How Coraline Borrows from Ancient Forms of Storytelling
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- Опубликовано: 21 окт 2020
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Coraline borrows elements from some of the most ancient forms of storytelling itself. In this video, we examine how Coraline uses an underlying fairy tale structure to shape the protagonist’s journey, dissect how the film also incorporates grotesque imagery and classic ghost story elements, and discover how utilizing all these ancient forms lends power to the story by reinforcing one of its central themes.
Video Produced by: Michael Tucker ( / michaeltuckerla )
Written by:
- Tricia Aurand ( / triciajeana )
- Brian Bitner ( / brianbitner )
- Alex Calleros ( / alex_calleros )
- Michael Tucker
Edited by: Alex Calleros
References:
[1] www.focusfeatures.com/article...
[2] www.cinemablend.com/new/Exclu...
[3] scholarship.rollins.edu/cgi/v...
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LFTS Recommended Reading List: www.lessonsfromthescreenplay....
Thanks to Diego Rojas for composing original music for this video. Check out more of his work: / diegorojasguitar
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What's your favorite movie to watch on Halloween?
The Nightmare Before Christmas
It’s hard to beat the 1979 classic.
The Thing (1982)
Usually a Tim Burton classic, like Edward Scissorhands
Waiting for video, expecting a more videos.Thanks
I love how you subtly pointed out that the theme of Coraline “chasing something seemingly better newer, or more exciting, can prevent us from appreciating what we already have. “ perfectly mirrors Henry Selick’s decision to use stop motion animation. Such an underrated animation style and it’s used beautifully here.
This seems to be the same theme/ moral dilemma from Selick's other film The Nightmare Before Christmas
Stop motion is a beautiful art but it's hard af
Why does it sounds like the basis of cheating spouses?
@@LuisSierra42 Amen!
I think Coraline is the greatest stop motion film of all time. There are films with more effects like Kubo and the Two Strings and classics like Chicken Run and Fantastic Mr Fox, but there’s just something so special and delightful about this film.
there's been nothing like its atmosphere since
There are some adult stop motion movies like Anomalisa that are absolutely wonderful. You shiukd check it out.
@@chuffer595 Anomalisa f*cked me up (obviously an endorsement). Charlie Kaufman is a national treasure.
@@chuffer595 woah thanks for recommending it. I've been craving stuff like Coraline since...well..Coraline.
Should also look up Laika's other works like ParaNorman.
I always thought the "game" Coraline strikes with the Beldam was a mirror version of the Greek myth tale of Arachne vs Athena. Arachne was a skilled weaver who challenged the goddess, Athena, but lost and was cursed into the form of a spider. This competition of sorts is paralleled by Coraline and the Beldam's battle of wits. The spider imagery can also be drawn, as the Beldam takes the form of one who weaves webs of lies to capture her prey (children), and also feasts on bugs.
Wow got chills reading that
Nice!!
great observation!
Same, the story in general features many aspects that can be found in the Greek mythology as well, also because characteristics of fairytales and Greek mythology overlap a lot 🤔
That's so interesting! So is that why a spider is an arachnid? From Arachne?
I actually think it's more complicated than that... I think "Coraline" actually has a lot to do with identity. At the beginning, no one really pays attention to what Coraline wants; a lot of the other boarders even get her name wrong. On the other hand, in the Other World, everyone is exactly who she wants them to be, the whole world is centered around her. As it turns out, though, the Other Mother is incredibly manipulative. She gives Coraline what she wants, but in exchange, she wants Coraline to stay forever. She wants to take Coraline's soul and give her button eyes like her (which, eyes are often seen as the window to the soul), and frames this as love. Everyone else in her world is literally her puppet; she takes away their voices when they don't do as she wishes. She wants Coraline to belong to her like a thing, too. This has an analogy in IRL narcissistic parents, who give and give, but who also tell their children who they are and what they want. Kids in that situation often feel guilted into being who the parent wants them to be. ...I actually think one reason the Other Mother hates cats so much is that cats are willful and independent. Anyway, Coraline sees the true horror of forcing others to be who you want them to be. The story is largely about how she learns to assert her identity, while also appreciating other people for who they are.
Wow brilliantly interpreted!!
This is a fabulous takeaway and I love it
This is such an excellent analysis!! 👍🏼
Wonderful
❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥
Wow LFTS covering Coraline? Hope I'm not in the Other World.
You could stay here forever...if you want. 😈 👻
@@LessonsfromtheScreenplay I actually will, gimme them but'uns!
@@LessonsfromtheScreenplay No,thanks unless your name is Narutaki and I can become Faiz, the only downside is have you screaming "ONORE DECADE!!!" every 10 minutes.
