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i loved it from the get go. I just think the film gives you that insight in what its like to be a child again. Quite often these days childrens films are often insulting and condesending to children (ice age 3) this isnt like that at all. It doesnt speak down to kids its just simply magnificent.
My only slight complaint is that one or two tiny details in the plot are not developed very well and i would personally of liked a little bit more from the script, but again i recognise im not the target audience, so if i had to recommend a kids movie this would be deffinetely up there.
This is a good introductory horror film for young children. I didn't hate this movie nor did I really enjoy it. The animation was good; though not as creepy as I expected (or hoped for).
Although this film is completely unoriginal in every aspect, I quite enjoyed the film. I love stop-motion animation.
The 3D was disappointing (that said, I find 3D in general disappointing) because it's layered like 4 pieces of paper on top of each other. So the "depth" looks like maybe 1cm.
Harry Potter's OotP (which had brief 3D scenes) at least had some animals coming out of the screen. Coraline's 3D was quite poor. I'm a sucker for new technologies in film so I personally would always go for the 3D version, but this one lacks merit.
Back to the film itself. The plotline and characters are nothing new, but they're easy to enjoy. Jacques (review below) said it best when he wrote "It’s Hansel and Gretel, minus Hansel". It's pretty much bang on. The kid is supposed to resonate with young girls today (bored because of her boring parents, with her good-natured punk look) and finds the answer to her dreams by means of a secret door, which starts out great but goes awry, all wrapped up in a neat morality tale.
The plot progression isn't anything revolutionary and you won't be scratching your head after the film. Despite these obvious flaws I have to say, I enjoyed the film. I took it for what it was and enjoyed it. I thought the Tim-Burton quirkiness helped the film.
Anyway, know what you're getting into with this film, and give it a watch.
This movie is amazing in 3D -AND- 2D. Straight stunning.. The story was great. I haven't read the book, but I can probably say that the movie did it justice. I also liked the creepy elements.. but yes, it was GREAT.
For all its lovely shapes and colors Coraline cannot compare to previous stop-motion films from Europe such as the work of Jan Svankmajer (Alice), Christiane Cegavske (Blood & Red String), the Quay Brothers (see their Phantom Museums collection; they're American but heavily influenced by Eastern European work), or Jiri Barta (Labyrinth of Darkness). These films were not created for children and demand a certain patience and understanding--which Pixar et al certainly do not--but reward careful viewing with a truly unsettling glimpse into what animation can be if taken seriously. This genre recalls the medieval morality plays, many of which were performed with puppets, more than what we generally think of as "animation" today.
Best stop-motion since Nightmare Before Christmas? It very well might be, the film is practically on par with it. So glad to see this as the return of Henry Selick!
This movie is ingenious. Just reeks of instant classic. Stop motion fans unite: a GOOD movie. It's so delightful and writhing with originality and beauty. Better than Corpse Bride? Hell yes. Better than Nightmare Before Christmas? Probably.
OH! AND TIM BURTON HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS MOVIE! FREAKING EMO GOTH MORONS! Learn the difference. The only stop motion film he did was Corpse Bride and Vincent. Fucking a.
Great Movie, Tim Burtin never disappoints. The story line was not that great (I know it was a remake) but the story was kinda week. but tim burton made it deff. worth watching and deff a classic to add to the tim burton collection :D
It was really good. But of course, the book was 23 times as good! They covered the scary parts with the bright colors and humor. But if the movie was exactly like the book, it wouldn't at all be rated G. It would be at least PG. was it PG or was it G?
I enjoyed it. Definitely beautiful visually and the 3D part is sort of fun. I agree with most that it is a little slow, but all in all, its a nice PG movie. And Coraline has really good style for a little kid.
Posted By: RubyRedRose at 10:28am, February 27, 2009
I took my 9 year old son to see this movie and we both loved it, but for different reasons. He said it was kinda scary, looked cool and the 3-D was awesome! (his words) I thought the movie was a little slow in parts, did seem a bit scary for smaller kids but not much and I second the 3-D was awesome!! Keep in mind I have seen nothing 3-D since back in the 80's when the guy walked you through changing the colors on your TV before the movie started and you got your crappy glasses on a punch out card at the local store. Take your kids, have fun with them and you'll enjoy your night out together.
