Some movies are instant classics. For some, it’s immediately obvious they’ll have a huge cult following. Others are so innovative they don’t just break the mold, they utterly destroy it… and change the landscape of the industry forever.

It’s rare to find a single movie that does all three. Rarer still is the studio that seems to do it with every film it makes.

But after 15 years and 5 films, Laika Studios continues to charm, enchant, and break new ground.

To celebrate Laika’s 15th anniversary, Shout! Factory released deluxe editions of the company’s first four films: Coraline, The Boxtrolls, ParaNorman, and Kubo and the Two Strings. (Absent is 2019’s Missing Link.) The new releases are digitally remastered, include new and existing special features, new essays, and gorgeous packaging. For those of us who still buy physical media – and especially for those of us who are animation fans – these new Blu-rays are irresistibly good.

(For superfans, Laika’s 15th celebration also includes Fathom Events theater screenings and an exhibit at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry.)

There’s really not much I can say about any of these films that hasn’t already been said. If you’ve seen them, you know and love them. If you haven’t seen them… well, shame on you.

Coraline and ParaNorman, especially, are seasonally appropriate right now, so if you’re looking for family-friendly spooky season fare, they’re pretty much perfect. The Boxtrolls and Kubo also wouldn’t feel out of place in your Halloween lineup.

But all four films also center on families and the connections that hold us together (in their various shapes and forms). So as we move through the rest of 2021 and families come together (safely!), Laika’s entire catalog could conceivably form the background of your end-of-year holiday season.

If you don’t own these, there’s never been a better time to remedy that oversight. If you already own them, you may want to consider an upgrade. (They look so pretty all lined up in a row.) If you have kids, film buffs, or animation fans on your holiday shopping list, you may want multiple copies.

So what are you getting here? On top of four Academy Award-nominated films (all four were nominated for Best Animated Film) and Laika’s innovative and groundbreaking stop-motion animation, the Blu-rays include several new bonus features that look inside Laika and show how the films were made.

Coraline

• Discovering the characters of Coraline, featuring never-before-seen test footage (new)
• Revisiting the puppets with Laika’s animation team (new)
• Character, concept art, and behind-the-scenes photo galleries (new)
• Essay by Peter Debruge (new)
• Audio commentary with director Henry Selick and composer Bruno Coulais
• Making of Coraline
• Original featurettes
• Deleted scenes
• Feature-length storyboards

The Boxtrolls

• Discovering the characters of The Boxtrolls with never-before-seen test footage (new)
• Revisiting the puppets with Laika’s animation team (new)
• Feature-length storyboards (new)
• Essay by Ramin Zahed (new)
• Audio commentary with directors Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi
• Making of The Boxtrolls
• Original featurettes

ParaNorman

• Discovering the characters and effects of ParaNorman with never-before-seen test footage (new)
• Revisiting the puppets with Laika’s animation team (new)
• Feature-length storyboards (new)
• Audio commentary with writer/director Chris Butler and codirector Sam Fell
• “Peering Through the Veil”
• Original featurettes

Kubo and the Two Strings

• Confronting the epic challenges of Kubo and the Two Strings (new)
• Revisiting the puppets with Laika’s animation team (new)
• Feature-length storyboards (new)
• Audio commentary with director Travis Knight
• “Kubo’s Journey”
• Original featurettes