@@carlosroo5460 Marry me. This is the first time I've ever seen someone make that reference.
You always choose the most exceptional films, and it never fails to bring a smile to my face :)
:D
same
Ikr
Still my favorite horror film even at 21 years old.
You were just 10 when this film came out. So cute
Same
Mine too at 24
Still a movie i haven't been able to watch all the way through at 22 years old
Same always a number 1
Fun fact: Coraline’s star sweater took 6 weeks- 6 months to make
Intriguing!
thats a wide range there
@@wildgrem Yeah, I wonder how long it actually took to make, since you can say "I worked on it one hour a week for 6 weeks therefore it took 6 weeks"
To clarify, in the behind the scenes, that’s the only time range they said
@@JM-gd3hr I know some people that work in prop fab for stop mo and it does take a long time to make these things...theres so much love poured into the craft... its just ive never heard anyone give such a wide range to make a prop. Its generally, 4-6weeks, or 2-3 months for example.
"And she ate up our lives"
As a kid who had no comprehension of gore and violence you can't imagine how much this line freaked me out I remember thinking "Ate up your lives? How? How were you eaten? Why were you eaten thats what happens after your eyes are sewed shut with buttons? What?"
I think the eating up lives thing could be a way of saying "stealing your soul" since (a) that would be cliched, and (b) there might be some religious types who would throw a fit over stealing souls.
The three ghost children scare me so much. I always thought their faces scared me, like how one of them has a long mouth or sad face. When I was young I thought that’s how they felt or looked when the other mother ate them. And as a child who has a very very very creative imagination, you cannot imagine my brain cooking up the images of how the other mother ate the children…. This movie terrified me to the core. I couldn’t sleep for a few months even with someone beside me
I sewed like buttons onto my eyes to show my appreciation for this video.
It hurt like hell and now I can't see. This was a terrible idea!
Your dedication has not gone unnoticed. Now get yourself to a hospital.
My highschool film analysis teacher was the stepson of the head of Laika studios when Coraline was released. Shortly after the film debuted, I was lucky enough to tour one of their offices in Portland, where I met the animators of the Honey Nut Cheerios bee and Honda's Mr. Opportunity. Absolutely changed the way I look at film production and animation.
That's so cool! What a fun opportunity.
That's what I love about Neil Gaiman. His method of storytelling is more often than not left unexplained. It's magical realism in the realm of fantasy. He taught me to love soft magic systems.
i have always wondered what that technique is called. it's one of the main reasons i find him a compelling storyteller. thank you for making this comment. i want to read up on soft magic vs hard magic now.
@@atiqahshaharuddin3718 much of Gaiman literature feels like he read Garcia Marquez and went "great, all this is great, but what if it was a fairy tale?"
Any other writer would have wasted pages explaining where the witch comes from, how her powers work, how the afterlife works (as talked about in the video). But that's irrelevant.
There's a careful balance there: Not withholding so much information that the story has no substance or can't be followed, but at the same time not overexplaining everything. just enough to be satisfying and mysterious
An incredible example of the separate worlds of adults and children. Adults tend to find Coraline more horrifying than kids do, and adults also tend to forget that kids see things fundamentally differently than we do, not just a slightly dumbed down version of what we see. There's definitely an essay somewhere using this, and Spirited Away (and probably others I don't have off the top of my head) to highlight those separate worlds
This "kids" movie is a better horror movie than every PG18 cliché horror movie nowdays
horror made for kids is very often among the best... because they can't just lean on gore and language and jump scares. they gotta make you think, tap deeper into our psyches, like more old school stuff
What the hell, Michael? That ending. F***ing creepy.
🙃
@@LessonsfromtheScreenplay Can you please make a video on the Stanford Prison Experiment
I love your analysis on films
@@gustavoc305 But that has nothing to do with screenwriting.
@@MrX-pc5xn I'm talking about the 2015 film
ugh, saw this comment just in time and scrolled back up
This movie's been my favorite since I was a child. I think the reason it's so timeless because it has themes and lessons that can resonate with you at all stages of life. Anyone can find something to relate to in this film.
I think there's something really interesting in how the Other Mother is also known as 'Beldam' which in French fairy tales was what you'd refer to a powerful witch or fey spirit to not evoke their anger, as it meant beautiful woman. This further ties it to fairy tales such as Baba Yaga
My favorite, favorite movie EVER. Even though it terrifies me everything about it is stunning: the story, the colors, the characters. It is just a fantastic fantasy world
I wish there were more movies like it... a dark "kids" fantasy that's not too kiddy, too scary, or stuffed with comedy. Just an imaginative, creepy adventure.
