Remember This? ‘Coraline’ Shows Love To Michigan
With Halloween right around the corner, I have been checking off my list of Halloween movies that I want to watch this season.
Last night, my friend and I picked the movie, 'Coraline.' After not seeing this movie for several years, I completely forgot how many times Michigan is referenced throughout it.
One way that Michigan is shown love in this creepy movie is the fact that the Jones family has Michigan accents.
This Reddit user point it out since the Jones
"have a nasally A sound, like "Wahlk" walk. "Cran" instead of cray-on "crayon". "M-ahm" instead of "mom". Also we normally use e sounds instead of i sounds, "vanella", "pellow" and "melk"."
As the camera pans to Coraline's parent's nightstand, you can see a picture of the family.
In the photo, you can see the Bear Fountain that you can go and see at the Detroit Zoo.
There are also several scenes where you see the iconic Detroit Zoo snow globe. That particular snow globe is an important part of the story that is shown toward the end of the movie.
You may see all of the Michigan State references within the movie.
In multiple scenes of 'Coraline,' you can see that her dad is wearing a Michigan State sweatshirt.
With all of these Michigan State references, I wondered whether someone dealing with the movie was a Michigander.
Bill Mechanic is the producer of Coraline and an alumnus of Michigan State University. He even came back to the university to show a prescreening of the movie.
He shared with MSU Today that,
"Like many alums, I have always felt a debt and a loyalty to MSU for getting me started in the world at large. With 'Coraline,' the connection was very direct. 'Coraline' is the story of a family that moves from Michigan to Oregon."
Even this Reddit user explained when Coraline is on the phone with her old friends, she calls them "Loper."
The Reddit user believes that the scriptwriters made a new nickname to strengthen the Michigan ties throughout the movie.
"This person discovered that in Michigan, the residents of the Upper Peninsula are referred to as Yoopers (U.P.ers). But Coraline isn't from the UP, so I think they erroneously made up "Loper" to refer to someone from the Lower Peninsula."
Even, Coraline's friends also attend Pontiac High School.