ParaNorman: Critic Reviews

The story may be thin, but the project, a feat of stop-motion animation, is made with generous care by the same impressive LAIKA studio artists who conjured up the gorgeous Coraline.

The story, an amusing if not especially fresh tale involving a witch and some Puritans, is principally a vehicle for the movie's meticulously detailed pictorial beauty, which turns each scene into an occasion for discovery and sometimes delight.

It's an engaging entertainment, with a solidly constructed storyline.

An entertaining and visually attractive family-friendly story.

A colorfully macabre stop-motion animation comedy that embraces the sociopolitical allegories of George A. Romero's zombie pictures and reworks them into a feature-length episode of "Scooby-Doo."

The movie has its moments of dark whimsy and cheeky wit, but most of what it has is body parts.

Butler called it "John Carpenter meets John Hughes," and that does just about sum ParaNorman up, though the actual math still feels a little fuzzy.

It's as slow as a corpse, and half as interesting.

... if you're any kind of animation or graphic art fiend or even mild enthusiast, the visuals are sure to stagger you. ParaNorman is an extrasensory delight for sure.

The film avoids the pandering of many animated features, bringing an acerbic edge and a thrilling intelligence to its story.

What works about "ParaNorman" is its subtle interweave of the stoical and the heroic.

This swell stop-motion animation operates on a wavelength similar to that of Laika's debut feature, Coraline, with assured character comedy counterbalanced by a solemn sense of macabre wonder.

Humor depends on character, context and continuity, none of which is in abundant supply in "ParaNorman."

Chances are most kids, and most adults, will find "Paranorman" perfectly horrible in the best possible way.

Truly, this is one animated film that would work just as well as a live-action movie.

Few movies so taken with death have felt so rudely alive as ParaNorman, the latest handcrafted marvel from the stop-motion artists at Laika.

Employs stop-motion animation to provide hand-crafted appeal to the clever and surprisingly scary story of a Massachusetts town whose witch-hunting past catches up with it on its 300th anniversary.

The quick-witted script and visual puns (check out Norman's bedroom) make this a zombie movie for kids, but one parents can enjoy.

"ParaNorman" took a huge risk on a scarier concept, and it paid off enormously.

Unlike the polished universe of Pixar's "Brave" or countless other recent CGI efforts, "ParaNorman" maintains a delicate, handcrafted look that underscores its ideas.

If the story lacks the consistent psychological depth of Coraline, another tale of an outcast finding solace in a parallel world, amends are made during the lovely climax.

It has its entertaining moments, but this paranormal stop-motion animated comedy-chiller cries out for more activity.

ParaNorman, blessed with otherworldly animation, can't escape the demons of story.

It's not just Pixar that kicks ass in animation. There's magic in ParaNorman, a small miracle in stop-motion 3D from the wizards at Laika.

Paranorman has a unique look that's equal parts old school and cutting edge.