Top 30 Greatest CGI Movies of All Time: Honorable Mentions

Like I promised, here are 5 honorable mentions I wanted to point out, 3 of which premiered after November 2014.
The Peanuts Movie (2015)
 
Based on the beloved comic strips by Charles Schulz, The Peanuts Movie, Blue Sky's tenth animated feature, is about a young boy named Charlie Brown. He has all the bad luck a kid would never want, like getting a kite stuck up a tree and getting a football pulled away right before he kicks it. When Charlie falls in love with a new student named Heather, he tries to impress her through entering the talent show and writing a book report on War & Peace. However, because he is Charlie Brown, nothing goes his way. The story may sound depressing, but the movie itself is very sweet and stays true to the original comic strips without being too modern. In fact, if Sparky (a nickname for Charles Schulz) was still alive, he would be proud of this movie.
Inside Out (2015)
 
After Monsters University, many Pixar fans, myself included, felt that the mighty animation studio lost their magic touch. Then, on June 19th, 2015, Pixar's 15th animated feature, Inside Out, premiered in theaters and got glowing reviews. Directed by Pete Doctor, who also directed Monsters Inc and Up, Inside Out tells the story of what goes inside the head of an 11-year-old girl named Riley Anderson. Riley's emotions, Joy (Amy Pohler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Bill Hader), Disgust (Mindy Kaling), and Anger (Lewis Black), help Riley out through her lifetime. When her family moves from Minnesota to San Francisco, California, Riley spirals into depression and cries in front of her new classmates. Things get worse when Joy and Sadness get sucked into the labyrinth of long-term memory, and without Joy, Riley can't be happy. Inside Out is Pixar's most original movie since Up and their best since Toy Story 3. Inside Out is considered Pixar's comeback and rightfully won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature.
Zootopia (2016)

Disney's 55th animated feature, Zootopia, takes place in a world inhabited by mammals. Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin), a rabbit, wants to be a police officer, despite all the other officers being elephants, rhinos, hippos, wildcats, and wolves. When a river otter goes missing, Hopps has no choice but to team up with a sly fox named Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) to find the missing otter within 48 hours. Zootopia is arguably the best animated Disney movie in decades with beautiful animation, likable characters, a very original story, and a universal message that kids will and should understand. Zootopia got really good reviews when it premiered, with an impressive 98% on Rotten Tomatoes, and grossed over one billion dollars at the box-office, one of four animated features to do so.
Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011)
 
In the sequel to the 2008 hit animated film Kung Fu Panda, Po is now officially the Dragon Warrior and even has a few fans. However, an evil peacock named Lord Shen plans on destroying kung fu by replacing it with fireworks. Now it's up to Po and the Furious Five to save China from certain destruction. Kung Fu Panda 2 is one of the rare opportunities in which DreamWorks focuses more on story than comedy. The animation is lovely, the fight scenes are awesome, and Lord Shen is probably one of DreamWorks' best villains to date.
Surf's Up (2007)

Surf's Up is a documentary-style CG animated film about a teenage rockhopper penguin named Cody Maverick (Shia LaBouff). Cody wants to surf like his hero, Big Z (Jeff Bridges), who supposedly died ten years earlier. After being wiped out during a surfing match with big shot Tank Evans (Diedrich Bader), Cody gets lost in the jungles of Pen Gu Island, and meets a middle aged penguin nicknamed 'Geek'. 'Geek' turns out to be Big Z himself, and Cody gets to learn from the master, without being pranked by him. Like Pixar's feature the previous year, Cars, the lesson of Surf's Up is that it's the journey that matters, and not the race. I feel like Surf's Up handles the message better because it has a more likeable protagonist. While the film may not be as good as Ratatouille or Persepolis that year, Surf's Up is a film that can be embraced by both kids and adults.
I was so tempted to put Moana as an honorable mention, but in the end, I felt like it's too new to be included.

Movie Review: Moana

Movie Review: Moana                                                                                                            11-24-16

I've actually been waiting for this movie all year. I was actually, initially, more hyped over it than Zootopia! Moana was originally going to be a hand-drawn/computer animated film, in a similar style to the 2012 short film Paperman, but co-director John Musker stated it was too early to apply the Paperman technique to a feature film. On the plus side, this is the first CG animated feature for directors John Musker and Ron Clements, directors of The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and The Princess and the Frog. This is also, if you're counting, the tenth CGI movie from Walt Disney Animation Studios (yes, I counted).