Therapist: Buttoned Michael isn't real, he can't hurt you
Buttoned Michael:
I feel like the Other Mother is a flipped version of the Wicked Stepmother archetype, seemingly nice, but sinister underneath. but you basically hit the nail on the head with everything else.
Another movie that I think takes elements from fairy tales and combines grotesques is Hocus Pocus. Anyone agree?
yeah, but Bette Midler makes it fun
Agree!
I adore all of the Laika films 🖤
Too bad Missink Link wasn't the box office success that deserved to be.
Laika produces such amazing movies. They deserve tons of appreciation for the hard work they put into their work.
When my daughter was about a year old I put on this movie while I was watching her because I enjoyed the art style. Turned out that she loved the movie and it was one of the few things that would keep her entertained for an extended period of time. In short, it would give momma a chance to sleep and much needed breaks. Her favorite part of the movie is when her Other Father would perform the song in the movie. Although this movie has some creepy or scary parts for young children, my daughter was to young to understand it and we both were able to enjoy the movie. She now gets scared while watching the movie so we do not play it anymore, but I will always have fond memories of this film and the memories it gave this first time father with his daughter.
Coraline: A terrifying movie that I love to death.
I love the stopmotion part you added in this!!
Thanks! :)
Is it scary!!????? //haven’t watched yet//
I remember seeing the trailer for Coraline in theaters as a kid and IMMEDIATELY being obsessed with it. I went straight back to school and asked my teacher if we had the book and read it at least three times while waiting for it to come out. I think it was the first time I was amazed by every part of a movie from the animation to the score and the source material. Looking back though, that movie was a genuine nightmare that no child should watch and I can't believe I was so in to it.
I was so into it as a kid too! I made my family all go see it lol. I never read the book though, I might look into reading it though
I think it's important that the moral of Coraline isn't just to be grateful for what you already have, but that a person can make their own paradise instead of accepting one that comes with no effort but a hidden high price.
How is this movie considered a kid’s movie it’s so creepy
I'm guessing it's a family film: safe enough for kids, but some of the scary parts are better off being watched with your parents.
A lot of fairy tales meant for kids are macabre. LFTS's mention of Hansel and Gretel is just one of many.
If you ask me, it isn't a kid's movie.
@@Dunderslag No, not for preschoolers but id say 8 or 9 and up. If you dont let your kids watch this if they're interested in it, you're probably a helicopter parent and doing more harm than good to your kid in the long run.
@@wildgrem More like 11 or 12,, But it is true that fairy tales can be gruesome - the picture in the video of Gretel trying to close the door on the wicked witch in the fiery furnace! As an old person that is what I grew up with and I guess it didn't really scar me. Through the Looking Glass was a favorite by age 7.
OH MY GOSH. One of my FAV movies. I'm so happy LFTS is finally analyzing animated films.
I remember watching this movie as a kid but I felt it was like a fever dream, I genuinely don't remember how it ended.
I thought that was only me, but I too don't remember how it ended until I watched it recently as an adult
@@colourcolour4118 last thing I can (faintly) remember was the twist when Coraline was out the tunnel and saw her mom, it was the fake mom. It's been such a long time since I've seen it 😅
i feel the same. maybe i was too young when i first watched this film, so i couldn't remember the plot very clearly, but i do remember feeling creeped out but undeniably intrigued when watching.
I just watched Coraline for the first time last week and it is a new favourite of mine. It's a beautiful film that scared the crap out of me!
Coraline is a treasure. A master stroke of children's horror in the caliber of The Corpse Bride and The Nightmare Before Christmas that's not talked about NEARLY enough. Much like Kubo and the Two Strings, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, Isle of Dogs...........basically all modern stop motion films in general. As hard as it's trying to hold on, it's still a dying art; much like completely hand drawn animation such as the original Ghost in the Shell and Akira or the more recent When Marnie was There. You just don't see it anymore which is a shame because film done within these mediums ALWAYS ages like a fine wine. They rarely look bad regardless of the decade they're viewed in. The same goes for masterful puppetry. Did anyone watch the recently released Dark Crystal prequel, Age of Resistance? Not enough apparently. Because it was a masterclass of visual fidelity and storytelling and NO ONE is talking about it at all.
It's kind of sad. And it will be a sad day when these artforms fully vanish from the landscape.
The Nightmare Before Christmas is my favorite Halloween movie, even though it blends the two holidays.
Henry Selick said it was a Christmas movie. It's a Christmas movie with Halloween vibes.
