Kubo and the Two Strings (2016) - Review by Emily Gallipeau

History of Kubo and the Two Strings Production history:

Kubo and the Two Strings is a stop motion film produced By Laika in 2016. The film was announced two years prior, and was expensive to produce, needing several large-scale puppets as well as multiple versions of each character. The movie was directed and produced by Travis Knight and was his first directing debut. The movie was Laika’s first use of CGI for more elaborate scenes in addition to stop motion. The movie cost 60 million dollars to produce and grossed 77.5 million.[1] Kubo and the Two Strings was nominated for two academy awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Visual Effects, however lost to Zootopia and The Jungle Book respectively.

History of Kubo and the Two strings actual history:

Kubo and the Two Strings takes place within feudal japan. The exact year is not stated within the movie both due to the more fantastical nature and because the creators of the movie used elements from multiple time periods. The characters in the movie wear clothing and use weapons accurate to feudal japan. Some examples of clothing include Kimono and Geta or Wooden Sandals. The design of these articles of clothing are accurate for feudal japan, and the patterns on them take inspiration from historical Kimono.[1] The weapons used in the film are fairly accurate to feudal japan, though the weapons used by one of the characters called a Kusarigama is not used or designed in a way that is fully accurate.[2] The festival of Obon also takes place within the movie and was a fairly accurate portrayal of the festival. Obon is a festival celebrating the dead, and includes a feast, large bonfire, dancing, and the lighting of paper lanterns.[3] Overall the film does a decent job portraying Feudal Japan, but has a few issues that could have been fixed had someone with extensive knowledge of Ancient Japan checked the script.

[1] Milligan, ByMercedes. “Animated People: 'Kubo' Costume Designer Deborah Cook.” Animation Magazine, January 17, 2017. https://www.animationmagazine.net/top-stories/animated-people-kubo-costume-designer-deborah-cook/. [2] Friday, Karl F., and Humitake Seki. “Legacies of the Sword.” Essay. In Legacies of the Sword: the Kashima-Shinryū and Samurai Martial Culture, 120–20. Honolulu, Hawaii: University Press of Hawaii, 1997. [3] Sakamoto, Shizuka. “What Is Obon? A Guide To The Japanese Halloween.” Savvy Tokyo, August 7, 2020. https://savvytokyo.com/obon-the-japanese-festival-of-the-dead/.

[1] “Kubo and the Two Strings.” Box Office Mojo. Accessed November 1, 2020. https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl3881600513/.