Yumeka’s top 20 favorite animated movies (#20-11)

Credit to linked pixiv user

This is a favorites list I’ve been wanting to make for a while and now I finally feel like I’m ready! As many of you know, I’m not just a fan of anime but of the animation medium in general, especially animated movies. But despite being a fan of animated movies long before I was a fan of anime, I never actually made a list of my favorites. So for this post and the next, that’s what I’ll be doing…

Originally I was going to make a general list of my all time favorite movies, animated or otherwise. But the reason I decided on only animated movies is because just about all of my favorite movies are, in fact, animated ones (can’t help it, I’m a big fan of the medium!) So it made more sense to just make it a list of my favorite animated movies. Plus, this is an anime blog, and the word “anime” does refer to all animation in Japanese XD

Next I had to decide how many favorites I wanted to pick and if any movies wouldn’t qualify. I eventually decided on a top 20 list going by how many different animated movies I’ve seen (roughly 100-120) and how many among them I would consider a favorite. I then decided that only original animated films would qualify for the list and not any that follow up an existing TV series. So no Pokemon movies, no Haruhi movie, no Madoka movies, etc,. It’s okay if the movie has a TV series based on it as long as the movie came first.

Guess that’s all I need to say before I get started. I try to keep what I say about each movie brief so the post doesn’t get too long. But if you’d like to know more of my opinion, feel free to ask in the comments. Just note that it was sometimes hard to choose one movie over another, so the movies on my list could jump up or down a spot or two depending on the mood I’m in ;) But this is about as accurate as it can get as of now.

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Credit to linked pixiv user

20. The Little Mermaid

Year: 1989
Studio: Disney


The very first movie that sparked the Disney Renaissance is also the last one on my top 20 XD That doesn’t mean I don’t like it of course. For the time it came out, Little Mermaid was unlike any other animated film in terms of animation quality and music, and even by today’s standards, I still feel it’s a timeless classic. It has lovable characters (Sebastian cracks me up, Flounder is adorable, and Ursula is a great villain), fantastic songs (love pretty much all of them), and great animation. The movie’s good story-wise too, but I have to admit that as I got older I saw more of the flaws in the story than I did as a kid, which is why it’s not extremely high on my list. Ariel and Eric’s personalities and relationship (as far as wanting to marry before even knowing each other) are a bit dated too, but still, nothing that bad. So despite a few misgivings, I still like Little Mermaid a lot and think it has a ton of wonderful qualities. And as a side note, the part where Ariel brushes her hair with the “dingle-hopper” is one of the funniest scenes in a Disney movie I’ve ever seen.

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19. Nausicaa

Year: 1984
Studio: Ghibli


As the list goes on, some of you might question the lack of Ghibli. Don’t get me wrong, I think Ghibli films are amazing…they’re just a bit “heavy” for me to watch. I have to be in a particular mood when I want to watch them and they’re just not easy for me to rewatch either, unlike Disney movies. My yearning to rewatch is a big factor for determining my favorite movies, so that’s why I don’t have many Ghibli movies here. So it’s not that I don’t think they’re great or anything XD Anyway, Nausicaa is one of my favorites. A lot of Ghibli films have the “man vs nature” theme, often coinciding with a “man vs man” theme, and I think Nausicaa does it exceptionally well. Though she is a bit of the “too good to be true” kind of protagonist, I can’t help but root for Nausicaa and find her an admirable heroine. I also like how the creatures representing the “nature” side are these giant ugly bugs as opposed to something cute or cool-looking, which really tests people’s prejudices and preferences. The fantasy world that the movie takes place in is interesting too. There are a few minor problems I have with the movie, but certainly nothing that distracts from the many good things it has.

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Credit to linked pixiv user

18. Finding Nemo

Year: 2003
Studio: Pixar


I wasn’t too thrilled with Finding Nemo when it first came out, but as I watched it a few more times it grew on me more and more. Anyone who likes it will probably agree when I say that it’s a very funny movie. Ellen DeGeneres is absolutely hilarious as Dory and some of her lines leave me in tears from laughter! Dory kind of makes the movie for me, but there’s a lot of other good stuff too, both comedy-wise and story-wise. The underwater world is very impressive, and the colorful characters Marlon, Dory, and Nemo meet on their journey, from the sharks to the turtles to the tank fish, are all entertaining. Since the movie is very comedic, some of the emotional parts didn’t work for me unfortunately. Some did though, and just about all of the comedy did, so I’m satisfied in the end XD

