The Book of Life

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jorge R. Gutierrez directs. Gustavo Santaolalla scores. Ahren Shaw cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 1Mid-budget at $50M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.
• 2Released 12 years ago.
• 3278+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.
• 4Original score by Gustavo Santaolalla. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
• 5Editor Ahren Shaw shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 6Diego Luna and Zoe Saldaña and Channing Tatum carry the top of the cast.
• 7Marketing tagline: "Two worlds. One love.".
• 8IMDB entry: tt2262227 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
• 9Classified under 8 themes, including "mexico", "bullfighting", "love triangle", "afterlife".

The technical file

Original score

Gustavo Santaolalla

Editing

Ahren Shaw

Production design

Simon Valdimir Varela

Sound

Mark Mangini

Runtime

95 min · 1h 35m

Aspect ratio (typical)

1.37:1 (Academy)

Status

Released

Budget

$50,000,000

Box office

$97,437,106

Return

195% of budget

Original language

EN

Certification (US)

PG

IMDB

The Book of Life (2014) ↗

Also by

Jorge R. Gutierrez

• 
  Carmelo

  2000 · ★ 9.0
• 
  Carmen Got Expelled!

  2010 · ★ 8.0
• 
  Maya and the Three

  2021 · ★ 7.9
• 
  We the People

  2021 · ★ 7.9
• 
  Son of Jaguar

  2017 · ★ 7.1
• 
  The Adventures of Chuy

  2015 · ★ 5.5

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper Wallpaper Wallpaper Wallpaper Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  The Book of Life - Xibalba Breakdown

  Behind the Scenes
• 

  ▶
  The Book of Life Official Trailer #1 (2014) - Channing Tatum, Zoe Saldana Animated Movie HD

  Trailer

Community reviews

What people are saying

• CinemaSerf2023-08-25
  ★ 7/10

  The big eyes and the slightly cardboard-box style of animation is really quite engaging as we follow the tale of "Manolo". He's an excitable young man who finds himself torn between staying home and living the life his family want him to, and setting off and having some adventures of his own. It's the latter draw that prevails and after a trip to the museum with his friends, he is soon dealing with demons from within and without that challenge his very essence, his being - his soul, even. The story is steeped in history, in myth and in imagination and is colourfully and vividly delivered using a clever mix of dialogue, music and quite often just the richness of the imagery itself. Can this young man play games with those more experienced, malevolent, cunning and find the happiness he is looking for? Of course - there is jeopardy too - if he gets it wrong, then all humankind is going to suffer! There's even a gentle hint of a childish love triangle as the story builds to quite an entertaining - if predictable - denouement. It's a classy bit of cinema this, with plenty of strong characterisation, action, some darkness and just enough to keep the brain ticking over too. Cinema is best - it brings out the vivacity of the whole thing so much better.

  Read full review ↓

Production companies

Who made it

• 

  Reel FX Creative Studios

  US

• 

  20th Century Fox Animation

  US

• CH

  Chatrone

  US

Key crew

• ProducerGuillermo del Toro
• Lighting ArtistTyler DeLisle
• AnimationAndy Hass
• Score EngineerDevin Roth
• AnimationSteve Cunningham
• AnimationDixie Pizani
• AnimationTravis Tohill
• Character DesignerTom Caulfield
• ProducerBrad Booker
• Production DesignSimon Valdimir Varela
• CastingChristian Kaplan
• EditorAhren Shaw
• Associate ProducerHeather M. Drummons
• Additional MusicWilliam G. Parker
• Associate ProducerChris DiGiovanni
• Executive ProducerCary Granat
• Production DesignPaul Sullivan
• Production SupervisorKathy Cavaiola
• Additional MusicGermaine Franco
• AnimationEmilie Goulet
• AnimationMorgan R. Kelly
• Associate EditorJoseph R. Thygesen
• Co-ProducerMatthew Teevan
• Art DirectionPaul Sullivan

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• mexico
• bullfighting
• love triangle
• afterlife
• musical
• day of the dead
• overcoming fears
• 3d animation

Release history · US

When it landed

• Theatrical2014-10-17PG
• Physical2015-01-27PG· DVD / Blu-ray

Also known as

International titles

• The Day of the DeadUS
• 북 오브 라이프KR