Movie Review: The Book Of Life

The Book Of Life is an animated film where a group of students visiting a museum were led to a secret tour of the museum by Mary Beth. They ended up in exhibit about Mexico. In the middle of the exhibit was The Book Of Life, which contains how the world were shaped. She then proceeds to tell them the story of three friends - Manolo, Joaquin and Maria in the town of San Angel during the Day of the Dead. The two gods - La Muerte (Kate del Castillo) and Xibalba (Ron Perlman) - decided to make a bet about who Maria will choose between Manolo and Joaquin.  But Maria's father, General Posada decided to send her away after causing a ruckus. During that time, Manolo was trained to become a bull fighter by his dad Carlos Sanchez (Hector Elizondo) while Joaquin became a soldier and a town hero with the help of a magic medal given to him by Xibalba.

On the day Manolo (Diego Luna) is set to fight the bull, Maria (Zoe Saldana) came back from Europe while Joaquin (Channing Tatum) came back to visit as well. That's when the rivalry started between Manolo and Joaquin. Who will win the heart of Maria?

I must say that this film surprised me in a good way. The animated was crisp and clear which is a major props to Reel FX. The storyline was easy to follow and the acting was superb especially for the three major characters. Major props to the tres mirachi - their quirky lines made me laugh a couple of times.

The music was amazing particularly two songs - Apology and I Love You Too Much. The latter will surely become a big hit. The film is quite vibrant, filled with color even during some of the sad scene and Land of the Forgotten.  Definitely go see The Book Of Life, its not only a great movie, its also full of life lessons.

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