Entertainment

The New 'Coco' Trailer Features Valuable Lessons

by Taylor Ferber

I cannot wait to see the upcoming animated Disney flick Coco. Not just because I'm a child at heart or because I love a good animated movie. But because the film, premiering Nov. 22, seems like one that will truly portray a message I, a grown-ass woman, and a lot of other adults, could learn from. At least, based on Coco's latest trailer.

The colorful story follows young Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), a guitar lover who aspires to be like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz (voice of Benjamin Bratt), yet faces an age-old ban that prohibits music. In a quest to visit generations before his own and learn the real story of the ban's place in his family's history, Miguel finds himself in the Land of the Dead. Venturing through space and time will entail much more than charm and wit from his sidekick Hector (Gael García Bernal). The new trailer proves the upcoming film has plenty of layers and deep messages that Miguel (and audiences) will learn along his journey.

From the vibrant colors to mysterious lands of descend ancestors, the trailer delightfully reminds me of 2014's The Book of Life and 2016's Kubo and the Two Strings. Coco, like the aforementioned stories, seems to prove that death shouldn't necessarily be feared.

The trailer opens with deceased ancestors visiting their living family members, saying, "But no living person has ever visited their world. Until now." Miguel then winds up in their world. At first, he's terrified by the dead and, of course, all the unknown the Land of the Dead holds.

But soon, audiences see an eager Miguel embracing the Land of the Dead, as well as his roots that connect him to it. In what looks like an extraordinary journey, Miguel works with inhabitants of this other universe to get the freedom and answers he's seeking, and also find his own place in his family tree.

The film's trailer not only makes death feel and look a lot less scary than many believe it to be, but can teach viewers of any age to embrace their roots to the fullest.