantasy , Adventures , Holidays
Character Strengths : Gratitude , Perseverance , Teamwork
Run time : 109 minutes
MPAA rating : PG
MPAA explanation : thematic elements
Awards : Academy Award , Common Sense Selection , Kids' Choice Award , Golden Globe - Golden Globe Award Winner
Last updated : July 24, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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‘coco’: film review.

Steeped in Mexican culture and folklore, 'Coco' ranks among Disney-Pixar's most engaging efforts.

By Michael Rechtshaffen

Michael Rechtshaffen

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Dia de los Muertos, the multi-day Mexican-originated holiday honoring dead family members and friends, proves to have a remarkably revitalizing effect on Pixar, as evidenced by the truly resplendent Coco .

Not only does the Disney outfit’s 19th feature, co-directed by Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina, emerge as Pixar’s most original effort since Inside Out , it’s also among its most emotionally resonant, touching on themes of belonging common to Finding Dory and the Unkrich-directed Toy Story 3 .

Release date: Nov 22, 2017

Delivering a universal message about family bonds while adhering to folkloric traditions free of the watering down or whitewashing that have often typified Americanized appropriations of cultural heritage, the gorgeous production also boasts vibrant visuals and a peerless voice cast populated almost entirely by Mexican and Latino actors.

Although not due to arrive in North America until Thanksgiving, the film had its premiere Friday at the Morelia International Film Festival in Mexico and will open there the following week, just ahead of Dia de los Muertos festivities.

It’s a safe bet that audiences the world over will go loco for Coco .

Despite the title, the lead character is, in fact, Miguel (terrifically voiced by young Anthony Gonzalez), a 12-year-old resident of the town of Santa Cecilia who dreams of becoming a famous musician just like his idol, the late, great Ernesto de la Cruz (played with pitch-perfect grandiosity by Benjamin Bratt).

Only trouble is, Miguel’s family has forbidden any form of music in their household for the past several generations — ever since his great-great-grandfather was said to have abandoned his loved ones in pursuit of his singing career.

Despite the strong-armed disapproval of resident family enforcer Abuelita (Renee Victor), Miguel sets off to follow his muse, and, in the process, finds himself subject to an otherworldly occurrence that results in his only being visible to those who have crossed over from the Land of the Dead to take part in Dia de los Muertos celebrations.

Miguel’s only hope of reversing the effect is to be blessed with a magical marigold petal by his great-great-grandmother, Mama Imelda (Alanna Noel Ubach), but she’ll only comply under the condition that he’ll forever renounce any and all musical aspirations.

At every imaginative juncture, the filmmakers (the screenplay is credited to Pixar veteran Molina and Matthew Aldrich) create a richly woven tapestry of comprehensively researched storytelling, fully dimensional characters, clever touches both tender and amusingly macabre and vivid, beautifully textured visuals.

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Review: ‘Coco’ Brings the Pixar Touch to Death

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By A.O. Scott

Nov. 21, 2017

One of the pleasures of a new Pixar feature is the chance to be amazed by what animation can do. Sometimes you witness a big, bold breakthrough, like the computer-assisted rendering of fur in “Monsters, Inc.,” of water in “Finding Nemo,” or of metal in “Cars.” The innovations in “Coco” are no less satisfying for being of a more subtle kind. The grain of leather and the rusted folds of corrugated metal have a rough, almost tactile quality. Human bones, hairless dogs and orange flower petals look uncannily (but not too uncannily) real. There are moments of cinematic rigor — when the animators mimic the movements and focal effects of an old-fashioned camera in actual physical space — that will warm any film-geek’s heart. Not to mention the Frida Kahlo-inspired musical number with dancing papaya seeds.

“Coco” is also one of those Pixar movies that attempt a conceptual breakthrough, an application of the bright colors and open emotionalism of modern, mainstream animation to an unlikely zone of experience. From the very start, the studio has explored the inner lives of inanimate objects like lamps and toys with a tenderness we now take for granted. It has also summoned the post-human future ( “Wall-E” ) and the human unconscious ( “Inside/Out” ) with breathtaking ingenuity. And now it has set out to make a family-friendly cartoon about death.

Don’t let that scare you or your children away. There is a murder (revealed in the third act) and a fatal church-bell-related accident (witnessed in the first), but the afterlife in “Coco” is a warm and hectic place, more comical than creepy. The story takes place during the Day of the Dead, when according to Mexican tradition (at least as interpreted by Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina, who directed the screenplay written by Mr. Molina and Matthew Aldrich), the border controls between life and death relax and the departed are allowed temporary passage to the land of the living. A young boy named Miguel (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) makes the trip in reverse, which is not to say that he dies, but rather that his living self, through one of several metaphysical loopholes that the movie explains as it goes along, is transported into a fantastical world of specters and skeletons, who hold fabulous parties and raucous outdoor concerts.

Nearly as enchanting as that magical realm is the Mexican village of Santa Cecilia, Miguel’s hometown, where he is part of a prosperous clan of shoemakers. The cultural vibe of “Coco” is inclusive rather than exoticizing, pre-empting inevitable concerns about authenticity and appropriation with the mixture of charm and sensitivity that has become something of a 21st-century Disney hallmark. Here, the importance of family — the multigenerational household that sustains and constrains the hero — is both specific and universal. It’s what explains the particular beats of Miguel’s story and what connects him to viewers regardless of background.

He shows a certain kinship with other well-known recent cartoon characters. A gifted musician in a family that forbids music, he is a bit like Remy, the “Ratatouille” rat whose kin were hostile to his artistic ambition, and like Mumble, the misfit penguin in “Happy Feet.” Miguel’s genealogical quest — a search for roots, lost ancestors and information that might explain who he is — resembles Dory’s journey in “Finding Dory.” The sidekicks who accompany him, animal and (formerly) human, are drawn from a familiar well of archetypes, and the final round of lesson-learning and reconciliation hits notes we have heard many times before.

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“Coco,” a Story About Borders and Love, Is a Definitive Movie for This Moment

One weekend last fall, my boyfriend, Andrew, whose favorite movies include “Deliverance” and the original “Texas Chain Saw Massacre,” went off to go see the Pixar movie “Coco,” by himself, and came back in a delirium of happy, wistful tears. “What’s going on with you?” I asked, watching him wheel his bike back into the living room. I hadn’t moved from my permanent station behind my computer monitor, a hub for the ongoing erosion of my belief in human good. “You have to go to see ‘Coco,’ ” he croaked. “You have to. It’s, like, the best movie of all time.”

I assumed that he was being hyperbolic, until a night in April when I invited three friends over to watch “Coco,” all of us first-time viewers with high expectations. People we knew—people in their twenties and thirties, few of them with children—had been freaking out about “Coco” in group texts and random conversations, saying things like, “I cried so hard I started choking,” and “I’ve watched it five times this month on airplanes.” “Hey ppl over here getting drunk and watching Coco just fyi,” I texted Andrew, who was still at the office. In return, I received a series of panicked instructions to not start without him. “You have already seen it….” I texted. “I DON’T CARE!!!!!!!” he texted back. “DON’T START WITHOUT ME!!!!”

We started without him. Andrew came home a third of the way into the movie, cracked a beer, and silently sat down on the floor of the living room to watch. By the end, every one of us was crying through a manic grin. “I told you,” he said. “It’s the best movie of all time.”

In the weeks since that viewing, “Coco” love has continued to spread among my demographic—thanks, in part, to the movie’s release on Netflix in May. “Coco” is unlike any film I can think of: it presents death as a life-affirming inevitability; its story line about grudges and abandonment makes you feel less alone. The protagonist, Miguel, is a twelve-year-old boy in the fictional Mexican town of Santa Cecilia—named for the patron saint of musicians—and he is trying to get out from under the shadow of his great-great-grandfather, who left his family to pursue a career as a musician. His wife, the ferocious Mamá Imelda, was left to take care of their young daughter, Coco. She instituted a permanent household ban on music and started making shoes.

We meet Coco as an old woman. Her daughter, Miguel’s grandmother, now runs the family and its shoemaking business with an iron chancla . Earnest, sweet Miguel teaches himself to play the guitar in the attic, watching and re-watching tapes of the bygone star Ernesto de la Cruz. On the Day of the Dead, he accidentally shatters a framed photograph on the family ofrenda , then spots a hidden detail in the picture, one that makes him suspect that his wayward ancestor was in fact de la Cruz himself. He sprints to the town mausoleum, hoping to borrow de la Cruz’s guitar and prove the value of music to his family. Instead, the guitar turns Miguel invisible, and whisks him across a skybridge covered in thick, soft marigold petals that glow like lava. He falls to his knees in the petals, and then looks up to see a grand floating metropolis, confetti-colored in the darkness: the Land of the Dead.

