Aside from Han Solo being killed off in episode 7, Disney (also Pixar) has yet again managed to make me sob this time with Coco, which I’m not even ashamed about. Coco was fantastic, and yeah, sure it may be because I’m a Latina that I loved it with all my heart, but hey those awards that the movie received meant that others from anywhere and everywhere have loved it just as much as I did.
Coco to me is more than what it seems, there have been other movies in the Disney world that represented Latin American cultures like The Emperor’s New Groove, which is about my own country Peru, (my family was so hyped for it, haha) but maybe it’s because I was 5 when I watched it and now that I’m 21 watching Coco there’s a much deeper impression on me. Not to mention with what is going on in our political atmosphere with such comments and thoughts, I feel like I have much more of an attachment to this movie, that’s my opinion though. I don’t want to get so deep into politics, I’m sure many know what I’m talking about anyway. Also, with how there is so much more representation in films now, of course, a story about Dia de los Muertos and a little Mexican boy named Miguel will tug at my heartstrings.
It is about time that there is proper representation in the film industry, it’s about time where little latino/a children can point out to a character and relate to them in terms of how they look, where they live, the music they grow up along with, their language, what they celebrate and even what they eat (peep those tamales abuelita gives to Miguel). Over here we see that Dia de los Muertos is like some mini Halloween and see a bunch of people parade around with sugar skull makeup without knowing the actual background or meaning of the holiday. It’s not Halloween I can tell you that! I can’t count how many times I’ve seen this and what I see in the stores and the lack of respect. I can also say that for Cinco de Mayo where people just look at it as another way to get super wasted and wear sombreros cause it’s funny and “who really cares about this holiday lets just get wasted, man!” Yeah, I guess I’m going a bit hard, but this is another reason why I loved Coco, they incorporated amazing fantasy with Dia de los Muertos to show the message of family and the importance of showing respect to those who have passed away. You see an ofrenda with pictures of those who have passed and you see their favorite meals, possessions, and gifts; it truly opens your eyes to how accurate they got the holiday.
Especially when it comes to children, they don’t know where their loved ones went and Coco gave that little spark of hope to, even adults like me, show that their loved ones are waiting for them, visit them and love them. Especially when hearing the song Remember Me, it brings the nostalgia of the ones you miss, which I sure felt when I started to think of my grandmother as the song played. It honestly brings you closer to family, which is one of the most important messages of the movie.
All in all, I would recommend everyone to watch Coco. Just enjoy it for what it is! Enjoy the visuals, the language, the details, the funny moments and the sad moments. Go tell your family you love them and think of your loved ones who passed. Let this story show you the importance of culture and love for the family. Even if you are not Mexican or Latin American, it does not matter I promise you, a story is a story regardless of its country of origin…and trust me, this is such an amazing and touching story.