Coco di Coco da (2019) is a film that defies traditional genres and audience expectations, but is sadly lost in its own eccentricity.
The plot of the film is limited even to the theme of "Groundhog Day". The basic idea of repeating cycles and trying to survive tragic events is not always conveyed clearly and emotionally. If you reduce the time of the movie three times, then nothing will change.
One of the most problematic aspects of the film is the urination scenes, which I think are getting too much attention. They cause discomfort without adding anything significant to the plot. This decision of the director seems excessive and unnecessarily provocative.
In addition, the length of the film becomes a serious drawback. Long cycles in which nothing significant happens also cause fatigue and aversion to what is happening on the screen.
However, Coco di Coco da is experimenting with genre conventions and has some visual art moments that can attract connoisseurs of avant-garde cinema.
The young couple coped perfectly with their acting task and did everything to cause an endless stream of dislike and irritation. I felt like a married man for thirty years.
There is nothing terrible about this film. If your favorite feeling is irritation, then you will like it.
In conclusion, Coco di Coco da leaves a difficult impression. It causes irritation and rejection, but at the same time has some unique features that can intrigue a certain audience. Despite its experiments, the film misses an opportunity to truly touch the viewer, leaving behind a sense of misunderstanding and disappointment.
1 out of 10
The incredible story of a married couple caught in purgatory after suffering a heavy loss. The film causes a kind of emotional shock, imposes a heavy feeling of what is happening on the screen, but the talented construction of the narrative brings the viewer to the end of the story - catharsis and emptiness. The animation and music featured in the film deserve special praise.
I expected the movie to be scary, mystical, because I saw it advertised on some scary channel. Maniacs, a tent in the woods, what else could you expect?
In fact, it is a drama, an art house, a parable film, anything but horror.
This is a film with beautiful visual images, they are a perfect illustration of the inner state of a person who has lost the most precious things in life. The film shows how loss causes us to abandon life, hate ourselves, the world around us and loved ones. What happens in the film shows how one can one day experience this loss, together, rather than separately.
In the film, you can characterize each image, each means something. A rooster in a cartoon; a dog that always hangs with a heavy load on the hands of one of the terrible trinity; a music box in the hands of a girl; a cat in the forest. Everything makes you think and look for an explanation. And if you find it, the movie won’t seem silly, confused, or empty.
Triangle and Groundhog Day in Scandinavia or a walk along the Kokoda Trail. In general, I liked the film, it's certainly not horror, and sharp sharpened art house, you need to tune in to view it, it's definitely not the movie that watch a cheerful company. Feelings after the film remains not the most joyful, because the topic here is touched upon truly terrible, which can be worse when children leave before their parents, it is an indescribable pain, you will live with it for the rest of your days. The film materializes our parental fears, and even with Scandinavian calm makes the plot even more tense. This movie can not be watched with rewinding, although in places such a desire appears, you can skip some piece of the puzzle without which the picture cannot be collected, too much here the director (he is also a screenwriter) stuffed symbolism, the most insignificant detail in the background means a lot, because even this animation and shadow theater tells a lot, someone can even let a tear. And here the director made an interesting move to take the films of the same David Lynch, (by the way, imitation of him is very well felt) there you really have to scratch your head to understand what is happening, because the "highlight" is buried very deeply, here almost the same thing, a lot of all sorts of thoughts, rewinding back with the feeling that something missed, and in the end you understand that the solution is simple, everything floated from above, but you do not feel deceived or disappointed. Of the minuses - the main characters are poorly spelled out, there is no sympathy or experience for them, some scenes - for example, a long "admiration" of coping with need and the joke of the character in the hat here is clearly superfluous.
If anyone asks me what this movie is about, I can’t say for sure. The word 'horrors' in the genre should not stop you from viewing, if you do not like this genre and, absolutely, should stop those who are used to ' to be afraid of scarecrow' and wants to tickle their nerves. Too many people who do not understand that horrors are not only terrible monsters, but, sometimes, simple things that frighteningly take everyone by surprise & #39; at four o'clock in the evening on an ordinary Tuesday' The tape is not in vain added to the genre 'arthouse' (on most resources, at least), but I can understand it. Probably, for an art house there is too much... it is clear when you think. Yes, in this film you have to look carefully and think, to understand what and why. If you are not close to this process - pass by.
Do not try to watch the trailer and draw conclusions: it will not show you anything or tell you anything. He's blatantly ugly for such a movie. It is completely unnecessary phrases about ' the scariest film' and ' Try to fall asleep'. It was necessary to do something without words, only with music and storyboards, to show that the atmosphere in the tape will be oppressive and forcing, sometimes, chilly cringe at the realization of why and what you are shown. Swedish cinema is quite unique. Perhaps, only in Swedish tapes I saw this interesting technique, when the film talks to you exclusively with visual images, almost completely depriving the audio accompaniment, replacing the dialogue with a quiet, muted sound of the soundtrack or deliberately not giving you almost hear what the characters say.