The second and third acts of the movie are mostly set in this city of jubilant sugar-skull skeletons, where you exist only as long as you are remembered by the living. (You can cross over to the living world on the Day of the Dead, but only if your photo is on display.) Miguel joins up with a raggedy show-biz hustler named Héctor, who’s desperate to get his picture back up on an ofrenda , and who says he can bring Miguel to de la Cruz. Héctor lives in a waterfront shantytown filled with people who are about to be forgotten; at one point, he begs a guitar for Miguel off an ill-tempered cowboy named Chicharrón, who vanishes as soon as Héctor finishes singing an old dirty song.

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Eventually, Miguel realizes that Héctor is his real ancestor, and the movie sprints to a conclusion that’s as skillfully engineered to produce waterworks as the montage at the beginning of “Up.” But until the end, “Coco” is mostly, wonderfully, a mess of conflict and disappointment and sadness. Héctor seems to have failed everyone who takes a chance on him. Miguel’s face, painted in skeleton camouflage, often droops as if he were a sad little black-and-white dog. “Coco” is animated by sweetness, but this sweetness is subterranean, bursting through mostly in tiny details: the way that both Mamá Imelda and Miguel’s grandmother brandish shoes when they’re angry; or how the daffy Xolo dog that accompanies Miguel on his adventure is named Dante; or how the skeletons return to their city through the Day of the Dead’s efficient T.S.A. system, declaring the churros and beer that their families gave them for their journey home.

Before “Coco” hit theaters, it was easy to doubt that the movie would present Mexican culture as expansively and gorgeously as it does, with such natural familiarity and respect. It is Pixar’s nineteenth movie, but its first with a nonwhite protagonist; Lee Unkrich, the director and creator of the initial story, is white. The movie’s working title was “Día de los Muertos,” and, in 2013, Disney lawyers tried, absurdly, to trademark that phrase. But Unkrich and his team approached their subject with openness and collaborative humility: they travelled to Mexico, they loosened Pixar’s typical secrecy to build a large network of consultants, and, after the trademark controversy, they asked several prominent critics to come onboard. “Coco” is the first movie to have both an all-Latino cast and a nine-figure budget. It grossed more than eight hundred million dollars worldwide, won two Oscars, and became the biggest blockbuster in Mexican history.

“Coco” is also a definitive movie for this moment: an image of all the things that we aren’t, an exploration of values that feel increasingly difficult to practice in the actual world. It’s a story of a multigenerational matriarchy, rooted in the past—whereas real life, these days, feels like an atemporal, structureless nightmare ruled by men. It’s about lineage and continuity at a time when each morning makes me feel like my brain is being wiped and battered by new flashes of cruelty, as though history is being forgotten and only the worst parts rewritten. It feels like myth or science fiction to imagine that our great-great-grandchildren will remember us. If we continue to treat our resources the way we are treating them currently, those kids—if they exist at all—will live in a world that is ravaged, punishing, artificial, and hard.

This world is hard enough already: its technological conditions induce emotional alienation, and its economic ones narrow our attention to questions of individual survival. As it is, I haven’t assembled the ofrenda I ought to. I barely feel like I’m taking adequate care of the people I love right now, and I mean the ones I know personally. I feel certain that I’m failing the people I don’t know but that I love nonetheless—the people in our national community, and the people who are seeking to become a part of it.

“Coco” is a movie about borders more than anything—the beauty in their porousness, the absolute pain produced when a border locks you away from your family. The conflict in the story comes from not being able to cross over; the resolution is that love pulls you through to the other side. The thesis of the movie is that families belong together. I watched it again this week, reading the news that Donald Trump is considering building an unregulated holding camp for migrant children , that ICE showed up on the lawn of a legal permanent resident and initiated deportation procedures , that a four-month-old baby was torn away from her breast-feeding mother . If justice is what love looks like in public, then love has started to seem like the stuff of children’s movies, or maybe the stuff of this children’s movie—something that doesn’t make sense in the adult world, but should.

Film Review: Pixar’s ‘Coco’

Pixar's latest diversifies the studio's character lineup, if not necessarily its feel-good formula, building musical journey around the look and feel of Mexico's Día de Muertos.

By Peter Debruge

Peter Debruge

Chief Film Critic

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Progression Image 3 of 3: Final Frame..ASPIRING MUSICIAN — In Disney•Pixar’s “Coco,” Miguel (voice of newcomer Anthony Gonzalez) dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like the celebrated Ernesto de la Cruz (voice of Benjamin Bratt). But when he strums his idol’s guitar, he sets off a mysterious chain of events. Directed by Lee Unkrich, co-directed by Adrian Molina and produced by Darla K. Anderson, “Coco” opens in theaters Nov. 22, 2017.

Conceived as a vibrant celebration of Mexican culture, writer-director Lee Unkrich ’s “ Coco ” is the 19th feature from Pixar Animation Studios and the first to seriously deal with the deficit of nonwhite characters in its films — so far limited to super-sidekick Frozone in “The Incredibles,” tagalong Russell in “Up” and Mindy Kaling’s green-skinned Disgust in “Inside Out.” It’s a point worth making from the outset, not so much for political reasons (although they matter) but to indicate how this effective yet hardly exceptional addition to the Pixar oeuvre finds at least one significant front on which to innovate, even while coloring comfortably within the lines on practically everything else.

Like Remy, the rodent hero of “Ratatouille” who dreamed of working in a French restaurant, 12-year-old Miguel Rivera (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) has just one passion in life: He wants to play the guitar. Unfortunately for him, Miguel belongs to a family of humble shoemakers where music has been forbidden for generations, ever since his great-great-grandfather walked out on his wife and daughter to pursue a career as a singer. Only in folk tales and cartoons do human beings make such inflexible rules, though it certainly simplifies the movie’s conflict.

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In direct violation of the Rivera family rule, Miguel has taught himself to play the guitar, spending virtually every free moment studying the work of local singing legend Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt), who died young and handsome, leaving behind a trove of classic songs and black-and-white films — of which Miguel has memorized every line, look and lyric, singing along with his best-loved ballad, “Remember Me,” on his handmade instrument.

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Like so many Pixar films before it, “Coco” indulges the belief that kids know best, while it’s up to adults to come around. In the case of this particular misunderstood child, Miguel’s job is to persuade his family to change their minds, preferably by performing in the annual Día de Muertos talent show in the town plaza. That would be story enough to drive a live-action movie, but in “Coco,” Miguel’s musical stash is discovered the day before the competition, and his defiance so upsets to his abuelita (Renee Victor) that she smashes the boy’s beloved guitar.

Rather than give up, Miguel sneaks into Ernesto de la Cruz’s mausoleum on Día de Muertos and steals the star’s prized guitar, unleashing a curse that forces him to travel to the Land of the Dead, where Miguel must seek his family’s forgiveness, as well as their blessing, before being allowed to return home — an Orpheus-like katabasis (as such epic journeys are called) in which he must travel the underworld and back to set things right. The rules of this quasi-religious (but mostly superstitious) Land of the Dead are plenty complicated but stated clearly enough for even little children to follow.

After reuniting with his relatives (who live on in skeleton form, rendered in such a way that they’re far less scary than anything in Tim Burton’s ghoulish “The Nightmare Before Christmas” ensemble), Miguel is torn between obeying his family and trying to find Ernesto, whom he’s come to believe was the wannabe musician who abandoned his family so many generations before. For Mexican audiences — or those who live in California, Texas, or any place with a visible Latino presence — the cultural iconography of the Land of the Dead ought to look quite familiar, as Unkrich (who previously oversaw “Toy Story 3”) embraces and incorporates the customs and folklore of Día de Muertos into the very fabric of the film.

From the altar-like ofrendas where family photos pay tribute to loved ones lost (whose spirits remain alive in this parallel realm, so long as they are remembered by the living) to the brilliant-orange marigold petals that serve as a bridge between the two worlds, Pixar’s art department makes stunning use of the holiday’s signature elements. The film’s elaborate prologue unfolds across a series of papel picado banners (the cut-tissue-paper streamers that line the streets during times of celebration), calling for a unique style of moving-silhouette animation reminiscent of the great Michel Ocelot. On the other side, fantastical, fluorescent-bright alebrijes (or spirit animals inspired by the country’s colorful folk-art sculptures) keep the dead company — while also providing a convenient excuse for Miguel’s Xoloitzcuintli street-dog sidekick, Dante, to accompany him on his journey.

