Coco Review

Coco Review
Plucking on your heartstrings.

*This review contains very minor plot details that are mentioned in the trailers. There are no major spoilers so please do read on.*

It’s The ‘Dia de Muertos’ in Mexico and in the village of Santa Cecilia, young Miguel Rivera longs to become a musician after his hero, ‘Ernesto de la Cruz’. The only thing standing in his way is his family of shoe makers, who have banned even the slightest hint of a tune from their lives.

This is a plot line that could seem generic on paper, but Pixar have created an exceptionally vivid and memorable portrayal of the Mexican celebration of relatives gone before us.

Music is one of the main themes throughout Coco, and so it was great to see instruments that are as lovingly crafted as the real things. From the near-real, scratched wooden effects of the guitars, to the subtle movements of the strings as they are played. This level of detail wasn’t needed but shows the expert heights that Pixar always seem to achieve.

The Day of the Dead celebrations are equally just as well animated. Candle light flickers and petals flutter beneath feet as if manipulated by the ghosts themselves.

We do also see what ‘life’ is like for these skeletons on the other side, in the ‘Land of the Dead’. How can you show a world where all ancestors are now residing? With a vast, beautifully colourful cityscape of homes, shops and music venues of course.

It is in these sections that Coco really starts to shine. We are treated to some fantastic musicianship (I’ve read that even the chord patterns the characters play are accurate) and theatrics, with a couple of songs that you’ll love to hear again and again (and again and again, as is the Disney tradition). It’s reminiscent of The Nightmare Before Christmas, although there’s nothing here that would really scare young children. After all, we are witnessing a fiesta, not a fright-fest.

With the theme of ‘la familia’ also firmly at the center of this story, Pixar really do go to town. Drawing inspiration from the best of their own works, they create relatable scenes of huge emotional weight. Scenes that will be very familiar to fans of the company but may seem overly sentimental to others. But sure, isn’t that always the Pixar way?

The voice acting, particularly from Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), is superb and the use of Spanish adds to the authenticity. They have, however, cherry picked the ideals from Dia de Muertos to suit the plot which may irk certain viewers.

A rendition of the main song ‘Remember Me’ hits at a particularly poignant moment in the film. Indeed, each song has its place and feels essential to the tale. This isn’t pure ‘Disney musical number’ nonsense.

Coco is a bright, brilliantly animated and beautiful piece of cinema. Pixar use every trick in their repertoire to hit the emotional and musical notes, and boy do they hit. I’d recommend you have tissues at the ready, and you’ll want to grab your nearest and dearest and give them a big hug afterwards.

Fantastico!