The movie begins with a lengthy anime of Olaf’s Frozen. It is as irritating as going to a restaurant to have a good mutton biryani and finding that its management insists that you first have curd rice as a compliment.
There is this Imelda Riveria married to a musician, who one day decides to walk out to pursue his dreams never to return. The family bans music from its family routine, and instead concentrates making shoes. Quite a logical thought given that more people want to wear footwear and later listen to music.
Generation after generation complies with this diktat, until Miguel appears on the scene. He wants to follow the footsteps of his great- great grandfather. Who is his great grandfather is the story.
Much before that he damages the photo of Imelda, gets caught by his grandmother for possessing a guitar, who instantly breaks it and he cannot enter a music contest since he does not have a guitar. On the day of the dead, hoping to find a guitar, he enters the grave of Ernesto de la Cruz whom he thinks is his great-great grandfather. Inadvertently, he enters the land of dead. He meets his ancestors there who are pleased with his entry. The catch is he has to re-enter the land of living before sunrise or else he would become a part of the land of dead. To re-enter, he must receive a blessing from his family that can undo the curse placed upon him by stealing Ernesto's guitar. Imelda offers Miguel a blessing on the condition that he abandon his musical pursuits, and unwilling to accept Imelda's conditions, Miguel enters deep into the land of dead seeking Ernesto's blessing instead.
Into his life enters Hector, a failed musician’s skeleton who used to perform with Ernesto. Hector offers to help Miguel on the condition that when Miguel re-enters the land of living, he will carry his photograph. His photograph being placed on the `Day of Dead’ will help him to get visa clearance to enter the land of living on the day of dead, and possibly see his daughter. There is also this condition that if everyone in the land of living permanently forget you, you will be dead even from the land of dead.
While Miguel is trying to find Ernesto, his dead family is in his hot pursuit. Ernesto proves to be a crook (his looks gave it away) who murdered his great- great grandfather Hector. How Miguel gets the blessings of his dead family to bless him unconditionally, how the mask is ripped of Ernesto’s face, how Miguel gets his great grandmother Coco to remember her father Hector, and how the honour of Hector is restored, forms remaining part of this wonderfully narrated animation movie. The family at the end removes its ban on Music.
The movie is full of lighter moments but at the end I had moist eyes (so did most of the audience) due to the overwhelming emotions. This movie is a must watch.
