Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
[4] In this animated film from Japan, a teenaged boy tries to take care of his little sister after their mother dies in a bombing by the Americans during World War II. The children's father is a soldier at sea…
Make Mine Music (1946)
[4] If musical animated shorts had to audition to be part of Disney's Fantasia, then Make Mine Music is a compilation of the rejects. Without an overarching narrative to connect these shorts in any way, the film hinges on the…
Bambi (1942)
[10] With relatively little dialogue and an abundance of montage, Walt Disney's Bambi plays out like a beautiful tone poem on rites of passage, death and rebirth. There's a 'circle of life' undercurrent to the film that makes it especially…
Fantasia (1940)
[7] Walt Disney was somewhat ahead of his time experimenting with music and animation in Fantasia, an experimental achievement of artistry, craftsmanship, and innovation in animation. It's essentially a series of MTV-style music videos -- some narrative, some more abstract…
Flow (2024)
[9] Flow, one of the most cinematic and meaningful animated films ever made, takes place in an unknown world and unknown time, where a cat must learn to trust animals of other species in order to survive a great flood.…
Rango (2011)
[7] A pet chameleon named Rango (voiced by Johnny Depp) gets lost in the desert where he stumbles upon a drought-stricken town in need of a sheriff. He fakes his way into the job and enjoys playing the part until…
Lady and the Tramp (1955)
[6] A pampered Cocker-Spaniel named Lady falls for a street mutt named Butch in Disney Animation's nineteenth animated feature, Lady and the Tramp. Lady comes from a well-off family on the good side of town, but when her owners start…
Anastasia (1997)
[7] There’s a lot to like about the first animated feature produced by 20th Century Fox, even if the sum of the parts is a bit uneven. Anastasia draws upon Russian history and legend, centering around the youngest daughter or…
Heavy Metal (1981)
[7] Producer Ivan Reitman (Ghostbusters) wrangled together animation companies from around the world to assemble Heavy Metal, a string of six animated shorts based on the popular adult fantasy magazine. The stories are tied together by a loose framing device…
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
[5] With this film, Walt Disney gave the world its first feature-length animated motion picture. So that counts for something, right? The story's title heroine begins the film a humble scullery maid, content to scrub cobblestone walkways while singing to…