Family Matters and All their Christmas Episodes

 

  Good old “Family Matters”, it was one of ABC’s most successful family sit-coms, running from 1989 to 1997, and ended up becoming a staple of TGIF. In the beginning, the show followed Officer Carl Winslow, played by Reginald VelJohnson, and his African American family, the Winslow’s, in all the humorous, yet heart felt and somewhat relatable offerings one would expect from a family sitcom. Things changed when the goofy, and nerdy next door neighbor Steve Urkel, played by Jaleel White, came on the scene to steal the show. 

Originally meant as one-off character, he became a main stay in season 2, and eventually became the shows main character. Not only did the show become a full-on comedy series, but it also got re-tooled into a Science Fiction series, with Steve coming-up with all kinds of outlandish contraptions, and goofy oddities ensuing. This made the shows frequently annual Christmas episodes all the more fun to look forward to, because with Steve Urkel, and the shows unpredictable nature … there was no-telling what kind of cheer and delight you’d get along with all the laughs and mayhem. So, I thought it would be fun to go through each of the shows individual Christmas episodes, and see how they hold-up.

 

“Have Yourself a Merry Winslow Christmas” (Season 2, Episode 13)

For the very first Christmas outing with the Winslow family, things are bright and cheery at home, and everyone’s in a jolly mood … then Steve Urkel shows-up announcing that he’s been left all-alone for the holiday season, naturally playing on the family’s sympathy … and much to Laura Winslow’s displeasure, as Steve is frequently putting the moves on her. It doesn’t take long for Urkel’s clumsy nature to get the worst of him, resulting in a tipped over tree, and shattering Laura’s treasured antic ornament. Furious, she sends Urkel back to his lonely basement to spend the rest of the holiday season alone, prompting this sentimental remark … “If that makes you happy, that’ll be my Christmas gift to you”. 

What follows is one of those morbid moments that’s both funny and sad, as we see Steve alone in his cold basement, with nothing but a tipped-over tree and single letter to bring him cheer. Eventually, Laura comes around to apologize and invite him back over for Christmas. This results in a classic funny reaction from Steve, who’s so overwhelmed, he falls over on his back-side, and quotes the famous 90’s phrase “I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up”! There’s also a sub-plot with Carl Winslow on a mission to find a special toy for little Nicky, which is flying off the shelves, and his very hard to get, especially when dealing with the crazy mob of shoppers … kind of feels like a pre-curser to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 1996 film “Jingle all the Way”. 

Naturally, being a family sit-come, everything results in a cheerful ending, with a montage of everyone unwrapping gifts, while seeing “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”, and depending on what kind of mood you’re in, it’ll either make you cringe, or feel all warm and cozy inside … honestly, I could see it affecting viewers either way. For me, it’s very simple comfort food, and takes me back to a time when family sit-comes just had a special feel all their own. 

   

“It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Urkel” (Season 4, Episode 10)

Following after the last holiday outing, Urkel once again tries to put the moves on Laura, only to have them back-fire big time. Now, Laura is furious, and wishes he’d see things form her perspective. In an obvious, yet loving nod to “It’s a Wonderful Life” … right down to the movie playing in the background … a guardian angel appears to Laura to grant her wish, but there’s going to be a catch … she in turn has to experience things from Urkel’s perspective. Now the roles are reversed, and we see things differently at the Winslow home, with Urkel as the upright family member, and Laura is the nerdy neighbor who just can’t take no for an answer. 

The make-or-break deal of this episode is watching these actors play opposite roles of each-other, and for me, it looks like they had a lot of fun with this episode, and it’s hard for me not to have fun along with them. There’s also a number of details that make this episode stand-out among their Christmas offerings. The opening is classic Urkel, as he comes over to the Winslow home with a new invention that can produce fake-snow for Christmas trees. Naturally, everything goes wrong, turning the home into a giant flurry of white powder … yup, that’s peak Urkel for yah. 

