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David McK (3540 KP) rated Coco (2017) in Movies

May 22, 2020

Coco (2017)

2017 | Adventure, Animation

8.4

(144 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Dante to dog (1 more)

'Remember Me'

Bit slow starting (0 more)

One of the few Pixar movies that I (somehow) managed to miss this when it came out at the cinema, only catching it recently on Disney+.

And, like most of Pixar output's, this is technically and visually stunning, with a sub-plot about the importance of family tied into the main narrative.

(Coco, it turns out pretty early on, is the name of his great-grandmother.)

That narrative concerns 12 year old Miguel, who dreams of becoming a famous musician despite his family's ban on any kind of music whatsoever following a decision made by one of his ancestors to leave his family to go touring (and never came back). Set during the Mexican tradition of The Day of the Dead, Miguel finds himself transported to the land of the dead following circumstances (which I'm not going to go into here), and sets off on a quest to find his ancestors and get their blessing so he can return home.

Dante the dog steals the show.

'Remember Me' deserves to become as well known as 'Let It Go'.

Kudos

Sara Cox (1845 KP) rated The Surface Breaks in Books

May 22, 2020

The Surface Breaks

Louise O'Neill | 2018 | Young Adult (YA)

7.6

(5 Ratings)

Book Rating

Anyone that knows me, knows that I love a good retelling. And this is definitely a good retelling. The story is not dissimilar to the original; and I'm talking original Hans Christian Andersen, not Disney. Where this was happening in time was not clear but I read it as quite modern, rather than the age of horse and carriage. I really liked the back story of the little mermaid's mother and the intertwining back story of the "Prince's" father. I say "Prince" but in reality he is a rich young man due to a boating company. Like many retellings of The Little Mermaid the sea witch has a back story which takes away the perception of malice, but of a merperson wrongly outcasted and trying to help while keeping within the rules and bounds of magic. I found the different groups of merpeople really interesting, especially the creatures that now spend their days punishing men due to how they have been treated by men in their former life - a kind of revenge.
For people who like the original story and would like a slightly updated version, this is definitely the read for you!