Disney’s newest Mexican culture based movie

Written by Nancy Rivera, Student Writer

**Spoiler alert**

Disney’s Pixar movie, Coco, has brought much attention for its cultural-based story plot. It won the box office twice on the weekends of November 25-26 and December 2-3. It has made over $108.7 million since its release on Thanksgiving.

The film focuses on the Mexican celebration of “Dia de los Muertos” and follows the character, Miguel Rivera, as he discovers his ancestors. The movie is filled with Mexican traditions, jokes, music, and beautiful graphical landscapes.

The filmmakers, including director Lee Unkrich, went to Mexico to get inspiration for the movie. They decided to base their setting on the colorful Oaxaca and Guanajuato, Mexico. They also observed how the people of Oaxaca lived and what types of traditions they practiced in their homes.

The story begins with Miguel explaining to the audience that his family mysteriously banned music-making. Ironically, Miguel loves music, but unfortunately doesn’t have his family’s support. The only reason given for the music boycott is that Miguel’s great great grandfather had left his family for a musical career. Coco believes that his grandfather was the great Ernesto de la Cruz, a great Mexican musician who was also an actor.

Miguel, with a great interest and talent in music, decides to visit his great great grandfather’s grave to borrow his iconic guitar for a talent show. As soon as Miguel strums the guitar, he is taken to the land of the dead and finds his ancestors. He must leave the after-life before dawn, or else he will have to stay there forever; however, he can’t leave until he gets his deceased family’s blessing. His family is willing to give him the blessing with one condition: he must not play music ever again. This drives Miguel to seek Ernesto de la Cruz: Miguel thinks he’ll understand and encourage him to follow his dreams as a musician.

Full of plot twists and hilarious culturally accurate moments, this movie will keep viewers on edge. There are also plenty of heart-warming moments that will re-evaluate viewers’ values as part of a family. The characters slowly let go of grudges and begin to realize that family support is far more important. Overall, this movie will give viewers chills and maybe even shed a few tears.