Dean Winkelspecht reviews the animation fantasy CORALINE on DVD & Blu-ray presented in both 2-D and 3-D

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—> See Links to our DVD & BD Reviews (below)

Be careful what you wish for.

An Adventure too Weird for Words...

Based on Neil Gaiman's international best-selling book, this modern, magical tale teaches one of life's most important lessons: things aren't always better on the other side of the door.

CORALINE (2D/3D) on DVD & Blu-ray »
(now available)

"The best 3-D movie I've ever seen!"
—Leonard Maltin, Entertainment Tonight

"A magical tale. A remarkable feat of imagination."
—Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

"This thrilling stop-motion animated adventure is a high point in Selick's career of crating handrcrafted wonderlands of beauty blended with deep, disconcerting creepiness."
—Lisa Schwarzbaum (Entertainment Weekly)

An adventurous girl finds another world that is a strangely idealized version of her frustrating home, but it has sinister secrets.

Combining the visionary imaginations of two premier fantasists, director Henry Selick (The Nightmare Before Christmas) and Newbery Award winning author Neil Gaiman ("The Graveyard"), CORALINE is a wondrous and thrilling, fun and suspenseful adventure that honors and redefines two moviemaking traditions. It is a stop-motion animated feature – and, as the first one to be conceived and photographed in stereoscopic 3-D, unlike anything moviegoers have ever experienced before. From Oregon-based animation studio LAIKA, Universal Studios Home Entertainment recently released Coraline on DVD & Blu-ray in both 2-D and 3-D, including special Collector Editions (details below).

CORALINE Trailer —


CORALINE Summary: A young girl walks through a secret door in her new home and discovers an alternate version of her life. On the surface, this parallel reality is eerily similar to her real life - only much better.

Coraline Jones (voiced by Dakota Fanning) is bored in her new home until she finds a secret door and discovers an alternate version of her life on the other side. On the surface, this parallel reality is eerily similar to her real life and the people in it - only much better. But when this seemingly perfect world turns dangerous, and her other parents (including her Other Mother voiced by Teri Hatcher) try to trap her forever, Coraline must count on her resourcefulness, determination and bravery to escape this increasingly perilous world - and save her family.

CORALINE can be viewed in either the standard 2-D format, or a special 3-D presentation with four pairs of supplied glasses (on both DVD or Blu-ray). Universal is releasing a Collector's Edition DVD (SRP $34.98), or Blu-ray ($39.98), both of which include bonus Digital Copy along with additional extras (see following). The studio also released a basic DVD (SRP $29.98), again with 2-D & 3-D viewing options, but omits most of the bonus features (and lacks Digital Copy) — Full Details...

BONUS FEATURES include:
Collector's Edition Blu-ray:
Packaged with two discs (BD & DVD)
Disc One: Blu-ray
• Includes both the regular 2D version and a 3D version of the Theatrical Cut on a dual-layer disc (with 4 pairs of 3D glasses)
• U Control - Picture in Picture (2-D Feature Only)
• U Control - Tours and Voice Sessions (2-D Feature Only)
• U Control - Picture in Picture Animatic (2-D Feature Only)
• Deleted Scenes
• The Making of Coraline
• Voicing the Characters
• Creepy Coraline
• Feature Commentary with director Henry Selick and composer Bruno Coulais
• D-Box Enabled
• BD Live - My Scenes Sharing
• BD Live - The World According to Henry
Disc Two: DVD
• 2D Version of the Theatrical Cut
• Bonus Digital Copy of the 2D Version (Expires 07/31/2010)
• Feature Commentary with director Henry Selick and composer Bruno Coulais

Collector's Edition DVD:
Packaged with two discs
Disc One:
• Includes both the regular 2D version (Side A) and a 3D version (Side B) of the Theatrical Cut (with 4 pairs of 3D glasses)
• Feature Commentary with director Henry Selick and composer Bruno Coulais (on both sides)
Disc Two: Bonus Disc
• Digital Copy of 2D Version (Expires 07/31/2010)
• Deleted Scenes
• The Making of Coraline
• Voicing the Characters

