Upon its 2009 debut, Henry Selick’s Coraline proved to be a stop-motion masterpiece. Imaginative stop-motion artistry brings Neil Gaiman’s fairy tale from the page to the screen. While some consider the film pure nightmare fodder and gateway horror for kids, Coraline has been the delight of tween goths, Hot Topic shoppers, and adults who dance on the dark side for the better part of 25 years.
Part of the genius behind this “children’s” film is story-based craftsmanship that jams hundreds of design details, Easter eggs, and hidden elements into the twisted tale. Some details are so covert that it took years for fans to even notice.
Here are some small and spooky, yet important, details any true Coraline fan must know before their next re-watch.
1. There Is A Blink-and-You’ll-Miss-It Cameo From Jack Skellington
In the scene in which the Other Mother is baking in the kitchen, she is seen cracking an egg into a green bowl. If the scene is paused at exactly the right moment, the head of Jack Skellington can be seen as the yolk of the egg.
2. Mr. Bobinsky Is a Hero Who Earned Distinction During The Chernobyl Disaster
Former circus worker and mouse enthusiast Mr. Bobinsky is often seen wearing a medal on his white tank top. Upon closer inspection, the medal is not just fancy decoration. It is the medal given to the personnel and emergency workers who participated in the clean up of the aftermath of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster. A group that included firefighters, soldiers, miners, factory workers, and people from the surrounding area, sacrificed their own lives and health to remove deadly materials after the Chernobyl incident.
In honor of their sacrifice, the Soviet government honored them with the title of “liquidator” and this medal. By 1991, there were approximately 600,000 liquidators.
It is also speculated by many that it might be why Mr. Bobinsky is the only blue-hued character.
3. Other Father Pays Homage to One of the Director’s Other Movies
When the Other Father plays a happy little welcoming ditty for Coraline, he can be seen wearing monkey slippers. Upon closer inspection, they appear to bear a resemblance the character of Monkeybone, director Henry Selnick’s 2001 off-kilter black comedy that performed poorly at the box office.
Based on the comic book Dark Town and starring Brendan Fraser, Monkeybone‘s failure was said to be due to studio interference and Twentieth Century Fox’s reluctance to promote the project, according to filmmakers.
4. In Selnick We Trust
When Charlie Jones tips the movers a measly dollar for all their hard work, take a good, hard look at that particular piece of currency. Instead of a Founding Father, the image on the bill is of director Henry Selnick.
5. The Songs Are in Gibberish as a Means to Confuse and Unsettle the Audience
Songs like “Dreaming,” “Mechanical Lullaby,” or “Alone” have an ethereal and haunting quality thanks to the efforts of a children’s choir. Listen closely to the lyrics, though; They are not in any known language. Though the songs might resemble English or even French, but the lyrics only mimic language.
Writer Bruno Coulais uses glossolalia to give the melody an eerie mood. In an interview, director Henry Selick confirmed this, stating: “It’s all nonsense words. You might hear a little accent, and you’re not sure, but that’s something Bruno likes to do. He uses sounds. It’s all sung nonsense.”
6. The Other Mother Keeps Trophies Of Her Past Victims
When Coraline sits down for her first dinner with Other Mother and Other Father, there are silhouettes of unknown children hanging on a nearby wall. Well, unknown at the time. They are the portraits of the Other Mother’s last victims, the Ghost Children, as they appeared in life.
7. Why All the Neighbors Got Coraline’s Name Wrong
Though unconfirmed, this fan theory is worth mentioning.
When moving to the Pink Palace, every neighbor Coraline meets calls her “Caroline” or a version of it, much to her chagrin. However, as the sad history of the Pink Palace and the missing children could be known for most of the residents, and perhaps even the existence of the Other Mother, it could be they were attempting to shelter Coraline from the entity known as the Beldam by protecting her name.
8. The Jones Family Was in a Car Accident That Coraline May or May Not Have Caused
“In the kitchen when it is raining, Coraline and her real mother Mel are heard bickering in the kitchen.
“I think it’s perfect weather for gardening.”
“No, Coraline. Rain makes mud.”
“Mud makes a mess.”
“But, Mom, I want stuff growing…when my friends come to visit. Isn’t that why we moved here?”
“Something like that. But then we had the accident.”
“It wasn’t my fault you hit that truck.”
“I never said it was.”
“I can’t believe it.”
It is the reason why Mel wears a neck brace throughout the film. And possibly why they are short on money and having to move into a dingy, new residence. And why they are exhausted with Coraline. While Charlie and Mel might love their daughter, it appears they do on some level blame her for a car accident that occurred not too long before the events of the film.
Shots of Mel Jones’ Volkswagen Bug show the car has had recent damage to the headlight and bumper.
As a result, Mel is tense and short-tempered with her daughter, while Coraline’s father is completely exhausted due to the situation. Attempting to get their lives back on track after this major setback, they appear to find it difficult to embrace and help their daughter through this difficult transition.
9. Spink and Forcible Have Candy Dish for Each of the Ghost Children
When Coraline goes to visit the aging Miriam Forcible and April Spink., she is given a bowl of vintage ribbon candy that is practically a fossil. However, a quick glance of Spink and Forcible collection of antiquated candy reveals a dark detail that most people have theorized: that the three bowls of ancient candy correspond with each of the years the three children disappeared.
When choosing a candy dish, three options that appear to the audience are 1921, 1936, and 1960. This was probably the last time the two ladies had visitors, which were probably the children.
10. Other Mother Might Not Be Completely Gone
When Coraline visits the Other Father in the garden, he shows her that the garden is actually an homage to her, forming her face when viewed from above. Later, when Other Mother is revealed to be the Beldam, the garden is destroyed and distorted.
At the end of the film when Coraline is converted the former dirt lot back into a garden with the help of her parents and neighbors, a view from above reveals that the Other Mother might not be completely gone, as the garden from above reveals the visage of the Beldam.
11. An All-Seeing Planchette Helps Coraline on Her Quest
In an effort to find the eyes of the three Ghost Children that the Other Mother has taken, Coraline uses the Stone that was given to her by Miriam Forcible and April Spink. The green, triangle-shaped stone is actually a planchette, which is commonly paired with Ouija boards as a means to peek into the afterlife and communicate with the deceased. When used “correctly,” it can garner answers to questions from those on a spiritual plane of existence.
In the Other World, the Stone allows Caroline to see the truth and find the lost eyes of the Ghost Children.
12. Coraline Bears Marks From the Other Mother’s Attack
After fighting for her life with the Beldam, AKA the Other Mother, Coraline can be seen bearing bruises and red marks on her neck. In the scene after she battles the Other Mother’s disembodied hand, her neck appears to show a little battle damage from where she was dragged.
13. An Insect Theme Foreshadows the Other Mother’s True Form
Even before the Beldam makes her true form known and transforms the Pink Palace into an insect haven, there is insect imagery early in the movie. Mel Jones drives a VW bug and Coraline’s treasured picture of her friends back home is held up by a praying mantis. And when Coraline is attempting to open the small door to the Other World, the wallpaper is covered in faded beetles.
14. There Is a Hidden Reference to The Shining
In the scene in which one of the jumping mice wake Coraline from her slumber, there is a chair where little rag doll Coraline sits. It is a small, wooden chair with a floor design on the headpiece. The chair is meant to resemble the chair Jack Torrance sits in while typing his book Apt Pupil (another list for another day). Though a different shape, that chair shares a similar flower-shaped design.
Coraline would not be the first kids’ movie with a reference to The Shining. Nor would it be the last.
