Coco

 

Release Date: November 22, 2017

Watch Date: January 27, 2023

"In Disney-Pixar's vibrant tale of family, fun and adventure, an aspiring young musician named Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez) embarks on an extraordinary journey to the magical land of his ancestors. There, the charming trickster Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal) becomes an unexpected friend who helps Miguel uncover the mysteries behind his family's stories and traditions."

    Once, when our son was sick, really sick with the flu, when he wasn't even a year old, I watched this movie almost non-stop for three days. It was the only thing that would keep him from crying. I don't know why. He has never shown an interest in it since. But Coco has become weirdly important to me, part of ingrained into an important moment from early motherhood, something foundational. It has nothing to do with the story, and everything to do with my personal experience, but I think sometimes our feelings about movies are like that, and it's important to recognize when they are.

    Barring my own personal experiences with the film, Coco is simply a beautiful story wonderfully told. There's humor, and a whole lot of heart. There's intrigue, I mean, how many Pixar movies heavily feature a murder mystery? There's the risk of being trapped forever in another land, and specifically another land where you happen to be dead. There's deep messages about the importance of family. This movie is an experience, and one that everyone should have.

    The land of the dead is a world that feels, ironically, living and breathing. The colors are rich and vibrant, the people are varied and interesting. It is a collection of the history of Mexico, as it must be, because if you are remembered you get to stay. So, famous people from all decades and walks of life are able to interact in ways they never could in life, and while Disney only focuses on one famous artist, it's not hard to believe that there are other Mexican legends walking around.

    I love the idea of the ofrenda, of paying tribute to your ancestors, of telling your story. Now, this is a cultural tradition of Dia de los Muertos, and not something Pixar invented whole-cloth, but I grew up with a mother obsessed with genealogical research. Ancestral knowledge has always been incredibly important, and a culture and a story wherein remembering and honoring the family members that came before you is something that resonates very deeply with me.

    Bob, even though he is not Mexican, was able to relate to a lot of the family dynamics that were shown on screen, specifically that of Miguel's Abuela, and while he will be quick to point out that Puerto Rican and Mexican culture are extremely different, he will admit that some parts of Latin culture must just be universal experiences. 

    If you are not emotionally moved by the ending of the film, I would be incredibly surprised, because I have yet to watch it once without crying at the end of it. 'Remember Me' is an incredibly heartfelt, deep song, that I believe you can relate to as long as you have felt some sort of love in your life, be that platonic, familial or romantic. It is a beautiful melody, and a wonderful message.

    Coco is a work of art, and I am not the first to say it. It was also the first in a wave of Disney exploring other cultures from a much more authentic fashion, and that has only been a benefit to culture as a whole. It's good for children to be exposed to other ways of life and traditions, and it's good for other children to see their culture and traditions put up on the big screen. Movies like this can only enrich the world. So if you're ready to dance along, like my daughter, to 'Un Poco Loco' and cry to 'Remember Me', I would give this movie a watch, because it is perfect for all ages, and all times.