So often, cartoon animal companions feel like concessions to the studio’s marketing department, but Dante serves as both an affectionate nod to Mexico’s oldest breed of dog — a scraggly, hairless variety whose daffy expression, googly eyes and lolling tongue recall Ed, “The Lion King’s” loony hyena, in less menacing form — and a kind of hapless underworld Lassie, providing comic relief and rescue opportunities in equal measure. The character who takes slightly longer to win us over is Hector (Gael García Bernal), a gangly con artist who comes to Miguel’s assistance, hoping that by helping the boy back to the real world, he might be able to cross over as well.

By this point, the Pixar machine has gotten so efficient that watching its movies can feel less like hearing a good story than sitting in on a well-polished pitch meeting. In “Coco” — which is named after Miguel’s oldest living relative, exquisitely rendered as a damaged soul wrapped in wrinkles — there’s a clockwork sense of what every character, detail and scene is doing (the mariachi band with which Miguel performs reappears later to help him sneak into Ernesto’s compound, etc.), giving the film an almost boilerplate efficiency right up until the big confrontation between Miguel and his idol, which doesn’t go at all how one might think.

It’s strange for Pixar — whose every employee clearly believes in the importance of creativity, sacrificing time with their own families to bring these incredible stories to life — to suddenly turn cynical toward showbiz. Sure, “nothing is more important than family,” but do Unkrich and co-writers Jason Katz, Matthew Aldrich and Adrian Molina really believe that, or are they spouting the platitudes that audiences want to hear?

Though undeniably gorgeous, none of this feels terribly original, from the film’s message to the look of the Mexican underworld, which so recently inspired another computer-animated feature, 2014’s “The Book of Life.” A bit too close to that toon for comfort, “Coco” feels like Unkrich and his story team (so good at perfecting and/or “plussing” Pixar’s projects) watched “The Book of Life” and thought, “Hey, we’ve got a better idea!” or “We can fix this!” and proceeded to make their own Día de Muertos movie.

In any case, it works: “Coco’s” creators clearly had the perfect ending in mind before they’d nailed down all the other details, and though the movie drags in places, and features a few too many childish gags (like skeletons who snap off their own arms and use them as nunchaku), the story’s sincere emotional resolution earns the sobs it’s sure to inspire, inevitably bringing Ernesto’s catchy “Remember Me” back around in a fresh context (if only the song itself were more worthy of remembering). In an era when young people are so easily seduced by celebrity, “Coco” reveals the emptiness of such adulation, poignantly teaching kids to preserve and respect the memory of their elders while reminding them that the source of true creativity is so often personal.

Reviewed at Frank G. Wells screening room, Burbank, Oct. 18, 2017. MPAA Rating: PG. Running time: 105 MIN.

Production: (Animated) A Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures release of a Disney presentation of a Pixar Animation Studios production. Producer: Darla K. Anderson. Executive producer: John Lasseter. Director: Lee Unkrich. Co-director: Adrian Molina. Screenplay: Molina, Matthew Aldrich; story: Unkrich, Molina, Aldrich, Jason Katz. Camera (color, widescreen): Danielle Feinberg. Editors: Steve Bloom, Unkrich. Music: Michael Giacchino.
With: Anthony Gonzalez, Gael García Bernal, Benjamin Bratt , Alanna Ubach, Jaime Camil, Alfonso Arau, Sofía Espinosa, Selene Luna, Ana Ofelia Murguia, Renee Victor, Luis Valdez, Herbert Siguenza, Carla Medina, Edward James Olmos

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What Is Cinema?

Coco Review: Pixar’s Latest Has Wit, Style, and a Very Good Dog

A cynic could be forgiven for initially dismissing Pixar’s colorful Coco as a charming but prosaic diversion—a skeleton whose flashy costume can’t quite hide the fact that it’s been assembled from the ossified remains of Disney properties past. It’s true that Coco hits a few too many familiar beats, particularly in its opening minutes, which play like Moana en Español —impossible dream, disapproving family, doofy animal sidekick, questionable cultural sensitivity and all.

But though it’s got conventional bones, Coco also has—if you’ll pardon the extension of this metaphor—real heart and soul. It’s a well-plotted story shot through with inventive humor and appealing melancholy, one that fully deserves the tears it’s bound to coax from wistful parents. All that, and the doofy dog actually brings down the house. (His name is Dante, and he is a very good boy ).

After a brief but rousing mariachi-flavored rendition of “When You Wish Upon a Star,” we meet our young hero, Miguel (voiced by the sprightly Anthony Gonzalez )—a Mexican boy torn by the type of dilemma that could exist only in a Disney film. Miguel yearns to be a famous musician like his idol, the fictional and deceased crooner Ernesto de la Cruz. Unfortunately, his family can’t abide music, ever since his great-great-grandfather abandoned his great-great-grandmother decades ago to pursue his own dreams of stardom.

It’s a simplistic setup that gets complicated nicely when Miguel steals away on Día de Muertos, sneaks into de la Cruz’s mausoleum, and borrows his hero’s signature guitar. His innocent act of thievery transforms Miguel into a sort of living ghost, capable of interacting with the ancestral spirits that flood into his hometown each Day of the Dead—all styled like calacas, the holiday’s trademark fancily dressed skeletons. Before long, he’s spirited away to the Land of the Dead, a vivid and only slightly morbid metropolis accessible by a gorgeously animated bridge made of shimmering marigold petals.

This vibrant urban sprawl, inspired by the colorful buildings of the real-life city of Guanajuato, is as marvelously imagined as the cerebral landscape of Inside Out or Monsters Inc. ’s bustling Monstropolis, another densely packed world of wonders that’s both familiar—there’s a scene about skeleton bureaucracy that kills, I swear—and otherworldly. Miguel soon sets off on a quest to find the undead de la Cruz ( Benjamin Bratt, slick and preening), who’s as famous in the afterlife as he was in life, and who holds the key to sending Miguel home. Along the way, Miguel is helped by a suave but lonely charlatan calaca named Hector (a warm Gael García Bernal ) and hindered by the spirits of his own ancestors, who want the best for Miguel but still aren’t too keen about the whole music thing. (Speaking of which! Coco is not, alas, a full-fledged musical, though it does feature a smattering of serviceable numbers by a pair of songwriting teams: Germaine Franco and Adrian Molina, and Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez. None of them are earworms as memorable as “Let It Go,” but then again, how many songs are?)

Once all that exposition is finally over and done, Coco is free to flit merrily from setpiece to dazzling set piece as Miguel encounters all manner of fantastical, authentically Mexican creations (multicolored alebrijes ! An exquisite cenote The hilariously self-important spirit of Frida Kahlo!). The action breaks only when Coco pauses to strategically drive home its big lesson—one that’s not about loss so much as the thorny issue of legacy, and the price of chasing the sort of dreams that often consume animated characters. Miguel, pleading with the specter of his great-great-grandmother—the one who was ditched by a musician all those years ago—articulates a portion of it near the end of the film: “You don’t have to forgive him, but we shouldn’t forget him.”

It’s a surprisingly sophisticated theme for a kid’s movie, and one Coco can’t quite bring itself to embrace fully; its final portion winds back that moral complexity, thanks to a series of late-breaking plot revelations that excuse the sins of the past and allow Miguel to find his requisite happy ending—without having to sacrifice his ambitions. For a long while, the movie also seems like it will be the rare children’s tale without an obvious, mustache-twirling villain, a refreshing change of pace—until a bad guy eventually does emerge, reducing a winsome adventure into a by-the-book battle between good and evil.

But even if Coco ends up chickening out on those fronts, the film is still miles more mature than its most recent Pixar brethren, the sequels Cars 3 and Finding Dory . It also might be the studio’s funniest creation since Finding Nemo in 2003. (Thank Frida for that.) Most importantly, Coco is overflowing with sincere empathy for its characters and respect for its Mexican setting, a reverence that is never forced and only occasionally feels pedantic. It’s not a subtle movie, but it’s an uncommonly affecting one—a film that, like Pixar’s best, manages to be whimsical and bone-deep, all at once.

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‘Coco’ Review: Pixar’s Day-of-the-Dead Gem Is as Lively as They Come

By Peter Travers

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With its cast of skeletons and macabre “I see dead people” vibe, Coco may be the strangest thing ever to come out of the Pixar animation factory. That’s a good thing. Their latest animated movie finds the company spreading its wings and pushing into new territory, including betrayal and murder, without neglecting its family franchise responsibilities. It’s a tricky business, which Pixar, mostly, pulls off in high style.

