OKAY
SPOILERS DOWN THE PATH; THE DISCUSSION BELOW WILL NOT BE COMPREHENSIVE WITHOUT IT.
TREAD CAREFULLY. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.
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SPOILERS DOWN THE PATH; THE DISCUSSION BELOW WILL NOT BE COMPREHENSIVE WITHOUT IT.
TREAD CAREFULLY. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.
The visual effects and animation feast you'll eat away from this adventurous tale is of pristine quality! The work that's gone into making this possible is very serious, and the accomplishment is too good! Talk about the stop-motion textured designs! From the fur on Monkey (voiced by Charlize Theron), hair on Kubo (voiced by Art Parkinson), opposite ends of hues for colors, final showdown with dragon centipede to the teardrop that strums the guitar, everything erected through CGI here is psychedelically, mind-blowingly captivating!
Apart from the visual treat, the film's setting is a great plus! The ancient feel in rural Japan filled with folklores and scary myths like the eyes under Long Lake brings back childhood memories when supernatural mysteries are a big thing! And the filmmakers add a sauce just to make the meal perfect - magic! As Kubo plays and the origami starts forming itself coming to live, you know this is a fantastical, magical land. Skeletons stuck with swords, boat made out of leaves and lamps turned into souls are instances that'll stun you in awe. A combination effect is strongly experienced in Kubo's first night time sequence! As he's not supposed to stay out after dark, it becomes acutely scary when the aunts (voiced by Rooney Mara) appear! The same can be said about the sound design too!
The movie's energy takes a sharp decline after Kubo leaves home. Based on his father Hanzo's story, it is now Kubo's quest to find the three pieces of armor that could protect him from Moon King (voiced by Ralph Fiennes). But, it seems the personas did not make any specific effort to reach out for these tools. Instead, it all came to Kubo by itself through sheer randomness! This steals away all the mystical vibe that was built around it. Character designs are without complaints, but Beetle (voiced by Matthew McConaughey) is such an arbitrary character who appears out of nowhere. He tries hard to be funny. While he couldn’t find The Breastplate Impenetrable under Long Lake at first, we wonder how's he able to do so in a quicker time span when locating Kubo.
Clues and chemistry between Monkey and Beetle give obvious hints at the possibility of these two being Kubo's parents. Undeniably, this motion picture has resounding dialogues and even luckier to have top voice acting jobs to seal it off! The underlying theme about goodness, being open to humanity and replenishing empty souls with kindness that makes the watch a worth!
"If you must blink, do it now. Pay careful attention to everything you see and hear, no matter how unusual it may seem. And please be warned, if you fidget, if you look away, if you forget any part of what I tell you, even for an instant, then our hero will surely perish."