Basic DVD:
• Includes both the regular 2D version (Side A) and a 3D version (Side B) of the Theatrical Cut (with 4 pairs of 3D glasses)
• Feature Commentary with director Henry Selick and composer Bruno Coulais (on both sides)

CORALINE — Explore further:
—> Blu-ray Review by Dean Winkelspecht »
EXCERPT: The film is based upon novelist Neil Gaiman's children's book Coraline and Selick handled the screenwriting duties to expand the book to a story long enough to become a full featured film. The production was the first undertaking for fledgling animation studio Laika and during pre-production "Coraline" was discussed as being a CGI-based animated film and then a hybrid between computer and stop-motion animation. Eventually and after some production tests, the decision was made to keep "Coraline" as a stop-motion film using facial replacement techniques similar to those used in "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and employ cameras to allow the film to be released in both traditional 2D format and trioscopic 3D.

"Coraline" is not as powerful a film as "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and it feels unfair that I should compare this picture to my absolute favorite all-time picture. However, Focus Features pushed the connection between the films and I'm going to go with it. Thankfully, this is Selick's second best picture and I find "Coraline" to be far more pleasing than either "Monkeybone" or "James and the Giant Peach." This film is quite and accomplishment and I have to agree with the strong critical acclaim the film has received since it was released. It is beautifully created and a well told story that nicely expands upon the short novel in which it is based. It does not stay fully true to the Gaiman novella, but this is one instance where change was required to bring the story to the big screen.

"Coraline" is a moral tale reflecting the age-old saying that the grass isn't always greener on the other side. Young Coraline is tempted by utopian dreams where she can eat amazing meals, have parents that cater to her every need and friends that act the way she desires them too. Everything around Coraline in the Other World is custom tailored for her and she only begins to accept the shortcomings of her real parents and the harsh reality of normal life after discovering the dangers that were waiting for her in the Other World. Coraline learns to appreciate her parents and this conveyance of the same message from the novella is the key theme for the story and was handled very nicely by Selick.

I enjoyed "Coraline" from beginning to end and never once found myself questioning whether I liked the picture. It has a Burton-esque presence that hints at Selick's time working with Burton during "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and the stop-motion animation is impeccably done. Without a doubt, "Coraline" is a landmark picture in the medium and from a technical standpoint, "Coraline" is the greatest stop-motion film yet. The facial replacement technology had each of the main characters with an upper and lower replaceable head and the lines were then animated out in post-production. It is hard to believe that the complicated facial expressions and lip movements that were animated were done by stop-motion. This is a beautifully shot picture. I love stop-motion and it is easily my favorite form of animation.

My jaw dropped to the floor when I engaged in the visuals of this Blu-ray release. "Coraline" is one of the absolute best looking releases on the high definition format and I cannot stress how detailed this transfer is. It is a true visual treat.

(Click thru the link above for the full review)

For DVD interest, click here...
—> DVD Review by Dean Winkelspecht »
EXCERPT: While this isn't a sequel to "The Nightmare Before Christmas," it feels like the adopted child of Selick and Burton's amazing collaboration to join Burton's own "The Corpse Bride" as a kindred sibling. Burton was not part of this picture, but his influence on Selick is apparent as the twisted and fantastical world created by Selick is a real pleasure that translates amazingly well to stop motion. The story and acting is strong enough to warrant repeated viewings of this ninety minute film, but the meticulous stop-motion animation demands return trips to the Other World. I'm sure "Coraline" will grow a little bit more on me as time passes and though I may not watch it a dozen times a year, I can see at least one or two viewings here and there.

(Click thru the link above for the full review)

—> Visit the Film's Official Site »
(from Universal Studios Home Entertainment)

—> View the Theatrical Trailer (w/HD) »
(from Apple.com Trailers website)

Rated PG for thematic elements, scary images, some language and suggestive humor

CORALINE Featurettes...

