Dakota Fanning

Fanning has the curiosity of a teenager, yet an introspective maturity and intelligence that we see in only the most grounded adults, a rare combination that has captivated audiences for almost a decade. It is a gift that can be the only reasonable explanation as to how someone can make one of the most complex occupations seem so simple.

“I’ve never gone to an acting school,” Fanning explained. “I don’t know if it has something to do with me starting out young, or what. When the director says action…I’m the character, and when he says cut…I’m not.”

Well, that’s easy enough. Fanning has grown into one of the most intriguing screen actresses of our decade, and has done so by simply using her natural instincts and ability to have fun with her imagination.

She brings her talent to a film that is different than any film we’ve ever seen. Coraline is a story about a young girl who tries to break the mold of living a boring life, traveling into a world unlike anything that resembles her own.

“She’s still growing up, but needs the attention at the same time,” stated Fanning. “I think her parents not paying attention to her much really helps her point of view and pushes her to look for something more.”

However, when a group of dolls warn her to be careful of what she wishes for, Coraline is forced to take matters into her own hands to get things back to how they were.

This is the first live animation feature for Fanning, and she admits that it was a challenging process. It introduces the difficulty of having to communicate her unique point of view through a character that is faced with the conflict of saving her own family.

“I think we’re both very curious and adventurous, and we both never lose that curiosity,” Fanning said. “She’s very brave and would do anything to save her family and I admire that about her.”

Coraline is a story that caters to the imagination of a young child, but the presentation is so remarkable and visually stunning that its entertainment value has no age limit. Coupled with the unique, 3-D presentation and the personality that Fanning brings to the character of Coraline, it’s a film that is certainly worth seeing. At the very least, it’s a chance to observe yet another film by a great young actress who has separated herself from everyone else in the industry. She is a person with a youthful exuberance that enjoys every chance she gets to work on a film. Fanning also possesses the maturity to grow from each project.

“Hopefully ten years from now, I’ll still be acting and looking back on one of the movies I’m doing and seeing how much I’ve learned,” said Fanning. “I don’t judge myself, I just appreciate how much I’ve learned since then.”

Coraline is directed by Henry Selick and is based on the novel by Neil Gaiman. It stars Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, and Jennifer Saunders and opens February 6 in a theater near you.

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