Set about 2,000 years ago, Moana tells the story of a Polynesian girl named Moana (Auli'i Cravalho), who sails on a dangerous mission to save her people. Moana meets a demigod named Maui (Dwayne Johnson), who guides her in her journey to become a master way-finder. Together, they sail across the open ocean on an action-packed voyage, encountering numerous monsters and impossible odds, while also discovering Moana's identity.

Now what do I think of the film? Well, Moana is an impressive achievement, ranking with Tangled and Frozen. Along with breathtaking animation, Moana has a balanced story, likable characters, and some of the best interactions with water in a CG film since Finding Nemo. Also, like Tangled and Frozen, Moana is a musical and has some memorable songs. There's even a catchy villain song sung by a giant gold-keeping hermit crab named Tamatoa, voiced by Jemaine Clement.

 

Remember how in Frozen, Anna wished Elsa had tropical powers instead of ice? It seems like her wish has come true, despite the two films being set centuries apart: Moana has hydrokinesis, almost similar to Lapis Lazuli's powers in Steven Universe, though not as powerful. In other words, Moana can control salt water.

 

Maui, Dwayne Johnson's character in the film, is also an enjoyable character. He is a marked improvement over previous collaborations with Disney, like The Game Plan (2007) and Race to Witch Mountain (2009). There's also some terrific 2D animation on Maui's tattoos, animated by the brilliant Eric Goldberg.

 

The one thing I wish we could see more of is Pua, Moana's pet pig. I found him more enjoyable that Heihei, the dimwitted rooster in the film, because I found the bird brain (no pun intended) to be annoying at times, and felt like he doesn't contribute to the story that much.

 

With all that said, Moana is still an enjoyable film, though not as good as Zootopia, but still very close. Besides, it's gotta be better than Trolls, DreamWorks' other feature for this year.

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

PS. If you're wondering what I think of Frozen, I will post my opinion and comments about it on  December 1st. It WILL NOT count as a movie review.

Top 30 Greatest CGI Movies of All TIme Redux Part 3/3

10. Tangled (2010)

 

I know what you're thinking at this point. "Why have Tangled placed so high?" I'll tell you why: First of all, Tangled is Disney's 50th animated movie! Disney started as a small company in 1923, and Walt's first animated feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, premiered in late 1937. Now try subtracting 2010 by 1937. That's 50 animated movies in 73 years, which is very impressive. Secondly, think of what characters have been used in the world of computer animation, as of November 2010. There were toys, animals (both extinct and still alive), robots, automobiles, monsters, aliens, and most importantly, humans, and the humans in Tangled look great in my opinion. When John Lasseter joined the project, he asked executive producer Glen Keane, a legendary Disney animator, if he wanted to do Rapunzel (that's what the project was called at the time) hand-drawn, but Glen decided to take the CG challenge. Besides, I think Tangled would be even harder to make if it were hand-drawn, because of all that hair. And finally, Tangled is a CGI fairy-tale that ISN'T a satire. How many movies can you think of before Tangled that were identical to it? Sorry, Barbie, but your direct-to-video cheap-quills don't count. Anyway, Tangled is about a 17, going on 18-year-old girl named Rapunzel (Mandy Moore). She was secretly kidnapped by a woman named Mother Gothel (Donna Murphy) so she could use Rapunzel's magic hair to keep herself (Gothel) young. On the day before Rapunzel's 18th birthday, Rapunzel encounters a thief named Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi), and the both of them go on an adventure that will change both of their lives forever. Tangled is an enjoyable gem with beautiful animation, an organic story that stays true to the original fairy tale, well-developed characters, and rememberable songs by the legendary Alan Menken.

