Favorite Animated Movies From Each Year Of My Life Part 5/5

 2020- Wolfwalkers

Wolfwalkers is set in 17th century Kilkenny, where the recently installed English Lord Protector (Simon McBurney) puts hunter Bill Goodfellowe (Sean Bean) to work ridding the forest of a pack of wolves so that townsfolk can clear the land. Widower Bill's young daughter, Robyn (Honor Kneafsey), fancies herself a hunter, too, and goes into the forest to help her dad. There she encounters the wolves, which injure her pet falcon, Merlin. On another forbidden trip to the forest, Robyn meets Mebh (Eva Whittaker), a feral girl who's also a wolfwalker: a human with the ability to leave her physical body during sleep and transform into a wolf. Mebh convinces Robyn to help find her missing mother, Moll (Maria Doyle Kennedy), the queen wolfwalker, who was captured while in wolf form. As the girls grow closer and closer, Bill continues to be tasked with wiping out the wolves -- or face dire consequences.

Wolfwalkers is a modern masterpiece with astonishing animation, an emotional and engaging story, three-dimensional characters, and strong messages on anti-sexism, environmentalism, and friendship.

2021- The Mitchells vs the Machines

Katie Mitchell (Abbi Jacobson) is a teenage girl who loves to make home movies. However, her father Rick (Danny McBride) starts thinking that she is becoming too reliant on cellphones and computers. When Katie gets accepted into the college of her dreams, Rick cancels her plane tickets and plans a cross-country road trip to spend quality time with her, along with his wife Linda (Maya Rudolph) and Katie’s younger brother Aaron. When machines start rebelling against humanity, however, the Mitchell family has to put their differences aside to save the world.

The Mitchells vs the Machines is another win for Sony Pictures with a thoughtful story with a strong allegory on overrelying on technology, creative animation, engaging characters, and jokes that rival the best of Simpsons episodes.

2022- Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

In this movie, Puss’s passion for adventure has cost him eight of his nine lives. Now, in order to restore his lost lives, Puss has to team up with Kitty Softpaws and an orphaned pup named Perrito to travel through the Forest of Darkness to find the mythical wishing star. Unfortunately for Puss, there are others searching for the star: Goldilocks, who wants everything to be ‘just right’, Jack Horner, a piemaker who wants to drain the world’s magic and hog it all to himself, and Death, a killer wolf who wants Puss in Boots’s last life.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish is not only one of the best animated movies of 2022, but it’s also one of DreamWorks’ best with a paper-thick story, beautiful animation, new characters that are just as engaging as Shrek, Donkey, and Fiona, a great score from Heitor Pierera, and a strong message about valuing your life. It’s a movie I recommend to every Shrek fan out there.

2023- Nimona

I know a lot of people would pick Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse as their favorite animated movie of 2023, but along with the film’s darker tone and Earth-shattering cliffhanger ending, I felt Miles’s second adventure was just too long.

Nimona tells the story of a supervillain named Ballister Blackheart, an ex-knight with a bionic arm. One day, he hires a new sidekick named Nimona, a mischievous shapeshifting teenager who yearns to hurt others for pleasure. Ballister and Nimona go on a mission to clear his name and get revenge on the deceitful Director.

Nimona is Blue Sky’s best movie with a story that stays true to the source material, animation that you won’t believe was done by the same people who worked on Ice Age, engaging three-dimensional characters, and a positive message about treating others as you want to be treated.

2024- The Wild Robot

Based on the book by Peter Brown, this movie is about a helper bot named Roz, who crashes into the woods. When all the animals neglect her, Roz decides to raise an orphaned gosling that she names Brightbill so she can teach him how to eat, swim, and fly just in time for Winter.

The Wild Robot is another jewel to put on DreamWorks’ crown with a heartfelt albeit slightly familiar story, outstanding animation, engaging characters, a great score from Kris Bowers, and strong messages on tolerance and acceptance, the heart is as important as the brain, how kindness can be a survival skill, and how difficult parenting can be.

