Summary
- Laika perseveres with time-consuming stop-motion animation.
- Missing Link falls short compared to previous Laika films.
- Kubo and the Two Strings shines with a cohesive aesthetic.
When Laika was founded in 2005, it seemed highly unlikely the stop-motion studio would succeed. The market was dominated by CGI at the time, and traditional animation was falling out of favour. The Disney Renaissance was a distant memory; Pixar and Dreamworks dominated the box office. Laika’s first and only short, Moongirl, failed to garner much attention despite winning multiple awards.
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Laika’s theatrical earnings belie the passion that goes into its productions: stop-motion is an intensely time-consuming and labour-intensive method of animation. Laika has persevered for over two decades now, and you can rest assured that the company’s long pauses between films are simply because of how much work goes into the next one. Here is every feature film by the studio, ranked.
Moongirl, Laika’s debut short, was computer-animated and directed by Henry Selick. It was released as a DVD collectible with the picture book adaptation, but otherwise remains difficult to find.
6
Missing Link
If produced by any other studio, Missing Link would be a much greater triumph than it is for Laika. It’s a decent movie: colourful, vibrant and packed with family-friendly, upbeat humour. However, set against the studio’s other offerings, Missing Link falls short.
The aesthetic and writing of Missing Link simply are not up to the previous films produced by the studio, and there are no visual sequences spectacular enough to set it apart. Although there is clearly a great deal of passion behind the craft, Missing Link feels like a misguided step towards more commercial projects at the expense of the studio’s identity. The star-studded voice cast softens the blow.
5
ParaNorman
ParaNorman took three years to produce, of which two years were spent on animation alone. While it sports a strong aesthetic, there isn’t much within the animation itself that is spectacular: the film does not have any memorable action sequences.
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What ParaNorman lacks in visual flair, it makes up for in heart. The film’s plot, focusing on themes of social isolation and self-acceptance, is indelible. It’s also worth noting that this film features the first appearance of an LGBTQ+ character in a mainstream animated movie.
A mere month after ParaNorman, 2012 saw another gothic stop-motion horror-comedy film: Frankenweenie, directed by Tim Burton. We recommend watching the two as a double-feature.
4
Kubo And The Two Strings
Japanese culture serves as a font of inspiration for creators around the world: it was the impetus for Kubo and the Two Strings, a visually breathtaking film about a boy with a magical shamisen. The film’s premise poses a challenge that few studios could rise up to quite like Laika: it demands a cohesive aesthetic, engaging soundtrack, and sensitivity in handling another culture.
Kubo and the Two Strings takes on every challenge presented to it with finesse. The use of computer-generated backgrounds blends seamlessly with the stop-motion sequences in the foreground, creating a film that has to be seen to be believed.
3
Coraline
Coraline is Laika’s biggest commercial triumph, and one of the rare cases where the movie adaptation was better than the book. This darkly humorous adventure adds to the story of the original while retaining its humour and whimsy.
This gothic contemporary fairytale tells the story of a girl who wishes for a different set of people in her life. She gets what she wants, but with many strings attached. The film features some truly frightening sequences that make it enthralling to watch even if you’re not a big fan of animated movies.
2
Corpse Bride
Corpse Bride was co-created with Tim Burton Productions, and as such is often missed in discussions about Laika’s output. One look at the actual film, however, establishes is as definitvely Laika. It features the same gothic, spindly aesthetic that Laika would perfect over the course of the company’s existence.
Directed by Tim Burton and featuring the voices of Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, Corpse Bride represents a passing of the gothic torch from the old-school Nightmare Before Christmas crowd to the then up-and-coming Laika. As a musical, Corpse Bride features a soundtrack infested by earworms. As a gothic film, it features characters probably infested by actual worms.
The voice cast did not share a booth while recording for Corpse Bride, making their performances even more impressive.
1
The Boxtrolls
The Boxtrolls is one of the most underrated stop-motion animated films to ever exist. Compared to Laika’s usual critical acclaim, the film only received a mildly positive reception. Forget the lukewarm reviews, however: the Boxtrolls was never truly meant for theatrical viewing anyhow.
Instead, this is a film that is perfect to watch at home with your loved ones. If you share a sense of humour, the Boxtrolls serves as perfect fodder for in-jokes and quotable references, and character designs that can make you laugh just by looking at them. Ben Kingsley acquits himself as one of the best comedic villains with his performance as Archibald Snatcher.
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