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17. Wreck-It Ralph

Year: 2012
Studio: Disney


I think Wreck-It Ralph is a great movie, but it never felt like a Disney movie to me. And I think the reason is because it doesn’t have that timeless, universal appeal other Disney movies have due to its subject matter being all about video and arcade games, with a million references and jokes nobody will get unless they know about games. So unlike a universal story like The Little Mermaid or Beauty and the Beast, I can imagine an older adult who’s never played video games not being able to follow or get Wreck-It Ralph. And many years from now even fewer people are going to get the references as these games get even more dated. But! For those of us who do know enough about games to follow the movie’s story and jokes, I think it’s great. The characters are a lot of fun (Felix and Calhoun together are so funny), there’s some good humor with and without knowledge of video games, and even underneath all the game references, there’s a genuinely good story about acceptance, loyalty, and overcoming prejudices. So yeah, it’s still too early to tell if Wreck-It Ralph will age as well as other Disney films, but for now, I find it highly entertaining.

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16. Pocahontas

Year: 1995
Studio: Disney


Out of all the Disney Renaissance films, Pocahontas is one that gets the most dislike (along with Hercules). Personally, I think it’s really good. Yes, it’s far from accurate compared to the real story of Pocahontas, but I always judge things in their own right rather than how they compare to whatever they’re based on. I think Disney’s version of Pocahontas has some gorgeous animation, great songs (“Colors of the Wind” is a classic), and some truly emotional scenes. I always get teary at the end, and if you’ve ever watched the version with the deleted song, it’s pretty tragic. I can see the movie’s flaws of course as I admit that the characters as a whole are kind of bland and some things don’t make sense (it’s kinda BS how Pocahontas was suddenly able to communicate with John Smith for example). But for me personally, it has more good than bad.

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15. Mulan

Year: 1998
Studio: Disney


While the early Disney Renaissance films started the trend of more independent and proactive female protagonists, Mulan probably encompasses this the most since the focus of her story is how she disguises herself as a man to fight in her father’s place in the army despite the extreme sexism going on in China at the time. But besides the feminist message, as a whole I think Mulan is just an overall really good movie. It actually has a good balance of humor and drama, both of which clicked well with me, which doesn’t happen very often. The many scenes where Mulan tries to act like a guy, especially the scene when she’s bathing in the lake, crack me up every time. And despite the odd casting of Eddie Murphy as a Chinese dragon, he has some funny lines as Mushu too. Mulan has many old favorites among Disney songs too, especially “Reflection” and “Make a Man Out of You.” So yeah, good songs, good story, good characters, good humor and drama…I wouldn’t say Mulan excels in any of these things, but it’s consistently good with them, which is saying a lot too ;)

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14. Tarzan

Year: 1999
Studio: Disney


Like Pocahontas, Tarzan isn’t a common favorite among Disney Renaissance films, yet it’s one that I personally enjoy. The story is pretty basic but it has so many funny, dramatic, and action-packed scenes. The interactions between Tarzan and Jane are great (I especially love how their first encounter went XD) as are the many emotional scenes dealing with Tarzan and his ape family (the part where he comes out of the tree house dressed in his father’s suit and then says goodbye to Kala…oh gosh, it makes me cry every time!) Lots of fast-paced, suspenseful scenes too such as his battle with the leopard Sabor, and all the scenes with him swinging through the jungle have great animation and are a lot of fun to watch. And personally, I love Phil Collins’ songs. Even as a kid, when I first saw Tarzan I wanted to get the soundtrack right away! I guess my only complaints about the movie is that the comic relief characters like Terk and Tantor don’t do much for me, and our villain Clayton isn’t anything memorable (the intense way he dies is memorable though O_o) But still, they’re not that bad and I love basically everything else about the movie.