2025- David

From the songs of his mother's heart to the whispers of a faithful God, David's story begins in quiet devotion. When the giant Goliath rises to terrorize a nation, a young shepherd armed with only a sling, a few stones, and unshakable faith steps forward. Pursued by power and driven by purpose, his journey tests the limits of loyalty, love, and courage--culminating in a battle not just for a crown, but for the soul of a kingdom.

David is the best biblical animated movie since The Prince of Egypt with a strong heartfelt tone, impressive animation, engaging albeit familiar characters, appealing character designs, and songs that easily trump lesser animated musicals in recent years.

I am so sorry that I didn’t include KPop Demon Hunters for 2025, but I find the movie to be overrated. Don’t get me wrong, the movie has another great mix of 2D and 3D animation, thrilling action scenes, and an engaging trio, but the movie also has exaggerated facial expressions that clash with the realistic character designs, an overstimulating story, and just as many plot holes as there are of demon portals: Why didn’t Celine tell Mira and Zoey about Rumi’s demon side earlier? Why does Rumi suddenly have empathy for demons? Why did Rumi’s mom marry a demon in the first place? Why don’t Rumi’s patterns disappear after the Honmoon is sealed? If Rumi is supposed to accept herself being part demon, why does she mercilessly kill other demons at the climax alongside Mira and Zoey? Wouldn't there be at least one Saja Boy fan that would be angry at Huntrix for killing them? If Rumi is half demon, then why doesn’t she act or behave like one? Maybe these questions will be solved now that Netflix plans on turning KPop Demon Hunters into a full-on franchise.

Well, that concludes my big birthday project! As for what’s next for my blog, I’ll review Charlotte’s Web in May, Toy Story 5 in June, and Paddington in Peru in July.

Favorite Animated Movie From Each Year Of My Life Part 4/5

 2014- Song of the Sea

I know others would pick The LEGO Movie or How To Train Your Dragon 2 as their favorite animated movie of 2014, but I wanted to include as many 2D films as I did of 3D films.

Song of the Sea takes place in Ireland during the 80s. Ben, whose mother passed away shortly after giving birth to his sister, Saoirse, discovers that his sister is part Selkie, a mythical seal-like creature whose race is in danger. Together, they embark on an adventure to go back home to find Ben's dog Cú (pronounced Coo), and to save the Selkies.

Song of the Sea is a gem of a movie with beautiful animation, three-dimensional characters, a story and musical score that bring you right into Irish culture, and strong messages about sibling cooperation and love.

2015- Inside Out

Inside Out tells the story of what goes on 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 with breathtaking animation, an emotional (no pun intended) story, likable characters, and a strong message about how it’s okay to be sad sometimes.

2016- Your Name

Mitsuha is the daughter of the mayor of a small mountain town. She's a straightforward high school girl who lives with her sister and her grandmother and has no qualms about letting it be known that she's uninterested in Shinto rituals or helping her father's electoral campaign. Instead, she dreams of leaving the boring town and trying her luck in Tokyo. Taki is a high school boy in Tokyo who works part-time in an Italian restaurant and aspires to become an architect or an artist. Every night he has a strange dream where he becomes...a high school girl in a small mountain town. When a meteor threatens to destroy Mitsuha’s town, she and Taki have to find a way to save everyone.

Your Name is an anime masterpiece with a deep emotional story, three-dimensional characters, Ghibli-quality animation, and excellent music from the band Radwimps. As much as I love Zootopia and Moana, I picked Your Name as my favorite animated movie from 2016 because I wanted to include more than just one or two anime movies.

2017- Coco

Pixar’s 19th feature film is about a 12-year-old boy named Miguel Rivera (Anthony Gonzales), who wants to be a musician. However, his family hates music because his great-grandfather Ernesto de La Cruz (Benjamin Bratt) abandoned his family to pursue his career. When Miguel breaks into La Cruz’s mausoleum to take his guitar, he gets bewitched into the Land of the Remembered, on Dia de los Muertos, to boot! Now, with the help of a bum named Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal),Miguel has to find a way back to the Land of the Living before sunrise, or else he will remain in the Land of the Remembered forever and become a skeleton.

