I can go on and on about Pixar’s Coco, but for time’s sake I’ll cover a few highlights from the film. First, the animation is absolutely breathtaking. This has to be, in my opinion, the most beautiful animated film Disney has ever created. The colors usually associated with Dia de los Muertos are bright and bold and this film does not disappoint in exploring the possibilities of that. It uses the marigold petals as both a creative style and a symbol of Miguel’s path to his family.
One thing about the humor in this film is the super accurate display of a Hispanic family. I’m Cuban, not Mexican, but oh man…the amount of relatable scenes had me rolling. When Miguel rejects more food and Abuelita threateningly says, “I asked if you want more tamales” and then promptly piles more on his plate after he is forced to say “si”- there is indeed a certain healthy fear of rejecting more food from your Abuelita (or a similar relative).
My personal favorite is when Miguel first enters the Land of the Dead and is being hugged by his dead relatives. Instead of asking “who are you and what’s going on” he says, “remind me how I know you?” If you come from a large Hispanic family, or even just a large family in general, this was your experience at every family gathering and I loved how he reacted this way during a time of complete panic and confusion. I think I crack up laughing every time.
The overall theme and core of this film is the importance of family. What I love so much about this message is that it is learned by both Miguel and his older relatives (who are wonderfully fleshed out characters by the way- a rare thing for kids’ movies).
First, Miguel, through his journey in the Land of the Dead, learns just how important his family is to him- both living and dead. In the scene near the end when Mama Imelda is blessing the marigold petal, she starts her statement like the one in the beginning: “Miguel, I give you my blessing…to go home…and to never-“ Miguel interrupts her with “never play music again”. He says it disappointedly, of course. But the thing is, he was willing to give up music this time. He had accepted that Mama Imelda had banned music in their family and, even though it crushed him, he was willing to go along with it because of how much he valued keeping his family in his life.
The same becomes true for his older relatives, specifically Abuelita and Mama Imelda. Mama Imelda’s hatred for and ban on music is just as present in the Land of the Living as it is in the Land of the Dead through Abuelita. The hurt and feeling of betrayal that came with the revelation of Miguel as a musician was very real in both women. Because of this, both women react angrily and harshly towards Miguel’s musical choices. This, of course, makes Miguel angry and, as the protagonist, makes you feel the injustice done to him. However, neither Mama Imelda or Abuelita are villainized for their reaction.
The scene between Mama Imelda and Miguel when he’s trying to escape from her after his performance highlights each of their perspectives on the conflict. Miguel assumes that Imelda does not understand his love for music. When she starts to sing, he is shocked and says, “I thought you hated music”. She reveals that she loves music- nothing else would matter when she and her husband would perform together. But when Coco was born, she found something that “mattered more than music”. To her knowledge, her husband did not feel the same way and put music and fame above her and their daughter. Now, she is fearful that Miguel is making the same mistake. In her mind, her husband made a choice- music or family- and now Miguel must choose.
Miguel then turns the tables on her and asks her why she can’t be on his side because family is supposed to support each other. This is the moment that Imelda realizes that she is choosing to hold on to her hurt at the expense of her family. Just like Miguel being willing to give up music in the end for his family, Imelda gives up her ban on music and gives Miguel her blessing with “no conditions” in order to support and love him.
When Miguel returns and plays for Coco in order for her to remember Hector, he is bringing his dead family’s change of heart to his living family. Abuelita sees the amazingly positive effect the song Remember Me has on Coco and, just like Imelda, the importance of her family is put above her anger against music.
Another thing I loved about Coco is the differences between Hector and Ernesto. I love how Ernesto is this seemingly charming and perfect character, particularly the scenes between him and Miguel at the party. Yet whenever we see Hector we see everything- flaws and all. He's real.
While all Ernesto is concerned about is showing off Miguel for his own fame, Hector connects with Miguel much better. He cares about Miguel's own musical success and is a big paternal figure to him before we even find out that they are family.
The contrast in the relationships makes us understand completely why Miguel screams happily "I'm proud to be his family!"
Overall, this film is incredible and beautifully made. The characters are complicated and real and the music is an amazing combination of different genres of Mexican music with the traditional Disney musical qualities.
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