Lee Unkrich, his co-director Adrian Molina and their team of screenwriters have conceived Coco as a salute to Mexican culture – the voice cast is almost entirely Latino, as are the settings. The film’s hero is 12-year-old Miguel Rivera (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez), a kid from the small village of Santa Cecilia who just wants to sing and play guitar. But his family of shoemakers forbids it. Why? It’s seems Miguel’s great-great-grandfather deserted his wife and daughter to hit the road and make it as a singer. His daughter, Mama Coco (Renee Victor), now sits silently in old age, lost in memories she never speaks of. Miguel, however, is driven to follow in the footsteps of Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt), the Mexican Elvis who died young – a church bell gonged him – but left behind hit songs and movies that the boy obsesses over. He even fantasizes that Ernesto could be his great-great-grandfather. If only the lad could meet him.

Which brings us to the dead. In one of those plot loopholes perfect for fables and kid-flicks, Miguel steals a guitar from the de la Cruz mausoleum, which leaves him cursed. The boy’s only recourse is to cross a bridge made of a magical marigold petals and slip into the underworld on Día de Muertos, beg forgiveness and maybe meet the late, great troubadour himself before being permitted to return to the land of the living. Did we mention that Miguel’s hairless pup, Dante (!), follows him. Too cute? Maybe. But his furry friend offers much-needed comic relief.

It’s a lot of plot, but the movie charms itself into our good graces when it enters the netherworld, a neon-colored nonstop fiesta that’s a blast even if you’re just a bag of bones. And, oh boy, those alebrijes, the fantasy creatures that leap around like Mexican folk art brought to vibrant life! It’s here that Coco picks up visual punch and a creative head of steam. On the Day of the Dead, those who’ve passed to the other side can also cross over to the living, as long as someone remembers them in the real world. If not, there’s nothing.

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While the kiddies wrestle with that conundrum, grownups will be treated to a story that involves real-world issues. Miguel finds a guide to the spirit world in Hector ( Gael García Bernal ), a scam artist who brings him to his idol Ernesto. What happens next is something viewers should discover on their own, but let’s just say more than a few family mysteries. Bernal and Bratt do their most resonant voice work in these scenes, and kudos to the latter for showing real vocal chops on the film’s biggest song, “Remember Me,” a lush ballad from the Frozen duo of Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez. There’s also “Un Poco Loco,” a snappy duet for Miguel and Hector that’s a real spirit lifter (literally).

Coco brims over with visual pleasures, comic energy and emotional wallop. The climax is a real weeper as well: There’s something indelibly moving about a child getting in touch with the ancestors he’s lost and forging a bond that can last over time. Of course, a lesson is being preached to children about the need to respect elders. But Pixar’s 19th feature brings a soulful core to that message that helps the film ride over its rougher patches. It’s not in the master class of, say, Toy Story, Inside Out or Wall-E. But it’s definitely worth remembering.

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Alfonso Arau, Benjamin Bratt, Alanna Ubach, Gael García Bernal, Dyana Ortelli, Herbert Siguenza, and Anthony Gonzalez in Coco (2017)

Aspiring musician Miguel, confronted with his family's ancestral ban on music, enters the Land of the Dead to find his great-great-grandfather, a legendary singer. Aspiring musician Miguel, confronted with his family's ancestral ban on music, enters the Land of the Dead to find his great-great-grandfather, a legendary singer. Aspiring musician Miguel, confronted with his family's ancestral ban on music, enters the Land of the Dead to find his great-great-grandfather, a legendary singer.

Lee Unkrich
Adrian Molina
Matthew Aldrich
Anthony Gonzalez
Gael García Bernal
Benjamin Bratt
1.4K User reviews
352 Critic reviews
81 Metascore
112 wins & 42 nominations total

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Ernesto de la Cruz

Mamá Imelda

(as Renée Victor)

Plaza Mariachi

Frida Kahlo

Departures Agent

Tía Victoria
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Trivia Miguel was originally only going to play guitar and not sing. When the director, Lee Unkrich, discovered Anthony Gonzalez was, in fact, a talented singer, it was decided Miguel would do both so Anthony could share this talent in the film.
Goofs The dead are obviously stuck at the age that they died. Imelda and Hector have spent several years in the afterlife at the same time, and Imelda has never realized that Hector is the same age as he was when he left her, clearly indicating the reason he never came back. She still wouldn't have known that he intended to come back and could simply think that he died shortly after deserting his family.

Héctor : [sings] Remember me, though I have to say goodbye / Remember me, don't let it make you cry / For even if I'm far away, I hold you in my heart / I sing a secret song to you, each night we are apart / Remember me, though I have to travel far / Remember me, each time you hear a sad guitar / Know that I'm with you, the only way that I can be / Until you're in my arms again, remember me...

Crazy credits At the end of the closing credits, there is an ofrenda to the deceased people who inspired the filmmakers of Coco, in the form of a mosaic made from photographs.
Connections Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Must See Trailers of June 2017 (2017)
Soundtracks Remember Me Music & Lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez Produced by Germaine Franco , Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez As Performed by Ernesto de la Cruz - Benjamin Bratt As Performed by Héctor & Young Coco - Gael García Bernal , Gabriella Flores & Libertad García Fonzi As Performed by Miguel & Mamá Coco - Anthony Gonzalez & Ana Ofelia Murguía

User reviews 1.4K

May 2, 2018
Any films similar to "Coco"?
November 22, 2017 (United States)
United States
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Untitled Dia de los Muertos Project
Pixar Animation Studios - 1200 Park Avenue, Emeryville, California, USA
Walt Disney Pictures
Pixar Animation Studios
Día de Muertos
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$175,000,000 (estimated)
$210,460,015
$50,802,605
Nov 26, 2017
$814,641,172

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Runtime 1 hour 45 minutes
Dolby Atmos
Dolby Surround 7.1
12-Track Digital Sound
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Coco Review

19 Jan 2018

After Inside Out , Pixar dips again into the metaphysical with a trip into the afterlife. Of course, being Pixar, it doesn’t simply slip beyond a veil but stride across a gigantic arched bridge made of marigolds, because there’s no concept so difficult that Pixar can’t make it breathtaking. Powell and Pressburger would cheer.

While this film packs in adventure and desperately colourful characters, it’s ultimately a moving story about family connections and the complicated ways we love one another. Coco is also one of the most impressively animated films ever. There are sequences in the 'real' world where the attention to detail creates such a life-like environment that it’s almost jarring to see an animated boy running along what appears to be an actual, fluorescent-lit Mexican street. From the glow of candles to the magic shine of

a huge, otherworldly city hanging in the air to the ugliest cute dog ever put on film, every design element here is spectacular, and the sheer beauty holds the attention even during the film’s more familiar chase sequences.

One of the most impressively animated films ever.

Our hero is a young boy called Miguel (Rodriguez — a real talent) who longs to sing and play guitar just like his movie-star hero, Ernesto De La Cruz (Bratt). But there’s a problem — generations before, his great-great-grandmother’s heart was broken when her musician husband abandoned her, and since then she has forbidden the entire family from enjoying or playing music. Miguel can’t bear the restriction, but when he steals a guitar from his idol’s tomb, he finds himself transported to the Land Of The Dead. And while the skeletons that surround him there are remarkably friendly, they’re still skeletons. Miguel discovers he is unable to get home unless he finds a (deceased) member of his family to give him a blessing — he then teams up with deadbeat dead man Hector (Bernal) to find his missing ancestor and get home.

There’s a fair amount of expositionary heavy-lifting to establish the rules of the Land Of The Dead and the Dia De Muertos when the deceased can visit the living, but once that’s done the film races towards an immensely touching finale via a series of spectacular musical numbers courtesy of Frozen ’s Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez. The commitment to Mexican culture is absolute — with Pixar good-luck charm John Ratzenberger the only non-Mexican voice in the film. Local foods and traditions such as alebrijes (folk-art sculptures of fantastical creatures) are everywhere — and that representation is not just a moral good, but makes for more original storytelling. What’s more, the themes about creativity, love and family are universal. Our appealing hero ultimately has to find peace in the land of the living with the help of the dead, and the way he does so will squeeze a tear from all but the hardest heart.

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REVIEW: Pixar's new movie 'Coco' is a fantastic family-friendly feast for the eyes and the heart

"Coco" is a heartwarming movie that lives up to Pixar’s nearly flawless reputation.
The story follows the young Miguel as he pursues his dream of playing music.
The stunning exploration of Mexico's Dia de los Muertos traditions is well-executed.
If you've enjoyed Disney's latest movies, definitely go see "Coco."
Warning: Minor spoilers ahead for Pixar's "Coco."

