ParaNorman

USA 2012, 88 minutes
Dir. Chris Butler, Sam Fell
Rating: [PG] scary scenes
Genres: Family / Animation, Walking Dead

Topics: Halloween-friendly, Stop-motion.

Feat. Kodi Smit-McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Casey Affleck, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Leslie Mann, Jeff Garlin, John Goodman, Elaine Stritch, Jodelle Ferland

“Equal parts midnight-movie macabre and family-round-the-hearth compassionate, that scars in all the right ways.”~Time Out

Aroview: A young boy who can speak to the dead must help save his town from a centuries-old curse of the undead in this latest stop-motion wonder from Laika animation studios (CORALINE).

Beating Tim Burton at his own game of gothic pastiche, this lovingly-crafted animation can take its place alongside Halloween comedy classics like BEETLEJUICE, with its drop-dead gorgeous production and character design, terrific voice work and a script that bristles with inspiration. As with CORALINE, it's probably too intense for very small children, but for those who can sleep with the light off, and even unaccompanied adults who know their horror history, this will treat as much as it tricks at any time of year.