Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)

If you wanna find a great story with lots of jokes, this is not the movie for you. However if you wanna see great animation in step motion, which is incredibly beautiful and fascinating, and you don't mind getting immersed in an emotional story with magic, definetly check this one out. So here is my opinion about anything while trying t keep it spoiler free. The animation is gorgeous and so pleasing to watch even when nothing is happening. The characters are simple with no depth. They do their job, you understand them well and root for the good guys while you hate the bad ones. It didn't bothered me but it might be annoying for some people. The humor is absent for a big part of the movie, then it doesn't get exceptionally good. It's decent for when it is, it doesn't get dumb or awkward, but it's not very original either. The good part about it is that I found it appropiate to be absent for like half of the movie considering this is a movie with a lot of sad scenes.The story is the weakest part to be honest. It's a simple run away from evil in a quest to find some item with some twists. That wouldn't be a problem if the twist weren't so predictable and dragged on and then the characters acting genuinely surprised when they find the truth. There is only one twist I didn't see it coming, maybe 2 or 3. That's it. Another problem is that Kubo causes the sad scenes by being dumb. Nobody even mentions his obvious mistakes. It's not even excused by "oh he didn't know that would happen". He should have known after all his mother told him. They tried to explain it in a line like "I don't know what is real anymore" but that doesn't work when you have a soft magic system (aka unexplained magic). You are supposed to trust the one other magic user you know for this kind of stuff. Speaking of magic, the magic system is "eh". It's very very pretty to look at it but it doesn't feel engaging when they fight with magic because of it. Also Kubo's magic (and not only his) leave so many questions with not even a vague answer. I know it's supposed to be unexplained for the most part, but not like that. The last problem I have is the ending. It has some good ideas, but they are rushed. If something with consenquences happen and you don't wanna erase what happened by magic at least give the audience and the characters time to mourn and show some scenes later in the story to make it feel like it's not that bad. How is Kubo's life after all that has happened? How is the village? Nope they just rushed over it. The messages were fine, not very original but I don't see a problem in that. I would have liked them more if they didn't became increasingly obvious as the movie progressed.In conclusion is a good movie, too bad the story hold it back to being a 10/10. However this issues didn't stop me from enjoying the movie very much while watching and even crying a bit. If you want a perfect story or a lot of jokes, don't watch it. But otherwise is a very pleasing experience for the eyes and the heart and I recommend you watch it.

From the storytelling to the animation to the musical scoring, it is amazing. Many animated movies are deemed "kid' movies" due to them being simplistic and always being wrapped up in a neat bow with everyone happy and smiling, but this does not do that. It accepts the reality of his final predicament and shows contentment with it. It is a great movie for a whole family, not just kids.

I have always been a fan of the stories Studio Laika chooses to tell, but I have often found they fall just a little short of actually hitting all the right emotional responses in dramatic scenes. In Kubo and the Two Strings there was so much emotion I almost forgot to breath. A boy that loves to tell stories must go on to make it through his own, though the cruel dangers he faces spares no one. Absolutely beautiful (but so incredibly sad) story about family.

The story is a cosmic myth. Kubo and his mother escape and hide from her sisters and father who took his eye. They live in a cave and do not go out at night. Kubo is a street performer who utilizes magic and origami to tell long tales. With an ailing mother, Kubo wonders out and the epic story begins as a quest for a sword, shield, and helmet. His companions are a monkey and a beetle. I found the story to be delightful and funny. Charlize Theron as Monkey and Matthew McConaughey as Beetle did great character voices with well written lines.