Disney's new movie "Coco" is equal parts magic, family fun, and the deep emotional education fans have come to expect from a Pixar film. The movie follows the young Miguel, an aspiring musician forced to hide his love of playing guitar due to a deep-rooted family "curse."

Miguel confronts Abuelita's determination to stifle his musical dreams and accidentally enters the Land of the Dead on the evening of Dia de los Muertos. Miguel is then in a race against the clock as his journey among the dead leads to him uncovering the secrets of his family's history.

What's hot:

"Coco" deftly handles the terrain of Dia de los Muertos by using convincing character exposition to reach any viewer unfamiliar with the Mexican holiday and its traditions. As Miguel comes to understand the deeper meaning of celebrating his ancestors, "Coco" explores death, the afterlife, and the concept that those we've loved and lost aren't truly gone until we stop remembering them.

As fans and critics alike have come to expect from a Pixar movie, the animation and world-building in "Coco" is breathtaking. From the opening sequence's vibrant use of papel picados to the illustrious Land of the Dead, the colors and textures featured throughout the movie will leave you in awe.

The music is also spectacularly crafted, with one song in particular, "Remember Me," cleverly transcending its initial romantic implications into a tear-jerking ode to family. Other musical numbers will leave you grinning and full of the warmth only a Disney song can provide.

"Coco" is also being praised for its authentic representation of Mexican and Latino culture without becoming derivative or engaging with stereotypes in a disingenuous way.

"Pixar looking to exalt the colorful folklore of Mexico in all its splendor and it succeeds," Vanguardia reviewer Carlos Diaz Reyes wrote . " The homage is up to the task and is so beautiful that one can not help but feel a certain pride."

People felt rightfully skeptical ahead of the movie's release. Disney was faced with a wave of backlash in 2013 when it filed an application to patent Dia de los Muertos for the release of "Coco." After petitions were circulated and many members of the Mexican and Latino community spoke out, the application was withdrawn.

Business Insider's Jason Guerrasio spoke with director Lee Unkrich ("Toy Story 3") about bringing in outside consultants to help produce a movie that was culturally respectful.

"We ended up bringing in periodically big groups of all sorts of folks from the Latino community, from artists to writers to political figures to media executives, because we wanted to get a lot of different perspectives," Unkrich said . "What we quickly learned is there is no one right way to tell a story set in the Latino community, there are a lot of different opinions. Part of our challenge was trying to navigate all those different opinions to figure out our path forward."

Despite the early hiccups of backlash, Unkrich and co-director Adrian Molina seem to have found their footing. "Coco" has already become the highest-grossing film of all time in Mexico (where it was released earlier than in the US to coincide with Dia de los Muertos).

What's Not:

At times, the plot required the suspension of disbelief just a smidge too much, especially when it came to a couple mysteries that many adult viewers will likely connect the dots on long before the characters get there on screen.

There are also a few underdeveloped characters and subplots that start weighing down the pace of the move about two-thirds of the way in, but the ending brings everything together in a way that will likely cause you to forget any qualms you had with the finer details.

But despite its predictability at points, the ending will leave you in a weepy state worth of Pixar's reputation.

The Bottom Line:

"Coco" is a spectacular family-friendly feast for the eyes and the heart. While it doesn't quite reach the peaks of entertainment recent Disney animated hits like "Moana" and "Zootopia" have hit, "Coco" is a worthy addition to the Pixar catalogue. And of course, it should leave you feel weepy at least once, as per Pixar standards.

Grade: A-

"Coco" arrives in theaters on Wednesday. Watch the final trailer below (though note that the modern pop music used to advertise "Coco" to US audiences is at odds with the actual music in the movie):

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Review: Pixar’s ‘Coco’ sings a high-spirited but sometimes faltering tune

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Can a person honor his family and pursue his dreams? That is the question at the heart of “Coco,” a whimsical and high-spirited romp through the underworld from Pixar Animation Studios. The story’s 12-year-old protagonist, Miguel Rivera, is an aspiring guitarist with a song in his heart and stardom on his mind. But to realize his destiny he must defy the wishes of his close-knit Mexican family, which, for reasons stemming from a long-ago ancestral scandal, has forbidden him from enjoying or pursuing music.

No such ban will be placed on the audience for “Coco,” which bounces along to the beat of a Michael Giacchino score, several traditional Mexican songs and a few original tunes that never run the risk of burrowing into your mind. (The most significant one, ironically, is titled “Remember Me.”) But while the movie revels in its music and duly rebukes the Riveras for trying to stifle young Miguel’s destiny, it also comes down firmly on the side of family, taking pains to acknowledge the importance of staying true to one’s roots.

It does this, in part, by upholding its own formidable creative and corporate lineage. Directed by Lee Unkrich with some of the warmth and imagination he brought to “Toy Story 3” (and co-directed by Adrian Molina, who wrote the script with Matthew Aldrich), “Coco” is the first of Pixar’s 19 features to feature a non-white human protagonist, diversifying a company slate that has already proven a model of inclusivity with regard to talking fish, sentient toys and anthropomorphic cars.

Try as you might to lose yourself in “Coco,” or pause to ponder its metaphysics, too often you find yourself hindered by the movie’s breathless velocity.

But beyond the novelty of having animated characters eat tamales and drop the occasional word of Spanish, the movie betrays an instinctive kinship with the Disney brand that is by turns pleasing and thoroughly unsurprising. It is an alternately smooth and strenuous Pixarian weave of bright colors, spirited chatter and inventive action, prepared and tested in accordance with the highest factory standards.

After an inspired prologue designed entirely in the intricate papel picado style of tissue-paper art, the story begins on Día de los Muertos, the holiday when Mexican families display their late ancestors’ photographs alongside food offerings on a commemorative altar. But while young Miguel (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) loves his family — especially his adorably wizened great-grandmother, Mamá Coco (Ana Ofelia Murguía) — he is less excited by the upcoming festivities than by the prospect of performing in a local talent show.

That doesn’t sit well with the music-loathing Riveras, especially Miguel’s domineering grandmother (Renee Victor), an overly broad caricature who does her part to set the plot in motion by smashing the boy’s guitar like a piñata. In a more satisfying version of “Coco,” the Riveras’ fiesta might have quickly gone the way of Carrie’s prom. But Miguel, a good boy at heart, simply finds a new guitar in the nearby tomb of his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt), a legendary musician and movie star in the Pedro Infante mold.

Robbing a crypt on this day of all days, alas, is a serious no-no, and with one strum of Ernesto’s guitar, Miguel finds himself transported to the Land of the Dead, where the deceased — walking, talking skeletons with a sheen of orange ectoplasm — are preparing to visit their families on the other side. And so “Coco” begins its extended journey across a gorgeous pink-and-purple-daubed vision of Hades, with Miguel basically playing Orpheus in a red hoodie. (He even has a canine sidekick named Dante.)

If that sounds pretty dark for a movie with a PG rating (awarded for that horror of horrors, “thematic elements”), the script’s ghoulish touches and mordant flashes of wit turn out to be its most disarming qualities. Kids may squirm in delight when Miguel realizes he’s turning into a skeleton, one phalange at a time, and will soon be dead himself unless he finds his way back to the land of the living by morning. To do this, he must secure a blessing from his ancestors — a tricky proposition, as none of them is willing to let him return home unless he agrees to their music moratorium.

In perhaps the story’s most poignant conceit, death turns out to be simply another circle of life where the deceased can remain and thrive so long as they are remembered by a living, breathing loved one. That raises the stakes a bit when Miguel meets a street-smart skeleton named Héctor (Gael García Bernal) who is desperate to ensure that his mortal legacy is not erased. Their partnership complicates a busy plot already thick with chases, coincidences, ancient secrets, mistaken identities and Frida Kahlo sightings, and it plows through each twist like a roller coaster navigating a new loop.

Which is only fitting, since the movie’s underworld suggests nothing so much as a giant theme park, complete with turnstiles, bustling streets and gaudy attractions (none more brilliant than the alebrijes , fantastical winged animals come to life). There’s nothing inherently wrong with that. The best theme parks, Disney’s included, are worth getting lost in. But try as you might to lose yourself in “Coco,” or at least pause long enough to ponder its metaphysics, too often you might find yourself hindered by the movie’s breathless velocity.

And also by the increasing monotony of its character design. The visuals have the telltale Pixar richness; you sense a hundred different creative choices went into the animation of a simple confetti shower. But like earlier movies, including “Corpse Bride” and the similarly Día de los Muertos-themed “The Book of Life,” “Coco” offers a reminder that skeletons, for all their googly eyes and gorgeous bone structure, are not the most emotionally expressive creatures. With the exception of his great-great-grandmother, Mamá Imelda (a spirited Alanna Ubach), Miguel’s dead relatives are a pretty indistinguishable and — sorry — lifeless bunch.

