What films influenced Coco?

Despite his family’s baffling generations-old ban on music, Miguel dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz. Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the stunning and colorful Land of the Dead following a mysterious chain of events. Along the way, he meets charming trickster Hector, and together, they set off on an extraordinary journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel's family history.

Year2017

CountryUnited States

DirectorLee Unkrich

Films with Similar Energy

Cinematic Threads

Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina researched the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema to ground Coco not in stereotype but in cultural precedent. Roberto Gavaldón's Macario — the first Mexican film nominated for Best Foreign Language Film — showed them how to treat the Day of the Dead with spiritual gravity, how to handle poverty and spirituality without sentimentality. Unkrich cited this explicitly in 2017 interviews. Macario is available on MUBI.

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