The Book of Life (2014 film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Book of Life |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Jorge R. Gutierrez |
| Produced by |
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| Screenplay by |
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| Starring | |
| Music by | Gustavo Santaolalla |
| Editing by | Ahren Shaw |
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| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | October 12, 2014 (L.A. Live) October 17, 2014 (United States) |
| Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $50 million |
| Money made | $99.8 million |
The Book of Life is a 2014 American 3D computer-animated fantasy comedy movie. It was made by 20th Century Fox Animation and Reel FX Animation Studios. Jorge R. Gutierrez helped write and direct it.
The movie features the voices of famous actors like Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, Channing Tatum, and Ice Cube. The story is about a bullfighter who goes on an amazing adventure in the afterlife. He does this during the special Mexican holiday called the Day of the Dead. He wants to make his family and friends proud.
The Book of Life first showed in Los Angeles on October 12, 2014. It came out in movie theaters across the United States on October 17, 2014. The film was even nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Movie! It made about $99 million, costing $50 million to make.
Contents
Story of the Book of Life
A museum guide named Mary Beth takes some students on a secret tour. She uses wooden figures to tell them a magical story from the Book of Life. This book holds every story in the world.
A Wager on Love
The story begins on the Day of the Dead. Two powerful spirits, La Muerte and Xibalba, are watching. La Muerte rules the Land of the Remembered, a bright and happy place. Xibalba rules the Land of the Forgotten, a sad and gloomy place.
They see three friends: Manolo Sánchez, Joaquín Mondragon, and María Posada. Both Manolo and Joaquín love María. La Muerte and Xibalba make a bet:
- If María marries Manolo, Xibalba will stop bothering humans.
- If María marries Joaquín, La Muerte and Xibalba will switch places.
Xibalba cheats by giving Joaquín a special medal called the Medal of Everlasting Life. This medal makes Joaquín invincible, meaning he can't be harmed.
Childhood Friends and Big Dreams
When they were young, María, Manolo, and Joaquín were best friends. One day, María is sent away to Spain to become a "lady" after she frees some animals.
Years later, María returns to their town, San Angel. Joaquín has become a hero because of the magic medal. Manolo's father, Carlos, wants him to be a bullfighter, like everyone in their family. But Manolo really wants to be a musician.
At his first bullfight, Manolo wins but refuses to kill the bull. This makes his father and the crowd angry, but María is very impressed.
A Tragic Turn
That night, María's father, General Ramiro Posada, wants her to marry Joaquín. He thinks Joaquín's medal will protect San Angel from a dangerous bandit king named Chakal.
María and Manolo tell each other they are in love. But Xibalba sends his snake staff, which bites María. She falls into a deep sleep, looking like she has died.
Manolo is heartbroken. He lets Xibalba trick him into dying, thinking he will be with María in the afterlife.
Journey to the Afterlife
In the Land of the Remembered, Manolo meets his mother and other family members who have passed away. They go to La Muerte's castle. There, they find Xibalba, who is now ruling this happy land.
Xibalba proudly tells Manolo about the bet. He also reveals that María didn't die! She was only bitten once and survived. Manolo, however, was bitten twice, which caused his death.
Manolo is furious but determined to get back to María. He travels to the Cave of Souls to find La Muerte. Inside, he meets the Candle Maker, who looks after everyone's lives and stories in the Book of Life. The Candle Maker sees that Manolo's story is blank, meaning he can write his own future.
A New Challenge
The Candle Maker takes Manolo and his family to the Land of the Forgotten. They find La Muerte at Xibalba's castle and expose his cheating. La Muerte is very angry with Xibalba.
Manolo asks for a new bet: if he can complete a challenge chosen by Xibalba, he will get his life back. If he fails, he will be forgotten forever, and Xibalba will keep both realms.
Xibalba makes Manolo fight a giant bull made of skeletons from all the bulls the Sánchez family has ever fought. Xibalba thinks this is Manolo's biggest fear.
The True Hero
Meanwhile, María wakes up from her coma. She learns Manolo is gone and sadly agrees to marry Joaquín. Their wedding is stopped by Chakal, who attacks San Angel to get the Medal of Everlasting Life back.