Posted By: Justin Warren at 9:36am, February 26, 2009
The best stop motion animated movie to date. It's full of beautiful, dark imagery, has a very imaginative story, good characters and is very mature for a children's story.
Coralone? You count this as a horror movie, its a horror movie for the the people who worked on this shit. But yeah it is a horror movie for little kids and they use the same stuff they used in the nightmare before christmas and dont you think that one of the guys said ya now motha f*cka there is this thing called CG. Okay its a good movie (for kids, emos, goths, and vamps or anything esle in that matter) thats all I have to say but 2 more things there is a cat whos voiced by that big black acter thats in every commercail I think I heard him say 'when your monthly period is hitting a heavy flow get big black tampons' and coraline was smoking some shit cause I found a sercert doorway and all I found was my dads porn I diddn't find no talking cats or people with buttons for eyes or none of that.
This movie rubbed me the wrong way from the onset. I have no idea why, it just happened. I found myself taking the glasses off quite a bit more than I did with My Bloody Valentine. Contrary to most of the opinions I read, I actually think that this movie was draggy, it felt a lot longer than it was. Were any of the parents bothered by the character with the huge, almost completely exposed tits? A friend of mine took the words right out of my mouth when he said this movie reminded him of Alice in Wonderland.
Sadly I didnt get to see this in 3D but overall I thought it was amazing. The imagery was so unique and cool. Henry Sellick directing a story of Neil Gaimans in stop motion...Amazing. Check it out if you liked Corpse Bride and Nightmare Before Christmas. Great movie.
I just got back from seeing Coraline 3-D. I think the 3-D Stop Motion is what made this movie enjoyable. This movie is really depicting things that kids do not understand such as parents neglecting children. Overall, it had a pretty interesting story line and overall it was better than I thought it would be. I will give Coraline a 7/10.
*NOTE: Movie will be a lot more enjoyable when seen in 3-D in comparison to the regular film.*
* Just to get this out of the way: I did not view this in 3D, thus cannot comment on that aspect.
When you go and see a PG-rated animate film, what do you expect? A few laughs, a fun main character, something to keep your kid’s attention, a creative story, and, possibly, that nostalgic feeling of childish wonder. Fantasy writers seem to think they understand this wonder-filled feeling more than anyone else, and thus I’ve yet to see a single fantasy writer who didn’t pump out a generic coming-of-age, horror-teamed, Disney Land-inspired children’s book at least once before the end of their career. Neal Gaiman, the writer of the original Coralline children’s book, is no exception. He’s also no exception to the unwritten rule among such generic fantasy writers that this children’s book that I just described has be as unoriginal and predicable as humanly possible, otherwise it’s too much for the children reading it to comprehend. Or, more likely, they just lack a single creative idea within their heads. I’ve read a lot of Gaiman books before, and this lack of imagination seems to be something that is contentious among all his works. Simply put, I could write up a page-long list of other authors that pre-date Gaiman and write the exact same stories he does, and they all think they’re oh-so-original. I can also come up with a page-long list of movies that pre-date Coralline, but tell the exact same story. Is it so much to ask for a little creativity these days?
The setting for Coralline, the film, is completely generic for modern fairy tales like this. A big house. Coralline, the character, is also completely generic. An adventurous little girl with a slight punk edge. The secondary character, again, are all generic. Weird little boy, cat, unloving parents, fortunetelling old ladies, acrobatic old man. So, from the set-up alone, it’s impossible to ignore how cliché and imaginationless Coralline, the film, really is. You’ve seen this a thousand times. You saw it with Alice in Wonderland, you saw it with Narnia, you saw it with The Corpse Bride . . . and if I had to, I could list at least thirty more. This is completely, wholesale unoriginal material, and that’s apartment from the first five minutes.