I ran across the "complete" compilation of German folk stories as collected by the Grimm brothers when I was in college and bought the book. Those stories didn't strike me as children's stories as I expected. Instead I imagined adults telling the stories to each other in beer halls as they got progressively drunk and possibly violent. Then a few years after college I ran across Alice Miller's presentation and analysis of German pedagogy (child-rearing) titled For Your Own Good. After a few pages of Miller's book, the Grimms' collection of folk stories popped out of my memory and I dug out the book. Reading each at the same time made each much more effective/informative. The stories are still not for children, but why German adults would come up with them and tell each other those stories made much more sense.
If you're looking for a movie to cover during Christmas time, I would highly recommend Tokyo Godfathers as an unconventional and unique 'Christmas movie' by the late Satoshi Kon
I adore that movie.
Not for the first time, I’m left to ponder precisely how & why RUclips’s mysterious - yet somewhat _SINISTER!😳_ - algorithm has _ONLY RECENTLY_ started suggesting your excellent channel for me to watch...I sometimes think it doesn’t know me _AT ALL!_ Anyway, another wonderful video, which has inspired me to revisit 'Coraline' again, but now with the benefit of your added insight!☺️ Discovering 'Lessons from the Screenplay' has quite literally been one of the *ONLY* positives of this continuing Covid-19 pandemic lockdown!
That's such a nice comment! Thank you! And yes...the algorithm works in mysterious and frustrating ways...
Another thing good about this movie is the soundtrack. Sooo nostalgic
"Gaiman knows what readers like, and have liked for centuries: he happily supplies, in this story designed for his own daughters, echoes of and allusions to fairy-tale and fictional heroines familiar to readers in English. In , he has his finger on the pulse of what you loved when you were little, what mattered to you. Gently, he warps it, and makes you afraid as you would have been then - and perhaps even more so, now." - 'Coraline', by Neil Gaiman: The First Decade'
Love the connection with fairy tales. I think fairy tales create foundations for us to build stories upon. They're the first stories we hear as children and as adults we create our stories on contrast to which fairy tales we resonate with
the final animation is sick as hell！
Ah, I’m so glad you guys decided on doing a video on Coraline!! Not only did I love how you talked about the fairy tale and ghost story elements of the movie, it is nice to see Laika’s work appreciates. Don’t get me wrong, I love computer animation, but sometimes I do wish there were other studios willing to use older animation styles to tell their stories. Laika puts a lot of love and hard work into their movies, and it always saddens me to see them not do well in theaters because they are stop motion or because they do not have Disney’s marketing power.
HOW DID I NOT SEE THIS UNTIL TODAY??? THIS IS LITERALLY MY FAVORITE MOVIE! I HAVEN’T EVEN WATCHED THIS YET, I’M SO EXCITED!!!
Honestly it blows my mind that Coraline was stop-motion, it's so fluid and detailed it moves like CGI.
Hey Michael I remember seeing Coraline for the first time back in 2009. My family rented it from Blockbuster. Man those were the days before Netflix and other streaming services.
An idea I have for a future video is can please do a video on “Pulp Fiction”
Oh man, Blockbuster. I'm kind of amazed Blockbuster was still around in 2009. Thanks for the recommendation! I feel like Pulp Fiction has talked about a lot, but if I figure out a new angle on it...
My favorite interpretation is that Coraline is an old school fae tale. Especially because she accidentally steps into a fairy circle which doubles as the well
The little device she uses to see the eyes is also a part of fae mythology.
One of my favorite channels, plus one of my favorite films?? Today is officially a good day.
This video convinced me to finally check out Coraline and I wasn't disappointed.
So much dedication to have created a stop motion section for the sponsor!
i remember watching coraline when i was like 9 and it took me 3 days watch it (i kept pausing it and forced my little sisters to watch with me cause i didn't want to watch it alone). the visuals were so vivid i had nightmares, but was so intrigued about how it was going to end. 100% love the movie and still scares me.
YES you're talking about my favourite stop motion horror film!
I’m so excited to watch this, Coraline has been my favorite movie since like 2009!!! Let’s goo!
I spend 90% of my time on RUclips watching the same 4 channels: Joe Rogan, Like Stories of Old, Patrick Willems, and, most recently, the incredible Lessons From The Screenplay. Thanks for the great content!
You explained EVERYTHING from the movie that I think but couldn't really put to words and article because it's a very visceral feeling I got from watching the movie that words just seem to stop giving it service.