9. WALL-E (2008)
 

700 years into the future, Earth has been piled high with trash. Humans have abandoned the planet and reached extreme levels of obesity and laziness and became entirely dependent on robots. WALL-E, a brown and yellow square-shaped robot, has been working for years to clean up the planet. After he encounters EVE, a more advanced robot who has been sent to find plants, he falls in love, and together WALL-E and EVE save humanity. This was probably the most ambitious animated movie of that year, setting a cute comedy with a somber warning about ecological irresponsibility and runaway consumerism, with very little dialogue. Some fans consider this to be Pixar's best, while others didn't like it that much. Probably because the movie is only 15% dialogue. Never the less, WALL-E is an enjoyable film for the entire family, and won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature.
 8. Monsters Inc (2001)

 

In another world inhabited by monsters, monsters scare children to use their screams as electricity. The best scarers at Monsters Inc, the company that provides the energy for the city, are James P Sullivan (nicknamed Sulley, voiced by John Goodman) and Mike Wazowski (voiced by Billy Crystal). When a child goes loose in the monster world, havoc erupts, and it's up to Mike and Sulley to return the girl to her bedroom. While Shrek is good at realistic humans and background designs, Monsters Inc has a more organic story (if you think hard enough, Shrek is similar to The Princess Bride), excellent fur simulation, and imaginative character designs. Ultimately, Shrek won the first-ever Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

7. The Incredibles (2004)

The longest, but arguably the greatest, animated movie of 2004, The Incredibles was Pixar's first movie to have the PG-rating. It was also Brad Bird's first animated movie since The Iron Giant. The Incredibles takes place in a world of superheroes and super-villains. After being saved, who didn't want to be saved, by a superhero named Mr. Incredible, the man sues Mr. Incredible, and all superheroes are banned in that city, or live a normal live as a modern-day citizen. 15 years have passed, and Mr. Incredible (now known as Bob Parr) is married to the super-stretchy Elastigirl (now known as Helen Parr), who gave birth to three kids, each with different superpowers. When a new villain named Syndrome (who's actually a rejected fanboy from Mr. Incredible's fan club) plans to destroy the city with the Omnidroid, a special robot, it's up to Bob and his family to come out of hiding and save the world. The Incredibles was also Pixar's first feature to have humans as major characters, rather than toys, insects, monsters, or fish. Despite earning the PG-rating, The Incredibles earned great reviews and won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

6. How To Train Tour Dragon (2010)
 

Like Kung Fu Panda, How To Train Your Dragon had no pop-culture references. I personally find that ironic because director Chris Sanders' previous movie, Lilo & Stitch, had quite a few pop-culture references. There were Elvis songs, a live-action B-movie from the 50s, and even a View Master. Anyway, How To Train Your Dragon is about a teenage boy named Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III (Jay Baruchel) who lives in a small Viking village called Berk. The only problem is the pests. While other places may have mosquitoes or mice, Berk has dragons that steal their livestock and fish. After capturing a legendary Night Fury, instead of killing it, Hiccup releases the dragon, names it Toothless, and becomes its friend. How To Train Your Dragon is an enjoyable entry into the DreamWorks library with an original story, brilliant animation, and a music score that deserved to win the Oscar for Best Original Score, though some believe ‘Dragons 2’ was better.

5. Toy Story 3 (2010)
 

In the final chapter of the beloved Toy Story trilogy, problems mount as Andy grows up and goes to college while the toys end up at a daycare center for destructive toddlers, ruled by a sinister teddy bear who smells of strawberries. While the plot may not be as elegant as the previous Toy Stories, Toy Story 3 more than makes up for it by hitting new highs in other areas. For starters, the animation has improved. Not only are there plastic toys as characters, but also plushes. Also, almost all the original voice actors from the first two Toy Stories are back, even Andy's voice actor. Jim Varney, who voiced Slinky Dog in Toy Story and Toy Story 2, sadly passed away in February 2000, so he didn’t return for Toy Story 3. Instead, Slinky was voiced by Blake Clark. Toy Story 3 earned over a billion dollars worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing animated movie of all time, until Frozen came along. Like Up the previous year, Toy Story 3 got nominated for the Oscar for Best Picture. It also got nominated for Best Original Screenplay and won the Oscars for Best Animated Feature Film and Best Original Song (We Belong Together, which plays during the end credits).

4. Finding Nemo (2003)

In the oceans of Australia, a clownfish named Marlin (Albert Brookes) has a son named Nemo (Alexander Gould). On his first day of school, Nemo touches a boat against his dad's orders and gets kidnapped by a scuba diver. Now Marlin, along with a forgetful regal tang named Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) have to search the whole ocean to find Nemo, while meeting characters like vegetarian sharks, a school of moonfish, and hippy sea turtles. Meanwhile, Nemo gets dumped into a fish tank in a dentist's office with four domesticated fish named Bubbles, Bloat, Gurgle, and Deb, a sea star named Peach, a French cleaner shrimp named Jacques, and a feral Moorish idol fish named Gil (William DeFoe). Finding Nemo is an unforgettable gem with breathtaking animation, many species of fish, and lost of rememberable quotes. 'Nemo' was also Pixar's first movie to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and earned 800 million dollars worldwide at the box-office.

