What makes Coco so auténtico?
The authentic voice-acting is one reason why this movie is so great. They know how to get talents without getting big Hollywood stars. Ok, there are 2 people in it that are considered famous Benjamin Bratt (voices Ernesto de la Cruz) & Gael García Bernal (voices Héctor), but still most of the cast is rather unknown.
~20% in Spanish because it would be foolish if this weren’t the case.
You can see and feel that Pixar did a lot of in depth research to present the Mexican culture as accurately is possible.
Pixar wants to tell good stories (which they are very capable of) – it doesn’t matter to them if everyone can identify with the story (throwback to Ratatouille #favouritechildhoodmovie). They will tell it anyway.
To make my points even clearer let’s compare Coco to Moana (Disney):
Moana aims to explore the Polynesian culture, sadly the story isn’t really bound to this culture or even the island it takes place on. It’s the classic heroine-story that could take place anywhere. After watching Moana, you don’t feel like you’ve learned anything about the Polynesian culture. There is no deep-dive into traditions, the day to day life, beliefs of the culture, traditional food or Polynesian songs (I mean of course the classic Disney songs are great, but have nothing to do with the Polynesian culture). I mean I still love Moana (awesome movie), but it’s just not as a deep exploration of a underrepresented culture as Coco is.
Coco’s story on the other hand is deeply bound with the culture. It takes place in a small Mexican village on the Días de los Muertos. What makes Coco even more authentic is the voice-cast, traditional Mexican food, the traditions on the Day of the Dead (e.g. Marigold flowers, Alebrijes & emphasises the importance of the ofrenda – to honour deceased family members), features the Xolo (National-Dog of Mexico) named Danté as Miguel’s loyal companion and includes a joke that only Spanish-speaking people will understand. Furthermore Coco also pays homage to the iconic Frida Kahlo (alongside her famous pet monkey) who makes an appearance in the Land of the Dead. Of course Pixar took some creative liberties in the Land of the Dead, but after watching Coco you feel like you’ve just watched a really rich movie and actually learned something about the Mexican culture.
Well done Pixar for creating this masterpiece.
4/4 ASt.