The action beats arrive right on cue, followed in due course by a showstopping musical climax and an ending all but guaranteed to tickle your tear ducts. The question proposed at the outset — can a person honor his family and pursue his dreams? — is answered with the kind of skill and ingenuity that leaves you strongly suspecting it was bogus to begin with.

None of which makes “Coco” a bad movie, only one whose flights of imaginative frenzy are too constrained by formula, in the end, for it to count as a great one. In the best Pixar movies, “Wall-E,” “Inside Out” and “Toy Story 3” among them, you get the sense of filmmakers boldly and brilliantly conquering new terrain. “Coco,” by contrast, feels governed by more timid, responsible spirits. Its goal is to reassure, to provoke no offense and to give an underserved culture the sentimental, uplifting Hollywood cash cow it deserves. Progress could certainly look worse.

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Rating: PG, for thematic elements

Running time: 1 hour, 49 minutes

Playing: In general release

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'coco' review: a colorful contemplation of death, family, and legacy.

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The ancient, lovable Coco with young Miguel.

Pixar is back - the bold, creative Coco washes away the bland taste of The Good Dinosaur and Cars 3 . While not quite as clever as Inside Out or Wall-E , Coco manages to tell a family-friendly story centered entirely around death, one that reflects on the legacy we leave behind.

But before I sing the film’s praises, I need to rant about the short at the beginning. I’m sure you’ve noticed that Pixar always plays a cute little short before their films, which are always supremely innovative, and sometimes even better than the feature. Well, Coco is preceded by a soulless Frozen spin-off centered around Olaf the irritating snowman. It’s twenty-one minutes long (I felt every second of it), and has, like, fifteen musical numbers, all instantly forgettable.

Even my son, who is a big Frozen fan, kept asking if Coco was actually going to play or if we’d just walked into Frozen 2 by accident. It’s time to let it go Disney (see what I did there?) - even the kids are getting annoyed by Frozen oversaturation.

Anyway, once you make it past the Olaf ordeal, Coco proves to be a pleasant surprise - an emotional, philosophical story of life and death, that despite the gorgeous visuals, doesn’t sugar-coat anything.

Right away, both the importance and the potential danger of respecting one’s heritage is highlighted, and proves to be a poignant theme. Our young protagonist Miguel yearns to play the guitar, but his artistic urges are severely repressed by his family, who hold a bitter grudge against all musicians, passed down through the generations.

The titular Coco is Miguel’s great-grandmother, a beautifully rendered, impossibly ancient creature clinging on to her last days of life, and the scattered remains of her memories. Her father abandoned her to pursue a musical career, and to this day, the family has not forgotten the betrayal.

On Día de Muertos, the Day of the Dead, Miguel seizes an opportunity to steal a guitar from a deceased ancestor, and is instantly plunged into the afterlife, where he must receive a blessing from said ancestor to return home, and follow his musical passion.

As Miguel traverses the afterlife, he realizes the importance of leaving a legacy behind, for to be forgotten by the living imposes another death sentence, and nobody knows if there is a second afterlife beyond the first.

It’s pretty heavy stuff. But there isn’t any hint of gothic gloom surrounding this afterlife; it’s a cheerful, misshapen shantytown populated by decorated skeletons, and luridly colored alebrijes, the creatures that guide the souls of the deceased.

The first sight of the overpopulated afterlife is jaw-dropping, but during the second act, the film slows somewhat. Funnily enough, the skeletons aren’t as interesting to look at as Miguel’s fleshy family, and the masses of bones and fairy lights start to fade into the background.

It’s at this point that I noticed the younger children in the theatre were growing bored. Pixar always includes plenty of details for the adults to enjoy (thankfully), and Coco definitely leans toward older viewers, more than usual. Children younger than six might find it difficult to relate to the majority of Coco , and the fact that there isn’t an excess of humor doesn’t help keep the little ones in their seats. But things pick up again toward the end, and the finale is another bittersweet, Pixar patented tear-jerker.

Younger children might not be quite as entertained as you, but Coco is the best children’s animation I’ve seen since Kubo and the Two Strings . For a child struggling to understand the death of a grandparent, or even a beloved pet, this film offers an in-depth introspection on what it means to live a full life, and how memories can keep the deceased from disappearing entirely.

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Review: Joyful 'Coco' breaks from the Pixar pack as a Mexican musical spectacular

As Pixar delves more into sequel territory (looking at you, Cars 3 and Finding Dory ), here comes an animated fiesta that reminds just how good those folks are with originality.

Effervescent, clever and thoughtful, Coco (***½ out of four; rated PG; in theaters nationwide Wednesday) is infused with an infectious youthful spirit and a deep musical soul in telling the tale of a young Mexican boy with a twofold mission: to grab his musical dreams and heal a familial rift. The joyful journey is Pixar’s best effort since 2015’s Inside Out and, like the studio’s greatest works, makes you laugh and cry in equal doses. (If Up left you a teary mess, go ahead and bring a whole tissue box.)

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Director Lee Unkrich ( Toy Story 3 ) centers the story on the Day of the Dead and the importance of family — though Miguel (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) in his own way rebels against his clan. ( Coco isn't related to that other animated movie based on the Day of the Dead, the 2014 romantic adventure The Book of Life, though they would make a fine double feature.)

A gifted 12-year-old, Miguel yearns to be a balladeer like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt), an A-list celebrity of yesteryear who’s a Latino Elvis and the most famous son of Santa Cecilia. But music is banned in Miguel's household, because his great-great-grandfather left the family behind for a performing career many years prior, so Miguel has to teach himself guitar in secret.

He runs off to the Land of the Dead — full of wondrous sights and skeleton residents — to find his ancestor and right a wrong, meeting the rest of his deceased relatives (who also hate music) and a lovable scamp named Héctor (Gael García Bernal). He's a key to getting Miguel some face time with Ernesto but also the guy who relays the stakes at hand: If someone in the Land of the Dead is forgotten by their family, they disappear into the ether, and if Miguel doesn’t get back home in time, he’ll turn into a skull and bones himself. (In a nod to Back to the Future , Héctor watches as the skin disappears from his hand as time passes.)

Coco is one of Pixar’s most gorgeously animated outings in some time. The Land of the Dead pops like an afterlife Las Vegas, and Miguel’s town and its residents are impressively photorealistic. The screenplay by Matthew Aldrich and co-director Adrian Molina sticks closely to the Pixar template in terms of coming-of-age and find-your-identity themes and is unabashed in its emotional manipulation. But by the time you realize it, your heart’s been wholly warmed and there’s no going back.

Bratt lends over-the-top machismo to Ernesto, Bernal gives Héctor a fun sparkle, and Alanna Ubach is all sass as Mama Imelda, Miguel’s fiery, no-nonsense great-great-grandmother. But Gonzalez is tops in the cast: The 13-year-old newcomer gives Miguel a mischievous but heroic quality and a surprising depth, especially in the loving asides between Miguel and his great-grandmother Coco (Ana Ofelia Murguía). Plus, the kid can sing like nobody’s business.

More: The 5 best Pixar movies to binge-watch this weekend

Also: 10 holiday movies you must see, from 'Justice League' to the new 'Star Wars'

Coco is arguably the most musical Pixar film, with a host of catchy tunes. Proud Corazón is an emotionally packed showstopper for Gonzalez, who also duets with Bernal on the toe-tapping Un Poco Loco . The Let It Go of the bunch is Remember Me, a track by the Frozen songwriting team that gets reprised in various ways by different characters yet feels fresh every time.

Not that you’ll forget how moving Coco is anytime soon.

‘Coco’ Review: A Sweet Family Tale That Joins the Ranks of Pixar’s Best

Pixar’s latest charts a beautiful, emotional journey through the generations of a mexican family..

Published November 20, 2017 Movies , Reviews By Tomris Laffly Disclaimer When you purchase through affiliate links on our site, we may earn a commission.

Some of Pixar’s finest animations honor the frequented storytelling tradition of generational gap : a young underdog stands his/her ground against an unsympathetic family and comes of age. From Finding Nemo to La Luna and Brave , several films from the studio’s distinguished catalog pull relatable emotional heartstrings with tales of adolescent small-timers struggling to assert their voices and prove their worth to their elders. Lee Unkrich , the director responsible for my favorite Pixar film ( Toy Story 3 ), brings this beloved convention to life in the vivid and thoroughly entertaining Coco . With an original story by Unkrich, Jason Katz, Matthew Aldrich and Adrian Molina (and a script penned by Aldrich and Molina), the big-hearted Coco joins the high ranks of Pixar’s best in telling the spirited tale of a resilient Mexican child’s poignant journey through family roots. As one would expect from an accomplished Pixar film, Coco will capture your heart and bring you to tears with an unforeseen twist in the end, despite its slightly overwritten final act.