The images shown in 'Coco di Coco da' are disturbing, incomprehensible, strange, grotesque. I won't even argue. It was intentional. At first it seems that this is a mockery and even there are awkward laughs from misunderstanding ' what the hell' but, believe me, the further you look, the less you want to even laugh at what is happening.
As an emotional person, in a couple of moments I almost cried. Still, the topic that is covered in 'Coco di Coco da'... is the theme of family. How an inner tragedy affects a family, how it can deprive something important and make you forget what used to be dear. Like it ever was. Earlier.
'Drama'. Yeah. Here in the genre characterization did not fail.
The film itself is not bad and even has a deep subtext. But the fact that it appears everywhere as “horror”, and in the trailer it is also called one of the scariest films of 2019 (which has nothing to do with reality), spoils everything, as you expect a completely different one. The film is a drama in its purest form. Of the horror component here only "Groundhog Day" and then with a huge stretch.
Time loop. There are already a sufficient number of such films: here and The Edge of the Future, and The Time Loop, and The Triangle, not to mention the well-known Groundhog Day. So, Coco di Coco-da wanted to stand on a par with these films. Unfortunately, this is not meant to happen.
A young couple goes on vacation in the forest. This is one of their last attempts to reconcile and start life from scratch after the tragedy. But no one could even guess who they would meet in this peaceful, seemingly clearing. Here they have to die again and again in attempts to escape from the terrible workers of the circus. It is not known for what reason, but the man remembers all failed attempts to escape, while his wife does not understand his strange behavior.
In good movies that use the time looping technique, it is interesting to see how the characters try to change the outcome they do not want. It’s there, too, but it’s too slow for the characters to change. In addition, it remains unclear why they are constantly found. A'explanations' not that it sheds light on the nature of the phenomenon centered on the characters.
For the most part, the director 'Coco di Coco da' does not understand how to present the movie to the audience: as a horror film, as a fairy tale or as a black comedy. And that is far from his only problem. Heroes do not become more united, they practically do not develop, only cause slight irritation. I do not recommend this film to watch. In this subgenre there is already something to see.
My long-standing subconscious attraction to Scandinavian cinema, the sky-high rating of film critics and the kitten on the poster - then my heart melted, I realized that it was necessary to watch. It is impossible to describe the atmosphere of Scandinavian films, bordering on madness, but I will try. Despite the fact that by the genre of arthouse, I was always colder than the Siberian winter. We have a lot to learn from them.
There are no questions about the plot - a young couple who tragically lost their beloved daughter, after a few years goes to nature to spread their heads, understand something and, possibly, get closer again. Obviously, the result is exactly the opposite, and this will be discussed.
Before that, I saw some great movies in the style 'time loop' such as Colombian 'Volver a Morir' (2011) or the well-known 'Groundhog Day' ('Groundhog Day', 1993), a concept curious but not beaten, with great potential, and this work left behind a completely atypical imprint.
Time and time again we come across the same rake. We do not correct our mistakes, but double them. Is the situation aggravated by the lack of any dialogue, contact with the cause or effect of these problems? The film makes you wonder what is the source of that fatal darkness, which from a small point (in our case, a white seal) will inevitably turn into a black hole of consciousness, into which everything you had, what you wanted to be proud of, what you aspired to all your life will fall.
The character traits of the main characters are not revealed verbatim, but become clear without fictional plots, so simple and unobtrusive, as if on the screen your old neighbors. I don’t think you should focus on acting, because there are no complaints about it, and if there were, this film would be a completely different movie. From this point of view, everything is done here so that the viewer does not get distracted by the actors, but first of all looks at the root.
From the first shots catches the Scandinavian refinement and incredible pedantry to detail. Each situation is designed so competently that it gives more answers than the viewer can ask questions. Perfectly selected angles, a picture that does not allow you to take your eyes off the screen, beautiful music and such meaningful images that in the end ... let the viewer understand what they turn into.
A film about a deep misunderstanding in the family. About tragedy, about fate, about people who are lost and can not find a way out. But, sometimes, the answer to the question that we have been looking for all our lives is the closest one can imagine.
10 out of 10
I waited a long time for the film, but the movie turned out to be very bad and it’s not about expectations. The beginning of the film is not necessary, although it is the denouement of the plot. The villains are undisclosed, banal, uninteresting and groundless. The main characters do not cause feelings of empathy. History is not "radical psychotherapy": in such a situation, you are not solving family problems, but fleeing repeated death. Metaphor's unfortunate. The problem is not solved either in reality or in analogy. The cartoon is beautiful, but the analogy with the characters is drawn and not necessary. Opera music is a cheap reception of "arthouse" horrors. Why did the woman wake up? Why was it another actress? Why didn't the husband explain it to his wife normally? Why didn't they set up an ambush? Why is your husband always sloppy? Why didn't the author finish the film? One point is that, because of the squalor of the film, each "new day" seems as terrible as it is for the characters: "When will this end?" - you think, and this is the only thing that makes the protagonists empathize.
