Pixar Studios haven't really had much of a good run of late. Since the release of 'Inside Out' in 2015, Pixar, who work alongside Disney, haven't been able to wow neither the critics nor the public as it once did with successes like 'WALL-E', 'Toy Story 3' and 'Up'. Whilst the most recent films haven't been total disasters, they have still lacked the magic we're so used to seeing from a Pixar production. The latest Pixar film to hit our screens was 'Cars 3', which premiered this July. The box office and critical responses to the film weren't on par with other works from the studio, which is more than evident in its scores of 68% on Rotten Tomatoes, and 59 on Metacritic. Out of all of the 'Cars' films, the third installment performed the worst, according to Box Office Mojo. Fear not however, because it appears as though there's a light at the end of the tunnel with upcoming flick, 'Coco'.
The film will focus on the Mexican holiday, the Day of the Dead, and is set for UK release on 8th December, despite that, however, the first reviews are already online - and they're very positive! The Hollywood Reporter have described 'Coco' as "a richly woven tapestry of comprehensively researched storytelling, fully dimensional characters, clever touches both tender and amusingly macabre and vivid, beautifully textured visuals". The Wrap, on the other hand champions Pixar for the way it "honours the rich aesthetic heritage of Mexico and keeps these cultural markers from looking like they were merely dusted off and computer-generated for mass consumption".
Most critics have also drawn attention to how majority of the cast are of Latin American descent, such as Gael García Bernal, Benjamin Bratt and Sofía Espinosa. The Mexican site, Cine Premiere, also appreciates how the film approaches Mexican culture with an outsider's perspective. "A story about an outsider who wants to learn about, and adopt a culture, which is not their own, is just the type of film our society needs".
The film does, of course, have its imperfections too, as Screen Daily have pointed out. "Whiny Miguel isn't nearly as resourceful, funny or empathetic as the studio's best protagonists... Plus, 'Coco' lacks the emotional sophistication of Pixar's finest films", taking "few narrative risks" and "peddling a simplistic story". Variety was even less enthusiastic, stating, "none of this feels terribly original, from the film's message to the look of the Mexican underworld, which so recently inspired another computer-animated feature, 2014's 'The Book of Life'". Coco "works", if only for "the story's sincere emotional resolution"; the "creators clearly had the perfect ending in mind before they'd nailed down all the other details", Variety concluded. To channel Michael Rechtshaffen of The Hollywood Reporter, "it's a safe bet that audiences the world over will go loco for 'Coco'".
The wait is almost over
Globally, 'Coco' has a whopping 90% of positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, and a score of 82 on Metacritic. Both scores are the highest a Pixar film has received since the release of 'Inside Out' in 2015. We'll have to wait and see if 'Coco' becomes the studio's newest success, the critics seem to think it will anyway.
Diversity is at the heart of 'Coco', that tells the story of Miguel, a young boy with a forbidden love for music. Amidst the annual preparations for the Day of the Dead, Miguel finds himself stuck in the realm between life and death, and embarks on the adventure of a lifetime.