We follow the young, energetic pre-teen Miguel Rivera (Anthony Gonzales), who lives in the village of Santa Cecilia and dreams of becoming a musician in the footsteps of his legendary idol Ernesto de la Cruz ( Benjamin Bratt ). But, in the words of the young Miguel, he is unfortunately cursed by a long-standing family principle that forbids music; a rule embraced by his ancestors after Miguel’s musician great-great-grandfather had abandoned his wife and daughter in search of fame and fortune. Since then, the family, led by a strong-willed great-great-grandmother, had built a successful shoe-making business (as efficiently told in Coco ’s compact opening that summarizes this back-story.) But Miguel’s heart doesn’t belong to the craft of shoemaking. Hidden from his disapproving family, he secretly practices his music and finally gets the chance to display his talents on Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, at a local talent contest.

But instead of the stage, he accidentally finds himself in the luridly designed Land of the Dead, where the deceased prepare to cross a bridge and visit their living family members, who commemorate them with wall-mounted photos during this annual celebration. Needing a deceased family member’s blessing to return to the world of the living, Miguel joins forces with an outcast: the frantic Hector ( Gael Garcia Bernal ) who has a quest of his own. Often mocked by his fellow skeletons for his desperate attempts to cross the bridge (despite having no family members that remember him), Hector agrees to guide Miguel in exchange of sending his photo to the other side.

In charting the joint mission of Miguel and Hector, Coco offers up a number of genuine shocks and surprises that are better preserved than revealed in reviews. The story, which celebrates familial love and steadily grows in complexity (sometimes, to a fault), takes the dazzled viewer through the wild alleys and corners of the Land of the Dead, realized with countless tasteful, intricate details. I can’t accurately speak to the cultural authenticity of Coco ’s visuals (though a clue to their appropriateness is surely the film’s record-breaking box office success in Mexico), but I can certainly speak to its mesmerizing aesthetic, brought to life by production designer Harley Jessup. Easily among the most visually complex productions the studio has ever taken on (along with Wall-E and Inside Out ), Coco tastefully renders echoes of live-action wonders like The Fifth Element , Minority Report, and Moulin Rouge . Within regards to its slightly over-plotted story, don’t be surprised if you end up thinking about Back to the Future Parts I & II frequently. After all, this is a film about reckoning with family history, in which Miguel’s pursuit of Hector’s photo gives Marty McFly’s chase of the Sports Almanac a run for its money.

Consistently delightful, Coco dares to pull the rug from under the young viewers a number of times. To that end, it’s thankfully among the works of Pixar that don’t talk down to children. Instead, Unkrich refreshingly trusts their emotional intelligence and perhaps indirectly advances their maturity as a result. Filled with sincere life lessons (some of them, openly catered towards adults), Coco doesn’t pull its punches when it comes to putting a few scares on the screen. While it could have been leaner, it still belongs to Pixar’s elite class with a sweet, sophisticated family tale that knocks down imaginary walls between generations (and cultures) with dignity.

Tagged with: Coco Disney Pixar

Tomris Laffly

Den of Geek

Coco Review

The latest animated wonder from Pixar, Coco, is a poignant story of family and a rich homage to Mexican culture.

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Coco is a delight from start to finish, and a welcome return to form for Pixar, as this is probably the animation studio’s best outing since 2015’s Inside Out . Whereas the intervening The Good Dinosaur was muddled from conception, and Finding Dory and Cars 3 played like efficient enough corporate obligations, Coco feels fresh and inspired thanks to a poignant story, a lovely immersion in Mexican culture, and a handful of rousing musical numbers (it also tells a quite different tale, although with similar elements, than 2014’s Guillermo del Toro-produced Book of Life ).

The film is set on Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) in the fictional Mexican village of Santa Cecilia, where 12-year-old Miguel Riviera (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) dreams of being a musician like the famous Ernesto de la Cruz, a local legend who became a popular singer and film star before his accidental death a century earlier. But Miguel’s ambitions are banned by his brood, since his own great-great-grandfather–whose identity is a mystery–left the family behind to pursue his musical goals while his late great-great-grandmother Imelda (Alanna Ubach) struggled to turn the family into successful if unremarkable shoemakers.

Desperate to perform in a town talent contest after his grandmother smashes his own guitar, Miguel defies his elders by breaking into De la Cruz’s mausoleum to “borrow” the dead man’s guitar. But touching it sends Miguel to the Land of the Dead, where he must find a way to return before sunrise or else he’ll stay there permanently. Luckily he’ll have a little help from Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal), a spirit who will be forgotten entirely if Miguel cannot bring his photo back to the land of the living, in navigating a colorful great beyond.

The story from there takes several twists and turns that we won’t get into here, and while some of the narrative’s beats are familiar from past Pixar outings, they’re delivered with passion and heart by co-directors Lee Unkrich ( Toy Story 3 ) and Adrian Molina, who also penned the screenplay together. Themes of love, family, and friendship are familiar items from the Pixar oeuvre, but are delivered here in a less ham-handed way than some of the company’s more recent efforts. Coco is character-driven in the best possible way, and all of its major characters are given layers of complexity that you’d be hard-pressed to find in a lot of live-action films.

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After the reliable but still rather unmemorable visual palettes of the last few films, Coco outdoes itself in that department as well with the amazing world-building of the Land of the Dead. Eye-poppingly designed as a multi-level city ablaze with color and a glow of spiritual essence, the Land of the Dead is slightly anachronistic in some ways but positioned intriguingly as a sort of alternate dimension–where the deceased continue to lead full “lives,” as it were, but where a strange fatalism permeates the surroundings. The skeletal beings (influenced by Mexican folk art) who inhabit this realm are both funny and subtly eerie, and one sequence detailing the fate of one lonely soul who is no longer remembered by anyone in the land of the living is both chilling and tremendously sad.

Let’s not get too morbid, however; this isn’t an arthouse rumination on the nature of death–although those darker concerns are woven into the fabric of the story–but a Pixar adventure full of humor and soul and profound themes. The lessons involving families and our memories of them are moving and tear-inducing, if not quite as emotionally devastating as those found in Inside Out or other earlier Pixar classics. The movie also dives deep into Mexican culture and family life, representing both in a way that it would be a joy to see more of, especially during a dark period in which that country has seen itself demonized and scapegoated. But Coco is not heavy-handed at all this regard, preferring to let the story and setting do the talking (it also takes a gentle but incisive swipe at celebrity culture and our addiction to fame–but again, not in a blunt force way).

Will Coco end up near or even among the vaunted company of such all-time Pixar classics like Toy Story , The Incredibles , WALL-E or Ratatouille ? It’s hard to say this early, and it could be easy to overrate the movie after the tough couple of years the studio has slogged through. At last, here is a Pixar movie that gives us something that doesn’t feel like it was conceived in a boardroom full of suits instead of the minds, hearts, and creative toolkits of the studio’s artists and filmmakers. While Coco is quick to point out that making shoes is just as honorable as making music, one can tell that music was a bit more important this time out.

Coco is out in theaters this Wednesday (Nov. 22).

Don Kaye | @donkaye

Don Kaye is an entertainment journalist by trade and geek by natural design. Born in New York City, currently ensconced in Los Angeles, his earliest childhood memory is…

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Movie Review: Coco (2017)

Howard Schumann
Movie Reviews
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--> January 18, 2018

“Holding on to anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die” — Buddha

Directed by Lee Unkrich (“ Toy Story 3 ”) and Adrian Molina, Coco , the latest animated film from Disney-Pixar tells us to follow our dreams, seize the moment, and regard our family as paramount. These ideals can often be mutually exclusive, however, as 12-year-old Miguel Rivera (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) discovers. Miguel, who lives in the village of Santa Cecilia in Mexico, wants nothing else than to be a musician but his father (voiced by Jaime Camil, “Jane the Virgin” TV series) tells him that his family is one of shoemakers and that he must follow the tradition.

The family’s antagonism toward music began years earlier when the husband of Miguel’s great-great grandmother Imelda (voiced by Alanna Ubach, “Helen Keller vs. Nightwolves”) left the family to pursue his music career, a decision for which he has never been forgiven. Coco is set during the Mexican holiday known as Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead), a celebration in which families pay respect to their deceased ancestors. In Miguel’s home, pictures of three generations of ancestors are placed on a ritual altar known as the ofrenda, though the top photograph is torn where the musician ancestor would have been.

