“Kubo and the Two Strings” is a new 3-D stop-motion movie, and it’s set in a fantastical world of Japan. On Monday, the lead character and the director of “Kubo” came to the fantastical world of the Magic City and told us all about this special flick.
Art Parkinson (as Kubo): “My name is Kubo. I look after my mother mostly.”
Kubo, a boy in ancient Japan, sets out on a quest to solve a mystery about his late father.
Art Parkinson (as Kubo): “What was Father like?”
Charlize Theron (as Kubo’s mother): “He was just like you, strong and so handsome.”
Luckily, Kubo meets a few friends to keep him company on his journey.
Matthew McConaughey (as Beetle): “Your quest is my quest, too.”
We met up with Art Parkinson, who plays Kubo, and Travis Knight, the director of the film, in rainy Miami and immediately apologized for the weather.
Travis Knight: “I was expecting sunny, you know, people in bikinis and in shorts, and we get this.”
It’s a good thing Irish-born Art hasn’t let our rain get the best of his first trip to the 305.
Art Parkinson: “Even this is, like, extremely warm to me. I walked out of the airport, and I couldn’t really breathe. It was really hot. It was like a slap in the face, but I’m still loving it.”
And he’s loving his character, too.
Art Parkinson: “He is very independent and kind and forgiving and brave. And he’s a really brainy character, and I connected to him on a spiritual level, and due to the fact that he’s very close to his mother, and I’m very close to my mother, and he’s a storyteller and an artist, and I’m a storyteller and an artist.”
Though the movie itself is an American creation, it’s fully based on Japanese culture, a culture Knight fell in love with.
Travis Knight: “I love the music, the culture, the style of dress, the food, the architecture, the food, the comic books, and this film offered us an opportunity to pay homage to this incredible place and its beautiful art, something we typically don’t see on the big screen.”
And just like that, when it was time for Art to research his role and voice Kubo, he too fell in love with all things Japan. Especially this one thing.
Art Parkinson: “Mainly, I think, my favorite part of it was the kimonos. I just like the style of them, ’cause I just like baggy clothing and I like that kind of clothing, so that initially had me drawn to them, and then looking at what different folds of kimono represent and different colors represent.”
“Kubo and the Two Strings” opens in theaters Aug. 19.
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