3. Up (2009)

The 2009 Academy Award winner for Best Animated Feature is about an elderly man named Carl Frederickson (Ed Asner), who ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies it to South America to fulfill his deceased wife's dreams. A young Boy Scout named Russell hitches a ride on Carl's house, much to his (Carl's) dismay. When they finally land in South America, Carl and Russell meet a rare bird that Russell named Kevin, and a friendly talking dog named Dug. Little do Carl and Russell know that Dug is one of the hundreds of dogs who Charles Muntz (Christopher Plummer) sent out to capture Kevin, who wants the bird to prove to scientists that a bird like Kevin did exist in Paradise Falls. Up was the first animated movie since Beauty and the Beast to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, and is considered Pixar's masterpiece by fans. 
2. Toy Story (1995)

In the first full-length computer animated feature film, Woody (Tom Hanks) is Andy's favorite toy, but gets jealous when a newer toy, Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), takes Woody's place as Andy's favorite toy. When Woody accidentally knocks Buzz out the window, Woody must save his rival. But things take a dangerous turn when Woody and Buzz get taken by Sid Philips, who tortures toys for his own amusement. Toy Story earned 392 million dollars worldwide, making it the highest-grossing movie of 1995. Toy Story also earned John Lasseter a special Academy Award for the achievement of making a computer animated feature film.

And the best CGI movie of all time is...

1. Toy Story 2 (1999)

In the sequel to the animation phenomenon known as Toy Story, Woody gets kidnapped by Al (Wayne Knight), a greedy toy collector. When Woody finds himself in Al's apartment, he discovers that he was part of a popular TV series from the 50s called 'Woody's Roundup'. He also meets a perky cowgirl named Jessie (Joan Cussack), a loyal horse named Bullseye, and a boxed prospector named Pete (Kelsey Grammer). Little does Woody know that Al wants to sell him and his 'Roundup Gang' to a toy museum in Japan! Now it's up to Buzz Lightyear, along with Hamm, Rex, Slinky, and Mr. Potato Head to rescue Woody. Toy Story 2 takes everything that made Toy Story 1 good and amplifies it by 100%. There are also some enjoyable new characters, like Buster, Andy's dog from the end of the first Toy Story, Mrs. Potato Head (voiced by Estelle Harris), Wheezy the squeaky penguin, who was originally going to be in the first Toy Story, the persuasive 'Stinky' Pete, and the hilarious Utility Belt Buzz, a doppelganger of Andy's Buzz. Toy Story 2 got really good reviews (and is called the rare sequel that lives up to its predecessor), earned nearly 500 million dollars worldwide, and won the Golden Globe for Best Picture.

Top 30 Greatest CGI Movies of All Time Redux Part 2/3

20. Bolt (2008)
 
Bolt was Disney's (Walt Disney Animation Studios') first CGI movie to fully involve John Lasseter, co-founder of Pixar. It was also their first CGI movie to feel like a true Disney movie, compared to previous efforts like Chicken Little and Meet the Robinsons. Bolt tells the story of a dog named Bolt (John Travolta) who stars in a very popular , big budget TV show with his owner Penny (Miley Cyrus). The only problem is that he thinks it's all real. When Penny gets kidnapped in Part 1 of a 2-part episode, Bolt gets anxious and runs frantically throughout the studio, eventually getting mailed to New York City. Eventually, Bolt learns that he is a normal dog with no superpowers, but learns being a real dog is just as special. Bolt also befriends a cat named Mittens and a hamster named Rhino, who happens to be his biggest fan. Bolt got really good reviews when it premiered, and was the first animated Disney movie to get nominated for the Oscar for Best Animated Feature since Brother Bear.
19. Shrek 2 (2004)
 