I also love the snowy, shopping mall backdrop, with all the decorations, and Urkel’s goofy Christmas-mobile. Lastly, this episode apparently influenced Adam Sandler’s 2006 movie “Click”, as Laura’s guardian Angel has his own TV remote that can pause, alter and re-wind time. In the end, Laura and Urkel have a new found understanding for one another, and Aunt Rachel plays us out with “O Come All Ye Faithful”, making for yet another corny, yet still cheerful ending. I’d say this is one of the better “Family Matters” Christmas episodes, with a fun premise, memorable character performances, and lots of slap-stick highlights.    

 

“Christmas is Where the Heart is” (Season 5, Episode 11)

For the third Christmas outing on the show, we set-up a new dynamic … Carl Winslow is not in the holiday mood, and Steve Urkel is just the goofball needed to rejuvenate his Christmas spirit ... that will be the formula for many of the holiday episodes moving forward. After accidently smashing another Christmas gift, Carl and Urkel go out shopping, only to get stuck in the blizzard of the century. A sudden black-out strands the two on a subway car, with a number of passengers even grumpier than Carl. 

What they need is a nerd, who refuses to give-up until everyone is feeling the same yuletide cheer of the season. This premise is a double edge sword, as the train setting certainly gives this Christmas episode an identity, and it highlights that despite Urkel’s irritating and clumsy nature, he certainly has a big heart, and I can’t help admiring a character with so much spirit. The downside is that this situation can get repetitive, a little boring, and while there are some chuckles, there aren’t any big laughs either. 

The predictable resolution culminates into an ending with all the ill-tempered strangers coming together to make their own Christmas tree, while singing “Hark the Herald Angle Sing”, and as is tradition with the presentation of this show … it’ll either make you smile or shutter, depending on what mind-set your in. Overall, I wouldn’t call this one of my favorites of their Christmas episodes, but it’s not bad either, and while Carl’s dynamic with Urkel will get a little repetitive, it’s still handled fine here.        

 

“Miracle on Elm Street” (Season 6, Episode 11)

For the fourth of the “Family Matters” Christmas outings, we get perhaps the most straight forward and subtle of their holiday ventures … in that, there’s no adventure, or goofy situation … it’s simply the family and characters being their for one another on Christmas. First, Urkel goes dumpster diving to retrieve an accidentally discarded gift of Laura’s, and makes friends with a stray dog along the way. This culminates into one of Urkel and Laura’s most genuinely touching moments at the end. 

Meanwhile, Little Riche takes to heart his parents lesson of being thoughtful to those less fortunate, and invites a homeless man over for the holidays. Art Evans plays the hobo, and makes for a charming guest role. However, just when you think they’ll do something predictable with this character, like make him a thief, or someone with a sentimental back-story … he’s suddenly reviled to be Santa Claus … making for the one miscellaneous oddity in this episode. 

Aside from a silly opening, with Urkel and Carl getting into mishaps in the kitchen with a bag a flour, this episode really isn’t trying to be that funny, which is a welcome change-up, and thankfully, the episode isn’t overly sentimental with its message either. It’s just a pleasant, cheerful little holiday offering … although, I cold have done without the characters directly addressing the audience before they sing “We Wish you a Merry Christmas”.     

 

"Fa La La La Laagghh!" (Season 7, Episode 11)

By the time the seventh season came around, Steve Urkel was at the height of his popularity, and many episodes were revolving around accidental mishaps he’d cause around the Winslow house … time to see what destructive shenanigans he’ll get into on Christmas. At this festive time, Carl Winslow is naturally in a sour mood, and refuses to allow Urkel to decorate the roof of his house with his crazy light displays. Then, at his poker game, one of his friends says there is a big cash prize for the neighborhood lighting contest, and Carl's mood instantly changes, and basically uses Urkel as a means to rake in five-thousand dollars. Soon, Urkel learns the ugly truth, and their plans for the best-looking house hit rock bottom … quiet literally. 
Their roof is so cluttered with decorations that they come crashing down into the kitchen ... which at the time was one of the funniest things I ever saw in a Christmas sit-com. 

