The Pure Horror at the Heart of CORALINE
More than just a family-friendly Halloween favorite, Coraline offers young audiences a perfect first foray into the world of horror. By: Josh McCormack One of my favorite topics to discuss amongst fellow horror fans is “gateway horror.” The term refers to films seen in formative youth that paved the way for a love of the horror genre; gateway horror could be anything from Tibor Takacs’ The Gate to Walt Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs . These films aren’t anywhere near the R-rated territory, but they often feature images frightening enough to give impressionable kids nightmares. For nearly two decades, one of the most popular gateway horror films has been Henry Selick’s Coraline, the 2009 stop-motion adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s book of the same name. Having seen the film in theaters at the time of its release, I still remember certain sequences really upsetting me even at the age of 11. As the years go by, my admiration for the film grows, and so does its imp...