Miguel’s idol is the singer Ernesto de la Cruz (voiced by Benjamin Bratt, “ The Infiltrator ”) whose song, “Remember Me,” when played by Miguel to his aged great-grandmother Mama Coco (voiced by Ana Ofelia Murguía, “The Last Call”), is a poignant reminder of everyone’s wish to be remembered. After Miguel’s domineering grandmother Abuelita Elena (voiced by Renée Victor, “ Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones ”) follows Miguel into the plaza and smashes the guitar he planned to use in the local talent competition, the boy enters Cruz’s tomb to “borrow” his guitar. This action, however, upsets the “space-time continuum” and he is unceremoniously transported to the Land of the Dead together with his faithful dog Dante.

Miguel knows that he is no longer in Kansas when he sees skeletal-like figures with colorful skulls existing in a strangely elaborate and visually diverse landscape. Though the dead can cross over to the other side via a bridge of marigolds, the spirits continue to exist only through the continuing memories of their loved ones in the world of the living. Once they are forgotten, they die a second death and disappear. Seeking clues to his family’s past, Miguel must obtain permission from someone in his family to return home before sunrise.

He meets several generations of ancestors, but they refuse to give him the blessing he needs to return unless he gives up music, something he refuses to do. Instead, Miguel vows to find and seek the blessing of de la Cruz whom he believes is the missing relative from the photograph. Fortunately, he receives assistance from Héctor (voiced by Gael García Bernal, “ Salt and Fire ”), a drifter who wants Miguel to take his photograph to his relatives in the land of the living so that he will not be forgotten. Their strange relationship opens a path for Miguel to see the world in a different light.

Coco is a heartwarming and beautifully animated story about a young person’s passion for music and his struggle to confront and overcome his family’s resistance to his dream. It is a juggling act. Miguel must learn to value his self worth and the courage to be true to himself while maintaining loyalty to the family he loves. He must also discover that no one ever really dies as long as their memories remain in the hearts of those who love them. And while the plot can become convoluted, the film is not really about the narrative but about the joy of self expression and, when we hear Miguel singing “Un Poco Loco” with the bone rattling Héctor, it is a moment of rare exuberance.

Tagged: children , love , magic , Mexico , musician

I am a retired father of two living with my wife in Vancouver, B.C. who has had a lifelong interest in the arts.

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Coco movie review & film summary (2017)
Adventure. 109 minutes ‧ PG ‧ 2017. Matt Zoller Seitz. November 21, 2017. 5 min read. "Coco" is the sprightly story of a young boy who wants to be a musician and somehow finds himself communing with talking skeletons in the land of the dead. Directed by Lee Unkrich (" Toy Story 3 ") and veteran Pixar animator Adrian Molina, and ...
Coco (2017)
NEW. Despite his family's generations-old ban on music, young Miguel dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz. Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds ...
Coco Movie Review
The story of Coco is a rather typical hero's journey/coming of age tale, with Miguel going on a grand adventure in the Land of the Dead and learning an important lesson about both himself and his family along the way. Miguel's motivation throughout the movie - wanting to follow his dream, but not feeling understood by his family - provides for an exceptionally universal jumping off point, and ...
Coco
It has that unmistakable mixture of comedy and sentiment that you associate with a Pixar movie. Great fun. Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | May 27, 2022. Coco is a film that reminds us of the ...
Coco Movie Review
Among the film's four directors and writers, Adrian Molina is Mexican American and openly gay. (The other three filmmakers are White men.) Though the film had a rocky start with Latino communities, Disney/Pixar course-corrected and ended up receiving generally positive reviews by Mexican and Latino critics. Coco has a nearly all-Latino voice cast, with most actors of Mexican heritage.
'Coco': Film Review
Editor: Steve Bloom. Composer: Michael Giacchino. Casting: Natalie Lyon, Kevin Reher. In English and Spanish. Rated PG, 94 minutes. animation. Coco. Steeped in Mexican culture and folklore, 'Coco ...
Review: 'Coco' Brings the Pixar Touch to Death
Miguel (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) in "Coco," the new film from Pixar. Disney/Pixar. One of the pleasures of a new Pixar feature is the chance to be amazed by what animation can do. Sometimes ...
"Coco" Is the Definitive Movie for This Moment
June 16, 2018. "Coco" is a movie about borders more than anything—the beauty in their porousness, the absolute pain produced when a border locks you away from your family. Photograph ...
'Coco' Review: Musical Journey Through Mexican Underworld
Coco, Lee Unkrich, Pixar. Film Review: Pixar's 'Coco'. Reviewed at Frank G. Wells screening room, Burbank, Oct. 18, 2017. MPAA Rating: PG. Running time: 105 MIN. Production: (Animated) A ...
Coco Review: Pixar's Latest Has Wit, Style, and a Very Good Dog
Review: Pixar's Latest Has Wit, Style, and a Very Good Dog. After a pair of disappointing sequels, this otherworldly tale looks like a return to form. Hector (voiced by Gael Garcia-Bernal) and ...
Coco Review
Coco Review Seize your moment. By David Griffin. Updated: May 16, 2022 5:20 pm. Posted: Nov 22, 2017 2:50 am. Both figuratively and literally, Coco is Pixar's most human film. The movie delivers ...
'Coco' Review: Pixar's Day-of-the-Dead Gem Is as Lively as They Come
November 22, 2017. Pixar's 'Coco' pays tribute to Mexican culture with joyful, colorful Dia de los Muertos story - Peter Travers on why this gem will lift your spirits. With its cast of ...
Coco
Coco - Metacritic. Summary Despite his family's baffling generations-old ban on music, Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez) dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt). Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the stunning and colourful Land of the Dead following a mysterious chain of events.
Coco (2017)
Coco: Directed by Lee Unkrich, Adrian Molina. With Anthony Gonzalez, Gael García Bernal, Benjamin Bratt, Alanna Ubach. Aspiring musician Miguel, confronted with his family's ancestral ban on music, enters the Land of the Dead to find his great-great-grandfather, a legendary singer.
Coco Review
Coco Review. Miguel (Gonzalez) is a 12-year-old boy whose family have banned music. He longs to play, but when he steals a guitar belonging to his deceased icon, Ernesto De La Cruz (Bratt), he's ...
'Coco' Review: Heartwarming, Lives up to Pixar's Nearly Flawless Rep
REVIEW: Pixar's new movie 'Coco' is a fantastic family-friendly feast for the eyes and the heart. Hector and Miguel meet in the Land of the Dead in "Coco." Disney/Pixar. "Coco" is a heartwarming ...
Review: Pixar's 'Coco' sings a high-spirited but sometimes faltering
Nov. 21, 2017 12:35 PM PT. Film Critic. Can a person honor his family and pursue his dreams? That is the question at the heart of "Coco," a whimsical and high-spirited romp through the ...
'Coco' Review: A Colorful Contemplation Of Death, Family, And ...
Pixar is back - the bold, creative Coco washes away the bland taste of The Good Dinosaur and Cars 3. While not quite as clever as Inside Out or Wall-E, Coco manages to tell a family-friendly story ...
'Coco' review: Joyful Mexican musical breaks from the Pixar pack
Coco is arguably the most musical Pixar film, with a host of catchy tunes. Proud Corazón is an emotionally packed showstopper for Gonzalez, who also duets with Bernal on the toe-tapping Un Poco ...
'Coco' movie review: A much-needed return to form for Pixar
Miguel confers with his deceased relatives in Coco. Credit: Disney / Pixar. But Coco never gets so carried away with spectacle that it loses sight of its hero's emotional journey. As Miguel delves ...
'Coco' Review: A Sweet Family Tale That Joins the Ranks of Pixar's Best
With an original story by Unkrich, Jason Katz, Matthew Aldrich and Adrian Molina (and a script penned by Aldrich and Molina), the big-hearted Coco joins the high ranks of Pixar's best in telling ...
Coco Review
Coco Review. The latest animated wonder from Pixar, Coco, is a poignant story of family and a rich homage to Mexican culture. ... The film is set on Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) in the ...
Movie Review: Coco (2017)
"Holding on to anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die" — Buddha Directed by Lee Unkrich ("Toy Story 3") and Adrian Molina, Coco, the latest animated film from Disney-Pixar tells us to follow our dreams, seize the moment, and regard our family as paramount.These ideals can often be mutually exclusive, however, as 12-year-old Miguel Rivera (voiced by ...

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