Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)

The critic calls it technically masterful and full of heart, suggesting Laika may have delivered their masterpiece with this staggering stop-motion fable. They single out the poetic visuals and the film's reverent handling of themes of loss and grief.

The critic hails a dazzling fable with peerless stop-motion puppetry and creative CGI, woven around rich metaphors for love, loneliness and loss. They single out the gorgeously detailed animated masterpiece and its enchanting quality from the first frame.

The critic hails it as a stop-motion masterpiece that is staggeringly beautiful and immensely true, the best animated film of 2016. It showcases Laika's technical and storytelling prowess at their peak.

The film gives its young audience credit by handling tough themes of loss, family betrayal and resilience without condescension. It excels through jaw-dropping stop-motion visuals and a moving focus on storytelling's power to connect and transform.

The critic praises this stop-motion debut as succeeding on every level, highlighting its complex dark themes, extraordinary animation beauty, lyrical writing, and exploration of rebirth and destiny.

The critic calls it a dazzling artistic leap for Laika, an eye-popping delight blending colorful folklore with gorgeous origami-informed visuals in a thoroughly engaging animated adventure. It honors filmmakers from Kurosawa to Miyazaki while delivering wonder, sly humor, and emotional touchstones about keeping memories alive.

The stop-motion adventure delivers gorgeous, fluid action and startling visual conceits while resolving its story and metaphors in unexpected, moving ways. Director Travis Knight creates an all-ages entertainment that avoids clichés and delivers a sincere family-friendly message.

A glorious flight of the imagination from Laika, with sharp funny dialogue, magical origami storytelling, and an Indiana Jones-style quest in ancient Japan.

Laika's crowning achievement blends staggering visuals and genuine heart in a fantastical samurai quest that puts the emotion in stop-motion. Knight's directorial debut delivers awe-inspiring artistry and a sincere denouement that rewards repeated viewings.

The critic finds it a dazzling triumph with real resonance, praising the gorgeous animation and inventive monster designs while noting the dreamlike plotting overloads mythology. It stands out for processing death as part of life rather than using dead parents as a trope.

Laika's latest is another strong entry in their run of quality stop-motion films, balancing comedy, light horror and genuine emotion in an original Japanese-inspired tale. The animation is singled out for particular praise, especially the fluid movement of Kubo's hair and the overall visual beauty.

The critic sees it as productively cross-cultural, using its Japanese setting to explore grief, loss, and memory through Shinto and Buddhist ideas while celebrating art's healing power. It mixes old and new animation techniques for lush, corporeal storytelling with inventive fight sequences.

The film is hailed as Laika's profound riposte to bland cartoons, celebrating its obsessive artisanal stop-motion craft, meta elements, and fight against ADHD-style spectacle.

The critic finds it a mature and gorgeous stop-motion film, swoonworthy in its vibrant visuals of unruly seas, lush landscapes and vivid seasonal colors. They single out the strong storytelling gifts and emotional generosity, despite some clumsy humour.

A splendidly strange stop-motion film from Laika whose animation repeatedly takes the breath away, particularly in its inventive use of paper and craft elements. Some gags feel forced once the quest begins, though the voice performances help keep things engaging.

The film brilliantly updates stop-motion with seamless, polished animation that draws viewers into a dreamlike world of Japanese folklore and emotional depth. It pays tribute to storytelling's redemptive power with conviction, though the narrative sometimes lacks cleaner logic.

The critic praises Laika's stop-motion animation as their most gorgeous work yet and highlights the film's somber exploration of family loss and personal storytelling.

The critic praises Kubo And The Two Strings as a captivating and eccentric fusion of fantasy elements, highlighting its innovative blend of stop-motion and CGI techniques that create a tactile yet grand visual style. They single out the exquisite detail in surfaces and objects, along with the charming direction and storytelling that handles themes of loss and memory effectively.

The critic praises the film's spellbinding stop-motion visuals and its intelligent emotional core, highlighting the theme of legacy and how it explores what parents leave behind for their children without patronizing younger viewers.

The critic calls the film marvelous and very good, noting its original take on the hero's journey through rich mythology and strong emotional resonance.

The critic calls the film a beautifully crafted fable about the power of storytelling and a boy’s growth, praising its wonder, weirdness, attention to detail in animation, and ability to evoke joy, surprise, and wonder in both children and adults.

The critic describes the film as a visual feast with a simple but effective story of love and adventure, praising its stunning animation, voice performances, and emotional depth on storytelling and legacy.

The critic highlights the film's visually stunning stop-motion animation and emotional impact, particularly its themes of sacrifice, memory, and family legacy, while noting strong voice work from the cast.

The critic praises the film's breathtaking stop-motion visuals and imaginative world-building but faults its thinly drawn characters and repetitive emphasis on storytelling as a metaphor.