Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

Coco 3D Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 13, 2018

Coco may boast lavish production design, a big scope, great music, plenty of color, deep cultural saturation, and a sprawling roster of living and dead characters, but at its heart it's the story of a father and his daughter yearning to be reunited. It's no mistake the movie is titled Coco, so named for an elderly, wheelchair bound character who is the focal family's matriarch. It's not titled Miguel, who is the spunky little protagonist who only wants to play music, nor is it titled Day of the Dead for its abundantly colorful and visually arresting Mexican holiday setting. Like every Pixar movie, whether involving cars, robots, or toys, there's an extra-large heart at the center of the tale, a simple story of humanity and what it means to love, to remember, to cherish what's come before as a point of reference for moving forward into the future. For as strange as it might look on the surface, the movie is Pixar through-and-through, one of the studio's best and a film with so much heart beating through its characters, those in the flesh and those whose physical hearts may have long turned to dust but whose hearty spirits live on, if the living will allow, that is.

The Rivera family has built a rich tradition of shoe-making but has, for several generations, banned music in the decades following a time when the family matriarch’s father abandoned the family to pursue his dream of singing to the world. The matriarch, Coco, now an elderly wheelchair bound woman, is Miguel’s (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) great-grandmother. Miguel secretly harbors a desire to play music. He’s become quite the guitarist, but his family absolutely forbids him from practicing or even making mention of the word “music” in the home. His idol, Ernesto de la Cruz, an admired musician and movie star from way back when but who tragically died on-stage following a freak accident, guides Miguel’s dreams of musical stardom. Just as Miguel has worked up the courage to be himself with his music, his family decides it’s time to put him to work in the shoe shop. But when a family secret is revealed, he doubles down on his dreams, and his family doubles down on dashing them. The defiant Miguel desperately attempts to prove his musical worth by performing at the Day of the Dead festival with de la Cruz’s own guitar, which is locked away in a museum. Before he can perform, Miguel suddenly finds himself caught up somewhere between life and death, unable to be seen in the land of the living but reconnecting with his deceased family in the land of the dead, a world through which he must undertake a remarkable journey to find a distant relative, chase his dreams, and put a misunderstood chapter of his family’s history to peace.

Pixar is a studio known for innovative films and daring animated ventures with heartfelt and wholesome messages, and Coco may be at the top of the list in terms of story creativity, narrative construction, visual dazzle, and heart. The film, which is constructed around the “Day of the Dead” Mexican holiday, may appear to be about a person who doesn’t follow the rules but rather follows his heart, as his hero, Ernesto de la Cruz, says in an old video clip that Miguel has memorized. While the viability of chasing dreams, finding purpose, and following one’s own path might make for a noble story, it would make for a fairly trite story. Those are themes that Pixar has explored in the past, and the studio slyly makes Coco much the same, but only on its surface. The story takes shape and heart with a significant plot twist as well as an abundance of humanity and humility, even in the land of the dead, where the story’s theme relays the message that it’s the spirit and soul, not the physical body -- represented by the torn-off head in an old photograph that's central to the movie's story -- that makes an individual, and a family. The film dabbles in some clever plotting and basic animation antics and hi-jinx, with some catchy songs and cheerful moments and comic relief characters blended in, but the film ultimately evolves into an incredibly vibrant portrait of familial love with the bond between a father and a daughter at its very core, not evolving away from its central character Miguel but evolving towards its soul.

The film's thematic resonance, story depth, and surprise final focus alone make it a treat, but so too does the film's attention to detail and sense of authenticity even in a film that journeys to an invisible world inhabited by the dead. The film is robustly constructed, with the filmmakers clearly pouring not only researched and recreated visuals onto the screen but doing so with an obvious passion for vibrancy and complexity, making the world a believable compliment to the story it hosts. The film is beautifully rendered, lacking nothing in terms of modern digital amenities including dynamic coloring and various environmental elements that are as dense and complex as the real world they recreate. Characters are richly detailed and perfectly voiced by an impressively talented cast that immediately falls into character and understands the movie's broad structural components as well as its intimately designed heart and soul. The film is the total package of visual and narrative excellence, unsurprising coming from Pixar, a studio that continues to place emphasis on narrative purpose and heart with its visuals, which are the best in the industry, serving as mere supports to something much more meaningful and beautiful than any computer could ever produce.

For readers interested in learning a little more about The Day of the Dead, here is a good-read primer from National Geographic, along with several photos that show just how real the movie's setting has been made to be.

Coco 3D Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Coco's 3D release was not made available in the United States, continuing a disheartening trend that is seeing the format all but vanish stateside. But it's still apparently viable enough to earn overseas releases, including this 3D disc from the UK.

The 3D presentation is excellent. It boasts a very good, oraganic feel and flavor to its traditional 2D components, including color and detail. Both are presented with faultless command and neither appear to lose anything under the 3D parameters. Colors remain an essential, vibrant part of the film, and the 3D presentation sees them excel with bountiful vibrance, intense saturation, and careful attention to nuance. Textures are firm and accurate, with character renderings, environments, structures, every component, large and small, benefiting from the disc's excellent clarity and purposeful attention to detail.