Elin and Tobias suffered a terrible tragedy when their daughter passed away on her own birthday. Since then, three years have passed, but grief only angered the couple and began to destroy their marriage: they constantly swear on trifles and can not hide irritation towards each other. However, the couple decides to go on a hike and set up a tent somewhere in the woods, but their quarrels in nature are suddenly interrupted by a grotesque trinity that appeared out of nowhere, and their intentions are clearly unkind. And this is not the strangest thing – the sadistic games of psychopaths, necessarily ending in murder, are launched again the next morning, forcing Elin and Tobias to experience this terrible “groundhog day” again and again, clearly forcing them to understand one thing: they urgently need to find a way to break out of the vicious circle.
A couple of years ago, we watched a successful American comedy horror movie “Happy Death Day”, in which the heroine was doomed time after time to experience her own death at the hands of an unknown killer and “Coco-di, Coco-da” at first seems to be his direct heir. But Europe is not America, and director Johannes Nyholm, although he uses a familiar scheme, still builds on it a more original and deep cinema. The plot frame of originality, however, does not shine and closer to the middle of the picture the constant and monotonous “repits” of the misadventures of Elin and Tobias begin to tire somewhat. But the action leads to catharsis – and the film acquires a completely different sound.
If the glossy and bright Hollywood hit pressed on humor and the charismatic main character, Nyholm focuses on surrealism in half with the work of von Trier and Haneke, moving from dramatic events to a sadistic thriller and back, diluting the action with excellent mini-performances played by hares from the shadow theater and having a direct relationship to the symbolism of the story told on the screen. The fact that the family tragedy and the depression associated with it perfectly fit into the plane of horror and add gloom to the general atmosphere, Ari Astaire perfectly proved to us in “Reincarnation” – so in “Coco di Coco-da” a painful sensation spills over the entire frame, where the manic quirks of the schizanistic trio are not an end in themselves. Since a more thorough study of the picture threatens spoiler, suffice it to say that behind the guise of a surreal horror story hides a rough, but unusual and very sad movie about the need to overcome grief and loss, at the same time simple and complex, in which the director, however, should not have quite clearly hinted at the genesis of maniacs at the very beginning – revealing the cards only on the final frames would have produced a much stronger effect.
P. By the way, “Coco di Coco-da” is not only the words of the song sung in the film, but also the usual Swedish onomatopoeia, equivalent to the Russian “coukarek”.
Like many chilling horror movies, this one begins with an innocent children's song about a dead rooster who will never scream "Kukareka" again. Here the secret of the name is revealed: "Coco-di Koko-da" is just "kukarek" in the Swedish manner. Further, as befits in genre cinema, the children's song will become the prologue to one real and many surreal nightmares.
A carefree couple rests on a picnic - mom, dad and daughter. For a short time, the daughter is lost, looking at an old music box in the window of an antique store – later this seemingly insignificant detail may be the key to understanding the puzzle of the film. The holiday is spoiled when, after eating pizza with shellfish, the mother begins food poisoning. She has to go to the hospital and the rest of the family is fine. In the morning, Mom is better, and she and Dad are preparing to congratulate their daughter on her eighth birthday. And then there is a nightmare...
“Coco di Coco da” is one of those films about which it is very difficult to understand anything from the description, and even from fragments from the film. I had hoped to see another variation on the theme of “Turning the wrong way” – being mentally prepared for the fact that in Europe the “pivot” could be quite perverse. But I was not sure that the story would turn out to be something like a horror version of Groundhog Day, when the characters fall into the same death trap, trying to get out of it over and over again. This technique has long been not new – take at least the horror dilogy of “Happy Death Day”, where the heroine tries to escape inside a time loop from the killer. But there the action was deliberately comedic, bright, sitcom key (especially in the second part, which turned into a stupid carnival with an admixture of physics). “Coco di Coco-da” is murderously gloomy, despite the stupidity of circus antagonists – a strange trinity from the forest: an old man in a white suit and with a cane in his hand, a strange woman with black hair and a gorilla-like giant overgrown with hair. The three hunt for their grief-stricken parents from the prologue, who, due to a quarrel, spontaneously decide to spend the night in the woods. The “focal” character of the time loop is the father – he alone remembers previous events, and tries to save himself and his wife in different ways, but maniacs get to them every time. When the viewer begins to think that he is watching another “Groundhog Day”, the story suddenly changes the focal character – now the heroine begins to live cycles, and her nightmare – in the infernal children’s shadow theater in the middle of the forest, where a terrible tale about parents-bunnies who lost their hare is played out. The story ends with a catharsis, which remains an open question - what was it?
The value of the story is that you can have multiple versions of what's going on. What is the fantasy of a dying child? Revenge of a restless spirit? How these three tormentors materialized, because they are drawn on the same music box that the girl saw, and the box moves in a circle: just as the story develops. And then it is no longer a stupid horror story like “Happy Day...”, but a metaphorical parable about loss, hopelessness, fear. I highly recommend you to find this movie and decide for yourself - what lies behind the innocent song with an obsessive motif of "coco di coco-da".