Not just another children’s movie

Coraline is an old story enhanced… and in 3-D

By Lilly Lampe
Published: February 11th, 2009 | 9:25am

Girl is bored with life, finds a secret door to magical world, magical world turns bad, and girl must escape. If the storyline sounds familiar, it’s because you’ve seen it before in the likes of Alice and Wonderland and Pan’s Labyrinth; there’s even a Cheshire-esque talking cat. Coraline, directed by Henry Selick,is a familiar tale made unique by beautifully enchanting animation that is even more spectacular in 3-D.

Based on the fantasy novella by Neil Gaiman, Coraline is a lonely young girl who escapes from doldrums and distant parents into a fantastical parallel world. Dakota Fanning voices the title character and is a spot-on choice as the tough yet childish Coraline. She is seduced by the wonders of reality’s more cheerful version, where her “Other Parents” are doting and affectionate, even if their button-eyes are more than a tad menacing. Teri Hatcher is notable as Mother / “Other” Mother; the familiar voice of a Desperate Housewife is easily convincing as a seemingly sweet yet conniving malevolent character. As the plot unfolds, dream becomes nightmare and Coraline must use her wits to save her true parents and herself.

You’ve seen it before, but never like this. Even Shakespeare took well-known plots and turned them into plays that at the time entertained and have since proved timeless. Shakespeare was a magician at witticism and prose, but Selick’s sorcery is his dazzling stop-animation. Selick has created his own particular genre of dark-humored stop-animation children’s films in works such as Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas and the movie adaptation of Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach. Seen in 3-D, every detail shines.

Coraline is grimmer and more serious than most children’s films, yet stays on the side of suspense, not nightmare-inducing. At 101 minutes, it’s also relatively long for short-attention youths, especially since it lacks the spontaneous song and banter of most animated films. However, Selick’s beautifully crafted scenes of glowing and blooming gardens and dancing circus mice will keep children age seven to seventy enthralled and entertained throughout. And when the credits roll and Coraline’s spell broken, the real world looks a little dimmer in comparison.