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13. Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Year: 1988
Studio: Touchstone Pictures


You could say I’m cheating with this film since it is mostly live-action with animation mixed in. But because it does have a lot of animation and the whole story revolves around real people’s interactions with cartoon characters, I’m counting it as an animated film! But yeah, Who Framed Roger Rabbit? is just so much fun. The dialogue is so witty and well written, the blending of animation and live-action looks surprisingly good even by today’s standards, there’s a lot of great humor and the movie consistently keeps its light tone while still having a few dramatic scenes, and all of the characters, both toons and humans, are likable. (The late) Bob Hoskins as our main character Eddie Valiant is an entertaining guy to follow, and even the seemingly strange romance between Roger and Jessica works because we actually get scenes that show that they have chemistry and care about each other. A lot of the humor and dialogue is edgy and adult too, but not too much that (older) kids couldn’t watch and enjoy the movie. Plus, where else can you see all your favorite classic cartoon characters like Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny together in one movie and even interacting with each other? Honestly, I can’t think of anything I’d want to complain about this movie. It’s very unique and just a ton of fun! XD

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12. The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Year: 1996
Studio: Disney


Hunchback of Notre Dame is the darkest and has the most non-child-friendly themes of all the Disney animated films in my opinion. I have a ton of respect for it for taking those risks and, in the end, giving us an amazing feat of animation, music, and storytelling that is this movie. There’s a lot of great things in Hunchback, but probably what stands out to me the most is the villain, Frollo. Part of what makes the movie so mature is his complexity as a character in trying to be this righteous judge who believes he’s doing what’s right by persecuting the gypsies, yet he’s torn between his societal status and this sick lust he develops for one of them, Esmeralda. One of the great song numbers in the movie (“Hellfire”) is when he sings about how tortured he is by this lust and how he decides that she’ll either be his or he’ll burn her at the stake! Speaking of great song numbers, this film has many others, from the chilling and powerful opening song, “Bells of Notre Dame,” that shows right away that the subject matter here isn’t something for very young kids, to the extremely sad and beautiful “God Help the Outcasts.” Besides Frollo, the other characters like Phoebus, Clopin, Esmeralda, and our hero Quasimodo, are good too. My one and only gripe about the movie is the gargoyles. They’re the very obvious comic relief and their humor not only isn’t that funny, but it’s just too silly and disruptive when you have a story that’s so tragic and serious otherwise. There’s other funny parts too, like some of the banter between Phoebus and Esmeralda, so they could have done without the gargoyles and still had some humor. But thankfully they’re still far from bad enough to take away from the movie’s other fantastic elements. This is definitely one of the Disney movies I’d say is better enjoyed by adults than children.

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11. How to Train Your Dragon

Year: 2010
Studio: DreamWorks


I’ve always loved dragons and have had a fascination with the many creative designs people could come up with for them in drawings and animation. I used to draw dragons a lot when I was in high school too. What fantasy-lover doesn’t love them? XD How dragons are portrayed in this movie, however, is a portrayal I simply really, really like. The overall story of How to Train Your Dragon has a lot of things we’ve seen before, like the wimpy kid protagonist trying to prove himself, the parent that won’t listen to him, hiding the unusual pet, etc., but again, the portrayal of dragons and the eventual secret everyone learns about them was something I didn’t see coming and made the movie stand out to me. Besides the dragons, I also liked the relationship between Hiccup and his dad – their reconciliation at the end always brings me to tears. But besides these things, most of what I love about the movie is our starring dragon, Toothless – he is just one adorable motherf*cker! His design has a perfect blending of “cute” and “cool” and all the scenes where he interacts with Hiccup bring a smile to my face. I do have a couple of problems with the movie though, one being that I don’t like most of the side characters and find them kind of obnoxious and one-dimensional, and not all of the humor worked for me (especially that lame running joke about Gobber’s underwear). I guess How to Train Your Dragon is one of those movies that I don’t think is super brilliant or super well-written, but it just happens to have a lot of things I personally enjoy seeing. Hence why it’s on my list ;)

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Next week’s post will wrap things up with my top 10 favorite animated movies, as well as some honorable mentions and a short list of animated movies I’m thinking about seeing but haven’t yet. See you then~!

No Comments… read them or add your own.

  1. jimmy says:

    I can’t say I’ve seen many of these at all. I’ve seen #20-18 and I think I’ve seen Mulan and Tarzan, though my uncertainty can tell you how well I remember them if it turns out I have. I’ve read the book How to Train Your Dragon though, and quite liked it. From what I’ve heard, the movie’s not that similar.

    I’m looking forward to seeing where you place Frozen and Disappearance. Will any Satoshi Kon films or older Disney films make an appearance? If at least the top four aren’t made up of the Shrek movies, I’ll be disappointed, too.

