This November we will be introduce to one of the most beautiful traditions Mexico has to offer, Día de los Muertos (or Day of the Dead if you prefer the translation), with Pixar’s new film Coco.

Coco tells the story of Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), a 12-year-old boy who is accidently transported on November 2, Día de los Muertos, to the Land of the Dead. There, Miguel founds a friend with Hector (Gael García Bernal) a skeleton who becomes his guide through the magical world of the afterlife.

Hector will mark the first major vocal acting (with some singing) role for Gael, who was clinched for the role after impressing the filmmakers with his work on Mozart in the Jungle.

Talking with Entertainment Weekly, the Mexican actor told the magazine that he took an interest in the film due to the story and its approach to the festivity.

“Dealing with a tradition that is very generous and very open, you can have many points of view and many takes on that tradition, and I was really curious what type of approach they were going to have, but the one they’re going for is fantastic. The filmmakers have done a really great job in doing a big investigation and an amalgam of different traditions that go on in different parts of Mexico, but also explaining that it’s not about establishing one single way of celebrating the Day of the Dead. There are many ways, and Coco, the way they approach it, is a really beautiful one.”

García Bernal is reminded of Baloo by Hector.

“He’s almost like Baloo in The Jungle Book — he’s a confident and fun guy to be with, but at the same time, he’s having a very deep existential problem.”

The starting point of Hector in the film made Gael think of personal experiences:

“He’s living an interesting dichotomy in the Land of the Dead. We’re at a turning point where most men want to be close to their kids, and this is something that three generations ago wasn’t incorporated in society. The man was at work, then would enjoy the kids, but it wasn’t like they had that emotional, physical, and practical need to be close to the kids. But now we do experience that — me, as a son, and as a father, I can tell you, you want to be close to your kids. And this is something that the character is going through. Little by little you start to understand the battle he’s been fighting. Finding points of encounter between something you enjoy doing or something that you love, like music, and the time that the family requires. It’s almost like a crisis point. It’s something we’re all finding ways how to make that better. That’s Hector’s spiritual beginning, or his departure point when this film starts.”

Family will play a key part in Coco, but not quite like in the Fast and the Furious franchise, as the film stands to be one of the most emotional films.

“What’s so fantastic about this movie is that it really taps into interesting critical points of our understanding of our existence as a collective, and one of them is the family aspect. In general, the family conversation has become incredibly fluid. It can turn into different shapes and forms, and we’re trying to talk about and establish new ways of how a family can be. At the same time, there is something really, really deep inside of this question that family is the foundation of our society. In a sense, we’re questioning the family as a concept and as an end, and that’s something that is really interesting and pushes the audience’s appreciation about these issues.”

If you haven’t seen the trailer before, check it out down here!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlnPHQ3TLX8&w=560&h=315%5D

What do you think about this news? Are you excited to see this new Pixar movie?
Let us know in the comments below!

Coco is set to arrive in theatres for the US this November 22 and for Mexico on October 27.

Source: Entertainment Weekly.