The Movie
Coraline was unfortunately a little too easy to lose track of in the 3D crush of 2009. In the face of her stylized stop-motion-animated puppets and looks-like-it's-for-kids subject matter, audiences hung back more than this fun, dark tale deserved. Based on the book by Neil Gaiman, the story involves a mysterious doll, a mysterious door and a mysterious cat. A 'tween girl named Coraline, recently moved to the middle of nowhere by her uncool parents, soon discovers an alternate reality right inside the creepy old house they've moved into. There she meets her "other" family, led by a strangely seductive maternal doppelganger.
Yeah, it's a lot like Gaiman's MirrorMask, although not quite as wild or pithy. While the pacing is a tad slow, it makes for an enjoyable family adventure.
The Picture
Rachel Cericola's issues with the previously released Coraline Blu-ray, which included an anaglyph 3D version, have been handily put to rest with this brand-new full HD stereoscopic 3D edition. The subtle, effective beauty of the 3D is evident from the opening credits and continues wonderfully for the entire movie. Windows are a definite motif, with distinct layers of focus on both sides of the glass. Some scenes, like the long tunnel Coraline crawls through to travel between worlds, seem fairly made for 3D.
As far as the clarity of the 1.85:1 image, now, I've commented many times before about the texture of cloth as reproduced on certain Blu-ray discs, but this is on a whole new level, with individual threads practically popping off of the screen. The image is also stunningly pure, with no telltale artifacts despite being shot entirely digitally.
The Sound
This DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack is exemplary, with everything from booming, room-filling thunder to the delicate scampering of a cat's little pawsteps. The music is well-blended into the overall 5.1-channel soundscape, which is further enlivened by flying/talking insects, hummingbirds, a theater full of barking dogs, and a strong sense of off-camera action. Throw in some bold, imaginative mystical effects and you have big sound worthy of the big picture.
The Extras
Although we've lost the multi-tiered Bonus View content from the prior Blu-ray, most every other supplement appears to have been ported over. There's an audio commentary from director Henry Selick, joined by composer Bruno Coulais. Six deleted/extended scenes run about nine minutes total with the introductions. The ten-part "Making of Coraline" is 36 minutes all told, and there are additional featurettes about the voices (about eleven minutes) and how they made the movie so scary (five minutes). All of the video extras are in HD.
Disc One is also BD-Live-enabled. Disc Two is a hybrid DVD containing the movie in standard definition along with a Digital Copy for iTunes and Windows Media.
Final Thoughts
Technically this disc is absolutely gorgeous, and while I'd think twice about sharing Coraline with easily distressed children, its subversive creepiness should play well for the not-so-young'ns.
Especially in 3D!
Product Details
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