By extent, this is one of Urkel’s best, classic moments in the show, and even if this isn’t the absolute best holiday episode, Steves level of Christmas Destruction certainly makes it one of the most memorable. Afterwords, an angry Urkel sets Carl straight for lying to him and being greedy in wanting to win the prize money, rather than genuinely want to make children happy for the holidays. There’s also a sub-plot with Harriette wanting a little more participation from Eddie and Laura in the family's holiday activities, leaving grandma Winslow the voice of reason to teach them the true meaning of family-time during the holiday. 

Naturally, everything comes together in the end, with the family singing “Joy to the World”. It’s all around a perfect marriage of humble family lesions and outrageous comedy. There’s also terrific gag in which the house pulls so much electrical juice that the whole neighborhood … no, the whole city … no, the whole dang planet has a power outage. It’s so funny it upstages the electrical gag from “National Lampoons Christmas Vacation”. From it’s simple holiday morals, too its decorative details that would make “Die Hard” blush, too it’s out of control comedy, this episode is one Christmas gift that’s well worth keeping.

 

“It Came Upon a Midnight Clear” (Season 8: Episode 13)

Tis the season … for Carl and Urkel to find themselves going on one more holiday adventure together. This time around, the pair search for a family Christmas tree out in the Wisconsin woods, but unfortunately for them, a freak blizzard throws them off their path, and the two have to work together to stay alive in a freezing forest at night. Meanwhile, Laura is stuck in a very boring sub-plot, in which her feelings are caught between two other boys, and she has to make a choice on which one to commit with. In the plus column, it’s great to see Jaleel White acting in the duple-ganger role of Stefan, who’s Urkel’s “cooler half”, and highlights the talent as more then just acting as a geeky nerd all the time.

Also, this is the most overly decorated the Winslow house has ever looked, so while the Laura plot is boring, I at least have some colorful decorations to look at. More important, this is a great bonding episode for Carl and Urkel, and unlike their previous Sub-way adventure, I like that it’s just the two characters together, and their chemistry is strongest when they’re not surrounded by extra’s. The epilogue is perhaps their most subdued yet, as they sing “O Christmas Tree”, and head for bed without a lengthy montage. All in all, I’d say this is a half-way decent Christmas outing … in that half of the episode is decent, and the other half can be skipped all together.      

 

“Deck the Malls” (Season 9: Episode 11)

It’s the very last Christmas episode of "Family Matters", and the Winslow’s find themselves facing their biggest holiday challenge yet … surviving a day working at the local shopping mall. Carl has to put on his best act as the department store Santa, Laura is stuck in a dorky helper elf costume, and Steve Urkel gets it worst of all working as a gift-wrapper in the packaging department. Straight to the point … I didn’t like this mall segment at all. Most of the jokes are laugh-free, a lot of it is boring, and what could have been a funny sequence with Urkel overwhelmed with work just never hit the mark for me. 

Carl at least gets a really good moment when he promises to grant a boys wish by helping his dad get a job. Once the whole shopping mall segment concludes, the episode manages to redeem itself with a lengthy Christmas morning sequence of the characters exchanging gifts, sharing some laughs, and Aunt Rachel shows-up just in time to sing “O Holly Night”. This would mark the final appearance of many of the shows main characters, and Mrs. Winslow would be played by a different actress after this, so there’s something suitably sentimental about this epilogue, and seeing all these characters together one last time. While I certainly wouldn’t have called this the best Christmas episode to close on, I feel it at least had the best ending.      

  So concludes my rundown of all the “Family Matters” Christmas episodes, and if I were to quickly rank them from my personal favorite, to my least favorite, it would go like this …

#1 “Fa La La La Laagghh!”