Coco is another Pixar gem with vibrant and gorgeous animation, likeable characters, excellent music, and a story that not only embraces Mexican culture, but also has a strong message about family and forgiveness.

2018- Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Peter Parker (Jake Johnson) always thought he was the only Spider-Man, but when he gets sucked into a vortex, he ends up in an alternate dimension in which a different Peter Parker dies at the age of 26 during an intense fight with the Green Goblin. Peter meets a teenage Afro-Latino trainee named  Miles Morales (Shamiek Moore), and when more portals open up, they encounter Gwen Stacy/Spider-Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld), Spider-Man Noir (Nicolas Cage), the anime-influenced Peni Parker (Kimiko Glenn) and her robot boyfriend, and Peter Porker/Spider-Ham (John Mulaney). Together, they have to stop the broad-shouldered Kingpin (Liev Schreiber) from building a device that will destroy all the Spider-Men/Women's worlds.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is the best animated movie of 2018 with a paper-thick story, groundbreaking animation, awesome music from Daniel Pemberton, and likable characters. 

2019- Klaus

All mailman Jesper Johansson (Jason Schwartzman) wants is to be respected, but after failing postman training academy, his father sends him to the violent and gloomy town of Smeerensburg. If Jesper delivers 6,000 letters, he can return home. With the help of a woodcarver named Klaus (JK Simmons), they decide to bring joy to the children of Smeerensburg by delivering toys.

Klaus is not only a near-perfect Christmas movie, but also a perfect way to end the decade with fluid animation, a heartfelt story, an all-star cast, and a strong message how one act of kindness always sparks another, even in the most bleak of places.

In Part 5, you’ll see movies with robots, cats, a shapeshifter, and even a shepherd!

Movie Review: Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile

Movie Review: Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile                                                                    4-9-26

When the Primm family (Constance Wu, Scoot McNairy, Winslow Fegley) moves to New York City, their young son Josh struggles to adapt to his new school and new friends. All of that changes when he discovers Lyle - a singing crocodile (Shawn Mendes) who loves baths, caviar, and great music- living in the attic of his new home. The two become fast friends, but when Lyle's existence is threatened by the landlord Mr. Grumps (Brett Gelman), the Primm's must band together with Lyle's charismatic owner, Hector P. Valenti (Javier Bardem), to show the world that family can come from the most unexpected places and there's nothing wrong with a big singing crocodile with an even bigger personality.

Even though Hector’s arc in the movie is basically what would happen if you took the Looney Tunes cartoon “One Froggy Evening” and stretched it to feature length, Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile makes up for it with fantastic CGI made on only 50 million dollars (May I remind you that Wish cost four times as much money, yet it looks like Sofia the First!), songs that outshine Disney’s own live-action musical that year (Disenchanted, which I was disenchanted by), production design that really captures the beauty and grittiness of New York City, a heartfelt tone worthy of the Heartland Award for Truly Moving Picture, and a relatable protagonist. Josh Primm moves into a new city and has trouble making friends, just like me when I moved to Plymouth. He’s shy, not very cool, picked on at school, and has an asthma inhaler whenever he has a panic attack. In fact, you can say that Josh is autistic, and there are hints throughout the movie: He has a very strict diet, has trouble making friends, and even knows about subway schedules and city crime rates. Also, like many autistic people, Josh prefers to be with other animals rather than people. In this case, he likes to hang around with Lyle and Loretta, Mr. Grump’s cat.

Another thing to point out about ‘Lyle’ is how despite being a Sony film (but not Sony Pictures Animation), there isn’t as much product placement and uses mostly fictional brands. Instead of TikTok, the characters use Sweep. Instead of America’s Got Talent or American Idol, wannabe stars try out on Show Us What You Got!