The 3D-specific elements offer good all-around performance. There are some moderately good screen extension effects, such as when Miguel's abuelita pokes her shoe at a Mariachi near the beginning of the film, admonishing him for showing her grandson his guitar. There are a few other fun little like moments too, a couple involving the dog that tugs along for Miguel's adventure. But the image is largely at its best when it's simply extending any give area's size and scope, creating a sense of organic depth that is sometimes so seamless it can nearly go unnoticed. Viewers will just melt into various locales, whether in Miguel's dusty little hometown or the colorfully spooky world in which he interacts with various ghosts. Essential size and depth elements are excellent. There's a very agreeable sense of tangible space between the levels and layers of items on the family ofrenda. Locations stretch on to an authentic feel, whether dusty streets or large musical venues, such as that in which de la Cruz performs in an early film flashback. A train station vista that opens chapter 10 is a particularly good example of large-scale space and spread with perfect depth and definition even far back into the screen, with even inconsequential elements shapely and complimentary.

Overall, the 3D element is not super dynamic, but it's very baseline effective, presenting excellent depth, character and world shape, and a few extra-screen goodies along the way. It's not a significantly better presentation than either of the other 2D-only alternatives (Blu-ray and UHD) and the movie doesn't play any better in or feel particularly enhanced by 3D, but it's certainly a presentation that format fans can enjoy.

Coco 3D Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Whereas Coco's day-and-date UHD companion release features a Dolby Atmos soundtrack, Disney has opted to include a DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 lossless soundtrack on the Blu-ray 3D disc instead. It's a very good track, lacking sheer aggression and volume at the usual review-reference level, but that can be alleviated with an upward turn of the volume knob. The track is otherwise very strong. Musical details are fruitful and beautifully rich, boasting exceptional clarity to every strum of the guitar and other instrumentals, particularly those derived in-film. Atmospherics are beautifully involved and immersive; the track features a seamless recreation of its locations, bringing the listener into the middle of richly detailed din throughout key moments in the film, wrapping the theater in balanced and precisely positioned sounds. Action effects are more than capable of delivering effortless imaging, precise placement, and low end detail. Dialogue never falters in clarity, positioning, or prioritization.

Coco 3D Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Coco's 3D disc contains no supplements, but the pair of additional Blu-ray discs carry over all of the extras from the mainline US release. No digital version is included.

Disc One:

• Welcome to the Fiesta (1080p, 2:16): A "proof of concept" short film. With optional Director Lee Unkrich, Co-Director Adrian Molina, and Producer Darla Anderson commentary.
• Mi Familia (1080p, 10:00): The filmmakers share some of the rules they were forced to follow growing up and what they meant then and how they see them now. It also explores research for the film, including travel to Mexico to become immersed in the culture depicted in it and discover the characters who would appear in it.
• Dante (1080p, 6:14): A closer look at the dog that appears in the film and the canine inspirations for him.
• How to Draw a Skeleton (1080p, 3:18): A quick tutorial on drawing one of the key figure shapes from the film.
• Audio Commentary: Director Lee Unkrich, Co-Director Adrian Molina, and Producer Darla Anderson deliver an insightful track that opens with film structure insight and continues to explore story and character details, research trips to Mexico, background details, changes to the film along the way, visuals and visual effects, voice work, and much more.

Disc Two:

• A Thousand Pictures A Day (1080p, 20:03): A more detailed look at the crew's travels to Mexico to better understand the culture, characters, story lines, and details that would be central to the movie they wanted to make.
• The Music of Coco (1080p, 13:12): An inside look at the movie's authentic music and how it tells and shapes the story.
• Land of Our Ancestors (1080p, 6:19): A quick examination of the film's lively depiction of the land of the dead with, again, emphasis on research and real-world inspirations.
• Fashion Through the Ages (1080p, 8:39): This piece explores character costumes from both worlds, how they help define the film's tone and themes, and research into authentic Mexican clothing.
• The Real Guitar (1080p, 3:08): Crafting the guitar seen in the film in the real and digital worlds.
• Paths to Pixar: Coco (1080p, 11:44): A number of people from the creative team discuss their dreams from when they were children, their work histories, passions, and how they came to work at Pixar.
• How to Make Papel Picado (1080p, 2:19): A brief tutorial on crafting the Mexican decoration.
• You Got the Part! (1080p, 2:12): Young Anthony Gonzalez is given the part of voicing the lead.
• Deleted Scenes (1080p, 33:07 total runtime): Following an Introduction to the deleted scenes with Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina, the following scenes are included: Día del los Muertos, The Way of the Riveras, Celebrity Tour, The Bus Escape, Alebrije Attack, The Family Fix, and To the Bridge. Scenes are presented in their unfinished storyboard states.
• Trailers & Promos (1080p): Feeling -- United States Trailer #1 (2:12), Dante's Lunch -- Web Exclusive short film (1:56), Destiny -- Mexico Trailer (2:34), Journey -- Brazil Trailer (2:01), Belong - Australia Trailer (2:13), and Promo -- Un Poco Coco (3:05).

Coco 3D Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Pixar's endless string of successful films doesn't trace back to a cinematic formula. It traces back to the humanity within each story. Coco may feature undead characters, but the movie is full of life and heart. Superficially it's the story of a musically inclined boy lost in the land of the dead but it's more appropriately defined as the story of a father and his daughter, one long deceased and the other an en elderly wheelchair-bound matriarch. It's one of the most heartfelt movies of its time and a jewel in Pixar's crown, a little strange at times but a beautiful canvas and a wonderful setting to reinforce the timelessness of human love and connection. Disney's Blu-ray 3D release is very enjoyable. The 3D content is fairly straightforward, lacking anything spectacular, dynamic, or memorable, but essential depth is quite strong. Audio is unchanged from the 2D 1080p release, and no new extras are included. This is a very good and viable alternative to the basic US 1080p release, though the absence of a digital copy may be a determining factor; it's too bad there's not a definitive package with Blu-ray, 3D, UHD, and digital. Recommended.