By: Nasyrah
Edited by Syafiqah Suhaimi
We all have that one movie that we will go back to and watch numerous times despite knowing the plot by heart already, but who cares if we already know the plot? I mean I can bet you all that we actually have already memorized every single dialogue from our favorite movies. There’s nothing to be ashamed of. I used to memorize the “Holy” song from the movie, “Frozen” and gosh…To list everything out here, it would be a long one. These kinds of movies remain in our memories for a number of reasons.
For this movie in particular, perhaps it is because this movie is just different from any movies out there. Personally, maybe there is some kind of chemical imbalance in my body or gravitational pull towards this movie. This familial story touches my heart. This movie can give you the comfort you’re looking for to heal your inner child and I, of course, just like everyone else, also have my own comfort movie, and if it wasn’t clear, that particular movie is titled “Coco” which was a fantasy and adventure movie premiered in 2017, and I swear I watch it every single year.
This movie has a great plot and, in fact, it is not only a family movie, but it features the popular culture of Mexico, a representation of its music, Mexico City, and all through the portrayal of the family that takes center stage in ‘Coco’. If I had not watched it, I would never have known that Mexicans also believe in the journey of the afterlife. They have this interesting belief in the celebration of the day of the dead to honor them which is called Día de Muertos.
Before I dive deeper into this culture, I shall give you a quick rundown of this movie. So, to begin, we will start with Miguel, the main character who is eager to follow his passion for music in a family that, interestingly, has banned music for several generations. The title refers to Miguel’s great-grandmother, Mamá Coco, whose father is key to the anti-music mystery. This tale unfolds in an unspecified Mexican town on the eve of El Día de los Muertos (the Day of the Dead) as the entire community is preparing to honor their departed loved ones. However, Miguel finds himself transported to the place of the dead just as the dead are making their way to the land of the living to be with their family and friends. Adventure ensues as this boy slowly explores the land of the dead and unexpectedly leads to the concealed secret of his late great-great-grandfather, Héctor Rivera.
If you watch the movie, you will notice that the movie is full of the characters as skeletons. Obviously, it is due to the fact that this movie centers around the dead and the living people. Throughout the movie, we can also spot a lot of orange flower petals from a flower, the Aztec marigold known as the Cempasúchil. It was literally everywhere in the movie. This flower is used in the tradition of Dia de los Muertos to guide dead people from their graves back to their homes. Interestingly, the detailed portrayal of the petals can also be seen in the living world as just the petals. But the petals somehow shone in the deceased's eyes because it is a kind of guidance for them across the road to reunite with their families.
Frida Kahlo real-life portrait
Frida Kahlo in Coco
Another minor, yet charming detail in this movie is its features of not only the culture but the introduction to the audience of icons from Mexico such as Frida Kahlo, El Santo, and Maria Felix. It was only after having watched the movie that I learned about Frida Kahlo. Frida Kahlo was portrayed a bit differently from the other characters due to the fact that she was a painter and someone who was seen as artistic. They portrayed her character as someone who thinks differently and loves fresh ideas. It is a fun character not just because of her art, but also because she, herself, is an alluring and interesting character. Now if any Mexicans created small talk with me, I would proudly pull out the Frida Karlo card. All in all, this movie was just perfect. Personally, I think that this movie is one of the greatest movies by Disney up to this day. Nothing can beat this movie and now by the time I end this writing, I might end up rewatching this movie again.
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