In the sequel to the first Academy Award winner for Best Animated Feature, Shrek and Fiona and happily married. After hearing their daughter is free from her prison, the king (John Cleese) and queen (Julie Andrews) invite the two ogres and Donkey to a party at their kingdom, Far Far Away. When they arrive, however, the king and queen were very surprised. Feeling like Fiona isn't happy with being ugly, Shrek, along with Donkey, go on a quest to find a potion that would turn him (Shrek) and Fiona human. The movie's plot is more complicated and slower than the original, but it does have its moments. The popularity and success of Shrek 2 lead to two more sequels, though they got weaker reviews, despite being box-office successes. Puss in Boots, voiced by Antonio Banderez, became quite popular, and even got his own movie in 2011.
18. Big Hero 6 (2014)
 
Big Hero 6 was Disney's first animated movie based on a Marvel comic, since they purchased the rights to Marvel in 2009. The story takes place in San Fransokyo, a highly stylized San Francisco, and tells the story of a child prodigy named Hiro Hamada (Ryan Potter) who gets a special present from his older brother, Tadashi: an inflatable robot named Baymax, who is designed to take care of Hiro. After a fire incident inside the science fair convention building, Hiro is devastated when he sees Tadashi jump into the fray to save his teacher, but didn't succeed. Hiro also discovers that his microbots, which he used in the science fair, were stolen by a man in a Kabuki mask, who also killed Tadashi! With the help of his new friends and Baymax, Hiro sets on an adventure to save San Fransokyo from certain destruction. Big Hero 6 easily became the highest grossing animated movie of the year and won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature (though some people think How To Train Your Dragon 2 should've won that award). This was probably because of the humongous success of Frozen from the previous year, and it's currently debatable on which movie was better.
17. Wreck-it Ralph (2012)
 
Wreck-it Ralph is about a video game baddie named Ralph (John C Reily). He is the antagonist of the Nintendo-inspired arcade game, Fix-it Felix Jr. The player plays a carpenter named Felix (Jack McBryer) and he has to fix the building Ralph wrecks, while avoiding falling bricks. Whenever a level is completed, Felix earns a medal. But are there medals for wrecking stuff really well? No, there aren't. For 30 years, Ralph had to be thrown off the building repeatedly by the nice-landers. After saying that he'd earn himself his own medal, Ralph heads off to an intense first-person shooter game called Hero's Duty. Upon receiving a medal he stole, he steps on an egg that hatches an evil creature, a Cy-Bug. After blindly stumbling into an escape pod that sends Ralph and the Cy-Bug to a Mario Kart-inspired race game called Sugar Rush, Ralph meets a rejected racer named Vanellope (Sarah Silverman), and the fate of the entire arcade is in his big hands. Wreck-it Ralph is considered by fans, myself included, the Who Framed Roger Rabbit or Toy Story of video games. There are cameos from many different games, like Pac-Man, Sonic the Hedgehog, Bowser (from the Mario games), some Street Fighter characters, and even Q*Bert. Surprisingly, Wreck-it Ralph did NOT win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Instead, Brave, one of Pixar's lesser projects (but not their worst) won the award that year. Thankfully, Wreck-it Ralph won both the Annie Award and the KCA (Kids Choice Award) for Best Animated Feature.
16. Antz (1998)
 
Ever since both movies were announced, people have been debating whether or not Pixar's next movie, A Bug's Life, is a rip-off of DreamWorks' first animated feature, Antz. Jeffery Katzenberg, the co-founder of DreamWorks, stated that the idea for Antz came from director Tim Johnson, an independent of Disney/Pixar . The reason for two simultaneous insect films should also be seen, however, in the context of the computer technology at the time. Like toys, insects were suitable subjects, as it was too difficult to animate humans and furry animals effectively with computer animation. Anyway, Antz is about a neurotic and thoughtful ant named Z (Woody Allen), who questions the lack of individual freedom in the underground, soviet-style society he inhabits. Destined to become a soldier ant, Z unintentionally participates in a war with termites where all the other ants get killed. He survives by not fighting and running away, but to his dismay is hailed as a war hero. Z falls in love with Princess Bala (Sharon Stone) and has to rescue his colony from destruction by the evil General Mandible. More will be discussed in entry #13.
15. Shrek (2001)
 
Based on the obscure children's book by William Steig, Shrek is about an ogre named Shrek (Mike Myers) who thinks fairy tales are a load of *flush*. But when his swamp gets crowded with fairy tale creatures and characters, he sets on a quest with a donkey named Donkey (Eddie Murphy) to rescue a princess for Lord Farquad (John Lithglow) in order to get his swamp back. Shrek eventually saves and meets the Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) and eventually they fall in love. Shrek was very successful, earning over 400 million dollars at the box-office, got really good reviews, spawned a multimedia franchise, and won the very first Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
14. Arthur Christmas (2011)

