By Rachel Mckay – Staff Reporter

The movie “Coraline” is a film produced in February 2009 by Laika Studios. It is based on the book Coraline by Neil Gaiman.

The movie starts with the protagonist, Coraline, moving into a new house. In the beginning, she is simply exploring the house and surrounding property, as well as meeting the other characters. It also serves to show her dissatisfaction with her new house. 

At first, the main problem Coraline faces is her sadness at leaving her friends and annoyance with her strange neighbors. The movie spends time letting the viewer know just how weird the characters are, however does not reveal too much about the storyline. 

There is also a great build up to the dramatic climax. It gives the viewer enough time to understand the world and learn more about Coraline, but it doesn’t drag on. It also leads up to the climax without the viewer even realizing. 

The plot begins to darken after she discovers a door that leads to what seems like a perfect alternate reality. It is clear that this door leads to a world where everything is better, particularly her parents. From there, the story continues to warp as Coraline learns more about what is going on.

The movie does an excellent job of maintaining a sense of mystery and the feeling that something is wrong, without telling the viewer what it is. In addition, there is a lot of hidden foreshadowing that can only be caught rewatching the movie. Many small details that could go unnoticed hint at the much darker truth of the story. 

All of this makes Coraline a movie that anyone can become invested in, and can be watched time and time again. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars