The quest begins|Aug. 18, 2016|United States | Japan|102 Min.|PG
Genre: Adventure;Animation;Family
Description: In feudal Japan, a 12-year-old boy named Kubo, who has only one eye, lives with his ailing mother, Sariatu, in a mountain cave near a village. To support themselves, Kubo uses his magical abilities to manipulate origami with music from his shamisen, entertaining the villagers with tales of his missing father, Hanzo, a samurai warrior. However, Kubo is unable to finish the story because he doesn’t know what happened to Hanzo, and Sariatu’s fading memory prevents her from recalling the ending. Sariatu warns Kubo not to stay out after dark, fearing her sisters, Karasu and Washi, and his grandfather, the Moon King, who took his eye as a baby, will find him and take his remaining eye.
One day, Kubo learns about the village’s Bon festival, which allows people to communicate with deceased loved ones. He attends but becomes upset when Hanzo doesn’t appear from his lantern. Distracted, Kubo forgets to return home before sunset. Karasu and Washi soon find and attack him, but Sariatu unexpectedly appears and uses her magic to send Kubo far away, instructing him to find his father’s armor.
Kubo awakens in a distant land to discover that Monkey, his wooden snow monkey charm, has come to life. Monkey informs him that Sariatu is gone and the village has been destroyed. With the help of “Little Hanzo,” an origami figure based on his father, they embark on a quest to find the armor. Along the way, they encounter Beetle, an amnesiac samurai cursed to take the form of a stag beetle-human hybrid. Beetle believes he was once Hanzo’s apprentice.
The trio retrieves the “Sword Unbreakable” from a cave guarded by a giant skeleton. They then cross Long Lake in a leaf boat to locate the “Breastplate Impenetrable,” hidden deep underwater. Kubo and Beetle dive down to retrieve it and face a sea monster known as the “Garden of Eyes.” The monster captivates its victims by showing them visions of their deepest secrets before devouring them. Kubo falls under its spell but realizes during the trance that Monkey is the reincarnated spirit of his mother. Beetle saves the unconscious Kubo and secures the Breastplate, but upon returning to the boat, they find Monkey severely injured after defeating Karasu.
Cast director: Travis Knight
Cast actor: Art Parkinson, Charlize Theron, Brenda Vaccaro, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Meyrick Murphy, George Takei, Rooney Mara, Ralph Fiennes, Matthew McConaughey, Minae Noji
Original name: Kubo and the Two Strings