Coco

In my opinion, Coco is probably the best-animated movie of the year 2017. It is colorful and beautifully shot. It has got some drive, the characters are likable, it is entertaining, and the narrative is really good (considering it is Pixar). They did a great job as it gets really emotional, and I almost could not hold back the tears at the very end. As for the negative aspects, the movie is very predictable in places (who exactly is Hector?), slightly unbelievable at times (could a family ban music so stringently?), and the first half of the movie is much less interesting than the second. In my final assessment, I compared it mainly to last year's Kubo and the Two Strings and 2014's The Book of Life (because of the subject matter), and I am finally clear about the rating, 8.4/10. (09/12/2017)

I have nothing against animated films about the undead (how could I, right?), but Coco will definitely not become one of my favorites. I expect the world beyond to have a certain atmosphere, which Tim Burton is so excellent at. In this case I got some sort of a carnival of colors and joy. I get it that Mexicans have different traditions, but this film gave me the impression that they are practically looking forward to death, unless someone forgets to put up their photo. I didn’t find anything interesting about the story in the first half, the situation improved in the second half, but I can't say I was beside myself with joy. There was far too much music and family happiness for my taste. To enjoy the film, I would need better jokes and a less transparent plot. (09/03/2019)

While you'd think Pixar wouldn't be able to come up with a film that gets to you again, the opposite is true. By the end, I just couldn't help watching the film through tears. Visually beautiful, Day of the Dead is a great backdrop in its own right, but in Pixar's rendition it is beautiful to behold. You can add to that a story that is beautifully powerful, emotional and just plain good. A beautiful film! (03/02/2018)

For about three quarters of its runtime, it still feels like a classy four-star animated film, with lots of visual flourishes and ideas, some predictable sequences, and one weaker scene that I've seen in other films (the reveal of the bad guy to the public). But then it builds up to an incredible moving moment, and the pivotal scene with the song at the end made me cry like a little kid – something that hasn’t happened to me in a long time. It's true, the most important thing in life is the family being together in mutual love and respect for the elderly. On top of that, the eye-pleasing Mexican setting, unusual in Hollywood productions, its flair and positive mood. Yeah, it was very good. (06/08/2018)

A Pixar movie as it should be, but Zootropolis is still unbeaten for me. Coco has solid visuals, a nice story, nice songs, decent pacing, a good dose of humor, and one very good plot twist. The emotional finale left me cold this time, but otherwise satisfied. Good fun for the whole family. No wonder Coco is a hit in Mexico. 80% (04/01/2018)