Coco Movie Review: Meaning of Family

Animated movies, not falling behind live-action films, possess the ability to captivate viewers throughout the entire storyline without inducing drowsiness. Alongside their visually imaginative effects, these films often leave audiences astounded by the abundance of messages conveyed within the narrative.

Among the myriad of animated films, one notable example is Coco, released in 2017. Coco portrays the convergence of two realms: the realm of the living and the realm of the deceased, brought together by the actions of a young Mexican boy named Miguel. How can such extraordinary circumstances transpire? Let us embark on this thrilling adventure!

Synopsis

Miguel, a young boy residing in Santa Cecilia, Mexico, shares his home with an extended family known for their strict stance on music. While Miguel's relatives harbor a deep aversion towards music and its instruments, he finds himself grappling with a profound dilemma.

His inquisitive nature pushes him to explore his passion and aspire to become a skilled musician, despite the disapproval of his family members.

In secret, Miguel holds an unwavering admiration for a renowned musician named Ernesto De La Cruz, who achieved great fame within their country. Through Ernesto's old movies, Miguel familiarizes himself with the art of music and even learns to play various instruments.

Although Ernesto had passed away before Miguel's birth, this fact fails to diminish the young boy's pride in his connection to the celebrated musician.

Discovering Miguel's affinity for music, his family, who had earned a reputation as esteemed shoemakers in Cecilia, becomes furious. Upon learning that Miguel not only appreciates music but also performs it in the Cecilia town square, situated not far from their residence, he is left devastated.

At a certain moment, Miguel unintentionally caused damage to a photograph of his grandmother, Mama Cocó (Ana Ofelia Murguía), and his mother, Mama Imelda, which was placed on a shelf among pictures of deceased relatives during the commemoration of Día de Los Muertos—a festivity honoring both life and death.

Miguel was taken aback upon discovering that the photo had been folded, revealing an image of a man holding a guitar that strikingly resembled Ernesto's instrument. However, Miguel began to question whether his grandmother was truly Ernesto's daughter or not, as the picture of man's head had been torn off, obscuring his face from view.

Driven by curiosity, Miguel embarked on an unexpected course of action. To ascertain if the guitar possessed by his great-grandfather and Ernesto were one and the same, Miguel ventured into Ernesto's tomb and took the guitar.

Yet, as soon as Miguel plucked the guitar's strings, a peculiar phenomenon occurred—he became invisible or vanished along with all the living people around him. In contrast, he could now perceive and be perceived by a spirit described as skeletal.

Panicked and bewildered by his newfound invisibility, Miguel accidentally collided with one of his deceased family members. Miguel's relatives had gathered to visit their respective graves as part of the celebration of life and death.

Each family, whether living or departed, placed a photograph on the altar, enabling them to temporarily return to the realm of the living and visit their kin.

Miguel's family, comprising Grandpa Julio (Alfonso Arau), Aunt Tia Rosita (Selene Luna), Aunt Tia Victoria (Dyana Ortelli), and Uncle Tios Oscar and Felipe (Herbert Sigüenza), along with Mama Imelda (Alanna Ubach), were equally astounded to encounter their nephew and grandson, who appeared to be alive but trapped in the world of the deceased.

Without delay, they guided Miguel towards the portal leading back to the land of the living, seeking a means for his return.

After negotiating with the authorities of the realm of the dead, it was determined that the only way for Miguel to come back was by receiving a blessing from Miguel's deceased family members, who would offer him the leaves used as a bridge to cross into the realm of the living.

Mama Imelda was deemed the most appropriate person to bestow the blessing, as Miguel's actions—carrying the photographs of Mama Coco, Mama Imelda, and the man he believed to be his grandfather—had prevented Mama Imelda from crossing over into the world of the living.

But as soon as Miguel manages to return to the world of the living, he strums the guitar and re-enters the world of the dead. Miguel is curious and makes sure to find his grandfather, Ernesto.

All of Miguel's family in the world of the dead then looked for Miguel because being in the world of the dead could endanger Miguel's own life. Miguel will be trapped in the world of the dead when the sun shines the next morning.