Meet the Cast —


The Biggest Smallest Movie —


Moustachio —


Doll Hair —


Film Synopsis:
Be careful what you wish for.
An Adventure too Weird for Words...
From the director of The Nightmare Before Christmas comes a visually stunning stop-motion animated feature - the first to be originally filmed in 3-D! Discover how the filmmakers and artisans created the magical handmade world of CORALINE, exclusively in this 2-Disc Collector's Edition!

Coraline Jones (voiced by Dakota Fanning) is bored in her new home until she finds a secret door that leads her into a world that's just like her own… but better! But when this fantastical adventure turns dangerous and her "other" Mother (voiced by Teri Hatcher) tries to keep her forever, Coraline must count on her resourcefulness and bravery to get home.

This modern, magical tale teaches one of life's most important lessons: things aren't always better on the other side of the door. CORALINE is "A visual marvel." (Claudia Puig, USA Today). After creating a classic with The Nightmare Before Christmas, director Henry Selick crafts the first stop-motion animated feature to be filmed in three dimensions. Dakota Fanning voices a girl who finds a parallel universe lurking behind a door in her home, but the new world isn't all it initially appears. Based on Nail Gaiman's novel, CORALINE promises to be a favorite for both children and adults.

As covetous children are often warned: "Be careful what you wish for." It's this very cautionary wisdom that sets the stage for Henry Selick´s CORALINE, an eerily eye-popping stop-motion animation tale of fractured dreams and families made whole. As the films opens, Coraline Jones (voiced by Dakota Fanning) and her parents (Teri Hatcher, John Hodgman) have moved into the Pink Palace, a once-vibrant boarding house that's turned drab and dilapidated. As her parents work feverishly on a new gardening catalog, the bored and belligerent Coraline is admonished to explore her new world´s possibilities. Along the way she meets her fellow tenants, including two aging English showgirls and a mouse-training Russian acrobat, as well as an outcast neighborhood boy named Wybie.

But it is a mysterious hidden door that most piques Coraline's interest--a gateway to a parallel world where her "other" parents and neighbors live only to see Coraline well fed and endlessly entertained. All is not cakes and carnivals for Coraline, though, and the black buttons that have replaced the eyes of these otherworldly imitations hint at darker intentions. When these intentions are revealed, Cora and a friendly magical cat use their wits and willpower to defeat Coraline's wicked "other mother" and restore balance in the real world. Based on Neil Gaiman's beloved children's novel, director Selick uses the stop-motion technique to bring CORALINE to life with amazing visual and emotional depth. The result is a frightfully magical adventure that will give the whole family plenty to shriek, cheer, and talk about.

"Selick's imaginative sets and puppets are in perfect pitch with Gaiman's fantasy. The 3-D effects aren't overdone but are used intelligently to make this world come brilliantly to life."
—Kirk Honeycutt (Hollywood Reporter)

"Selick has complete command of the 3-D format, adding eerie depth and texture to the image."
—Evan Davis (Film Comment)

"Those who tough it out with this twisted, trippy adventure in impure imagination will only be the better for it."
—Peter Travers (Rolling Stone)

"The third dimension comes of age with CORALINE... CORALINE is a remarkable feat of imagination, a magical tale with a genuinely sinister edge."
—Kenneth Turan (Los Angeles Times)

"It's gorgeous to watch in all its dazzling stop-motion animation splendor... It's exquisite images have an undeniable whimsical appeal."
—Claudia Puig (USA Today)

"Selick stays at child's eye level, letting the 3D process subtly reinforce how a youngster's imagination can be more vivid and real than reality itself."
—Mark Keizer (Box Office)

"An exquisitely realized 3-D stop-motion animated feature... CORALINE lingers in an atmosphere that is creepy, wonderfully strange and full of feeling."
—A.O. Scott (The New York Times)

"CORALINE is a dark delight... This eccentric and deliriously inventive fantasy finds stop-motion auteur Henry Selick scaling new heights of ghoulish whimsy, buoyed by a haunting score that works its own macabre magic."
—Justin Chang (Variety)

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