ParaNorman Review-

The Hero’s JourneyCat Barber

ParaNorman (2012)

• ParaNorman is an American stop motion animated film made by Laika studios and directed by Sam Fell and Chris Butler.

• Laika studios are famous for created beautiful stop motion animated features such as Coraline (2009).

• It’s a story about a young boy called Norman Babcock, who has the ability to see and speak with the dead. As a result he is treated horribly by people in his family and from his school, as most people believe him to be insane.

• This all changes when zombies rise from their graves to terrorize his home town.

Ordinary World- Blithe Hollow

• Norman lives in the town of Blithe Hollow.

• The town has a famous story about an evil witch who lived there and threatened to curse the villagers by using dark magic.

• As the story goes the witch was hanged by the neck and was vanquished from the land. Good ruled over evil and Blithe Hollow prides itself with the story, as the local businesses are named after the tale.

• Norman learns of the story at school, when he takes part in a school play about the witch.

Meeting the Mentor- Grandma

• One person that Norman confines in is his diseased grandmother, who hangs around in his house to watch over him.

• Out of everyone in Norman’s family, Grandma is the kindest and most understanding of the boy’s troubles. She is the person he trusts and goes to for guidance.

Call to Adventure- Mr Prendergast

• After a rehearsal of the school play, Norman is encountered by a homeless man called Mr Prendergast. It was earlier revealed that this man is in fact a relative of Norman from his mother’s side.

• Prendergast starts talking to Norman about his ability to talk to the dead, and he speaks of how he has the same power.

• He then goes onto tell Norman that this power is very important and there is something that needs to be done.

Refusal of the Call

• Norman doesn’t listen to the words of Mr Prendergast, as his family have told him to keep away from the strange homeless man.

• Norman’s friend Neil wards off Prendergast by throwing food at him.

• However this doesn’t stop Prendergast, even when he suffers a heart attack at his home.

• He then goes to see Norman again and tell him about the awakening of the Blithe Hollow witch.

• Norman is then given a task by Prendergast, where he needs to retrieve a book from Prendergast’s home and read it at the witch’s burial ground.

• Norman then speaks to his grandmother, asking what to do, as he was confused and frightened.

• She tells him it’s normal to be afraid, and the thing that matters is what Norman will do with that fear.

• This is enough to convince Norman to attempt what Mr Prendergast told him to do.

Crossing the Threshold- Seizing the Book • After speaking with his grandmother, Norman

peruses the book and goes to Mr Prendergast’s house, where he retrieved the book from the man’s corps.

• He then goes to the grave stones of the witches victims to read the book and hopefully end the curse.

• It’s at this stage when Norman truly leaves the world he knows and enters a place he’s not familiar with.

Belly of the Whale- Zombies Arise

• When Norman attempts to use the book, it doesn’t work and the victims of the witch rise from the dead as zombies.

• It’s at this point when Norman is in the most danger, and the severity of the situation is revealed.

• Norman escapes from the zombies and works out that the book didn’t work because it wasn’t read at the witch’s burial ground.

Road of Trails- Town Hall

• Since the book was read at the wrong place, Norman goes to find out where the witch is buried. He is tipped that a record of her burial place may be recorded somewhere in the records contained in the town hall.

• Norman and his friends go through books and files to find any record of the witch, and whilst they do that the zombies and the town locals are at war with each other.

Meeting with the Goddess- Courtney • After Norman finds out where the witch

is buried he finds it difficult to escape the town hall, as the villagers are in riot outside. When he tries to leave they only stop him.

• It’s at this point when his sister Courtney, stands up for him and stands by his side. This convinces the other friends to do the same.

• Courtney represents the goddess as she is a strong figure of love and family in Norman’s life, and this act illustrates how much her opinion of him has changed from the beginning of the film.

Atonement with the Father- Aggie

• Norman find the burial ground of the witch and meets her spirit which he must confront.

• Aggie is a young girl who was put to death for witchcraft, and her soul remains restless after her tragic death.

• She is the one character in the story that holds the most power and the confrontation between her and Norman is the climax of the film.

The Ultimate Boon- Aggie’s Afterlife

• At this point Norman succeeds in getting through to Aggie, and they both find them selves in a forest, where Aggie’s true form is shown.

• It’s here where Aggie is comforted by Norman, and then moves onto the afterlife where she hopes to be reunited with her mother.

Crossing the Return Threshold- Aggie Sleeps• After speaking with Norman,

Aggie falls asleep and moves on.

• This brings Norman back to his own world, where he is reunited with his family.

• This is the crossing the return threshold in the story as the world is made well again and Norman can return home after achieving what set out to do.

Master of Two Worlds- Norman

• The final scene in the film that concludes the story shows Norman watching a film with his family, including his grandmother.

• Here the family show complete acceptance in Norman and his ability.

• This shows Norman’s world at peace, as his family have learned about his powers and are content with how he is.

Illustration List• Figure 1, ParaNorman Poster- http://onehallyu.com/topic/60931-coraline-vs-paranorman-vs-monster-house/

• Figure 2, Blithe Hollow- https://blithehollowzombies.wordpress.com/2013/04/08/blithe-hollow-massachusetts/

• Figure 3, Grandma- http://www.universalpicturesinternational.com/intl/paranorman/intl/nz/characters/

• Figure 4, Mr Prendergast- http://viewerscommentary.com/2012/08/26/theatrical-review-paranorman/

• Figure 5, Mr Prendergast- http://paranorman.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Prenderghast

• Figure 6, Mr Prendergast- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzbbXJTi2_A

• Figure 7, Grandma- http://www.coveringmedia.com/movie/2012/08/paranorman.html

• Figure 8, Norman- http://www.scififx.com/2012/08/paranorman-contest/

• Figure 9, Zombie- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuxocalq_N8

• Figure 10, Norman- http://lylesmoviefiles.com/2012/08/17/review-paranorman/

• Figure 11, Courtney- http://grabpage.info/t/www.bing.com:80/images/search?q=ParaNorman%20Courtney&first=29&count=28&FORM=IBASEP

• Figure 12, Aggie- http://www.suggestkeyword.com/cGFyYW5vcm1hbiBhZ2F0aGE/

• Figure 13, Aggie- http://paranorman.wikia.com/wiki/File:Paranorman-disneyscreencaps_com-9410.jpg

• Figure 14, Aggie- http://paranorman.wikia.com/wiki/File:Paranorman-disneyscreencaps_com-9662.jpg

• Figure 16, Family- http://basementrejects.com/review/paranorman-2012/