Ah Laika...the studio that brought us all those fantastic films you didn't know were stop motion. I still remember the time when i found out Coraline was all done with hand crafted puppets and huge dioramas. That prompted me to do some stop motion myself, which is just this choppy pokemon battle i did with an old phone and some figures. I started to appreciate stop-motion. There's something about tediously taking a bunch of photos and watching your figures come to life that's so pleasing. So when they announced Kubo And The Two Strings, i was definitely hyped. Hyped to see how Laika can top their last movie. But i'll admit though, BoxTrolls didn't really blow my mind, but it was nice too see how "not-stop motion" they can make their movie. The movie didn't manage to make as much as its budget too.
So now, 2 years later, Laika returns with a new movie! Does it earn a place in the Hall of Fame (of movies)?
Let's take a look-oh and i'm warning you guys real quick here. SPOILERS ALERT!
So Kubo And The Two Strings starts off as all the other kids' movies these days. With a boy and his mother fleeing from their evil grandfather who wants to take the boy's eyes. Yup. PG. So the boy, Kubo and his mother eventually reach an island where they finally find a place of refuge, not before their boat breaks, and Kubo's mother gets this like sakit mental thing where she just stares blankly...at nothing. Already from the start the movie's visuals are pretty impressive. The characters' expressions make for a realistic human element that further immerses you into their world. This really shines when Kubo goes through his village. Everything feels so alive. It's also backed up by the wonderful soundtrack, that consists of a number of Japanese instruments, like the Shamisen. Oh and speaking of Shamisen, Kubo uses his to bring his colourful array of origami papers to life.
So now, 2 years later, Laika returns with a new movie! Does it earn a place in the Hall of Fame (of movies)?
Let's take a look-oh and i'm warning you guys real quick here. SPOILERS ALERT!
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| "Kids Movie" |
The village also showcased some of lighting Laika managed to achieve which gives us a good sense of time throughout the movie. So one day, Kubo decides to visit the graveyard in an attempt to talk to his late father, a powerful warrior named Hanzo. However, Kubo's mother warned him about staying after dark. So Kubo decides to stay after dark, which results in his village being destroyed, his mother's demise, and Kubo flying off to a faraway land, all caused by Kubo's evil ( and cool-looking) aunts. They kinda remind me of those two musician guys from Kung Fu Hustle, yang main gitar besar tu. I'll admit, the movie does have a slow start, but i get that they want you to take in all the glorious visuals and stuff.
It's revealed that our hero has to defeat his grandfather, The Moon King, by searching for three pieces of super powerful gear. He ventures with Monkey, a figure brought to life, and Beetle, an apprentice of Hanzo. So far as structure goes, the movie has it going pretty simple. Find one piece --> fight boss --> story plot, and repeat. But it works. Just because of the places they go to, the dialogue, and those facial expressions man. Wonder how painful it must have been for them to make the figures blink every 5 frames or so. Eventually, we find out that Kubo's two compadres are actually his parents the whole time! And of course, in a classic Disney way...they die. So in a final showdown, Kubo and his grandfather face off, with Kubo wearing all three super magical glowing pieces of the gear, and his grandfather turning into those giant alien worm things from the first Avengers movie.
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| "Don't mess with me Kubo..." |
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| "...I fought the AVENGERS!" |
In a twist of events. Kubo ditches his armour, and goes for his trusty Shamisen instead. But the strings are all gone! Kubo then attaches three strings to his-wait what? THREE!? But the title said two! Hold on, it'll all make sense. So Kubo attaches a strand from his mother and father's hair, and one from his hair. In one final strum, Kubo defeats his grandfather, resulting in him reverting back to a more lovely real form. The movie ends with Kubo, and his parents' sharing a touching moment with each other, together at last.
"Those who are lost aren't truly lost, they exist in our memories".
That was the main theme of the story, and they delivered it pretty well. The fact that Kubo lost both his parents (and an eye) is something pretty heavy to put in a kids movie. Through the moments Kubo shares with the characters he meets, we see how valuable tiny interactions between us and our loved ones are. One of the things Kubo says is that he is grateful to have had the chance of eating a meal, sitting between both his parents. And it really strikes your heart. We often take moments like these for granted. Really makes you pay attention to your blessings a lot more. One of the petty things that kinda bugged me, was the ending. It seemed a bit rushed, and the grand final battle wasn't really that "grand". The pacing of the entire movie in fact felt choppy, as if "we're here, now we're here, and now we're somewhere else". Like the transitions from one place to another didn't really have a proper flow.To the movie's credit, it is all stop-motion. Kubo went through many different locations that were stunning to look at. You felt like you had to pause to look for all the nuances.
Of course, the stop-motion. We have to talk about the stop-motion. This is by far one of the most smoothest stop-motion jobs Laika has done. The part with the Giant Skeleton was really Zelda-esque, and it was an impressive battle scene as well, scale-wise in particular. The dynamic shots and angles they managed to get really brought you close to the characters on scene. Watching this movie, it's hard to believe these reactive, emotive characters are just well-crafted puppets. Emphasis on well-crafted.
Overall, Kubo And The Two Strings brought us to focus on family, the little things we share in life. Kubo was given the choice to become blind to all the sadness, frustration, and all the other negative human emotions to experience immortal life. He chose to stay mortal because he learned that from all those emotions, is how humans become stronger. It's a visually stunning and creative film with a unique soundtrack for a Laika film. If you judge it as a film, it might not be that huge. But ultimately, Kubo And The Two Strings should be taken as a play;a puppet show of sorts. From that view, it 's probably the best puppet show I've watched! Final Rating: 9/10.
Of course, the stop-motion. We have to talk about the stop-motion. This is by far one of the most smoothest stop-motion jobs Laika has done. The part with the Giant Skeleton was really Zelda-esque, and it was an impressive battle scene as well, scale-wise in particular. The dynamic shots and angles they managed to get really brought you close to the characters on scene. Watching this movie, it's hard to believe these reactive, emotive characters are just well-crafted puppets. Emphasis on well-crafted.
Overall, Kubo And The Two Strings brought us to focus on family, the little things we share in life. Kubo was given the choice to become blind to all the sadness, frustration, and all the other negative human emotions to experience immortal life. He chose to stay mortal because he learned that from all those emotions, is how humans become stronger. It's a visually stunning and creative film with a unique soundtrack for a Laika film. If you judge it as a film, it might not be that huge. But ultimately, Kubo And The Two Strings should be taken as a play;a puppet show of sorts. From that view, it 's probably the best puppet show I've watched! Final Rating: 9/10.
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| "Everytime the strum happens, prepare to get chills :)" |
