Jorge Guitierrez's The Book Of Life is certainly chock full of that. It is vibrant, colourful and will entertain entire children and adults alike in this tale of love and family.
The lords of the Mexican Underworld's Land of the Remembered and Land of the Forgotten make a wager on the Day Of The Dead over the result of a love triangle between three childhood friends; Manolo, Joaquin and Maria.
It may start off with a predictable love story at its heart but it is incredibly inventive with its visuals and storytelling and it is an incredibly enjoyable ride that will see a man literally go to hell and back for the woman he loves.
The English speaking cast are very good with Del Toro regular Perlman delivering menace and pathos as Sebulba, Zoe Saldana is sassy as Maria and Channing Tatum proves once again no one is currently better at playing an idiot with a heart of gold.
The bookended narrative of a museum tour guide teaching kids about Mexican culture paints it as a timeless story but the use of modern songs does date it and could have done without this.
It has been a disappointing year for animation (with the exception of The LEGO Movie) but this film proves there is still some life in it yet.
3 stars
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