Disney+ Summary:
Aspiring musician Miguel, confronted with his family’s ancestral ban on music, enters the Land of the Dead to find his great-great-grandfather, a legendary singer.
FYA Summary:
Miguel’s great-great-abuela was a woman who got shit done when her husband left her and their daughter, Coco, to pursue his music. She started a shoe company from scratch and taught her descendants the family business—and as a bonus, instilled in them a hatred for music. But the adorable (seriously, this cartoon child is the cutest) Miguel just wants to sing and strum a guitar like his hero, musical icon Ernesto de la Cruz. He feels like the odd man out in his family, until he realizes that this love of song comes from the legend himself!
In order to perform in a talent competition in town square, Miguel needs a guitar, and he’s sure great-great-abuelo de la Cruz wouldn’t mind if he just borrows the infamous skull guitar from de la Cruz’s mausoleum. But the instant he strums a chord he’s transported to the Land of the Dead—whoops!
If he doesn’t return to the land of the living before sunrise, Miguel will be stuck as a skeleton himself. Forever. So along with his doofy but dependable street dog friend, Dante, and a scruffy musician who claims to know De La Cruz personally, Miguel has to navigate the colorful world the dead, meet his grandpa, and find a way to persuade his family to allow him to continue his passion, all in less than 12 hours.
Familiar Faces:
Anthony is a newer face to Hollywood and such a cutie! I liked his voice for Miguel*, a good boy who’s fed up with having to smother his own desires for his family’s understandable-but-over-the-top prejudices.
*Side-note: Am I the only one who was surprised that Coco wasn’t actually the name of the little boy, Miguel? I guess I didn’t read up that much on this movie despite its insane popularity. Coco being his great-grandma, in the grand scheme of everything, was perfect, but I was super thrown at the very beginning of the movie.
Bernal’s Hector starts off as a silly character who’s plight is played for laughs until you find your face is wet because you’ve been crying for him.
Benjamin Bratt as Ernesto de la Cruz
Benjamin Bratt plays self-important so well.
As soon as Miguel’s father opened his mouth I knew it was Rogelio from Jane the Virgin. He has such a distinctive voice.
Couch-Sharing Capability: Mi Casa Es Su Casa
Who wants to have a movie night? The more the merrier. If you’re close with your family (biological or otherwise), have them all over and bask in the love. If your family is far away, you may find yourself reaching for a video-chat app when the film’s over.
Recommended Level of Inebriation: Salt On The Rim
Margaritas are a clear choice here, though I would go for a bit of a twist and make it a peach margarita, or even guava. Isn’t choosing to watch a kids’ movie with an alcoholic beverage what being an adult is all about?
Use of Your Streaming Subscription: Excellent
Somewhere near the last third of the movie I was struggling to stop myself from sobbing out-loud because my husband was sitting behind me at the dining room table working on his Lego model of Voltron and I didn’t want him knowing I was tearing up, because I’m silly like that. Crying at a cartoon movie is nothing new for me, especially when it’s a Pixar film (Damn you, end of Toy Story 3. Damn you.). So imagine my bemusement when I suddenly hear a similar sniffle from beyond the couch and a “Damn onions” muttered under his breath. (He also cried at Toy Story 3, so I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised. He’s a softie, my love.)
All that to say, this movie will give you all the feels, plus it was sweet, funny, and diverse to boot. The visual effects were gorgeous and the rich, bold colors were the ultimate eye candy.
