Terror and Joy in Roughly Equal Doses: Coraline

If there is one thing we love here at theMET, it's entertainment that breaks new boundaries. One part horror and one part joy, art or movies that can make us feel a wide range of emotions gets our enthusiastic support. Coraline, which is coming to theatres on February 6, is just one of those movies.

Its storyline is deliciously wicked.

Adapted from a best-selling novel, Coraline is a spine-tingling tale about a curious girl who unlocks a mysterious door in her family's new home and enters into an adventure in a parallel reality. On the surface, this "Other World" eerily mimics her own life - though it is much more fantastical. In it, Coraline encounters different versions of her own life, including off-kilter neighbors and an Other Mother who attempts to keep her forever. Ultimately, Coraline must rely on her resourcefulness, determination and bravery to get back home.

Dakota Fanning will provide the voice for Coraline. The cast also includes Ian McShane, Teri Hatcher, Keith David, Jennifer Saunders, Dawn French, and John Hodgman.

Some interesting facts? Coraline is the first stop-motion animation to be shot stereoscopically with a dual digital camera rig for digital 3-D exhibition. New tools are being developed which will give the stop-motion creators the same flexibility as CGI animators, making it possible to push objects forward and back in post-production. The characters' hands were made to be interchangeable, so more than 1000 different pairs of hands were made.

Here now is the trailer:

Check out some behind-the-scene videos:


And finally, some movie posters:

If you're getting that 'Nightmare Before Christmas' vibe from the videos, you are absolutely right. It is written and directed by Henry Selick, the director of Nightmare.