Chakal kills Manolo's father, Carlos, who then arrives in the Land of the Remembered just in time to see Manolo's fight. Manolo realizes his real fear is not being himself. He refuses to fight the bull and instead sings an apology. This touches everyone's hearts, even Xibalba and Carlos.
Impressed, the spirits bring Manolo back to life. They send him and his family to San Angel to protect the town. Chakal tries to destroy everything, but Manolo is saved by the Medal of Everlasting Life, which Joaquín had secretly given him.
Joaquín returns the medal to Xibalba and decides to be a true hero on his own. Manolo and María get married happily, and Xibalba and La Muerte make up.
The Story's End
Back in the museum, Mary Beth finishes the story. The amazed students leave. Mary Beth and a security guard then reveal they are actually La Muerte and Xibalba in disguise! The Candle Maker appears and tells the audience to write their own amazing stories.
Voice Actors in the Movie
- Diego Luna as Manolo Sánchez, a bullfighter who loves music.
- Emil-Bastien Bouffard as young Manolo.
- Zoe Saldana as María Posada, Manolo and Joaquín's best friend.
- Genesis Ochoa as young María.
- Channing Tatum as Joaquín Mondragon Jr., Manolo's friend and a town hero.
- Elias Garza as young Joaquín.
- Ice Cube as the Candle Maker, who watches over lives and stories.
- Ron Perlman as Xibalba, ruler of the Land of the Forgotten.
- Kate del Castillo as La Muerte, ruler of the Land of the Remembered.
- Christina Applegate as Mary Beth, the museum guide and La Muerte's disguise.
- Héctor Elizondo as Carlos Sánchez, Manolo's father.
- Ana de la Reguera as Carmen Sánchez, Manolo's mother.
- Danny Trejo as Luis Sánchez, Manolo's grandfather.
- Grey Griffin as Grandma Anita Sanchez, Manolo's great-grandmother.
- Carlos Alazraqui as General Ramiro Posada, María's father and the mayor.
- Alazraqui also voices Chuy, María's pet pig.
- Plácido Domingo as Jorge Sánchez, Manolo's granduncle.
- Jorge R. Gutierrez as Carmelo Sánchez, Manolo's ancestor.
- Gabriel Iglesias as Pepe Rodríguez, one of the three musicians.
- Cheech Marin as Pancho Rodríguez, another musician.
- Ricardo Sánchez as Pablo Rodriguez, the third musician.
- Dan Navarro as Chakal, the Bandit King.
- Eugenio Derbez as Chato, a bandit.
- Anjelah Johnson as Adelita, one of Manolo's cousins.
- Sandra Equihua as Scardelita, Adelita's twin sister.
- Miguel Sandoval as the Land of the Remembered Captain.
- Angélica María Hartman Ortiz as Sister Ana.
- Sandra Echeverría as Claudia, a fan of Joaquín.
- Trey Bumpass as Luka Ramirez, a student in detention.
- Kennedy "KK" Peil as Sasha, a student in detention.
- Ishan Sharma as Sanjay, a student in detention.
- Callahan Clark as Jane, a student in detention.
- Eric Bauza as Father Domingo and the Cave Guardian.
- Aron Warner as Thomas, a museum guide.
- Troy Evans as Old Man Hemingway.
- Guillermo del Toro as the Land of the Remembered Captain's Wife.
- Brad Booker as a train conductor.
Movie Music
| The Book of Life | ||||
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| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | September 26, 2014 | |||
| Recorded | 2014 | |||
| Genre | Film score | |||
| Length | 37:34 | |||
| Label | Sony Masterworks | |||
| Gustavo Santaolalla film scores chronology | ||||
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Gustavo Santaolalla and Paul Williams helped create the music for the film. They adapted many pop songs for the movie. The soundtrack was released online on September 29, 2014. A CD version came out on October 27, 2014.
Future Movies (Sequels)
Director Jorge Gutierrez has mentioned that he has ideas for more movies in this story. He said that the first movie was about Manolo. He imagined the second movie would be about Joaquín, and the third about María. He always thought of it as a series of three movies. In June 2017, Gutierrez and Reel FX Animation announced that they had started working on a sequel.
Images for kids
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Theatrical release poster
See also
