Coraline: be careful what you wish for

Coraline is a young girl who moves with her parents to an old house. Strange neighbors live on the floors above and below. Her parents love their daughter, but they are too busy to spend any time with her. So she has to find ways to amuse herself. Eventually she makes her way through a small door and a tunnel into an alternate world. The purpose of everything in the other world seems to be to make her life more enjoyable. But not everything is as it seems.

'Coraline' is a 3D stop-motion animated film, starring Dakota Fanning, Terri Hatcher, Jennifer Saunders and Dawn French, directed by Henry Selick, based on the book by Neil Gaiman.

Another World

The other world is an illusion. It is designed by the malicious Other Mother to lure Coraline into a false sense of security. Everyone in that world wears false personas to make Coraline believe they love her. But in fact those who really love her are her parents. She would prefer them to be more visible in their displays of affection. They aren't as interesting as the parents in the illusion. Yet when it comes to crunch time, Coraline recognizes that she would rather live with those who love her than those who try to make her happy. As the film progresses, she learns that the beauty of the other world is merely a means to draw her into a trap. Once there, she will become food for the Other Mother. As the Other Mother is resisted, she slowly reveals her true form as a monster, something like a giant spider.

Decisions

Some decisions we make have clear rights and wrongs. But what about those decisions where there is no obvious answer? Coraline could have chosen to remain in the other world. But as the film progresses we learn what a terrible mistake that would have been. This shows a very definite truth about the choices we make: things which appear to be harmless and make life more enjoyable aren't necessarily good for us. They can in fact be extremely dangerous. Coraline learned these things quickly, and was able to outwit the Other Mother and return safely to her real life.

Discussion questions

• What would your perfect world be like?
• How can we discern what situations will ultimately do us more harm than good?
• Can you think of real-life situations that look harmless but are actually dangerous?
• How do you make difficult decisions when there is no clear answer?
• How can we demonstrate our love for those we care about?
• Is there anyone you would risk your life for?
• If your neighbors were as strange as Coraline's, how would you treat them?

Richard Blakely, June 2009