After successfully meeting Ernesto at a big party performance, Miguel was immediately hailed, he was not feared by all the creatures there because Miguel disguised himself by drawing himself to resemble a skull. In that place, Miguel met a shabby man named Héctor. Héctor tried to get into the party to meet Ernesto as well.

Miguel was saddened to find out that Ernesto was not his grandfather, he was just an imposter who made Héctor, Miguel's real great-grandfather, die by being poisoned by Ernesto; once Héctor died, Ernesto stole Héctor's works and guitar to make himself famous.

Not wanting all the creatures in the world of the dead to know the truth, Miguel and Héctor are eventually put into a cenote hole. There, Miguel not only realized that Héctor was his real great-grandfather, he also learned that Coco was Héctor's daughter.

Imelda and Miguel's family rescue the two, Miguel reveals the truth about Héctor's death. Imelda and Héctor eventually reconcile, and the family infiltrates Ernesto's concert to take photos of Héctor.

Ernesto's crimes are exposed to Miguel sneaking into the mansion, where Ernesto welcomes him as his descendant, but Héctor confronts them, once again begging Miguel to take his photo to the Land of the Living.

Ernesto and Héctor renew arguments from their partnership in life, and Miguel realizes that when Héctor decided to leave the duo to return to his family, Ernesto poisoned him, then stole his guitar along with his songs, making him his own famous.

To protect his legacy, Ernesto takes the photo and has his security guards throw Miguel and Héctor into a cenote hole. There, Miguel realizes that Héctor is his real great-grandfather, and that Coco is Héctor's daughter.

Mama Imelda and Miguel's family rescue the two, Miguel then tells what really happened to Héctor and makes Imelda who had hated him get along again.

The whole family also infiltrated Ernesto's concert venue to take photos of Héctor; so that Héctor could visit the world of the living. Ernesto's crimes were also exposed to the audience at his own concert venue.

The audience then booed him and he was thrown out of the stadium by Pepita, causing Ernesto to lose face and even die a second time due to the giant bells at Ernesto's concert venue.

As the sun rises, Coco's life and memories fade; Imelda and Héctor bless Miguel, so that he can return to the Land of the Living. After Miguel plays "Remember Me", Coco begins to remember all and sings along with Miguel.

She reveals that she has kept a torn piece of a family photo with Héctor's face on it, then tells her family the story of her father, thus saving her memory as well as her existence in the Land of the Dead.

Dante The Helper

Apart from all the great characters that appear in the movie, there are two other characters who are no less important than the mission to save Hectór's spirit so that he can return to the world of the living to meet his living family and also save Miguel so that he can get out of the world of the dead so that he is not trapped there.

Dante is a Xoloitzcuintli dog that has no fur and messy teeth. This native Mexican dog helps and guides Miguel to complete the mission. He is the only animal that can see either Miguel or Miguel's dead family.

Apart from Dante, there is Pepita, a Maine Coon cat which is Miguel's family pet in the world of the dead.

Día de Los Muertos

Within the Mexican tradition, there exists a significant day called Memorial Day, dedicated to honoring those who have passed away. This observance is embraced by communities across Mexico, particularly in Central and Southern regions.

Falling in early November, it serves as both a holiday and a festive occasion. On this day, people come together to remember and offer prayers for their deceased family and friends.

In the film "Coco," this day of remembrance plays a big role as it enables the protagonist, Miguel, to embark on a journey through different realms and unravel the true identity of his great-grandfather.

The commemoration of Día de Los Muertos acts as a profound bridge connecting the realms of the living and the deceased. It opens up the intriguing possibility for Miguel to potentially reunite with his family on this momentous day.

Oscar Winner

The film Coco has truly achieved great success! The production cost of this film ranged from $170 to 200 million, but the profits were close to $1 billion! Precisely, it reached $807.8 million from its worldwide screenings.

Moreover, this film also managed to win awards at the most prestigious film event, the Academy Awards, also known as the Oscars. It has become the second highest-grossing animated film in Mexico of all time.

It's not just the film itself that garnered acclaim, but the soundtrack of "Remember Me" from Coco also received numerous awards, with at least 10 accolades to its name. With such recognition, it's no surprise that Showpoiler awarded this Pixar animated film a commendable rating of 4.2 out of 5.