If I were to make nitpicks, I feel the movie should’ve been shorter. I also feel Hector’s a bit of a crook: The only reason he bought Lyle in the first place is so he can make money off of him. He doesn’t care about the crocodile’s mental health, he just wants to get rich off of Lyle like in One Froggy Evening. If I wrote the movie, I’d change it so that Hector was poor, and that Lyle is the only hope he has making enough money to pay off his apartment.

Hector swinging Lyle around as a croclet.

In conclusion, despite its flaws, Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile is a fun movie for the whole family to enjoy. I recommend either borrowing the movie from your local library or wait until it’s available on Netflix.

Rating: 3.8 stars out of 5

I also have an update: Zootopia 2 now has a 4-star rating, while Zootopia 1 has a 5-star rating.

Favorite Animated Movies From Each Year Of My Life Part 3/5

 2008- Kung Fu Panda

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 Jade Palace, Po finally makes it in and earns the nickname of "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, along with Pixar’s WALL-E, are among the best animated movies of 2008 with a timeless and engaging story, awesome animation, three-dimensional characters, and a great score from Hans Zimmer and John Powell.

2009- Fantastic Mr. Fox

I’m sorry that I didn’t include Up, but I already included six Pixar films.

Based on the children's book by Roald Dahl, Fantastic Mr. Fox tells the story of a fox (George Clooney) who steals chickens for a living. When his wife Felicity (Meryl Streep) gets pregnant with a cub, she tells Mr. Fox to get a new job. Twelve fox years later, the cub grows up to be a stubborn boy fox named Ash (Jason Schwartzman), and gets jealous when his talented cousin Kristofferson (Eric Anderson, director Wes Anderson's brother) comes over. After convincing his lawyer Clive Badger (Bill Murray) to buy a tree his family can live in, Mr. Fox plans on doing one more heist between three farmers: Walt Boggis, Nate Bunce, and Franklin Bean. However, the heist puts all the animals in danger, and it's now up to Mr. Fox to make things right.

Fantastic Mr. Fox truly is fantastic with top-notch animation, a story that exceeds the source material, fun characters, a great score from Alexandre Desplat, needle drops that fit like a glove, and an all-star voice cast that gives their all.

2010- Tangled

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 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 has the honor of being Disney’s 50th animated movie with a story that sticks true to its source material while also adding something new, animation that shows off its 260 million dollar budget, three-dimensional characters, and the best Alan Menken songs since the 90s. This would also be Disney’s last animated movie to feature a true traditional villain for 13 years, though Moana and Raya and the Last Dragon were pretty close.

2011- Arthur Christmas

In this movie, Santa Claus gave up the old reindeer-and-sleigh routine in favor of a high-tech aircraft that can deliver a whole city in a few minutes. However, there’s one gift Santa forgot to deliver: A bicycle to a young girl in Trelew Cournwall, England! Now, it’s up to Santa’s youngest son Arthur, along with Grandsanta and wrapper elf Bryony, to travel all the way to Trelew before Christmas morning.

Even though the character designs are a little uncanny compared to other CG films I included (Arthur’s eyes look like they’re gonna pop out!), Arthur Christmas more than makes up for it with Pixar quality writing, laugh-a-minute gags, engaging and funny characters, a great score from Harry Gregson-Williams, and memorable quotes.

2012- Wolf Children

Wolf Children tells the story of a woman named Hana, who falls in love with a man who's really a werewolf. They had two children named Ame and Yuki, who can also turn into wolves. When the father gets killed, Hana and her children travel to the country where it's less busy. As Ame and Yuki grow older, however, they start developing their own traits and preferences: Yuki feels more comfortable being a human, while Ame feels more comfortable being a wolf and wants to live in the woods.

Wolf Children is an underrated gem with Ghibli-quality animation, a timeless story and atmosphere, and compelling and relatable characters. As much as I love Wreck-it Ralph, I feel Wolf Children is slightly better.

2013- The Tale of the Princess Kaguya

A lot of people expected me to pick a certain CG film about two Norwegian sisters, but I wanted to subvert everyone’s expectations with the final movie from anime legend Isao Takahata, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.