Aardman's first movie since Flushed Away, and their second CGI movie, tells the story of Santa's youngest son, Arthur, who noticed that Santa forgot to deliver one present: a bicycle for a young girl in England! Now it's up to Arthur, Grandsanta, and a stowaway elf, to deliver the present to her by Christmas morning. Arthur Christmas is notable for featuring characters that aren't in the usual Aardman style. I personally think that was a good idea because, just imagine what the human characters would look like in the style of Wallace and Gromit in CGI form! Arthur Christmas got good reviews, but unfortunately bombed at the box-office. It had to compete against The Muppets (that 2011 movie about getting the Muppets back together again in order to stop an evil oil baron from destroying the old studio) as well as The Adventures of Tintin.
13. A Bug's Life (1998)
 
Pixar's follow-up to the hugely successful Toy Story, A Bug's Life is about a worker ant named Flik (Dave Foley), who accidentally drops all the food they prepared for the greedy grasshoppers, into the river. This causes tension between the ants and Hopper (Kevin Spacey), the leader of the grasshoppers. He makes a deal with Princess Adda, who is becoming queen soon, that the ants will harvest double the amount of food that was lost in the river by the end of the summer, or else. Flik, the one responsible for this whole mess, insists that they should find bigger bugs to fight the grasshoppers. He then goes to the city to find some tough bugs, but discovers they were just a bunch of clowns. Literally. They were run-aways from the circus after their boss fired them. A Bug's Life may not be as good as Toy Story, but it has dazzling animation and rememberable characters. A Bug's Life won the box-office battle with Antz, but Antz got slightly better reviews. I personally prefer A Bug's Life because Antz can't decide if it's a kids movie or an adult movie, while Pixar knows their target audiences for the next decade. 
12. Ratatouille (2007)
 
Ratatouille tells the story of a French rat named Remy (Patton Oswalt), who has a good sense of smell and a passion for food. He follows in the footsteps of the deceased, but legendary Chef Gusteu, the greatest chef in Paris. When he finds himself in the restaurant of Gusteu’s itself, Remy befriends a nincompoop named Linguini. He has no idea how to cook, but Remy does. Remy teaches Linguini how to cook by hiding under his hat and pulling his hairs, but the devious Chef Skinner is aware of Linguini’s secret. Ratatouille may not be Pixar’s best compared to previous movies like Toy Story, Monsters Inc, or Finding Nemo, but more than makes up for Pixar’s previous effort, which was Cars. Ratatouille got really good reviews when it premiered and won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

11. How To Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
 
In the sequel to the groundbreaking DreamWorks movie How To Train Your Dragon, everyone is now five years older than in the original film. Hiccup and Toothless discover an evil man named Drago Bloodfist, who wants to capture all the dragons to build an army with them. Stoick, Hiccup's dad, is pressuring him to become chief, while Hiccup just wants to make peace with Drago. Hiccup then discovers an island covered with ice that holds a secret to his past: his long-lost mother, Valka (voiced by Cate Blanchett). Valka loves dragons, and the island she lives on has tons of them. The only problem I personally have with 'Dragons 2' is that the atmosphere is quite dark for a kid's film. To top it all off, one of the characters the audience gets attached to gets killed, which I haven't seen in a DreamWorks movie since The Prince of Egypt. Nevertheless, ‘Dragons 2’ is an enjoyable film, and probably deserved the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. If you ask me, however, I think Song of the Sea should've won the Award that year.

Top 30 Greatest CGI Movies of All Time Redux Part 1/3

Top 30 Greatest CGI Movies of All Time Part 1/3

Remember how last year, I did a Top 30 Greatest CGI Movies of All Time countdown in honor of Toy Story's 20th anniversary? Well, I felt like it deserved a bit of an update where I fix the errors and typos and replace Avatar with Ratatouille. There will also be a bonus 5 honorable mentions at the end of this countdown. Without further ado, let's start the countdown!
30. Flushed Away (2006)
 
