Coco (2017) review + Olaf's Frozen Adventure (2017) review

The time has come once again, folks, for the newest effort from the legendary animation studio, Pixar. Pixar, of course, needs no introduction. Since 1995, they’ve given us an endless array of animated masterpieces that have helped to make them pioneering forces in the art of computer animation, from the early classics like the Toy Story films and The Incredibles (which is finally getting a sequel next year) to recent gems like Up and Inside Out. And now, they’re back again with their second 2017 outing (after Cars 3 was released earlier this summer) in the form of Coco. With Coco, Pixar takes us on a fantastical journey inspired by the most famous Mexican holiday, Día de Muertos AKA the Day of the Dead, where families come together to honor their fallen loved ones. In the director’s chair for this one is Lee Unkrich, who’s been a mainstay at Pixar ever since they started producing their own feature films. Initially, he was an editor for films like Toy Story and A Bug’s Life before he started to work as a co-director on projects like Monsters Inc. and Finding Nemo. Then, in 2010, he finally got promoted to the role of lead director for the third installment of the Toy Story franchise, and to call Toy Story 3 a success would be a massive understatement. It grossed over $1 billion worldwide and was only the third animated film ever to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, and while it didn’t end up winning that award, it did win the Oscar that year for Best Animated Feature. And as for his latest outing, Unkrich proceeds to give us yet another gorgeously animated and heartfelt Pixar adventure that treats its subject matter with the full respect that it deserves.

In a peaceful little Mexican village, a young boy named Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez) finds himself in a troubling situation over one of his family’s longtime traditions. While he yearns to become a musician like his idol, the late Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt), his family has regularly enforced a ban on music ever since Miguel’s great-great-grandfather left the family to embark on a musical career. Miguel’s passion for music is only fueled further, however, when an old family photo implicates that his great-great-grandfather was, in fact, Ernesto de la Cruz. Thus, on Día de Muertos, Miguel sneaks into the local mausoleum dedicated to de la Cruz and proceeds to take his guitar in the hopes of performing in a local talent contest. In the process, though, he ends up being transported to the Land of the Dead, where the deceased reside until they return to the land of the living every year on this day to visit their living relatives. While there, Miguel is reunited with all of his ancestors who must now try and get him back home before sunrise; otherwise, he would become a skeleton and be stuck in the Land of the Dead forever. But when his ancestors demand that he give up his dreams of becoming a musician as a condition of the return process, Miguel decides to try and find his great-great-grandfather so that he can return home without having to give up on his dream. And so, Miguel teams up with a charismatic con man named Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal), who allegedly knows de la Cruz, to find him in the hopes of proving to his family that this is who he’s meant to be.

Prior to this film’s release, it did attract some skepticism early on from those who were fearful of how Pixar would handle a story that was based on such an important aspect of Mexican culture, especially after an incident in 2015 in which Disney tried to trademark the phrase ‘Día de Los Muertos’. And, of course, there was a lot of tumultuous uproar made by those who accused the film of being a rip-off of the 2014 animated film The Book of Life, even though its director, Jorge R. Gutierrez, clearly denied this multiple times. Well, fear not, folks, as Pixar does treat this staple of Mexican tradition with the respect that it deserves. While Coco does focus a lot on Miguel trying to follow his dreams of becoming a musician, its plot is ultimately steeped in the one thing that the Day of the Dead celebrations are all about, and that is the importance of family. During his journey, there are several instances in which Miguel tries to distance himself from his family when they discourage him from being a musician. At the same time, though, Miguel also begins to realize how much his family truly means to him when he starts to learn the truth behind the events that caused them to carry out their ban on music in the first place. This paves the way for a great plot twist in the third act that further strengthens the emotional poignancy of the story. Yes, just like all the great Pixar films, this film is sure to hit you with the feels at certain points, especially near the end (don’t worry, no spoilers…). 

As for the animation… well, it’s Pixar, what do you expect? It’s bright, crisp, and colorful, and just like the plot itself, it utilizes its Mexican roots to their full effect, effectively giving us a great visual world to explore in its version of the ‘Land of the Dead’. The great animation also ties in well to another key element of this film, its music. Yes, Coco is quite arguably the first major musical that Pixar has ever done, and the music, written in part by Frozen songwriters Robert and Kristen-Anderson Lopez and backed by the usual great score by Michael Giacchino, is excellent. And of course, like any great Pixar film, it boasts an excellent cast of characters. They’re so solid, in fact, that because the story is so well-handled, even the characters that initially come off as being rather stern become more sympathetic once we get to know them better. This includes the likes of Miguel’s great-great-grandmother Imelda (Alanna Ulbach), who was the first to initiate their family’s music ban after her musician husband left her all those years ago, and Miguel’s grandmother Elena (Renee Victor), who continues to enforce it to this day. But, of course, it’s ultimately the lead duo of Miguel and Hector who are the true emotional core of the story. As the film’s likable young protagonist, newcomer Anthony Gonzalez shines in what will surely be a breakout role for him, while Gael Garcia Bernal gets to work with a great redemption arc that slowly but surely begins to reveal more of the charismatic Hector’s background.

