Long-time readers of this site have been aware of Henry Selick and Laika Entertainment developing Neil Gaiman's award-winning novel Coraline for the big screen (the fact that this section's Feature Writer is a major Gaiman fanboy doesn't hurt, either).
Priming the fanboy pump for the flick's theatrical debut, Laika's put together a full-length trailer for the flick (any bets Laika will try to get this trailer in front of Twilight, opening this Friday?). And quite simply, it rocks.
Coraline Full-Length Trailer
As befitting the director of The Nightmare Before Christmas, Selick wisely went stop-motion with the tale of the titular girl (voiced by Dakota Fanning) who finds a menacing fairyland beyond a door in her room.
Overall, this trailer hits its marks. Sure, the filmmakers are showing an awful lot of what goes down in the flick, but it isn't a case of, "Thanks, guys, now that I've seen this, I don't have to see the movie now!"
Teri Hatcher, who plays the dual role of Coraline's Mother/Other Mother, is a real standout here, giving her characters the right blend of menace and motherliness. The jury's still out on Fanning: she's not annoying but doesn't quite seem as strong as she could be. She might be better over a 90-minute spread.
The rest of the voice cast includes the wonderfully menacing Keith David (Dr. Facilier in The Princess and the Frog) as the Cat – Coraline's only ally in this strange new world – and Ian McShane (Tai Lung in Kung Fu Panda), who takes on retired circus performer Mr. Bobo.
Dawn French (Mrs. Beaver in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe) voices Miss Spink, and comedy compadré Jennifer Saunders (The Fairy Godmother in Shrek 2) is Miss Forcible. John Hodgman (PC in Apple's "Get a Mac" series of commercials) rounds out the cast, voicing Coraline's Father/Other Father.
There are plenty of surreal – and occasionally frightening – images swirling around here. Yeah, there are a *lot* of visual references to The Nightmare Before Christmas but, considering Selick also directed that classic stop-motion film, it's understandable.
However, the February debut (traditionally a dumping ground for less-than-stellar flicks) is a caution. That said, every Hollywood animation studio, including DreamWorks Animation and Disney/Pixar, is pushing their films away from the summer blockbuster zone. Clearly, family-oriented animation isn't a big draw when compared to CGI-heavy action films.
Coraline opens in theatres on February 6, 2009.
Fun fact: Coraline has absolutely nothing to do with the vampire character played by Shannyn Sossamon on CBS' paranormal horror series Moonlight.
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