In the epic fantasy, scruffy, kindhearted Kubo ekes out a humble living while devotedly caring for his mother in their sleepy shoreside village. It is a quiet existence – until a spirit from the...
The latest film from Laika studios (the team behind Coraline and Paranorman), Kubo and the Two Strings is about a young boy on a quest to find three pieces of armour in order to finish his father's mission and defeat the Moon King. Having never seen a Laika animated film before, I was slightly nervous going into this. I love the traditional Japanese mythology and folklore, so this was definitely going to intrigue me...but I did not expect the outcome. This, is simple a masterpiece. I'm not exaggerating, this film is flawless. I tried to find a fault, I really did but alas I could not. Let me start off by saying the voice acting in this movie is incredible, with such talents including: Charlize Theron, Matthew McConaughey, Rooney Mara, Ralph Fiennes and even newcomer Art Parkinson. It feels so natural, Theron being a monkey and McConaughey voicing a human beetle...and it felt so right! The excellent voice acting makes these loveable characters even more likeable. Monkey being the mean serious companion while Beetle is the funny dumb one, it makes for an excellent contrast. The story is actually rather melancholic and the scriptwriter knows that children are actually smart, so it makes sense to treat them like adults and include themes like death and remorse. This could then lead to the debate of the film being rated a '12' as opposed to a 'PG' (here in the UK of course), but in an age where kids have access to the Internet, I think they can handle these sensitive themes. In contrast, this means the film is then enjoyable for adults so it's a clever move from the studio. Each character in the story has their own rich backstory and the film is so well done that it builds it's own mythology in the space of 102 minutes, by the end of the film you know all about the quest to defeat the Moon King. The animation in the film is sublime, beautiful, absolutely majestic...I've never seen such flawless animation before. The long shots into the horizon, the close up action, even the credits. Speaking of action, there is quite bit of action to keep viewers entertained from the heavy story and it is will balanced. This is one of the great things about Kubo, is that as a viewer you will feel every emotion. The script will make you laugh on several occasions, you will get teary at certain scenes, you'll be on the edge of you seat. It's just so well balanced that it makes for the perfect movie, I mean this is why we go to the cinema, to be taken away and transported into a world and actually become attached to the characters. Overall, Kubo and the Two Strings is flawless, a modern day masterpiece with plenty of laughs, tears and excitement. Do yourself a favour, watch it now as it truly deserves to be watched.