    • Yumeka says:

      That’s cool that you read the original HTTYD books. Curious what you’d think of the movie if it is, indeed, that different. The sequel movie comes out this summer and I’m looking forward to it =D There’s also been a TV series on Cartoon Network though I heard it’s not that great.

      I’m not including any movies that are follow ups to TV series, so Disappearance won’t be on the list. I don’t want to spoil anything, so as for Satoshi Kon, older Disney films, and Shrek, you’ll have to wait and see ;) But I will say that I only really like Shrek 2…and I like the three Satoshi Kon films I’ve seen but they’re not the kinds of movies I’d want to watch again and again.

  2. Kal says:

    I’ve seen all of those except Wreck it Ralph, might have to check that out. I agree they are all good in their own ways. The only problem I had with Pocahontas was not with the characters, or plot, but the songs. Mel Gibson singing is just… Not that good… I can really appreciate where the professional voice actors that we get in Anime come from. I mean, as a professional career with studies and all. Dory pretty much makes the Nemo movie what it is. If she was changed, the movie would suffer greatly. Not sure I can say the same for any other character in the movie… Good movies. I love animation in all its different formats as well. Hope that never changes :)

    • Yumeka says:

      That’s funny that the only problem you had with Pocahontas was Mel Gibson’s singing XD Didn’t he only sing, like, one verse from one song? Unless you count the deleted song, “If I Never Knew You.” I personally didn’t find anything wrong with his singing, but then again I’m not fussy when it comes to that.

      Speaking of Dory, can’t wait to see Finding Dory when it comes out =D Also, if you like all these movies, I highly recommend Wreck-It Ralph!

      • Kal says:

        I’ve seen Pocahontas only once or twice (don’t remember), but that is what stuck in my mind. Just because someone is famous, does not necessarily mean they will do good voice acting. There are exceptions of course (Robin Williams as the Genie for example). Professional voice actors in Japan really stand out as actual professionals, and we can’t compete at their level here in the west I guess. Opinion, of course :)

  3. Firechick says:

    I need to make a list like this some time. I haven’t seen any of those except a few snippets of Dragon, Little Mermaid, and Pocahontas. But I absolutely ADORE the Hunchback of Notre Dame! In fact, I think it’s Disney’s best and boldest movie. Yeah, I agree about the Gargoyles, but I’ve seen worse characters (plus from what I hear there’s a German musical adaptation that not only fixes all of the movie’s flaws, but makes it even darker and grimmer). I do hope Bambi’s on your list though, because that’s one of my favorites, along with Aladdin, which my mom says I used to watch so many times I nearly shorted out a VCR doing so.

    • Yumeka says:

      I’m surprised you’ve seen (and love) Hunchback but haven’t seen any of these other movies in full; usually when someone loves a Disney movie they watch all the others, or all the big ones anyway ;) I didn’t know about that German musical adaptation though. That sounds cool.

      As for Bambi and Aladdin, well, you’ll have to wait and see XD I will say that Aladdin was one I liked a lot as a kid. The way you loved it sounds like how much I loved The Lion King (i.e., watching it a million times on VHS).

  4. Cytrus says:

    Top Disney: The Great Mouse Detective
    Top Pixar: Finding Nemo
    Top Dreamworks: Shrek (1? 2?)
    Top Ghibli: Sen to Chihiro Kamikakushi

    I haven’t seen 17 and 11 from this list.

    I’m still amazed they had the balls to adapt the story of Mulan at that time. People still can’t handle rice balls appearing in their shows…

    Roger Rabbit was something unique and a small dream of animation fans everywhere – that the two worlds would somehow cross.

    I never know older anime on your what’s that anime lists, but I grew up on Disney, so we have more overlap there xD.

    • Yumeka says:

      Man, it’s been so long since I watched Great Mouse Detective. I know last time I saw it was when I was still a kid. I’ve heard it’s one of the better pre-Renaissance Disney movies so I definitely need to watch it again one of these days XD

      Good point about Mulan, though I still think Hunchback was the more ballsy movie for Disney to choose to make ;)

      LOL, glad to know we both grew up on the same Disney movies at least XD

      • Cytrus says:

        Hunchback didn’t leave much of an impression on me – but I watched that only once as a kid, so I’ll be giving it a rewatch sometime after reading this list.

        Great Mouse Detective was great for focusing on a decadent intellectual as the main character and providing a compelling story without resorting to a romantic subplot (unless you ship someone there, in which case we’re immediately in Ro-kyu-bu! territory xD).

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