#2 “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Urkel”

#3 “Have Yourself a Merry Winslow Christmas”

#4 “Miracle on Elm Street”

#5 “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear”

#6 “Deck the Malls”

#7 “Christmas is Where the Heart is”

 

It's certainly been a nostalgic little trip down 90’s memory lane, and for anyone who also grew up with the series, I hope it was fun looking back. If your someone just looking for any random Christmas special, maybe this will give you something to look into this Holiday season.

Thanks for reading my countdown … and continue to enjoy the shows you love!

 

First Blood (1982) (Movie Review)

  Before our modern wave of Superhero movies, the 1980’s and early 90’s had action movie heroes, who became house hold names without the advent on comic-book tie-in’s. Equally as big as the characters were the stars playing them, with Bruce Willis’s John Mcclane, and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator being some of the big ones. One of the most well-known names of the decades action movie genera was John Rambo played by Sylvester Stallone. 

Over the course of five movies, Rambo had quickly developed a reputation as the awesome, shirt-less, Vietnam soldier who busts into camps, takes out enemy troops, and blows things up on a grand pop-corn movie scale. However, some may forget that his original 1982 picture “First Blood” was nothing like what his public perception would suggest. This was a darker, more sensitive survival film about an anti-hero fighting his own personal war … and in the process delivered a decade classic that’s still considered a film favorite all these years later. I for one first saw this movie when I was in high-school, and I went in expecting a great action movie … but what I got was a great movie that just happened to be an action movie.

  Retired Green Barade John Rambo has just returned from Vietnam, and is mentally processing the trauma and physical abuse he endured. Upon his arrival home, he discovers that his best friend and last surviving member of his team died due to a cancer brought on by exposure to Agent Orange during the war. 

Feeling that he has nothing left to live for, Rambo wanders into the fictional small-town of Hope Washington, where a local Sheriff gives him a hard time, expressing his disgust of drifters, and even refuses to let Rambo have a simple meal at one of their restaurants. This is the spark that sets-off a fuse in Rambo, as he refuses to leave, and is forced into police custody. His treatment at the station enrages him further, prompting him to retaliate, and escape into the woods … and from there, it becomes a tense cat and mouse game, with one man battling the police force, and the local national guard. Beyond staying alive, it also becomes a suspenseful character study of one man succumbing to his primal rage, and whether or not there’s any humanity left inside.  

  Where I’d describe something like 1988’s “Die Hard” as a perfect action movie that follows all the conventional genera movie beats, I’d call “First Blood” a perfect action movie that avoids all the conventional tropes of the genera. It’s not about a hero going against a villain, there’s no comforting love interest, nor is it a simplified, flashy popcorn flick … it’s all about suspense, tension, and two people acting on heightened emotions. In many respects, Rambo is kind of a villain seeking revenge, but we also cheer for him, sympathies with him, and want to see how he’ll pull himself through this situation. By contrast, Sheriff Teasle, played by Brain Dennehy, can certainly be viewed as the antagonist, who the audience doesn’t like … but he isn’t a villain with any sinister motivations, and can likewise be viewed as a man who was pushed to far. As a quick side note, this film apparently beat "Die Hard" at being an action thriller set around the Christmas season ... although, not highlighted nearly as much as it's successor. 

  Caught in the middle of our rouge anti-hero and the vengeful sheriff is Colonel Sam Trautman, who’s the officer that trained Rambo to be a killer, and has close feelings for his student, even though he acknowledges he’s gone too far. He’s able to connect with Rambo, while also meeting the Sherrif at eye level, and tries to be the mediator between the two. I like that the two can just sit down at a bar and have a level headed conversation. Colonel Trautman was also played by the late Richrd Crenna, who managed to deliver some admittedly quippy action movie lines in a manner that felt in place with the films grounded presentation ... “God didn’t make John Rambo … I did”. Some of the best exchanges in the film really are between the Colonel and the Sherrif ... “You saying two-hundred men against your boy is a no-win situation for us?” … “You send that many people, you’d better remember one thing … a good supply of body bags.”  

