The latest stop-motion masterpiece from Laika (who already wowed us with Coraline), ParaNorman features zombies, a witches curse, and heavily references classics of the horror genre. While this doesn't exactly scream 'kids movie', make no mistake, this film is aimed at the smallies, while also remembering to cater for the adults in the audience.
Norman Babcock (Kodi Smit-McPhee) lives in the small town of Blithe Hollow. An avid fan of horror movies, Norman can also speak to ghosts, a trait that has painted him as a freak among the townspeople, and the target of bullies at his school. But when an ancient curse awakens a horde of zombies, Norman must rise to the challenge of saving his home.
I have to say, I fell in love with ParaNorman the minute the opening credits, done in the style of a 70's b-movie, started rolling. It is a smartly written piece, beautiful of cinema, that crams an incredible amount of heart and humour into its 92 minute running time. It wears its horror movie influences proudly, filling nearly every scene with references, from its synth soundtrack reminiscent of Halloween, to numerous nods to Dawn Of The Dead. The movie starts off strong, dropping us into Norman's world at the deep end, and continues to build up to the first zombie climbing from his grave. It's this point that brings the first of the movies many wonderful and surprising twists, which make sure the story always stays fresh. There is a slight lull in the middle, as Norman learns about his towns shady past, but things pick up again quickly, speeding towards a satisfying and visually impressive finale. The overall tone of the film is quite macabre, but nothing too much for kids. It does venture into some dark places at times, but this will go over their heads, and there is no shortage of some well judged humour to distract them. If nothing else, the deep story will entertain the adults more, as they will fully appreciate the intricate details.
The animation is also top notch, with attention to detail really impressing. No character feels the same, each having their own mannerisms and distinct look, and they are brought to life by a fantastic voice cast especially Christopher Mintz-Plasse as bully Alvin, and Casey Affleck as the dim witted Mitch. The zombies are wonderfully realised, retaining a classic look but still feeling unique. But the ghost effects are the most impressive, each separate ghost uniquely realised. My favorite has to be the gangster with his feet encased in concrete, the ghost of fish swimming around him. He's only on screen for a few seconds, but he stole the show for me. My only complaint is that once the zombies turn up the ghosts take a back seat. I would loved to have seen the animation team do more with theses effects.
ParaNorman is a fantastic movie, brought to life with a script that is better than any script for a kids movie has the right to be, and impressive visuals that prove that not every cartoon has to be done on a computer. A movie that should be seen by just about everybody.
Norman Babcock (Kodi Smit-McPhee) lives in the small town of Blithe Hollow. An avid fan of horror movies, Norman can also speak to ghosts, a trait that has painted him as a freak among the townspeople, and the target of bullies at his school. But when an ancient curse awakens a horde of zombies, Norman must rise to the challenge of saving his home.
I have to say, I fell in love with ParaNorman the minute the opening credits, done in the style of a 70's b-movie, started rolling. It is a smartly written piece, beautiful of cinema, that crams an incredible amount of heart and humour into its 92 minute running time. It wears its horror movie influences proudly, filling nearly every scene with references, from its synth soundtrack reminiscent of Halloween, to numerous nods to Dawn Of The Dead. The movie starts off strong, dropping us into Norman's world at the deep end, and continues to build up to the first zombie climbing from his grave. It's this point that brings the first of the movies many wonderful and surprising twists, which make sure the story always stays fresh. There is a slight lull in the middle, as Norman learns about his towns shady past, but things pick up again quickly, speeding towards a satisfying and visually impressive finale. The overall tone of the film is quite macabre, but nothing too much for kids. It does venture into some dark places at times, but this will go over their heads, and there is no shortage of some well judged humour to distract them. If nothing else, the deep story will entertain the adults more, as they will fully appreciate the intricate details.
The animation is also top notch, with attention to detail really impressing. No character feels the same, each having their own mannerisms and distinct look, and they are brought to life by a fantastic voice cast especially Christopher Mintz-Plasse as bully Alvin, and Casey Affleck as the dim witted Mitch. The zombies are wonderfully realised, retaining a classic look but still feeling unique. But the ghost effects are the most impressive, each separate ghost uniquely realised. My favorite has to be the gangster with his feet encased in concrete, the ghost of fish swimming around him. He's only on screen for a few seconds, but he stole the show for me. My only complaint is that once the zombies turn up the ghosts take a back seat. I would loved to have seen the animation team do more with theses effects.
ParaNorman is a fantastic movie, brought to life with a script that is better than any script for a kids movie has the right to be, and impressive visuals that prove that not every cartoon has to be done on a computer. A movie that should be seen by just about everybody.
