Director: Jorge R Gutierrez
Writer: Jorge R Gutierrez, Doug Landgale (Screenplay)
Starring: (Voice Talents) Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, Channing Tatum, Ron Perlman, Christina Applegate, Ice Cube
Plot: Manolo, a young man who is torn between fulfilling the expectations of his family and following his heart, embarks on an adventure that spans three fantastic worlds where he must face his greatest fears.
Runtime: 1 Hour 35 Minutes
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Magical
Story: The Book of Life starts with a school trip being told the story of two Gods Xibalba and La Muerta making a wager to see who gets to rule the land of the living and the land of the dead, their bet follows two young Mexican boys Manolo and Joaquin betting on who will marry Maria.
Manolo is from a bullfighting family and wants to be a musician, while Joaquin becomes General known for fighting off bandits. When everything gets out of hand in the battle between Manolo and Joaquin, Manolo ends up in the land of the dead to save Maria.
Thoughts on The Book of Life
Characters – Manolo is from a family of bullfighters, he is expected to follow in his ancestor’s footsteps even though he dreams of being a musician. He is part of the bet, he has the better heart trying to win her heart through music, he travels through three worlds to win her heart. Joaquin is the brave fighter, he has been selected by the evil to win Maria’s heart given the medal of everlasting life meaning he can’t die, this adds to his confidence he possesses. Maria is the woman the two are fighting over, she is independent as they come willing to lead her people without needing a husband by her side.
Story – The story does seem to follow what we saw in Coco in places, this one did come first. We have the central character of Manolo that is expected to follow on path not allowing him to follow his own dream of music. We have the travel through the land of the living, the dead and the forgotten. Where we go to be different is by including Gods that can make a bet to keep them entertained. This story does feel magical from start to finish.
Adventure/Comedy/Fantasy/Musical – The adventure that Manolo goes on is wonderful to see through the different lands of Mexican culture, this does have good comedy going on through the whole film mostly from the side characters. The fantasy world of the land of the dead and forgotten look beautiful to be traveling through. The songs are delightful to listen to even if some are remixes of famous songs.
Settings – The settings takes us to Mexico, as we follow the culture of the land, both past and present.
Animation – The animation looks fantastic, different and what we are used to seeing too, the colours stand out and the different lands have a unique look.
Scene of the Movie – Forgive song.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – I had just watched Coco a few weeks again and knowing that movie just stole most of the ideas annoys me.
Final Thoughts – This is a magical animation that leaves you with a happy thought about what you have just seen.
Overall: Magical and beautiful.
Rating
