Paranorman is the story of a little boy named Norman who has the gift of seeing and talking to those who have passed away. He sees all those ghosts who talk to him normally and not in a horrifying way.

He even finds their company to be friendlier than those of the living. It goes without saying that the relationship between him and his family is quite tense, and we must not forget about the village that looks at him with judgmental eyes as Norman seem to be talking in empty space or when he talks to dead animals.

However, his supernatural powers will allow him to save his village from an invasion caused by the ghost of a witch – that I must say uses zombies that I loved because of their awesome appearance.

In my opinion the success of the movie is to see classic scenes turned into humorous ones. This movie is a real delight not only because of its well performed humor, but also its monstrous scenes that could scare a younger public (I wouldn’t recommend it to young children) and, obviously, its music reminiscent of Goblins in Zombie.

Although quiet at the beginning, it leaves the viewers enough time to discover the characters and the ambiance the movie will take place in and so it is well thought.

Just like when we find out that Norman has only one friend named Neil who has a weak health or when we the plot is about to come to its end and Norman decides to leave to find the ghost of the witch and meets with one amazing being that I won’t tell about because it could ruin the surprise, you can only admire Norman’s compassion when watching those scenes.

On a more personal note, although I find the movie touching and funny, I also find it a little cruel. As an example, when the father talks to his son on a very strict tone despite him being kind and polite, left me bitter. It made me think about adults not thinking about how their words said in anger can affect children in a very damaging way.

I put myself in Norman’s shoes, an entire village against him, I couldn’t imagine the pressure he must have felt on his shoulders which made me appreciate his courage and kindness even more.

I must end this critique on a more negative note but said on a very personal level. This type of animation is not made for me. I find that if you’re going to spend all that time and effort on making a stop-motion movie, might as well turn to 3D animation for its beauty and neat finish.

The Djinn’s Review: 7/10

Mwahaha
Nanye