Based on the Japanese folktale ‘The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter’, this movie tells the story of a tiny girl nicknamed Takenoko, who was found in a stalk of shining bamboo. She grows faster than the other kids and is soon a delightful, curious girl out enjoying the forest with the local boys. One day, the bamboo cutter, her adoptive father, finds that the bamboo she came from is shining again, this time with treasure. With his newfound fortune, the bamboo cutter moves to the city to give his princess a proper "young lady's" education, complete with an uptight royal governess. Despondent about moving away from her beloved country home, Kaguya's only joy is an outdoor garden she tends for herself. When she comes of age, tales of her beauty reach the highest levels of Japanese society, and five titled men vie for her hand in marriage. But Kaguya still misses her first crush, Sutemaru, from her childhood home.

‘Kaguya’ is a diamond in the rough with an animation style that deters away from the typical anime style, an emotional story, a wonderful score from Joe Hisashi, and a strong female lead different from your typical Western Princess. However, I do wish it was 20-30 minutes shorter.

In Part 4, you’ll see movies featuring emotions, teenagers, skeletons, and a mailman!

Favorite Animated Movies From Each Year Of My Life Part 2/5

 2002- Lilo and Stitch

Dr. Jumba Jookiba (David Odger Stiers) is on trial for creating an illegal genetic experiment named 626 (voiced by director Chris Sanders). He is bulletproof, fireproof, can see in the dark, think smarter than a supercomputer, and lift objects 3,000 times his own size. His only instinct is to destroy everything he touches! Because of this, the United Galactic Federation plans to send 626 to a desert asteroid and Jumba to a prison cell. 626, however, escapes, hijacks a police cruiser, and crash-lands on Earth. The Grand Councilwoman (Zoe Caldwell) has no choice but to send so-called Earth expert Pleakley (Kevin McDonald) and Jumba to Earth and retrieve 626. Back on Earth, on the island of Kauai, there live two sisters: 19-year-old Nani Pelekai (Tia Carrere) and 6-year-old Lilo Pelekai (Daveigh Chase). Both of their parents died in a car accident, so Nani is doing all she can to take care of Lilo and trying to get a job. When Lilo mistakes 626 for a dog and names him 'Stitch', the state of Hawaii gets turned upside-down.

Lilo and Stitch is easily the best animated Disney movie of the 2000s with a strong emotional story, great character animation, a rousing score from Alan Silvestri, and engaging and relatable characters. In fact, I often compare myself to Lilo Pelekai, and my sister to Nani.

2003- Finding Nemo

In the oceans of Australia, a clownfish named Marlin (Albert Brookes) has a son named Nemo. 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, hypnotic jellyfish, and hippy sea turtles. Meanwhile, Nemo gets dumped into a fish tank in a dentist's office with four captive 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). Gil, who has tried to escape countless times, agrees to help Nemo escape back into the big blue before he becomes the pet of Darla, the dentist’s niece who kills every fish she gets.

Finding Nemo is Pixar’s best movie with amazing animation, a highly engaging story and characters, a great score from Thomas Newman, and tons of memorable quotes.

2004- The Incredibles

The Incredibles takes place in a world of superheroes and supervillains. 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 from Metroville, or live a normal life as a modern-day citizen. Fifteen years have passed, and Mr. Incredible (now known as Bob Parr) is married to the super-stretchy Elastgirl (now known as Helen Parr), who gave birth to three kids, each with different powers. When a new villain named Syndrome (who’s actually a rejected fanboy) plans to destroy the city with the Omnidroid, a special robot that only he can defeat, it’s up to Bob and his family to come out of hiding and save the world.

The Incredibles may be more mature and violent than previous Pixar films, but it’s still a fantastic movie with an imaginative and compelling story, great animation that aged like fine wine, engaging characters, an ‘incredible’ score from Michael Giaccino, and an accurate depiction on how married couples act.

