7.5/10 Pixar has had some ups and downs these past few years and hasn’t been as consistently good as they once were but 2017 was a great year for the studio. After “Cars 3” was a surprisingly good time and a step ahead of its predecessor, Pixar followed it up with “Coco.” Thankfully after having a lot of sequels on the horizon, Pixar has created an original film and a beautiful one at that. Set in Mexico and also in purgatory, this film tackles new subject matter and culture for Pixar. It is nice to see some humans (dead and/or alive) as characters as opposed to the inanimate objects/animals that we have grown accustomed to. The visuals are stunning and as colorful and vibrant as ever and the production design is simply gorgeous. You can tell the subject matter was well researched and a lot of time and passion was put into how the film looks. The story may tread some familiar ground (it has shades of “The Book of Life” but is a lot better) but the characters are memorable and there is even a surprising plot twist of two. The voice cast is perfect but then again, I have never complained about a single voice cast from Pixar. It is something they have perfected. Music plays a big role in the film as our main lead longs to be a guitar player and a singer. The music is a pro and a con in this film. On one hand, the main song “Remember Me” and a couple of the other songs are very catchy, heartfelt and memorable. On the other hand, because the other half of the songs are forgettable, they repeat “Remember Me” several times throughout the film. It would be like if they played “Let It Go” in “Frozen” four times to make up for the lack of other good songs. I thought there would be more music and some better stuff but they stuck strong with the “Remember Me” by playing it several times. The dog sidekick is also very cute but we have seen a million Disney movies with a lovable or clumsy pet sidekick and it has frankly been overdone. The minor squabbles however do not hinder the overall experience that is full of passion, emotions of death and celebrations of life. If you have kids I strongly recommend this film and if you are an adult I also recommend this because this is probably the best animated film of 2017, despite strong competition from the equally enjoyable “Cars 3” and “The Boss Baby.”
#ImInLoveWithTheCoco / #CuckooForCocoStuff / #GuitarQuiero / #RhythmAndCruz / #TioGrande / #AWalkToRememberMe
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