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Good animated movies?
10 years ago
General
I've always loved animation of both the "series" and "feature film" variety, because I firmly believe that they have a kind of "vividness" - for lack of a better term - that simply can't be achieved by means of live-action filming. And I don't discriminate here: I like both traditional animation and computer-animated stuff - and while I seem to prefer western animation, I've seen some pretty good animes, too.
Also, I'm a huge fan of voice acting and voice actors in general, because they are the ones who make the characters come to life. I love to let myself be amazed by what people like John DiMaggio or Bradley Dee Baker can do with their voices, but I also enjoy seeing how well-established actors perform if you take their faces out of the equation.
I will now proceed to list - in no particular order - a few movies which, in my years, I perceived to be particularly noteworthy, as to make some recommendations to some of you, in case you didn't already watch them. For the purposes of this list, I'm gonna try to ignore productions by Pixar, Disney and Dreamworks, because they're usually pretty solid and they certainly don't need to depend on somebody like me to advertise their stuff. So, here we go:
The LEGO Movie - (CG)
As you may know, movie adaptions of established non-movie franchises are always to be approached carefully and guardedly and I consider myself to be quite a sceptic in general, but there is no getting around the fact that this movie is f'ng awesome. Not only is it a perfect visual rendition of everything you might expect of a movie with that title - I mean even the water is LEGOs! - but it is also hilarious from start to finish and has quite an impressive voice cast, including Chris Pratt, Morgan Freeman, Will Ferrell, Liam Neeson and Nick Offerman.
The Book of Life - (CG)
I'm not gonna sugarcoat the fact that I'm quite infatuated with that one, partly because of the uniquely beautiful and vibrant visuals which are heavily inspired by traditional mexican aesthetics and partly because of its music that's one half re-interpreted pop-culture classics and the other half powerful original compositions and they all make sense within the plot, too. That's really something, because usually the action just stops dead when they suddenly start singing, but not in this movie. I'm impressed.
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole - (CG)
You don't see many movies about owls, so that's a good idea right there. Owls are so cool. Directed by the guy who made 300 and it shows: And has this super-slowmo-thing going on in the fighting scenes and is otherwise visually pretty impressive. Again, very able voice cast.
Steamboy - (Anime)
You probably thought this list was gonna be all CG, didn't you? But then, suddenly: A pretty visual and well-animated movie set in victorian England. Has not only one but three genius inventors and, as the name implies, more than just a little steampunk vibe.
Metropolis - (Anime)
(Just to be clear: I'm referring to the one from 2001, not the one from 1927.) I fell infatuated with this movie from the first minute and by the end, I loved it. There is so much to tell, but I'll try to keep it brief: The characters are designed with a weird but interesting mix of drawing styles against incredibly detailed backgrounds of the titular megacity's monumental architecture and a well-composed score of jazzy tunes. Explores sociological implications of unhindered technological progress and artificial intelligence. Is f'ng epic. If I had to recommend just one movie, this would be it.
I feel like I should also mention the following, which may not be among my personal fevorites but did something very right:
Epic - (CG)
Absolutely stunning visuals, if you're into the shiny elven aesthetics akin to those from Lord of the Rings. Features "an advanced civilization of tiny people who live in the forest" and thusly, has lots of cool macroscopic perspectives on plants and wildlife. Seamlessly blends photorealism with more "cartoony" designs. All very solidly executed.
While I could never bring myself to like the Kung Fu Panda franchise, I really enjoyed the short animation Secrets of the Furious Five, if only for its break away from CG back into traditional animation. Also: Little Viper is so cute.
Fantastic Mr. Fox - (CG)
Painstakingly made to look like stop-motion puppet animation from way back when moviemaking was still a new thing, this one scores all the originality points. Kind of ironic, if you think about it.
Cloudy with a Chance of Meetballs - (CG)
Unique and interesting visual style and, man, so much food.
Surf's Up - (CG)
A documentary-style movie about surfing penguins. Shia LaBeouf may an arrogant jerk in real life, but his voice works well in this movie. Also: Jeff Bridges in the very fitting role of an old washed-up surfer. Way better than I expected.
Valiant - (CG)
A rather forgettable movie about messenger pigeons set during WWII. To be honest, I only mention it because of Ricky Gervais voicing a fat grubby pigeon from London.
The Animatrix - (CG/Anime)
A collection of animated shorts made by different studios, based upon the Matrix franchise. Among other things, elaborates on the backstory of the whole Robot War and introduces some interesting ideas on what's possible within and outside the matrix. Is a far more interesting approach beyond the whole slow-mo fighting and cringeworthy jesus metaphor stuff that the original movies offered.
Coraline - (CG)
I have to mention this one because it sets itself apart from the rest through its weird and unique art style and the fact that it's pretty f'ng creepy.
Another honorable mention goes to Disney's traditionally animated short The Ballad of Nessie because she is just so indescribably cute.
In case you feel upset by my omitting the Studio Ghibli productions by Hayao Miyazaki, do not. I enjoyed them very much, but they kinda seem to blur into each other in my memory and I couldn't really tell you which is which.
I should also mention that I'm very aware of Don Bluth's work - as to not anger his fans by ignoring him - but the only thing that I could tell you about it is that, while the art and animation are probably the most captivating ever conceived in traditionally animated media, all other aspects of his products always left me lukewarm at best. I'm sorry.
So. Now that that's over and done with, let's talk. What movies would you recommend?