2005- Corpse Bride

 

In Tim Burton's follow-up to The Nightmare before Christmas, Victor Van Dort (Johnny Depp) is betrothed to the lovely Victoria Everglot (Emily Watson). However, after practicing his vows in the forest, Victor accidentally marries a corpse named Emily (Helena Bonham Carter) and gets sent to the colorful Land of the Dead, inhabited by zombies, skeletons, and creepy-crawlies. However, Barkis Bittern, who killed Emily years ago, hears about Victor's sudden disappearance, and plans to marry Victoria against her will to inherit her money.

I’m aware that others would pick Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit over Corpse Bride, but I chose this movie for its simple and charming story, catchy songs from Danny Elfman, strong character animation, and a more threatening villain.

2006- Happy Feet

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.

Even though the movie has a story that drags on longer than it should and mature religious undertones, Happy Feet more than makes up for it with animation that aged very well, a powerful score from John Powell, engaging and relatable characters, and top-notch voice acting.

I’m totally aware that other people would pick Over the Hedge, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Paprika, or even Cars for their favorite animated movie from 2006, but for me, Happy Feet is a metaphor for autism (which I have). Mumble is different from other penguins since he can’t sing well. Instead, he has a knack for tap-dancing that the other emperor penguins can’t stand. This can be viewed as a parable for stimming, which many autistic people, myself included, do a lot. If that isn’t bad enough, Mumble has trouble connecting with his dad Memphis! In fact, the only other emperors who accept Mumble for who he is are his mom Norma Jean and another penguin around Mumble’s age, Gloria. Luckily, since this is a family movie, everything turns out right in the end.

Along with all that, Mumble has a strong sense of moral justice: When Lovelace has his talisman (which is actually a six-pack) stuck to a heavy bell, Mumble dives head-first to rescue Lovelace, even though he doesn’t really like Mumble. To top it all off, there were hungry orcas in the water!

2007- Ratatouille

Ratatouille tells the story of a French rat named Remy (Patton Oswalt), who has a good sense of smell and a passion for cooking. He follows in the footsteps of the deceased but legendary Chef Gusteu, the greatest chef in Paris. When he finds himself underneath the restaurant of Gusteu's itself, Remy befriends a nincompoop named Alfredo Linguini. He has no idea how to cook, but Remy does. Remy teaches Linguini how to cook by hiding under his hat and literally pulling his hairs. However, the devious Chef Skinner becomes aware of Linguini's secret, and will do anything to expose Linguini's secret.

Ratatouille is as delectable as the food in the movie with an engaging story, outstanding animation, likable characters, and another tasty score from Michael Giacchino.

In Part 3, you’ll see movies featuring pandas, foxes, princesses, and wolves!

Favorite Animated Movies From Each Year Of My Life Part 1/5

On April 10th, 1996, yours truly was born. To celebrate the occasion, I decided to tackle an ambitious project: A favorite animated movie from each year of my life so far. For the next couple of days, I’ll tackle 30 animated movies from 30 different years. Without further ado, let’s go!

1996- The Hunchback of Notre Dame

To be honest, picking a quality animated movie from 1996 was tough- Beevis and Butthead Do America is too crude, James and the Giant Peach is too strange, and All Dogs Go To Heaven 2 is a disgrace to the original film. That’s why I picked Disney’s feature that year, The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Based on the novel by Victor Hugo, this movie tells the story of a deformed man named Quasimodo, who has been raised in the Notre Dame bell tower for 20 years. The only friends he has are three gargoyle statues named Victor, Hugo, and Laverne. On the Feast of Fools, Quasi asks his boss and caretaker, Judge Claude Frollo, if he could go. Frollo resents, but Quasi sneaks out anyway. When the townspeople see Quasi, they laugh at his ugliness and throw fruits and vegetables at him. However, he gets rescued by a beautiful gypsy named Esmeralda, and she helps him escape. Enraged by this, Frollo seeks revenge by burning down all of Paris to find Esmeralda so he can kill her.

Despite having annoying gargoyles, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is an improvement over Pocahontas with top-notch animation, another great score from Alan Menken, songs that have no right to be this good (except for maybe A Guy Like You), and a strong message about accepting others for who they really are.