I enjoy reading old fairy tales because I just really love fairy tales. My friends asked me why I love coraline so much (I watch it a lot, it’s like a comfort movie) and I told them part of why I love it is because it’s like a fairytale and I love fairytales. What’s funny is they almost don’t believe me because they think it’s too creepy/scary to be a fairytale but fairytales often are really scary/creepy!
this movie is my childhood, i love coraline so much. i have it on my laptop and would watch it endlessly :)))
Coraline has been one of my favorite movies ever since I first saw it, and this video is great
_cant believe you did coraline!! as always, thank you for your excellent content_
Thank you!
I'm so glad you decided to do Coraline! Definitely one of my favorite films, Laika is an amazing studio. Paranorman is another great film by them.
can't wait to listen to the podcast for this!
Dropping tomorrow!
Coraline is one of my all time favourite films and i'm so happy you made a video discussing it!!!! Amazing work as usual!!!
11:49 bruh
Wonderful analysis on the film! I’ve always loved this film for all the reasons you stated especially its animation. Selick was right that stop-motion was the perfect medium for this story.
I saw the movie just so i could enjoy your video. And damn, it was a wonderful experience. Thank you Michael
Wow this was a good video, do we have a podcast episode on Coraline to look forward to?
Great outro too!
Comes out tomorrow
First time seeing one of your videos! I like your content plus the fact you made a video about my favorite childhood movie! :DD Thank you, and I just wish you more the best! ^^
love this one, Coraline is a top 3 animation film favorite of mine
YES!!! This is the film analysis from Lessons from the Screenplay I didn’t know it needed! Loved the video, will come back again :,)
Outstanding editing and analysis!
Your channel is the best, your quality is so next level
When I went to see the movie on theater, the room was filled with families and children; and through the film, half went out crying !
This is my most favorite movie of all time. Thank you for making a video about Coraline.
Thanks for all the hard work
YOO THAT OUTROO
:P
Yesss! Just the video I needed right now!
I got SO EXCITED when I saw you did a Coraline video. It's SO FITTING for October, too. Thank you.
Ah so excited to see you made this video - one of my favourite films of all time! Thank you :)
Your videos are marvellous, and your voice complements the content beautifully.
The button eyes are just plain creepy ... even more so in the real world!!
A few years ago I read a comment-chain story someone wrote about how they dressed as buttoned-Coraline for Halloween. She made buttons out of dark plastic and wore them like sunglasses. She was a college student and wore the costume to class, and partway into the lecture, her teacher asked her to take the glasses off because it was freaking him out and he couldn't stop focusing on them lol
Super informative! Thank as always for your amazing and detailed insight into one of my favorite movies when I was growing up ✨
This is one of my favorite films of all time. Thank you so much for doing a Lesson on it!
You're an inspiration, Michael. More power to you!
I loved it! I really enjoy your videos, I learn a lot
I really love Coraline. When I see it the first time in big screen, I recognize a lot of folkloric and mitologic elements, some of them talk very very deep in to the subconscious, like dark and dusted archetypes. I love your analysis, I think it helps to appreciate the work both of Gaiman and Selik
Thank you for the video. “Coraline” is my favorite movie and book. Videos like this are greatly appreciated. Loved it ✨
That is a great title crawl! Very creative and different in comparison to your other ones.
Coraline is really good and well rounded movie, I have watched it couple of times. The look of her dad in front of his computer is something that's hard to forget. I sure have feeled like he looks many times.
Also I do think you can show it to a bit older kids since especially these days kids are looked way down, like parents don't think they van't handle anything and are raised in bubblerap. It walks the lane perfectly on being able to accommodite many democratics without swaying their vision.
Love your videos!
When i saw that you made a video about Coraline, i got so excited! 🤩
Dude, this was great!
Great video as always, team! Such an overlooked film. Also, Michael, never do that button affect on your eyes again...
Right?
Great video, man.
my favourite channel on yt by far!!!!!
wow i was listening to the soundtrack just yesterday! brb going to make myself a cup of tea and enjoy the video about one of the best animations ever made
Fantastic video I learnt alot. I love Coraline.
Definitely need to give Coraline a rewatch. I forgot how creepy it was!!
Hands down my favorite animated movie of all-time
Excellent analysis! These vids never disappoint. What was the song that played in the end of the Coraline clips?
Perfect Video for an absolutely masterpiece of a film
Fantastic breakdown of Coraline. Now, I fully understand why I liked the film so much. And it gave me new ideas for ways to tell a story in my own projects. LFTS is really an invaluable channel for film making and screen writing.
Great video, one of my favorite films of all time! Perfect for spooky season :)
your videos always make me appreciate more my favorite movies
That's great to hear! Definitely our goal :)
i LOVE this movie so much and loved this analysis!