Now, as a person who likes animated projects and considers them to be just as good as live-action projects, this is a strict list.
And there are some honorable severe mentions for animated movies that fans enjoyed. Kung Fu Panda 1 Trilogy, How to Train Your Dragon Trilogy, Prince of Egypt Shrek, Inside-Out, Flashpoint Paradox, Megamind, Range, Incredibles, Moana, The Lego Movie, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Mulan, Big Hero 6, New Super Marios Bros Movie (2023), Batman: The Long Halloween and The Dark Knight Return, Batman/Superman: Apocalypse, Coco, Tangled, The Iron Giant, Your Name and Zootopia.
That’s a pretty complex and competitive list, so I know my stuff. Anyway, here’s my list, which was really tough.
Puss in Boots 2
The only movie to come out recently and be on this list. It’s very impressive for a movie like this to surpass Moana, Tangled, and Zootopia. But even though it has some childish elements, it’s overall a banger that is basically the animated version of Logan (2017 film) and has excellent action and animation.
Batman: Under the Hood
Only DC Animated movie to be on this list. It has great action, animation, and performances, but most of all: a story. It is probably the most “tragic” Batman animated movie out there. It introduced me to Red Hood and Batman’s infamous rule.
A Silent Voice
A movie that is a coming-of-age story about a bully learning from his mistakes and talking to a deaf girl. This movie hit home because it was similar to what I felt (okay, I was not a bully). But still
Up
My favorite Pixar film of all time. It’s a story about a guy trying to fulfill his wife’s wishes. The kid Russel, the wild scout, explained the days of childhood. And it shows the heartfelt ending.
Wall-E
This was the first Pixar movie I watched, but I didn’t understand it that much. Re-watch it during middle school made me appreciate the movie a lot more about the message of World Pollution, which is why I walk to work sometimes and rarely use my cars.
The Lion King
Singlehandedly my favorite Disney anime of all time. Enough said about this movie. Everyone knows this movie. It is an amazing story that throws lite on the life of a lion family.
Grave of the Fireflies
The most underrated Studio Ghibli film of all time. Fans like watching anime, and this movie definitely set my sights on Studio Ghibli and made me watch more of their movies. It has such a deep and profound message that even Roger Egbert praised this movie and said animation isn’t for kids.
Toy Story 3
Toy Story 3 is not only the satisfying conclusion to Toy Story 3 (I will pretend Toy Story 4 never existed), but it has the best pacing, visuals, and story. This story is basically about toys having to grow up and accept that their owner has moved on, but the ending was extremely heartfelt, and I felt emotional seeing Woody leave his toys and childhood behind.
To sum up the ending, a Youtube comment: “When Andy drives away, that signifies the end of his childhood and a journey of adulthood. He now realizes that his toys are no longer his and that they don’t deserve to be in boxes in attics. Woody and the toys accepted that their former owner has grown up and that they can be happy with memories of him. What a powerful ending to a powerful franchise and trilogy!”
Spirited Away
The greatest Studio Ghibli movie of all time I mean there’s so much more I can say about this movie. This is the Michael Jordan/Babe Ruth/Muhammad Ali of Anime movies right here. This talks about the supernatural, Fantasy, the Spread of Western Culture in Japan, environmentalism, and childhood, but most importantly it just has so much heart in it. Any American who wants to watch Japanese anime, watch this movie. You won’t regret it.
Into the Spider-Verse
No secret that this movie is my favorite animated film of all time, and how it completely changed American animation forever. Even though Spider-Man is not my favorite hero now, I still like Spider-Man, and have fun times seeing Peter Parker interact with Spider-Gwen and Miles Morales. The animation is just breathtakingly beautiful.