  The film also retains the right level of energy, without ever overstaying it’s welcome, and manages to thrill on Rambo’s stealth skills, as opposed to brut force. The film very wisely doesn’t glorify violence, as Rambo avoids lethal combat, and has to resort to tactics that can slow-down his pursuers without bumping them off. When someone dose die, it’s an accident, and not at all something that Rambo relishes. This again makes it easier to cheer for him while he’s at with war the local law enforcement. Also, unlike the flashy spectacles that are so common place today, this film has a real sense of tension, like I really feel the danger present in these encounters … not just for the characters, but also the filmmakers and stunt performers. It almost has the grimy feel of an independent-film, just with a higher budget, and it complements the tension. Still, the film has its reserved share of explosions, shoot-outs, and there are some stound-out set-pieces, including a riveting motorcycle chase up a mountain that sets everything in motion.    

  Of course, the movie probably wouldn’t be as strong had it not been for Sylvester Stallone’s effective screen presence in the lead role. Coming off the hit, Academy Award winning 1976 Drama “Rocky”, Stallone was one of the rare action stars to enter the genera with Oscar recognition, and his talent is in full display again with Rambo. 

In many respects, I find this a more challenging performance to pull-off, as he doesn’t convey any direct emotion on the surface, nor dose he even speak much during the film, yet Stallone conveys everything we need to connect with him on his adventure. You can tell he was once a decent man, who unfortunately had all his humanity beaten out of him, and now there’s barley anything left but a survivalist. Rambo’s restrained nature comes to a head in the climax, in which all his emotions are on full display. Once again, the finale subverts genera conventions, and isn’t a predictable final showdown between a hero and villain, but a man facing his personal demons, and just letting his feelings out. I’ll admit, Stallone’s closing monologue is a little hard to follow without subtitles, but it’s still a tour deforce for an action hero to breakdown and show his vulnerable side.

  When all’s said and done, I wouldn’t call “First Blood” one of my absolute favorite movies that I frequently re-watch … but I would label it as one of the decades best action movies, highly recommendable if you've never seen it, and I feel it's only gotten better with age. When people say “they don’t make them like they used to”, this is one of the first films that come to mind, as they really don’t make action movies like this anymore, with character and tension at the for front over the conventional excitement and spectacle. To be fair, I don’t know if you could make this movie today, as the films content was already sensitive for it’s time … I couldn’t even imagine how it would be received today. Thankfully, it came out in the right decade, and has been preserved as a classic sense. It’s a solid example of less-is-more, and a showcase of a straight forward survival thriller hitting all the right levels of excitement as any current-day action or superhero film … but with an extra touch of humanity and substance that places it just above the genera’s typical brand of pop-corn entertainment.

Thanks for reading my review of the 1982 action picture “First Blood” … and continue to enjoy the movies you Love!  

 

Coraline (2009) (Movie Review)

  There are two categories of movies I love to consume around October … Horror movies and family films that have a heavy lean toward either Halloween or general spooky content. Creepy animated Halloween family films in particular have always held a special place in my heart, and I could view any one of them as my favorite, depending on which one I happen to be watching in the moment. For the longest time, if I was to select an absolute favorite out of my figurative pumpkin-patch, it would have been 1993’s stop-motion classic “The Nightmare Before Christmas”, directed by Henry Selick. 

However, many years later in 2009, mid-way through my college years, came another spooky-themed stop-motion picture called “Coraline”, which was again directed by Henry Selick. It was through sheer word of mouth I went to see this film, as I saw nothing of the advertising or even that much marketing. I didn’t set my expectations too high, but I figured it might be a fun watch … one viewing later, this film did the unthinkable for me, and replaced “The Nightmare Before Christmas” as my new favorite animated picture to watch around Halloween. It was a special case in which I instantly pegged a film as a new Halloween classic, and I feel it’s only gotten better over the years.

   Based on Neil Gaiman’s novella of the same name, this spooky children’s venture focuses on a little girl named Coraline Jones, who’s adapting to her new dreary life in a Pink Palace apartment complex in Ashland Oregon. Her parents are financially recovering from a car accident, and are focused on work, to the point where they just can’t spare any time for their emotionally strained little girl. 