Flushed Away was Aardman's first computer animated feature, and their third and final movie to be released by DreamWorks. The story concerns a pet rat named Roddy (voiced by Hugh Jackman), who gets flushed down the toilet by another rat named Sid. In the sewers, Roddy encounters many characters, like singing slugs, a mercenary frog, and a love interest (another rat named Rita, voiced by Kate Winslet). He also encounters an evil toad who wants to flush out every rat in the sewers and repopulate it with tadpoles. Aardman chose to do the movie in CGI because they find water extremely difficult to animate in stop-motion. The characters, however, still retain the Aardman style, looking like how they would in a Wallace and Gromit adventure. The movie, unfortunately, bombed at the box-office, and DreamWorks and Aardman decided to abandon one another.
29. Happy Feet (2006)
 
This was George Miller's first shot at making an animated movie, rather than a live-action one like Mad Max or Babe. Happy Feet was also the first animated feature to come out of Animal Logic, the Australian equivalent of Industrial Lights and Magic. This is also the first and only motion-capture movie to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Anyway, in the movie, every emperor penguin has a song. When they have the right song, they have the right mate. Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood), however, has an awful singing voice. Instead, he can tap-dance. The elder emperor penguins find this a disgrace to penguin-kind, and they blame Mumble for the fish famine. Mumble gets banished from his colony, and the only friends he has are a group of 5 Hispanic Adele penguins (the leader voiced by the late Robin Williams) and the all-knowing rock-hopper penguin, Lovelace (also voiced by Robin Williams). Together, they go on an epic adventure to find out where the fish really went. The movie has dazzling animation, but the story can be a bit confusing for younger kids. Happy Feet, however, is very special for me because it has a strong environmental warning from the perspective of not a human, but a penguin.
28. Despicable Me 2 (2013)
 
Despicable Me 2, along with Frozen for some people, are claimed to be the best animated movies released in 2013. In the sequel to the 2010 blockbuster hit, Gru is asked by the Anti-Villain League to track down a villain who's been storing a secret stash of a serum that turns people, animals, and Minions into dangerous purple, hairy monsters. Gru is also paired up with a new character, Lucy Wilde (voiced by Kristen Wigg), to track down this new villain. Also, the Minions have a bigger role, but I won't say what. Despicable Me 2 is safe to be considered Illumination Entertainment's equivalent to Shrek 2, as both movies are considered by fans "just as good as the original". Also, both movies grossed over 900 million dollars worldwide.
27. The Adventures of Tintin (2011)
 
In 1981, when Steven Spielberg was reading a Belgian review of his newest movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark, he kept seeing the word "Tauntaun". Steven thought it was a French praise, but then he learned that "Tauntaun" means Tintin in French, and that Tintin was the name of a character in a popular book series. To top it all off, the plot of Raiders of the Lost Ark is similar to one of the Tintin books! Sadly, Hergé, the creator of Tintin, passed away in 1983, when Steven was working on the second Indiana Jones movie, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Many years later ,Spielberg asked Peter Jackson if his team at Weta Workshop would make a CGI dog for a live-action Tintin movie. Steven thought the dog looked very realistic and convincing, and he asked if Peter could make a feature-length adaptation in the style of the dog. The movie would eventually be animated at Weta Workshop in New Zealand and co-produced by Nickelodeon. The Adventures of Tintin premiered in late 2011 and grossed over 300 million dollars worldwide, becoming Nickelodeon's most successful movie to date.
26. Ice Age (2002)

Ice Age was originally intended to be Don Bluth's next movie after Titan AE, but because the movie bombed at the box-office, Fox Animation Studios closed their doors. However, that didn't stop Chris Wedge and his team at Blue Sky, the company who did the CG effects for 'Titan'. Ice Age is about a lone mammoth named Manfred (Ray Ramano) who saved a ground sloth named Sid (John Liguizamo) from a group of angry rhinos. After witnessing a female human holding a baby in the river, Sid decides that they should return the baby to its herd, much to Manfred's dismay. While trying to climb a rock wall, a saber-toothed tiger named Diego (Denis Leary) snatches the baby from Sid. Diego tells them that he knows where the humans are, and Manny and Sid reluctantly agree. Little do they know that Diego was sent to bring the baby back so the other tigers can kill it. Ice Age did very well at the box-office, got great reviews, and spawned several sequels and a Christmas special.
25. Horton Hears a Who! (2008)

