“Remember Me” not only is the name of the song that will be stuck in your head after Coco, but it is also the main theme of the latest beautiful animated film by Pixar.

Set in Mexico during Día de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead), it follows the story of Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), a boy who dreams of becoming a musician just like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt). Miguel’s family, however, is firmly against it and music is banned from their household. The explanation: Miguel’s great-grandmother Coco (Ana Ofelia Murguía) was abandoned by her father, who was a musician himself and left to pursue his career.

Miguel’s grandmother forbids him to do anything related to music and claims that his destiny is to work for the family business as a shoemaker. Coco is still alive, though suffering from the common problems of advance aging: she is starting to forget things.

On Día de Los Muertos, when everyone is celebrating their ancestors by putting their photos up and offering them gifts, Miguel, convinced that he is related to Ernesto de la Cruz, goes to his grave and steals his guitar. The consequence is immediate: Miguel is sent to the Land of the Dead and can only return with a blessing from one of his ancestors. Once there, he meets Héctor (Gael García Bernal), who promises to help him if, in return, Miguel agrees to bring his photo back to the living world so Hector is not forgotten.

The Land of the Dead is visually stunning, proving, once again, that Pixar really knows how to create different worlds, with bright colors and an incredible amount of details. All the different colors and the glowing lights make the audience feel as if they have indeed been transported to another world.

Another very important aspect of the film is the role music plays. Pixar doesn’t usually include this amount of songs in its features, leaving it for Disney animated films. In Coco, however, they have made a great exception and included 5 original songs, such as “Remember Me”, mentioned at the beginning of the text. This one is performed in different parts of the story and sung by different characters, every time with a different musical arrangement. So it is, indeed, impossible not to have it stuck in your head by the end of the movie. It was written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, the same couple of composers behind Frozen.

Directed by Lee Unkrich (Toy Story 3) directs this beautiful and poignant story, which will, doubtfully, make you leave the theater thinking about the importance of family (present and past).

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