Should I go and finally watch this Felidae movie that gets mentioned every now and then? I'm hesitant. I hear it's pretty good, but I also heard less flattering things about it and what it may do to my mental well-being. I mean, I'm still traumatized from The Plague Dogs and it's been years since I watched that.
Also, I'm a huge fan of voice acting and voice actors in general, because they are the ones who make the characters come to life. I love to let myself be amazed by what people like John DiMaggio or Bradley Dee Baker can do with their voices, but I also enjoy seeing how well-established actors perform if you take their faces out of the equation.
I will now proceed to list - in no particular order - a few movies which, in my years, I perceived to be particularly noteworthy, as to make some recommendations to some of you, in case you didn't already watch them. For the purposes of this list, I'm gonna try to ignore productions by Pixar, Disney and Dreamworks, because they're usually pretty solid and they certainly don't need to depend on somebody like me to advertise their stuff. So, here we go:
The LEGO Movie - (CG)
As you may know, movie adaptions of established non-movie franchises are always to be approached carefully and guardedly and I consider myself to be quite a sceptic in general, but there is no getting around the fact that this movie is f'ng awesome. Not only is it a perfect visual rendition of everything you might expect of a movie with that title - I mean even the water is LEGOs! - but it is also hilarious from start to finish and has quite an impressive voice cast, including Chris Pratt, Morgan Freeman, Will Ferrell, Liam Neeson and Nick Offerman.
The Book of Life - (CG)
I'm not gonna sugarcoat the fact that I'm quite infatuated with that one, partly because of the uniquely beautiful and vibrant visuals which are heavily inspired by traditional mexican aesthetics and partly because of its music that's one half re-interpreted pop-culture classics and the other half powerful original compositions and they all make sense within the plot, too. That's really something, because usually the action just stops dead when they suddenly start singing, but not in this movie. I'm impressed.
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole - (CG)
You don't see many movies about owls, so that's a good idea right there. Owls are so cool. Directed by the guy who made 300 and it shows: And has this super-slowmo-thing going on in the fighting scenes and is otherwise visually pretty impressive. Again, very able voice cast.
Steamboy - (Anime)
You probably thought this list was gonna be all CG, didn't you? But then, suddenly: A pretty visual and well-animated movie set in victorian England. Has not only one but three genius inventors and, as the name implies, more than just a little steampunk vibe.
Metropolis - (Anime)
(Just to be clear: I'm referring to the one from 2001, not the one from 1927.) I fell infatuated with this movie from the first minute and by the end, I loved it. There is so much to tell, but I'll try to keep it brief: The characters are designed with a weird but interesting mix of drawing styles against incredibly detailed backgrounds of the titular megacity's monumental architecture and a well-composed score of jazzy tunes. Explores sociological implications of unhindered technological progress and artificial intelligence. Is f'ng epic. If I had to recommend just one movie, this would be it.
I feel like I should also mention the following, which may not be among my personal fevorites but did something very right:
Epic - (CG)
Absolutely stunning visuals, if you're into the shiny elven aesthetics akin to those from Lord of the Rings. Features "an advanced civilization of tiny people who live in the forest" and thusly, has lots of cool macroscopic perspectives on plants and wildlife. Seamlessly blends photorealism with more "cartoony" designs. All very solidly executed.
While I could never bring myself to like the Kung Fu Panda franchise, I really enjoyed the short animation Secrets of the Furious Five, if only for its break away from CG back into traditional animation. Also: Little Viper is so cute.
Fantastic Mr. Fox - (CG)
Painstakingly made to look like stop-motion puppet animation from way back when moviemaking was still a new thing, this one scores all the originality points. Kind of ironic, if you think about it.
Cloudy with a Chance of Meetballs - (CG)
Unique and interesting visual style and, man, so much food.
Surf's Up - (CG)
A documentary-style movie about surfing penguins. Shia LaBeouf may an arrogant jerk in real life, but his voice works well in this movie. Also: Jeff Bridges in the very fitting role of an old washed-up surfer. Way better than I expected.
Valiant - (CG)
A rather forgettable movie about messenger pigeons set during WWII. To be honest, I only mention it because of Ricky Gervais voicing a fat grubby pigeon from London.
The Animatrix - (CG/Anime)
A collection of animated shorts made by different studios, based upon the Matrix franchise. Among other things, elaborates on the backstory of the whole Robot War and introduces some interesting ideas on what's possible within and outside the matrix. Is a far more interesting approach beyond the whole slow-mo fighting and cringeworthy jesus metaphor stuff that the original movies offered.
Coraline - (CG)
I have to mention this one because it sets itself apart from the rest through its weird and unique art style and the fact that it's pretty f'ng creepy.
Another honorable mention goes to Disney's traditionally animated short The Ballad of Nessie because she is just so indescribably cute.
In case you feel upset by my omitting the Studio Ghibli productions by Hayao Miyazaki, do not. I enjoyed them very much, but they kinda seem to blur into each other in my memory and I couldn't really tell you which is which.
I should also mention that I'm very aware of Don Bluth's work - as to not anger his fans by ignoring him - but the only thing that I could tell you about it is that, while the art and animation are probably the most captivating ever conceived in traditionally animated media, all other aspects of his products always left me lukewarm at best. I'm sorry.
So. Now that that's over and done with, let's talk. What movies would you recommend?
Should I go and finally watch this Felidae movie that gets mentioned every now and then? I'm hesitant. I hear it's pretty good, but I also heard less flattering things about it and what it may do to my mental well-being. I mean, I'm still traumatized from The Plague Dogs and it's been years since I watched that.
