ParaNorman - Review

ParaNorman tells the tale of a young boy who has the ability to see and talk to ghosts. After a series of scary confrontations with his spirit friends, Norman must later use his gift to try and lift the curse of a witch placed on the citizens of his small town over 300 years ago.



I have wanted to see ParaNorman since I first saw a trailer a couple months ago for a couple reasons. The first reason being, I love horror movies and/or horror-themed movies even if they are kids movies. The second reason is the simple fact that I thought the animation looked fantastic. I chose not to read or listen to reviews before seeing it for myself so I could fully judge it for myself because kids movies always seem to be such a toss up. I am happy to say that I was not disappointed.
The plot was fairly simple but you have to remember that it is a movie for children. I'm not saying all kids are stupid, but they tend to enjoy things that have a simple plot line with a conflict and a villain. This movie had both conflict and a villain so it fit the general criteria. I thought the plot was carried out nicely despite a few minor bumps and minor rushes. The script had a few adult parts to it that I didn't think kids would quite get but most kids movies have that to keep the parents entertained. It's just how it is. With that said, I do think it could have received a PG-13 rating over the PG but let's face it... PG isn't what it was when I was a kid. PG-13 is what R-ratings used to be.
The animation was truly fantastic. I am a big fan of stop-motion and I thought this had real smooth transitions and effects. The characters were very animated and their movement was extremely easy on the eyes. The voice matching to the animation was also very well done. I also thought the general tone of the movie was very classic horror. There were zombies but it gave a feel of an old drive-in type horror aura instead of a bloody slasher type. They utilized scenery nicely and had a lot of set dressings that helped develop the creepy feel of things. Norman's bedroom was fantastically decorated and accessorized.

I won't talk much about spoilers because I feel it is a little pointless and I covered most of why I personally wanted to see the movie, but I did like it overall. If you have a kid that likes things a little more on the Haunted Mansion side of things, or even if you are an adult like me who does, I think ParaNorman would be a fun movie to see. I enjoyed it a lot.

*I also can't review the 3D aspect because I chose not to see it in 3D. Sorry.