The story is even more generic. It’s Hansel and Gretel, minus Hansel. The generic main character finds a wonderful place filled with everything she lacked at home, and then things go wrong. Oh my! Who would have guessed?! I realize I’m criticizing this movie from the point-of-view of the bitter old man that I am at heart, but even my little sister, who I took to see this, admitted Coralline was completely predictable and forgettable. It’s exactly what you expect. If fantasy writers understand children as well as they think they do, then why don’t they give them a little more credit that they know what stories are repeated to the point of nausea? Seriously. In my theater alone, I heard countless little kids telling their parents how bored they were. At least half the families there left the theater before the last thirty minutes. If you want horror-themed animated movies that aren’t just rehashes of the same predictable plot, I suggest A Nightmare Before Christmas (obviously) and Monster House (severely underrated).
Another problem with the boring factor. The movie repeats itself constantly, and you’ll see the same exact scenes play out at least three times each by the closing credits. It drags on and on.
Coralline does have some entertainment value, and I will give it that much credit. The first thirty minutes were very well-done, if not severely predictable, like the rest of the film. The animation is well-done, if not average for the bar set by Tim Burton animated movies. The animation does have a slight unique rag-doll quality that was pretty cute for the first ten minutes. Some of the sub-plots are very interesting to watch. But none of this makes this memorable. It will pass time without too much problem, but it’s nothing you’re going to remember the rest of your life, because, as I said, the story is so unoriginal.
I realize this review is going to be unpopular, and, quite honestly, I don’t care. I have standards, and I’m not going to lower them just because this is a children’s film. I’ve seen countless children’s films with originality and real imagination, but Caroline just doesn’t have any. It’s generic coming-of-age horror with a generic character and a generic moral that you’ve heard in fairy tales before you were old enough to talk. So, really, what’s the big deal? What is everyone raving about? Even if you were to only focus on the positive, it’s hard to ignore that hollow feeling in your gut. The one that comes when you realize the movie you think you enjoy is just another generic rehash.
Posted By: horrorfan25 at 3:33pm, February 7, 2009
Coraline is a very good film. It's creative, it's funny, it's scary. If you are expecting a good movie that doesn't need 3-D to back it up, this is the one. Wether you see it in 2-D or 3-D, you'll still enjoy Coraline. The only reason why I couldn't give Coraline 4 1/2 skulls or 5 is because the beginning does start out a little slow and the intriguing parts started to become a little repetitive. But overall, Coraline is a mind-blowing 3-D experience that serves the laughs and the scares.
WOW WOW WOW
I liked this more than The Nightmare Before Christmas! THE BEST 3D MOVIE I HAVE EVER SEEN!! There is so much to love about this film, amazing, an instant favorite. GO SEE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted By: ELIMANNING at 11:08pm, February 6, 2009
KIDS COULD DEFIENTLY SEE THIS... I TOOK MY CHILDREN WHO ARE 8 & 10 AND THEY LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT.....
THERE WERE MANY KIDS IN THE MOVIE THEATRE AND THEY ALL ENJOYED IT AS WELL...
BEST movie i have seen in along time. not recomened for kids though. its so dissturbing. everything in this movie had a symbol and i like how you didn;t know what they were till they were reviled. i dont want to give anything away so just trust me that is a good movie and even though i did not see it in 3-D it was still amazing
Wow. This film was mind blowing in 3-D, and this definitely deserves to be reviewed on this site. This film is NOT for kids, AT ALL. It was a disturbing look at how fragile and lonely children can get, and how people can use and abuse them, offering happiness and smiles. The Other Parents in this film are awesome, I don't want to give away much, but they give those delightful shivers down your spine, because everything about them is unnervingly creepy. When you find out what they are upto...you will say out loud, "WHAT THE FUCK?!"
This film is like, NMBC, Beetlejuice and maybe IT thrown into a blender, the 3-D Mesmerizes, drawing you into a world that you begin to swear is real, you feel the danger that Coraline faces, edge of your seat chills I must add...because it is danger, it's extreme peril you have never seen in a child's film before.
Go see a later showing of this film, I guarantee children will come out crying and scared to death, and it will be a nosy affair. See this in 3-D, for a horror fan, this is one door you want to open.
I highly suggest this film, Henry Selick and Neil Gaiman's Lovechild, is a success.
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