A beautifully-animated movie that will probably appeal more to adults than kids.
What Works: The visual style is the main draw here, and it is enhanced by an actual theater experience, getting to see all the incredibly nuanced visual details. From the movie’s opening moments—an immense ocean wave sweeping over the audience—it lulls you into a near-dreamlike state, complete with nightmares (the evil twin witches may scare younger kids, to say nothing of the giant skull monster) and sidekicks kids will love (Charlize Theron’s Monkey and Matthew McConaughey’s Beetle).
What Doesn’t: The movie is accomplished, but a little sleepy, and like most great dreams, the plot details become a bit fuzzy after it’s over. I doubt I could really explain Kubo’s quest for armor or exactly how a guitar scares away demons if you put a gun to my head. And I really didn’t understand what his evil grandfather (voice of Ralph Fiennes) wanted or even why he was all that evil since it seems like he’s trying to make Kubo immortal and give him a perfect life on the moon. A movie where you’re not entirely sure it would be such a bad thing if the villain wins is maybe communicating more on a visual level than a narrative-one…
What I Would Have Done Differently: “Oh no, Kubo’s evil grandfather wants to kill Kubo so he can live longer. He’s a snake that eats his young! Ahhhhh!”