DVD reviews: Coraline Blu-ray

From the mind of fantasy writer Neil Gaiman and the studio of Henry Selick, the creator of the classic Nightmare Before Christmas, comes Coraline, a dark fantasy that’s every bit as creepy as Nightmare…, if not more so.

Coraline Jones is a sharp kid bored by her parent’s palpable disinterest, and slips into a mirror world inhabited by doppelgangers with buttons for eyes and less-than-wholesome intentions. If that sounds unsettling, it is, which of course is part of the fun.

Blending beautifully detailed stop-motion animation with computer-generated imagery, Coraline is slick, moody and always captivating. It’s a rare film capable of pleasing kids and adults alike.

Bruno Coulis’s fairytale score, built around the harp, will sound exceptional if you’ve got a decent stereo system, although the set pieces by They Might Be Giants really are an acquired taste.

The Blu-ray version comes with red-and-blue 3D glasses, though unfortunately this doesn’t give the same effect as if you’d seen it in a cinema. In the end it’s hardly necessary. TIM GREY

Movie: 4

Sound: 4

Vision: 4