Coraline, a movie based on Neil Gaiman’s novella of the same name is the story a young girl (Dakota Fanning) who unlocks a mysterious door in her new home in Ashland, Oregon, and enters into an adventure in a parallel reality. On the surface, this other world eerily mimics her own life—though much more fantastical. In it, Coraline encounters such off-kilter inhabitants as the morbidly funny Miss Forcible (Jennifer Saunders) and Miss Spink (Dawn French), and a counterfeit mother—who attempts to keep her. Ultimately, Coraline must count on her resourcefulness, determination, and bravery to get back home.
Kids flick, but the reuniting of French and Saunders may make it appealing to adults as well. Coraline comes out February 2009.