In 2004, shortly after the premiere of the atrocity known as The Cat in the Hat, Audrey Geisel, the widow of Ted Geisel (otherwise known as Dr. Seuss), banned any further live-action adaptations of her husband's books. However, she didn't say anything about animated adaptations. Horton Hears a Who!, based on the book of the same name, was Blue Sky's first movie to have the G-rating, and is considered their best film among fans. It concerns an elephant named Horton (Jim Carrey) who saves a speck of dust from drowning in a lake. He then learns that there's an entire species of microscopic mammals, known as Whos, living on that speck. A purple kangaroo, however, does not like this at all. She thinks it poisons the minds of the children of the jungle, including her own, so she asks a bird named Vlad to snatch the flower Horton placed the speck on and ditch it. The movie is different from previous theatrical Dr. Seuss adaptations because it stays true to the original story. They also expanded on some of the characters, like the mayor of Whoville and his son Jojo. 'Horton' is quite fast-paced and is very enjoyable.
24. The Book of Life (2014)
 
The best way to describe this movie is like a cross between Disney's Aladdin and Tim Burton's Corpse Bride. It concerns three friends: Manolo, Joaquin, and Maria. La Muerte, ruler of the Land of the Remembered, and Xibalba, ruler of the Land of the Forgotten, make a bet. If Manolo marries Maria, La Muerte will rule both lands. If Joaquin marries Maria, however, Xibalba will rule the Land of the Remembered. Xibalba sends a snake to kill Manolo, sending him to the colorful Land of the Remembered. It is now up to Manolo to get back to the Land of the Living and stop an invasion from a threat greater than Xibalba. The story may be a bit predictable and cliched, but the beautiful animation more than makes up for it.
23. Despicable Me (2010)
 
After working on Horton Hears a Who!, executive producer Chris Meledandri decided to form his own company: Illumination Entertainment. The result: Despicable Me, one of the most popular and successful animated movies of the decade. The story concerns a super-villain named Gru (Steve Carall), who has an army of yellow peanut-shaped creatures simply called Minions. The biggest thing he and his Minions ever stole was the Times Square Jumbotron, while a younger villain named Vector (Jason Segall) stole an entire pyramid from Egypt! Gru wants to top that by stealing the moon. Without the moon, things would go haywire, and the public would give Gru anything to bring it back, and then he would be the greatest villain of all time. However, the moon is quite large to steal, so first, they have to steal a shrink ray from an Asian laboratory. Gru and his Minions succeed, but it gets stolen by Vector, whose not-so-secret lair is heavily guarded. Gru then spots three orphan girls, who also happen to be cookies sellers, and they got in and out of Vector's lair with ease. Gru adopts these girls to secretly steal back the shrink ray, but slowly but surely, he gets attached to them. Despicable Me was Universal's most successful and most popular animated movie since The Land before Time in 1988, and the Minions became very popular, eventually getting their own movie in 2015.
22. Azur & Asmar: The Prince's Quest (2006)
 
This is the only CGI movie I chose that was made completely outside of the US (Azur and Asmar is French), but it made it to the America in 2008 by The Weinstein Company. The story is very complicated, but I'll try my best to summarize it. Azur and Asmar is an Arabian tale about two brothers: a light-skinned boy with blue eyes named Azur and a dark-skinned boy with brown eyes named Asmar. Azur would normally get Asmar in trouble as a kid; so much that Azur's father banishes Asmar and his mother. Azur, however, travels to Asmar's country to see his adoptive mother and win the magic Djinn fairy, who doesn't look much like a fairy. Azur and Asmar was visually different from other CGI movies at the time because the movie used restricted perspectives, characters in formal poses, and background decor of arabesque patterns. Also, the human characters were flat, only their faces and hand were 3D. The strengths of the movie come from its organic story that would rival Walt Disney's storytelling. 

21. Kung Fu Panda (2008)
 
Kung Fu Panda is about a panda bear named Po (Jack Black), who is a big fan of the Furious Five: the heroes of China. After a few failed attempts to break into the palace, Po finally makes it in and earns the nickname "the Dragon Warrior" by the wise tortoise Oogway. Much to his dismay, Shi-Fu (Dustin Hoffman), trainer of the Furious Five, now must train Po so he can defeat an evil snow leopard named Tai-Lung (Ian McShane.) Kung Fu Panda was a big challenge for DreamWorks because there had to be absolutely no pop-culture references. That was a problem because pop-culture references are part of DreamWorks' trademark. If there were pop-culture references, the movie would feel more like a parody. Kung Fu Panda eventually became another cash cow for DreamWorks and got nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.