I’ve talked before about the internet’s extremely severe attitude towards Pixar in recent years that has mainly come as a result of some of the strictest expectations that have ever been seen from the film fan community. This has especially been the case ever since 2011’s Cars 2 ended up being the first project of theirs to attract primarily negative reviews. And thus, nowadays, I find that the current internet mentality towards Pixar films is that if a film of theirs isn’t a straight-up masterpiece effort of storytelling, then it is effectively deemed as a ‘failure’. This has been a fate that has sadly affected perfectly decent films like Monsters University, The Good Dinosaur, and Brave, just to name a few. Thankfully, though, that has not been the case with Pixar’s latest outing, as Coco is being regarded by many as one of the studio’s best films yet. And quite frankly, it’s easy to see why, as the film is a heartfelt tribute to arguably the most famous holiday in Mexican culture. Not only does it handle the concept of death and the afterlife in a smart manner, but it also ties it all together perfectly with a poignant story that’s focused on the most important element of Día de Muertos, family. Add in a great cast of layered characters and a toe-tapping soundtrack of songs and you have what is easily one of the best animated films of the year, if not the best. Simply put, Pixar has done it again!  

Rating: 5/5!

OLAF’S FROZEN ADVENTURE – SHORT REVIEW

Now as many of you know, in lieu of the traditional Pixar short that plays before every new Pixar film, Coco was paired with a 21-minute featurette from Walt Disney Animation Studios, Olaf’s Frozen Adventure. This is the first time since 1990 (when The Prince and the Pauper ran in front of The Rescuers Down Under) that a short film of this length has been shown in front of a Disney film. And in this instance, it comes in the form of the continuing adventures of sisters Anna and Elsa and all of their friends from Disney’s 2013 global phenomenon, Frozen. In this new short, the lovable snowman Olaf (Josh Gad) embarks on a quest to find a new holiday tradition for Princess Anna (Kristen Bell) and Queen Elsa (Idina Menzel) when the latter realizes that, because of all the time that she’s spent secluded from society, she and Anna don’t really have a family tradition of their own. As for the short itself… well, if you’re one of those people who are 100% sick to death of ‘Frozen mania’ at this point, then clearly this isn’t going to do anything for you just like when Frozen Fever ran in front of the live-action remake of Cinderella back in 2015. For the record, I still think that Frozen Fever got way too much flak from the internet, but that’s another story at the moment because… damn! This new short is clearly turning out to be far more controversial compared to its immediate predecessor just because it was paired with Coco instead of airing on TV as was originally intended. It’s been so controversial, in fact, that Mexican theaters straight-up pulled it in favor of just showing Coco. And to be perfectly frank, it isn’t doing much better here in the states…

But for those who still love the original film and its endearing cast of characters, then I’m pleased to say that this new short will provide you with even more great moments with them that will hopefully hold you over until the release of the impending sequel in 2019. Now, granted, that doesn’t mean that I think that this is as good as the original film. I do agree with a common argument that’s being brought up in that it sort of rushes through its track list of songs (which, for the record, weren’t done by Robert and Kristen-Anderson Lopez this time around). Still, the characters are just as lovable as ever and while the songs in this short probably won’t become as popular as the ones from the original film, the final song ‘When We’re Together’ is an undeniably sweet melody. Plus, I won’t lie… the ending is so damn heartwarming in terms of its ultimate resolution, and it serves as yet another perfect representation of the heartfelt narratives that have made up this entire franchise. In short, those who are absolutely dreading the thought of having to sit through this new entry in the Frozen franchise shouldn’t fret too much about it, because from what I’ve heard, this is only going to be running in front of Coco for a limited time. So if you’re this upset about it, just wait a while before you go to see Coco… it’s that easy. But in all seriousness, Olaf’s Frozen Adventure isn’t even remotely as bad as the internet is currently putting it out to be. I mean, really, is it ‘that’ hard to just sit through a 21-minute short film?

Rating: 4/5

UPDATE: It has just been recently announced that Olaf's Frozen Adventure will be pulled from theaters starting on December 8th, presumably in the wake of all of the backlash that it has received from audiences ever since it debuted in front of Coco. And yet, I still don't think that it's as bad as the internet says it is. I mean, seriously, I've seen several online articles recently that have accused the short of being 'offensive' to Pixar fans and for harming the reputation of Coco by overshadowing it. Well, I'm a Pixar fan... and yet I can safely say that I wasn't the least bit 'offended' by this short. Heck, if you ask me, this whole backlash towards an innocent holiday short is far more harmful to Coco's reputation than the short itself. Why? Because THAT, folks, is how Pixar's latest masterpiece is being overshadowed; not directly by the short that precedes it, but because people are truly making a mountain out of a molehill. Once again, I must ask; is it really THAT hard to sit through a 21-minute short that precedes an animated film that's just under two hours?