1997- Anastasia

I know some people would pick Hercules or Princess Mononoke for 1997, but I decided to pick Don Bluth’s feature that year, Anastasia.

This movie is about a young woman named Anya (Meg Ryan), who suffered from amnesia as a child. When she gets spotted by Dimitri (John Cusack), who is trying desperately to find the real Anastasia Romanov to earn money from the queen, he thinks that Anya is the real Anastasia, and not just an imposter, and brings her to France to prove to the queen that she's the real Anastasia. When the evil Rasputan (Christopher Lloyd) finds out that Anya is still alive, he won't rest until all the Romanovs are dead. 

Even though the film strays away from the real-life events, Anastasia is still a capable film with a well-structured story, songs that easily surpass weaker Alan Menken songs, a good score from David Newman, engaging characters, and top-notch character animation.

1998- Mulan

I know some people would pick The Prince of Egypt for their favorite animated movie from 1998, but at our house, Mulan is a favorite of me and my mom.

Mulan is about a Chinese girl named Fa Mulan, who unfortunately fails her matchmaker test. One day, her aging father Fa Zhu gets drafted into a war against the power-hungry Mongolian Huns. This is a bad idea for Mulan because he is sure to die, so Mulan steals her dad’s armor and participates in the war in Fa Zhu’s place. With the help of the lucky cricket Cri-Kee and the pint-sized dragon Mushu, Mulan has to prove what it takes to fight the Huns and save China without the other soldiers finding out her real identity.

When Mulan was first released 28 years ago, Roger Ebert called the film ‘an impressive achievement ranking with Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King!’ And he’s absolutely right: Mulan is a gem with brilliant animation, a compelling story, engaging characters, catchy songs from David Zippel and Matthew Wilder, and a brilliant score from the late Jerry Goldsmith.

1999- Toy Story 2

I know that some would pick The Iron Giant over Toy Story 2, but I felt that it would be sacrilegious to exclude a Toy Story movie.

In the sequel to the animation phenomenon known as Toy Story, Woody gets kidnapped by Al McWiggen (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 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 and remind him what a toy's true purpose in life is.

Even after 26 years, Toy Story 2 is still one of the best animated sequels of all time with a story that really expands on what we loved about Toy Story 1, fun new characters, animation that holds up very well, great quotes, and another great score from Randy Newman.

2000- Chicken Run

Aardman's first feature film Chicken Run is about a British hen named Ginger (Julia Sawalha), who lives on a chicken farm owned by the wicked Mrs. Tweedy. Whenever the chickens stop laying eggs, Tweedy kills them. When a 'flying' rooster named Rocky (Mel Gibson) crashes into the farm, Ginger eagerly asks Rocky how he flew so all the chickens can fly to escape Mrs. Tweedy. They better do it quick- Mrs. Tweedy plans on making the chickens into pies.

Chicken Run is one of the best stop-motion movies of all time with fluid animation, a compelling story, likable and funny characters, a great score from John Powell and Harry Gregson-Williams, and Aardman’s best villain to date: Mrs. Melicia Tweedy.

2001- Spirited Away

I’m sorry that I didn’t pick either Shrek or Monsters Inc for 2001, but it’s almost impossible to choose between the two films: It would be like picking between pizza and tacos. I also wanted to include movies from different countries.

Spirited Away is about a 10-year-old girl named Chihiro, who moves away from her old town with her parents. While stopping at an abandoned resort town, Chihiro’s parents gorge themselves with food that turns them into pigs. Before she knows it, Chihiro gets spirited away to another world where the biggest monsters rule. Now, in order to change her parents back, Chihiro has to work at Yubaba’s bath house while also learning to love herself.

Spirited Away is Hayao Miyazaki’s masterpiece with a paper-thick story, lovable characters, astonishing character animation, and a moving score from Joe Hisashi.

In Part 2, you’ll see movies featuring aliens, fish, zombies, and penguins!