Tuesday, August 29, 2017
Coraline Adoption Movie Review
A young girl named Coraline has recently moved to Oregon
from Michigan. Her parents bluntly convey that they do not have time for her,
and Coraline is not interested in making friends with an eccentric neighbor boy
named Wybie, so she is left to explore the 150-year-old house on her own, with
her only company being a neighborhood black cat and a rag doll that Wybie found
and brought to her after noticing how much it looked like her.
In her dreams, Coraline visits a world where her parents and
neighbors have been replaced by lookalike ragdolls who are much kinder to her,
and much more to her liking, than their real-world counterparts. These parents,
who call themselves her “Other Mother” and “Other Father” present as very kind
to Coraline, but they say she can only stay with them forever if she lets the “Other
Mother” sew buttons onto her eyes. Coraline tries to leave, but then finds that
her dream world has started to invade her waking world.
*SPOILERS AHEAD THE REST OF THE WAY*
The Adoption
Connection
Coraline feels neglected by her parents; in fact, her mother
bluntly says that she does not have time for Coraline, and rather harshly tells
Coraline to stop talking to her. She desires more attentive parents, and so is
drawn towards the Other Mother and Other Father. When she finds the Other Mother
to be cruel, she tells her, “You’re not my real mother,” and she is punished
for this by being thrown into a cell, to remain until “you learn to be a loving
daughter.” Eventually, she gets her real parents back, and finds that they do
love her, and are more able to show it now that they’re not as busy with work.
Strong Points
It’s clear by the end of the film that Coraline’s parents do
love her, and she loves them, even though it’s not always well expressed.
Challenges
Coraline’s “Other Parents” are not what they seem. Her “Other
Mother” is actually a conjurer. She uses rag dolls to spy on children, to find
what makes them unhappy, and then uses that knowledge to lure them into her
world. With luring promises of love and attention, she has trapped other children
in her world, and although they remember their “true mothers,” they have
forgotten their own names. The “Other Mother” has taken their eyes and holds
their souls captive. Coraline escapes her clutches, but then she captures
Coraline’s parents, forcing Coraline to come back into her world to try to save
her parents. After she saves her parents, they have no recollection of what she’s
done for them, and the conjurer makes another frightening attempt to break into
the real world and capture Coraline. I could see this film being scary for many
young children, and being particularly troubling for children in foster or
adoptive homes, who could be bothered by the film’s portrayal of an “Other
Mother” as a sinister person with cruel motives.
Coraline’s friend “Wybie” has a cruel name. His full name is
“Whybourne,” and the implication is that his grandmother calls him that to ask,
“Why were you [even] born?”
The “Other Mother” is cruel, even to her own creations. When
one of them showed sadness, she stitched a gruesome smile onto his face.
The “Other Mother” tricks Coraline by disguising herself as Coraline’s
real mother. She also compels the “Other Father,” who does seem to love
Coraline, to attack her.
The film seems to excuse Coraline’s parents for being so
inattentive to her feelings. For kids who have been neglected, it might feel
like the film is portraying Coraline’s desire for more attentive parents as the
problem, although it is true that kids whose emotional needs aren’t met at home
sometimes seek to have those needs met in dangerous places.
Recommendations
Coraline has some horroresque scenes that could disturb kids
and even some sensitive teens. Also, the film’s plot involving a deceptively
hostile “other, better” mother and father could be difficult for kids who have
been connected to the foster care system or who have been adopted. This one might
best be left to teenagers, and parents might want to check it out before seeing
it alongside their kids.
Questions for
Discussion
In what ways does Coraline’s story remind you of your own?
In what ways is it different?
Who were the people that Coraline could depend on? Who are the
people you can depend on?
What did Coraline need from her parents? Did she eventually
get it?
Do you have any dreams that you’ve had several times?
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I also think it would be a good talking point with kids/teens to ask: How do you think Coraline could have gotten her needs met by her parents instead of going into the other world?
ReplyDelete- She could use her words to express her emotions to her parents instead of going to the "Other Mother"
Great point, Brittany. I could also see asking, how could the parents have made themselves more available/attentive; I'd love for kids to see both Coraline's responsibility for talking to her parents, and their responsibility for being approachable, which could give the real-life parents watching this film with their kids the chance to emphasize that, even though we seem busy sometimes - we always want to be accessible :)
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