After receiving a mysterious doll, which barres a striking resemblance to Coraline herself, it leads her down a different and twisted path behind a secret door. When she emerges on the other side, Coraline finds a paradise world, which is a perfect replica of her real home … except now it’s bright, colorful, upbeat, and not at all like the boring home life she left behind. Ruling over this realm is an entity claiming to be Coraline’s other mother, who along with another father and residents, give her the love and affection she’s been missing from her real family. Night after night, Coraline desperately returns to this alternate reality, unaware that the longer she stays … the more it literally begins to consume her. Soon enough, the world reveals it’s dark and twisted secrets, and it gradually becomes an exciting adventure involving ghosts, monsters, and a talking black cat.

  In a surprising way, this film was the “Alice in Wonderland” I had always wanted, as “Coraline” delivered the same escapist wonder, but was also anchored by the heart and subtext that I always felt “Wonderland” was lacking.  

In general, I never felt like Alice gained anything from her experience, as in most versions, she simply slipped into a fantastical world, and came back out the exact same person she was before she went down the rabbit whole. Coraline by contrast at the start of her magical journey is selfish and emotionally distant from her parents, yet gradually becomes a completely different person then who she was at the start, and is finally able to make a positive connection with her family when she returns to the real world. It isn’t overly emotional either, and is just the right amount substance to keep the experience from feeling like a derivative venture into another dark fantasy world. The character of Coraline is also brimming with personality, and is a genuinely appealing screen presence, even when she displays her faults in the opening. Dakota Fanning delivers what is in my opinion … one of her all-time best performances as the voice of Coraline. She was already a great talent, but the energy and attitude she channels in Coraline are so genuine, and different from any of her previous childhood roles, that I’m not even picturing the talent behind the microphone. The performance in the animation is equally as compelling, as every one of her reactions and inflections feels real, to the point where … I know she’s a puppet, but it feels like a live performance in front of the camera.   

  I also feel the message of the film speaks for itself, without any characters needing to spell out the obvious, and for me, that’s when a movie really archives something special. I think many kids can relate to having their own special forms of enjoyment or maybe even mental escapes from either the set-backs or hardships of the real world, and this film cleverly highlights the dangers that come from that escape … and how it may eat away at their lives if there not carful. When Coraline encounters three Ghost children who surrendered to the surface level appeals of the other world, it ended up consuming them, and they both figuratively and literally had nothing left to live for. As such, we have scary content for kids, but with subtext underneath, similar to how the grim-fairy tales were intended to scare children into remembering a message. On that note, this film definitely has its intense content and scary imagery, but I also feel it’s done with purpose, and is also balanced out with more then enough positive content. Honestly, this film perfectly walks its tightrope, between being whimsical and uplifting one moment, then dark and thrilling the next.   

  At the center of all the films frightening material is the sinister other Mother, who has a secure place among my all-time favorite animated villains. It’s one thing to have an openly dangerous threat, it’s another to have an entity luring children into a death trap … and all through the promises of love and joy. I think that the scariest villains are the ones that don’t seem threatening until it’s too late. Case in point with the other mother, who at first glance seems like the nicer, more loving parent, when really, she’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Actually, she’s more like a giant spider, but even that has subtext, as she’s literally weaving a web of deception around her victims. On that note, once she reveals her true form, it’s one of the most spectacular monster designs I’ve ever seen. Voice actress Teri Hatcher once again hits it out of the park with a dual performance as both Coraline’s mother and the monster taking on her likeness.

