‘The Book of Life’s’ animation gives life
Photo by Gabby Manotoc
Written by Cherrelle Rand
Jorge Gutierrez’s “The Book of Life” focuses on the concepts of love, family and children. The trailer leads the viewer to expect a love triangle, but instead the storyline follows the struggles of the characters.
The movie begins with a group of young misfits traveling to a museum on the Day of the Dead. Led through a secret passageway into a hidden room by the tour guide they are presented with the Book of Life, a book that holds every story in the world.
The tour guide tells the story of San Angel, in which two gods, La Muerte and Xibalba, come across three children playing on the Day of the Dead festival. La Muerta is the ruler of the Land of the Remembered, where spirits live, and Xibalba is the ruler of the Land of the Forgotten, where forgotten spirits slowly decay and shatter into dust.
The two boys, Manolo Sánchez and Joaquín, are in love with the fearless and free-willed María Posada. With this information, the gods bet on which boy María will fall in love with. If Manolo wins, Xibalba must stop interfering with the lives of men. If Joaquín wins, Xibalba gets to control the Land of the Remembered while La Muerte runs the Land of the Forgotten.
After infuriating him by freeing a group of animals, María’s father sends her abroad. It’s not until years later that she returns, but neither boy has forgotten her during this time.
During the time gap, Manolo’s father pushes him to continue the Sanchez family tradition of bull fighting, a sport resulting in the bull’s death. Manolo can’t handle this. On the other hand, Joaquín becomes a popular and successful fighter with the help of a magic medal, but the town pressures him to protect the community like his father did before him.
It’s obvious the audience is supposed to focus on the vibrant colors and exaggerated anatomy rather than the story itself. That is what truly made the film and compensated for the disappointing lack of storytelling.
Due to the classic “good versus evil” concept, the story’s outcome was predictable. There was no tension and there was never a time where concern for the well-being of the characters arose. Furthermore, some died so rapidly and nonchalantly that it was hard to feel any sadness for them.
The relationship between Manolo and his family was a true success. With the help of his dead ancestors, Manolo is able to travel out of the Land of Remembered to the Cave of Souls, and it’s only with his family’s help that the town of San Angel is able to fight off Chakal and his army.
Had the writers further explored and shortened the beginning scenes, the film would have been incredible across the board.