  The supporting characters are also very memorable, and once again, unlike Alice, I like that Coraline actually makes friends on her journey. Some of the other world duplicates display genuine concern for her, despite being creations of the villain. The talking Black Cat voiced by the always reliable Keith David, provides Coraline with a companion to aid her through all the challenges, but he isn’t always comforting to her with his approach, nor is she in return, and it makes their friendship all the more interesting as a result. If I had any reservations with this movie, it would be the two elderly stage performers, who in Coraline’s alternate world put on a stage show … which reveals way too much of the ladies. Honestly, the film already warranted its PG rating, and I don’t think it needed to include this disgusting stage show. The two elder ladies also contribute to the creepiest detail of the whole film … stuffing their dead pets, and displaying their bodies as house hold decorations … which is the only piece of scary content that I feel has no real purpose in the film.

  Getting back to the positives … this film is a visual marvel to behold, and after almost fifteen years, it still looks amazing. Naturally, the film was brought to life through practical stop-motion and puppet effects … which are so detailed, and so smooth, it still makes me wonder how they pulled this off. In general, I feel animated movies are always more impressive when there stop-motion films like this, as I love looking at all the designs knowing that there all real sets, props and puppets that act and perform right in front of the camera. 

I’d go so far to say that the visual look of “Coraline” transcends beyond being a technical achievement, and right into the realms of iconography. The button eyes in particular are now a staple of spooky, yet iconic imagery in children’s media. Also, for as much as I love spooky family films to watch around Halloween, they can occasionally feel visually repetitive, and not have too much decorative variety on display. “Coraline” by contrast has a distinct look and personality that’s all its own, and doesn’t feel like any other movie I watch around Halloween. It doesn’t even have any traditional Halloween imagery, aside from a pair of Jack-O Lanterns in the garden, but regardless, it still carries an atmosphere and mood that just feels right for the season.          

 

  Another one of the films many strengths is the music score composed by Bruno Coulais, which also adds to the film’s distinct atmosphere and dreamlike mood. Similar to how composer Danny Elfman utilized eerie children’s quires, I feel the music in “Coraline” takes it one step further.  

The children’s quire in this film really takes on a dual nature, as it’s both comforting and unsettling in equal measure. Most of the time, this score puts me in a relaxed state of euphoria, but always with an ominous sense of dread, and when combined with the imagery, it really helps the experience take on a life of its own. It also works in tandem with Henry Selick’s direction, which is slow and leisurely paced, but always engaging, and really pays off when things get exciting. As we segue into the films third act, the movie takes on it’s new life as a video-game style adventure, as Coraline's once cheerful settings have taken on a dark appearance, are now filled with dangerous obstacles, a special item that needs to be retrieved, and a final boss at the end. It’s a little off-beat with the rest of the film, but very entertaining, and it really makes me want to play a video game based around this environment.    

  When I look back on Henry Selick’s previous film “The Nightmare Before Christmas”, I feel it didn’t need to do much to win me over as a favorite film to watch around the holiday season, as it was swimming in imagery, music and a story that revolved around my two favorite holidays. “Coraline” by comparison didn’t have as obvious a hook for me, yet still won me over, and even surpassed my feelings of his first film, with lots of imagination, a visually stunning world, an engaging lead character, a memorable villain, and story that I feel perfected the formula of a girl transported to an imaginative setting. 

The film was a critical hit upon it’s release, and was even nominated at the Academy Awards for Best Animated Picture … but lost to Pixar’s “Up”. Speaking personally, while “Up” was another great film, it was also nominated for Best Picture that year, so I feel it was too easy a win for best animated picture, and shouldn’t have been included as an option … then perhaps “Coraline” would have had a better chance of winning. In the end, even though “Coraline” isn’t directly aimed at Halloween, it’s still very creepy, twisted and dripping with a haunting other worldly atmosphere. It’s scary, but very exciting … crazy, yet imaginative … dark, but not without some decent family morals. Great atmosphere, eye-pleasing visuals, imaginative storytelling, a top-notch vocal performance from Dakota Fanning, and so much more make this my favorite animated movie to watch around Halloween, and by extent, it’s one of my personal favorite animated films. 

Thanks for reading my review of the 2009 animated picture “Coraline” … and continue to enjoy the holiday specials you Love!

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!